The United States Marine Band: John Philip Sousa
John Philip Sousa, Director (1880-1892), brought world fame to "The President's Own." While the organization was already considered a national institution, Sousa's dynamic leadership transformed the Marine Band's repertoire, emphasized symphonic music, changed the instrumentation, and made rehearsals exceptionally strict. He conducted the band's first sound recordings, initiated its first national concert tour, and began to write the marches that