Seen here in 2010, the American Legion Band of the Tonawandas, Post 264, performs on Sunday afternoon in the Amphitheater. Daily file photo.
Nick Glunt | Staff Writer
The American Legion Band of the Tonawandas, Post 264, will perform at 2:30 p.m. Sunday in the Amphitheater. The award-winning concert band, established in 1929, draws its membership from various musicians in western New York.
“(Chautauquans will) get a chance to hear a band that is a special band, really,” said Jim Scott, personnel manager and 50-year member of the band. “We have a handful of professional musicians, and we have some good band music that you’re never going to hear from any other band at Chautauqua.”
The band draws its membership from a great variety of people. The roster includes people involved in management, engineering, medicine, government, sales and education. Scott said diversity is an advantage for the band because members get the chance to work with musicians who are just as talented as they are.
No one in the band is compensated for the work they put forth. Scott said people stay involved because of the opportunities the group offers.
“The band just keeps getting better and better because we just keep getting better musicians,” Scott said.
The band, he said, has a good reputation in the area simply because people like to hear the members play. The following even extends beyond New York because people who move away join other bands all around the country. At national competitions, they encounter former members on a regular basis.
At the band’s past performances, many Chautauqua residents came from beyond the grounds to see the group, Scott said.
“We get a variety of people coming to listen to us that live in Chautauqua,” he said.
The Chautauquan Daily 
