Mission

MISSION STATEMENT FOR THE LIGHTHOUSE BIG BAND


The Lighthouse Big Band is a Fond du Lac, Wisconsin based collective dedicated to the preservation and performance of the many genres of quality big band jazz music, including Jazz, Blues, Big Band, Swing, Latin and Funk. We play for the sheer joy of jazz music. As professionals and students of the music we love, we feel honored to participate in this art form and are sustained and enriched by its energy.

The mission of The Lighthouse Big Band is to entertain, enrich and expand the community for jazz through live performance, education, and advocacy.


We believe the following elements are essential to fulfilling our Mission:

  • Live performance provides a social interaction between listener and performer that creates its own energy and directly influences the improvisational element of the music. Regardless of technology, this cannot be replicated without that interaction.

  • Education is an important part of our mission as we seek to provide highly motivated young musicians the unique opportunity to perform in a “real world” situation with their school bands and with a professional-caliber jazz ensemble, with the goal of:

    • Educating student musicians in the musical styles of Jazz, Blues, Big Band, Swing, Latin and Funk

    • Raising musicianship to the highest levels of excellence

    • Gaining a broad range of performance experience

    • Expanding educational opportunities outside of the classroom

    • Creating a professional foundation for lifelong musical growth

    • Representing their community through wholesome entertainment

  • Advocacy for the music will include public performances at schools, sponsoring students’ attendance at jazz camps, community fundraising and arts events, and other advocacy opportunities that may arise.

  • Dedication to the fundamental style and spirit of the music is essential to our personal satisfaction about our performance and to meeting the expectations of our core audience.

  • Quality in all aspects of our performance is required to gain the respect and faithful allegiance of discerning listeners and to ensure the long-term existence of the ensemble. We will each strive to achieve this by personally adopting a “Deferment Attitude” toward the ensemble, within sections, between sections, and overall.

  • Preservation of the big band jazz style is necessary for future generations to appreciate and differentiate between the many musical styles they hear, and to more fully understand the origins of current musical styles.