For the past two summers, friends and I have attended the concerts presented by the La Crosse Concert Band at Riverside Park at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday evenings. Every concert has been extremely entertaining.

We are very fortunate to have in the La Crosse area so many talented and dedicated conductors and musicians.

There were four conductors this season who put in many hours studying scores to come up with the perfect music to present to the public. They are Alex Vaver, Jeff Krauklis, Chris Werner and Richard Young. They each prepare a written script giving a little information about each piece, that is presented by Hank Poehling.

The band is composed of members ranging in age from high school apprentices to Tom Wirkus in his 48th year with the band. Every concert is family oriented. Each week, one piece is especially for the children’s march. They carry an American flag and march around the park, led by Abbie Leithold Gerzema and Hugs the Clown.

There are only two concerts left this summer. Wednesday’s concert, “Musical Jewels in July,” will be conducted by Alex Vaver. The July 30 concert, “All American Melodies” will be conducted by Rick Young.

If you haven’t attended a concert, be sure to catch one or both of the upcoming ones and support these talented people. You won’t be disappointed.

In case of threatening weather, the concerts are moved to Logan Middle School, which works well indeed. To learn more about the band, go to www.lacrosseconcertband.org.