EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — A concert pairing UTEP musicians with the 1st Armored Division Band from Fort Bliss will highlight the military roots of jazz as part of a national effort tied to America’s upcoming 250th birthday.

UTEP Bands will host the concert and an educational initiative in partnership with the 1st Armored Division Band, supported by a $20,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts.

UTEP officials said UTEP is one of 33 recipients in this round of NEA grants, which range from $10,000 to $20,000 and support public-facing arts projects featuring performances and educational programming with U.S. military bands.

The project centers on James Reese Europe, a U.S. soldier and bandleader whose World War I service helped shape and spread jazz internationally. Europe led the military band of the 369th Infantry Regiment, known as the “Harlem Hellfighters,” a New York-based unit made up entirely of African American and Puerto Rican soldiers. The band performed in France in 1918 and toured the United States after returning in 1919, introducing audiences to new musical styles while boosting troop morale.

“He was an entrepreneur, a composer and a bandleader. I really would have liked to have eaten lunch with him,” said Brandon Houghtalen, UTEP associate director of bands and principal investigator of the project.

UTEP’s initiative, titled “The Sound of Service: James Reese Europe and the Evolution of American Military Music,” includes publishing music transcriptions and educational materials, along with a concert in November featuring military music by Europe and others. Houghtalen responded to the NEA call for submissions in January, citing its connection to his research. As a graduate student, he arranged pieces made famous by the 369th Infantry Band for his doctoral recital and has continued refining the transcriptions.

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The transcriptions for “St. Louis Blues,” “Memphis Blues” and “Clef Club March” will be published by Murphy Music Press with accompanying materials intended to place the music in historical and cultural context for teachers and musicians.

“If you’re going to play my arrangement, you’re going to play the version of the ‘St. Louis Blues’ that you would have heard the 369th play in France or on tour in 1919,” Houghtalen said.

The project also points to the influence of the Harlem Hellfighters and other military bands on Gen. John Pershing, the wartime commander of the American Expeditionary Forces, who founded the U.S. Army Band in 1922 while serving as General of the Armies and Army chief of staff. Pershing was stationed at Fort Bliss before the war.

The concert, “Sound of Service: UTEP and Fort Bliss Bands in Concert,” is scheduled for Nov. 12, 2026, at Magoffin Auditorium.

UTEP students will perform alongside members of the 1st Armored Division Band, which supports military ceremonies, troop morale and community relations across the greater El Paso region.

“You needed to partner with a local military band for the grant, and the 1st Armored Division Band is right here, and they’re great,” Houghtalen said. “We have worked with them several times before, at least once a year, for several years.”

A panel discussion with UTEP faculty and members of the 1st Armored Division Band is set for 6 p.m. earlier that evening at Magoffin Auditorium. Both the panel and the concert are free and open to the public.

The concert will be held the day after Veterans Day, which originated as Armistice Day to commemorate the end of World War I.

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