09/18/2026
Wow…at 101 years old!!!!
The Greater Miami Symphonic Band shared so many wonderful and memorable moments together with Col. Gabriel on the podium with us! We are so thankful for our time together.
At 101, Col. Arnald D. Gabriel is returning to the conductor’s podium—and he will do it on an Alexandria stage that bears his name.
The World War II veteran and former commander and conductor of the U.S. Air Force Band will lead two selections with the NOVA Concert Band during Del Ray’s Art on the Avenue Festival on Oct. 3. The band performs from noon to 1:15 p.m. on the Colonel Arnald D. Gabriel Band Stage.
Gabriel’s path to that moment spans more than eight decades: from serving as a combat machine gunner with the Army’s 29th Infantry Division to leading the Air Force Symphony Orchestra and Singing Sergeants, becoming the Air Force Band’s first Conductor Emeritus and teaching future musicians at George Mason University.
Last year, when mobility issues kept him from traveling to Illinois to fulfill a promise to conduct at age 100, musicians followed his direction on video monitors instead. His guiding principle: “Your word is your bond.”
To learn more about Col. Gabriel’s extraordinary career, the two selections he will conduct and when to see him take the stage, see the full story in the comments.
