The Emigsville Band

🎵 For over 150 years, the Emigsville Band has been providing musical entertainment to the York County region. 🎵

Who We Are

We are a non-profit community band of over 90 volunteer musicians from across York County and beyond. Our members range from middle and high school students to retirees staying connected through music, and everyone in between. The Emigsville Band is a welcoming home for all musicians, amateur and professional. As York County’s most active community band, we proudly performed over 40 concerts in 2024, filling our county with live music and joy year-round.

Catch us performing at local parades, civic ceremonies, community events, vendor shows, retirement homes, church picnics, and festivals throughout the year. We serve the entire county—from Fairview to Shrewsbury, Wrightsville to Hanover! Our musicians are unpaid volunteers who play for the sheer love of music.

What began as a small village's town band in the late 1800s has become an historical musical legacy in the county. For more information on our history, check out our Wikipedia article! 

                               

Our Mission

Our mission is threefold:

1. To provide a musical home for all amateur musicians in York County
2. To enrich the York County community through concerts and performances, education, and involvement
3. To preserve our historic legacy since 1878 as an incorporated institution (and 1872 when we began), including our Band Hall, as a local cultural treasure

Why Donate to Us?

Your donation ensures our musical legacy thrives for generations to come. 

Here’s how you’ll make a difference: 

• Sponsor future performances across the county to bring musical entertainment to our community
• Maintain our historic Band Hall, owned since 1918, at 3175 N. George St. in Emigsville
• Purchase new music to keep our repertoire fresh and our musicians challenged
• Offset expenses for hauling our band trailer to performances
• Promote our non-profit to attract new amateur musicians seeking a creative outlet and a second family

In the News

1. York Daily Record - Small towns and what worked: New generation of Emigsville Band tells 150-year story: This news article in the York Daily Record earned the Emigsville Band front-page news in the printed newspaper in February 2024. We created a 90-minute documentary that brought the Emigsville Band’s 150-year history to life, reviving its place in the community. The goal was to celebrate this legacy and ensure that the band’s story could be enjoyed by both current audiences and future generations. 
2. FOX43 - Over a century of community music: The Emigsville Band: This segment on FOX43 was a part of a series shedding light on the various nonprofits that were participating in the Give Local York in 2024. This was our first year in GLY, and we raised funds to offset costs for performing at nursing homes and retirement villages.
3. Give Local York - Livestream Interview with Assistant Director Michael Kirk: During the 24-hour fundraising event in 2024, we joined the livestream with Philip Given and Chris Strub. 
4. Give Local York - FOX43 Live TV Interview at Wellspan Park (York Revolution Stadium) with Evan Forrester: Our Assistant Director kicked off the 10:00 PM news during GLY 2024 with Evan Forrester talking about the band. 
5. ABC27 - Community band festival highlights musical heritage: ABC27 showed up unexpectedly to the first annual York County Community Band Festival on July 28, 2024. This event was organized and executed by the Emigsville Band, and featured four of York's remaining historical community bands. 
6. FOX43 - Emigsville Band celebrates decades of making music for central Pennsylvania community: The band organized a special concert at the State Museum of Pennsylvania in downtown Harrisburg on September 1, 2024. After the success of the event, the band was invited in-studio to discuss the season's successes as well as the concert where we joined forces with the Harrisburg-local Keystone Concert Band. 
7. York Daily Record - Christmas tradition continues with band music 146 years in the making: Continuing our annual tradition of free musical entertainment to the York community, we performed to a full house at our Band Hall in December 2024. Our selection of Christmas music surely got everyone in the holiday spirit! 

Cultural Arts Alliance Match