Concert Band

Monday, November 18th

6:00-7:00 p.m.

Minnetonka Senior Center

(Veterans and spouses free, children free under 10. All others guests pay $4. Guests are requested to pre-register at 952-939-8393 Mon-Fri, 8 a.m-4:30 p.m.)

Sunday, November 24th

1:30-3:00 p.m.

Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Chaska

(Arboretum gate admission required)

Sunday, December 8th - Share the Warmth Concert

4:00- 5:30 p.m.

Eden Prairie High School Auditorium

Donations of warm clothing & non-perishable foods to PROP Shop and PROP Food appreciated

Monday, February 3rd, 2025 - District Band Festival Concert

8:00-9:00 p.m.

Eden Prairie High School Auditorium

Sunday, March 16th, 2025 - Mosaic of Music Concert

4:00-5:00 p.m.

Performance Arts Center, Central Middle School, Eden Prairie

Thursday, May 29th, 2025

Time TBD

Pax Christi Catholic Community, Eden Prairie

Prairie Winds

Wednesday, November 27th - Ensemble

4:30-5:30 p.m.

Aurora On France, Edina

Saturday, Dec 7th - Ensemble

2:00- 3:00 p.m.

Eden Prairie Shopping Center

Wednesday, Dec 11st - Jazz Combo

3:00-4:00 p.m.

Windemere Assisted Living, Shakopee

Tuesday, Feb 18th, 2025 - Ensemble

11:00-11:40 a.m.

PROP Food Empty Bowls

St Andrew’s Church, Eden Prairie

Our Back Stage Story

The Eden Prairie Community Band was founded with 23 players in 1973 by Mr. Emmet (Em) Stark. The objective of the “All Comers Band,” as the group was first called, was to serve as a creative outlet for high school students and adult members of the community. The band was a summer program through August 1981 before becoming a year-round band in 1982.

In 1996, the band was chosen to represent the United States as part of the musical celebration of Austria’s millennium. The trip included performances in several Austrian cities as well as in Budapest, Hungary. In 1998, the band returned to Europe with an extensive tour of Italy and Switzerland.

Marilyn Rateike became the director of the Eden Prairie Community Band upon Mr. Stark’s retirement in 1999. In 2002, the band traveled to China when they were invited by the Chinese American Cultural Bridge Center to participate in a cultural exchange program. The band toured and played in Ireland and Scotland in 2005.

Thomas Maeck took over for Marilyn in 2006. In 2008, the EPCB toured and performed in Greece under his leadership. During his tenure, the band was proud to be a part of a newly commissioned work for band entitled “Streets of Honor” by Daniel Kallmen.

Tom Muehlbauer enthusiastically stepped into the director role in 2016.

Band members also have the opportunity to perform in ensemble groups, including Jazz on the Prairie and The Prairie Ramblers. Mr. Stark originally created the Jazz on the Prairie ensemble before Jerry Cerchia became the director upon Mr. Stark’s retirement. Don Bates took over in 2002 and the jazz band now meets weekly and performs several concerts in Eden Prairie and surrounding communities each year. The group even hosts several area Jazz bands at its annual Minnesota Festival of Jazz on the Prairie at the Staring Lake Amphitheatre. 

The band also provides community services. Members of the community band comprise the pit orchestra for the musicals staged by the Eden Prairie Players Community Theater every summer. Every December, the band performs at its annual Share the Warmth concert, where audience members are encouraged to donate food to the local food shelf and warm clothing to PROP FOOD and PROP Shop.

Our band and our ensembles also practice lifelong learning by partnering with local school districts. Adult and student musicians perform side-by-side in annual festivals to inspire students to continue in their musical endeavors.