Athena Brass Band

Athena Brass Band Championing the advancement of woman musicians and composers. The band was first formed to perform at the International Women's Brass Conference.

The Athena Brass Band was founded by United States Army Band euphoniumist Laura Lineberger, and the group performs at festivals and conferences across the country. This successful debut resulted in invitations to perform at the Great American Brass Band Festival in 2005 and a return to the IWBC in 2006, followed by a Brass Band Invitational at Indiana University Southeast in June 2009. In 2012 Ath

ena Brass Band gave the first performances of Athenian Fanfare, which was written for the women of Athena Brass Band by Lisa Galvin, at IWBC 2012 and the Gettysburg Brass Band Festival. In 2014 Athena Brass Band returned to IWBC, and in 2015 Athena performed again the Gettysburg Brass Band Festival. The Athena Brass Band musicians include current or former members of the U.S. Army Band, the U.S. Coast Guard Band, Brass Band of Battle Creek and the New Sousa Band. There are several college professors and public school music educators, conductors, music therapists, a sound engineer, a music publisher and a composer; also a nuclear physicist, a biologist, a sociologist, an MBA and an author. Most of the ladies also play with a NABBA brass band.

Congratulations to Dr. Cassie McDonald on her appointment as Assistant Professor of Trumpet at Tennessee Tech University...
04/29/2026

Congratulations to Dr. Cassie McDonald on her appointment as Assistant Professor of Trumpet at Tennessee Tech University! 🎺🎉

We are so excited to feature Athena's Vice President and one of our founding members, Gail Robertson, for today's Board ...
04/27/2026

We are so excited to feature Athena's Vice President and one of our founding members, Gail Robertson, for today's Board Member Monday!

If you are in the Catonsville, MD, area, this concert is for you! Athena percussionist Julie Angelis Boehler will be per...
04/20/2026

If you are in the Catonsville, MD, area, this concert is for you! Athena percussionist Julie Angelis Boehler will be performing with Velvet Brown and the Brass for Uncommon Times ensemble tomorrow, Tuesday, April 21, 7:30pm-9:30pm. Learn more by following this link.

Join us for UMBC's annual Brass Bash, this year featuring Brass for Uncommon Times, a brass and percussion ensemble including top players from across the...

🎺 UPDATE: Mark Your Calendars 🎺We’re excited to share more details for our upcoming performance at The Midwest Clinic!📍 ...
04/20/2026

🎺 UPDATE: Mark Your Calendars 🎺

We’re excited to share more details for our upcoming performance at The Midwest Clinic!

📍 McCormick Place West — Chicago, IL
📅 Wednesday, December 16, 2026
🕓 4:15–5:15 PM

Join Athena Brass Band as we take the stage at one of the most prestigious music conferences in the world. We can’t wait to share this moment with you, whether you’re in the audience or cheering us on from afar.

Let the countdown begin ✨

The Midwest Clinic will premiere many new events and products, along with stimulating clinics, inspiring concerts, and unrivaled opportunities to network wit...

We are beyond thrilled to announce that Athena Brass Band has been invited to perform AGAIN at The Midwest Clinic, one o...
04/08/2026

We are beyond thrilled to announce that Athena Brass Band has been invited to perform AGAIN at The Midwest Clinic, one of the most prestigious band and orchestra conferences in the world!

Each year, ensembles from around the globe apply for the opportunity to perform on the Midwest stage. Being selected is a tremendous honor, and we are so proud to represent our community in Chicago this December.

We can't wait to share what we've been working on. More details to come!

Thank you to everyone who has supported us along the way, this one's for you.

The Midwest Clinic
80th Annual International Band & Orchestra Conference
December 16–18, 2026 · McCormick Place West, Chicago

Another big congratulations today! Amy Millesen will be joining The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps bu...
04/03/2026

Another big congratulations today! Amy Millesen will be joining The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps bugle section! 🇺🇸🎺

We are so proud to celebrate one of our own from the Athena community achieving such an incredible milestone.

Wishing you all the best in this exciting new chapter, Athena is cheering you on every step of the way! 🎉

Congratulations to our two newest members of our bugle section!

Amy Millesen is originally from Athens, Ohio. She earned her BM in Trumpet Performance from James Madison University and her MM in Trumpet Performance from the University of Southern California. Amy is currently in the second year of her DMA in Trumpet Performance and Pedagogy at the University of Colorado Boulder. She would like to thank her friends and family for all their support and encouragement.

Fernando De los Santos, from Texas City, Texas, holds a degree in Music Education from the University of Houston. He would like to thank his teachers—Mark Hughes, Jim Vassallo, Noah Adams, Brian Moreno, David Bertman, and Dr. Cameron Kubos—along with his friends and family for their unwavering encouragement and belief in his journey.

(U.S. Army Photo by Staff Sgt. Christina Alegre)

Big congratulations to our friend Rachel Zephir on her new role as Director of Bands at the University of Puget Sound Sc...
04/03/2026

Big congratulations to our friend Rachel Zephir on her new role as Director of Bands at the University of Puget Sound School of Music! 🎉

Rachel brings so much heart, intention, and artistry to everything she does. We feel incredibly lucky to have her as part of Athena Brass Band and can’t wait to see the impact she’ll have in this next chapter.

Cheering you on every step of the way, Rachel! ✨🎶

The School of Music is pleased to welcome Dr. Rachel Zephir as our new Director of Bands beginning in Fall 2026!

Rachel Zephir has recently completed a Doctor of Musical Arts in Wind Band Conducting from the University of Michigan. Prior to that, she served as the Director of Bands at Eleanor Roosevelt High School in Greenbelt, Maryland. Rachel currently serves on the board of the Athena Brass Band; an all female professional brass band made up of professional brass players from all over the world. Rachel is a graduate of the Peabody Conservatory of Music. She has degrees in Trumpet, Music Education, and Wind Conducting. She also has completed a Master of Music in Music Education from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

Welcome to Puget Sound, Dr. Zephir! 🎶

We are so excited to feature Janet Tracy for Board Member Monday! 🎶
03/30/2026

We are so excited to feature Janet Tracy for Board Member Monday! 🎶

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2301 S Martin Luther King Dr
Chicago, IL
60616

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