GABBF 2025 Music

The GABBF 2025 Festival Lineup and Music Schedule is here!

The bands are booked and we quickly approaching 2025's festival on May 29-31! This is always an exciting time and we have great music in store for you this year: British brass band, big band, brass quintet, pop bands and more!

Our theme this year is "Brass in the Bluegrass" which captures all the spirit of Kentucky, brass bands, and our 35 year history in Kentucky. Pretty impressive!

Thursday's music features two area-based groups. We will have PowerPlay open the night, bringing their soul and horn band covers and will feature many Danville musicians. To cap the night, C the Beat will bring many originals by the well-known keyboardist Lee Carroll. C the Beat is Lexington-based and his original tunes pull from his worldly influence and downhome roots: the blues. His music is captivating, and his band will have you up dancing! Experience these two groups downtown at Weisiger Park.

Friday night is Bayou and Brass -located at the Main Stage at Centre College- where we will feature four New Orleans based groups. Two bands are straight from New Orleans and two are New Orleans-inspired groups from big cities. Lowdown Brass Band and Brass Queens come from the big cities of Chicago and New York and both bring a party. The Brass Queens are an all female group and have more than earned their place amongst the best. Go, girls! Our two bands hailing from New Orleans are the Glen David Andrews Band, a trombone duo that can really shake it up and the prolific Rebirth Brass Band which has an over 35 year reign in New Orleans Brass Band. Rebirth Brass Band will cap our night for Bayou and Brass and bring that classic New Orleans sound to the GABBF stage.

Don't forget- beginning at 4pm, we will also have music at Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill on Friday which will feature Bourbon & Brass Company, a brass quintet coming from Louisville and bringing a wide variety of programming from classical to more jazz-inspired music. They play beautifully and will be a wonderful addition to the festival.

Saturday's music is split into two blocks to help you find the music you'd best like to hear. The 1st block features several Kentucky groups to help celebrate our theme "Brass in the Bluegrass." The Lexington Brass Band, the 202nd Army Band, the Advocate Brass Band (who will send us off right after the parade), and Lexington's big band the Bluegrass Area Jazz Ambassadors. Continuing into Saturday afternoon, music will be filled with excitement as we have the internationally-acclaimed Spanish Brass coming all the way from Spain to perform their program of beautiful and fun chamber music and the Airmen of Note from the U.S. Air Force. These two ensembles have a big say in brass music and feature some of the best musicians in the world. We are THRILLED to be their host! To close the afternoon, we will hear from crowd-favorite Circle City Sidewalk Stompers (also known as the Clown band) on Walnut Street. They will perform their hour-long program which everyone can enjoy.

Saturday's evening music - the 2nd block - will express variety of a different sort, still focused on brass and horns, which is what we do best. The Red Baraat will bring its South Asian sound to our stage with a wide influence: Punjabi rhythms, jazz, hip hop, and yes, even a little punk rock sprinkled-in. They'll have you up dancing and grooving to their unique sound. We'll also hear performances from the soul band Soul Juice of Las Vegas, hip hop from Lowdown Brass Band, and returning veterans, No BS! Brass, who heated up a chilly evening in 2024.

To top our night, the Huntertones will bring jazz and funk influence to the stage with their three-piece horn section who, of course, are the main feature of the band. This band hails from Brooklyn, New York and these horn players bring a ton of talent and influence. The saxophonist is a member of Cory Wong's horn section, the trumpet players also plays sousaphone, and the trombonist, well, he beatboxes. They play incredibly both individually and as a unit and are going to close an exciting weekend of music.

This year's lineup brings new audiences and ages to Danville, and we are so thrilled to be able to continue this event and introduce many new faces, both on and off the stage. Here at the GABBF, our goal is to continue honoring the traditions of over three decades as well as introduce some new directions. Some of the music may not be what you're used to, but it will bring so much joy to many people as we are always focused on showcasing brass, brass music, and horns in every way we can. Please see the schedule on our website and follow our Facebook event page to keep up with the latest on the GABBF!