Band convention

The American Bandmasters Association (ABA) was formed in 1929 by Edwin Franko Goldman to promote concert band music.^[1] Goldman sought to raise esteem for concert bands among musicians and audiences.

The reputations of concert bands suffered in comparison to symphony orchestras due to factors including "the concert band’s concert venue, often out-of-doors, the difficulty of conductors to obtain a quality music education, a limited repertoire that with the exception of marches was largely borrowed from the libraries of the orchestra, and a lack of camaraderie among the leading bandmasters/conductors of the period.^[2]"

The ABA's current Constitution states that the organization shall:

• honor outstanding achievement by invitation to membership;
• encourage prominent composers of all countries to write for the concert band;
• by example and leadership further enhance the concert band and its music within our cultural heritage