Twenty years ago, a dozen local brass musicians got together to blow their horns for one simple reason - they loved to play.

Some of them had performed with the Kilties Junior Drum & Bugle Corps during its glory years. Others had played with the Racine All City Youth Band and various other groups in and around Racine. What they all had in common, back in the late 1980s, was a passion for brass music and not a lot of opportunities to perform it as a group, said Ken Norman, one of the 12 horn players.

"At one time, there were a lot of outlets for brass players in Racine," said Norman, who can play just about any brass instrument out there. "But most of that seemed to come to an end in the 1980s."

More than one person approached Norman at the time, suggesting that they start a brass group. And, with the help of Gary King and a few others, that's just what he did.

They called themselves the Belle City Brassworks Brass Band and most of them are still performing under that name today. This year marks the Brassworks' 20th anniversary of bringing its unique brass band sound to southeastern Wisconsin and, as part of that celebration, the band will perform "A Brass Spectacular" on Sunday afternoon at the Washington Park High School Theater. The concert will also feature guest trombone soloist Dean Sorenson, director of Jazz Studies at the University of Minnesota (see side story for more about him), and the All Region High School Honors Brass Ensemble, consisting of Racine and Kenosha area brass musicians recommended by their music teachers.

Bring on the brass

Modeled loosely after traditional British brass bands, the Belle City Brassworks has grown through the years into a group of 40-plus musicians ranging in age from 17 to 77 who play a wide range of music from classic brass literature to big band swing and pops. Seven of the original "dirty dozen," as Norman calls them, are still playing with the group. In addition to he and King, they are Harlow Klema, Rich Wosilait, Bill Stearns, Art Hageman and Paul Sandvick.

Joining them at weekly practices and on the performance stage are men and women from a variety of backgrounds, with different levels of musical ability and experience, said Douglas Johnson, who is in his 12th year conducting the Brassworks.

Amateurs and professionals, college students and retirees - all are welcome in this brass band, said King, who has played coronet with the group since its inception.

"The Brassworks has always been community based," King said. "Kenny and I set it up so that people who wanted to could come and play. All we ask is that they make sure they donate their time in an effective manner."

Members do not pay a joining fee and there is no audition process, King explained. The result is a very dedicated group of brass musicians who give a consistently strong effort and have fun doing it, said Johnson, who is also the band and orchestra director at Washington Park High School, as well as founder and longtime director of Racine's Lighthouse Brigade marching band.

"Our ranks include some of the finest brass players in the Racine and Kenosha area," King said.

Gift of music

Along with its mission to provide a meaningful outlet for brass musicians throughout southeastern Wisconsin, the Brassworks has a goal of promoting the arts through entertaining performances in an active concert schedule. Between the two, the band has given a lot to its surrounding community in its 20-year existence.

Of the five major concerts the group presents each year, two are free holiday concerts and another two offer educational opportunities to young musicians, either through performance experience or by funding college scholarships.

"We feel good about our outreach to help youth," King said.

Even those events that require a paid ticket are very reasonably priced. This weekend's concert, for example, costs $8 per adult or $6 per student/senior, which is the same price the band has charged for the past eight or nine years, according to King. Funds raised at concerts go toward scholarships for high school students and operating costs for the band, which is a non-profit organization. The band also raises money through advertising sales in the Brassworks' annual program book, he explained.

All of the Brassworks musicians volunteer their time to play with the band, and many of them give of themselves in other capacities. Norman, for example, does all of the arrangements for the band, King said.

"Kenny is probably the best music arranger in southeastern Wisconsin," he said. "Everybody pitches in, in their own particular way. We are sustainable because people are really good about donating their time to the band."

Since 1995, the Brassworks has given southeastern Wisconsin additional musical gifts through its program that brings internationally famous brass artists to Racine County as featured guest artists at its concerts. Through the years the band has featured a variety of performers including Fred Mills of the Canadian Brass; Gregory Flint of the Chicago Brass Quintet; Steven Mead of the Royal Northern College of Music in the United Kingdom; and Patrick Sheridan of the President's Own United States Marine Band.

The Brassworks also performs at a number of community events from Kiwanis Pancake Day to July 4th parades. They also play at church services when invited, Johnson said.

All for one

No matter where they are playing, blowing a horn with the Belle City Brassworks is something that Norman and King say still thrills them after all these years.

"Getting up in front of a couple hundred people and playing well still makes my heart go pitter pat," said King.

Johnson, too, says his time with the Brassworks has been a great experience.

"The camaraderie is what makes this group fun to be around," he said.

While the individual musicians' personalities and viewpoints on everything from politics to sports may be divergent, they all manage to come together for the purpose of playing great music, Johnson said.

"It is amazing how you can take people from all different situations in life and put them behind musical instruments and have them make a united, beautiful sound," he said.

"We like to think we are the best-kept secret in Racine, from a musical standpoint," said King.

Guest soloist Dean Sorenson

Joining the Belle City Brassworks on stage at their Sunday concert will be Dean Sorenson, a highly prolific trombone soloist, composer, arranger, educator and clinician. Sorenson, who is the director of Jazz Studies at the University of Minnesota, is frequently featured at concerts, festivals and conventions around the country and abroad.

A commissioned composer and arranger, Sorenson has written and arranged amusic for numerous ensembles including the Glenn Miller Orchestra, the Airmen of Note, the United States Air Force Band, and for brass ensembles Proteus 7 and the Chestnut Brass Company. He received his bachelor's degree in trombone performance from the University of Minnesota and his master's degree in jazz arranging and composition from the Eastman School of Music.

Sorenson is listed in the "Who's Who Among America's Teachers," and is a strong advocate of jazz education and the expansion of its repertoire. For more information please visit http://www.deansorensonmusic.com

If You Go

WHAT: "A Brass Spectacular," the Belle City Brassworks Brass Band with guest trombonist Dean Sorenson.

WHEN: 3 p.m. Sunday.

WHERE: Park High School Theater, 1901 12th St.

COST: Tickets are $8 for adults and $6 for seniors and students. They are available in advance at Schmitt Music, 1409 Washington Ave., as well as at the door.

INFO: Visit http://www.bellecitybrassworks.blogspot.com or call (262) 634-8006.

The rest of the Brassworks's 2008-09 season includes:

* "A Brass Christmas," 7:30 p.m. Dec. 10 at Atonement Lutheran Church, 2915 Wright Ave.

* "A Brass Christmas," 7:30 p.m. Dec. 17 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church, 2201 Northwestern Ave.

* "John Hemkes Memorial Concert," 2 p.m., March 29, 2009, at Atonement Lutheran Church, 2915 Wright Ave.

* "Swing'n Brass," 2 p.m. June 14, 2009, at Union Grove High School Performing Arts Center, 3433 S. Colony Ave., Union Grove.