The Civil War Comes to Nazareth in a Musical Way

The 2011 year kicks off a national four-year commemoration of the Civil War, and in observation, a concert featuring the music of the era was performed Sunday night at .

The performance featured the Nazareth Community Band, directed by Ralph Brodt, and the renowned Allentown Band, directed by Ronald Demkee. Music of the genre included marches, quicksteps and patriotic tunes composed by the likes of Stephen Foster and Claudio Grafulla.

Special guest vocalist Ron Meixsell sang “Amazing Grace,” “Battle Hymn of the Republic” and the National Anthem. He also narrated - to the music of “Adagio for Strings” by Samuel Barber - a letter from the battlefield by Major Sullivan Ballou to his wife Sarah.

Meixsell, a native of Nazareth who now sings for dignitaries on Long Island, played and sang with the Nazareth band in high school, which was founded during the Civil War.

Before the concert, an exhibit dedicated to the Civil War was open to the public at the . The exhibit is titled "United by God, Divided by Man: The Moravian Struggle During the American Civil War."

The museum is open from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. every day and the exhibit continues to be open to the public.