USAF Band of the Pacific's Pacific Brass wins friends and influences the people of Mongolia! Published July 30, 2007 By Major Matt Henry Band of the Pacific 7-18-2007 -- As the first US military band to travel to Mongolia, none of us knew quite what to expect. We knew that Mongolia is, per capita, one of the largest supporters to O.I.F. and they were gearing up for their 8th deployment of troops to Iraq. They have been outstanding partners in the G.W.O.T., generously allowing over-flights as US and coalition forces execute air operations though-out Iraq and Afghanistan. We now know they are a proud people with a rich and varied history, and we have the honor of calling each other friends. We arrived at Chinggis Khaan airport near Ulaan Baatar (UB as the locals call it) late on 25 Jun after traveling from Tokyo via Korea. We awoke early the next day to travel the 5 hours from UB to Darkhan. A city of about 100,000, it is the second largest next to UB. It is also home of Mongolian Army Unit 330, which was the second reason we'd traveled to Darkhan. After arriving, I made my way to the local radio station to talk about the free joint concert that night with the Central Military Orchestra of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Mongolia and Pacific Brass of the USAF Band of the Pacific. I was able to stress that we were there to celebrate 20 years of diplomatic relations between the US and Mongolia and that the concert would celebrate that cooperation and friendship. Turnout at the concert was good (about 400). Col Bayarmagai, commander of Unit 330 (and a graduate of the US Army War College) opened the concert speaking about their unit's preparations to deploy in support of OIF and welcoming us as representatives of their "Third Neighbor" (Russia and China being 1 and 2). The Mongolian band opened the concert and Pacific Brass opened the second half. We programmed a wide variety of music, from classic to Jazz to Rock (yes, rock with a Brass Quintet!) and emphasized Americana. We also presented (premiered) an original piece written by AF music arranger, SSgt Scott Wise of the USAF Band of the Pacific, based on two traditional Mongolian folk songs. It was incredibly well received with the audience, singing along, clapping and crying tears of joy. We concluded our portion with a Medley of Glenn Miller tunes to celebrate the AF's 60th anniversary. It was also very well received. To conclude this joint concert we combined forces. The first was a piece which featured trumpet players from both groups, conducted by their conductor, Major Tumurbat and we concluded the concert with Stars and Stripes Forever, conducted by me. After the concert, the local cable access channel interviewed me about the concert and why we were there. The next day (27 Jun) we went to Unit 330 to do a joint performance for the troops and families of Unit 330. This concert was also hosted by Col Bayarmagai and LtCol Schwab, The Embassy's DAT was in attendance as well. It was very well attended (400 which was standing room only) and very well received. It also gave us the opportunity to have more personal interaction with our Mongolian counterparts. In spite of a language barrier, we were able to overcome it through the international language of music! After the concert, we traveled the 4 hours to Erdenet, a city of about 70,000 (Mongolia's third largest) and home of Unit 186. We did two joint performances on 28 Jun; first, for Unit 186 and their families (about 250 - again, standing room only), hosted by LtCol Sukhbatar, acting commander of Unit 186 and second, for the people of Erdenet (about 450) hosted by Governor Gonbald. This was again a resounding success with the civilian leadership asking when we'd be back! Messaging remained the same, emphasizing relations, friendship and cooperation between the US and Mongolia. After the concert, we were able to host the Mongolian Band at our hotel for a reception. This was a highly successful evening of interaction between our two units. I firmly believe this was one of the most successful moments of friendship and relation building of the trip (from a Mil to Mil prospective). The following day we traveled the over 9 hours back to UB. 30 Jun, we supported the Embassy's "4th of July" celebration for the families of the Embassy and locals from the local housing complex (Star Apartments - over 500 in attendance). This event was hosted by the Ambassador, Mark Minton. We first did a very short parade which gave the children an opportunity to march along. After performing both the host nation and US anthems, we did a shortened version of our good will tour program. After a short break, we did a second set of Americana / 4th of July music. Ambassador Minton was thrilled by our support of this event and the reports he'd already received about the success of the tour thus far. 1 Jul, we did another joint concert with our Mongolian Band partners in UB. Though turnout was less than we'd hoped (250), this performance was recorded and re-broadcast in Mongolian, Russian, Chinese, Korean, English and Spanish throughout Mongolia! 2 Jul, we traveled to the south of UB to Zune Mod for our last joint concert with our Mongolian friends. Another very well received and attended (300+) concert in one of the smallest communities at which we played. It was bitter-sweet as we had to say goodbye to folks we'd developed good friendships with in very short order. 3 Jul, we played in downtown UB at the "American Corner". Attendance was fantastic (well over 400) and most that came, came to stay (these kind of noon time performances are usually transient audiences, but not this one). In addition to our regular messaging mentioned above, we also were able to help bring awareness to the American culture center and the resources they have to offer. 4 Jul, we traveled to the International Youth Camp just outside of UB. We played for and interacted with over 500 very enthusiastic children / adolescents. The Embassy DAT was in attendance and was thrilled with the results and the messaging. 5 Jul, we traveled to the summer home for UB's orphanage. I feel we made a real difference in these 200 children's lives for the time we were there and were able to make a real connection with them in a short time through the emotional impact of music. That same day we were able to support the Embassy's formal 4th of July event. There were over 300 International DVs in attendance and Ambassador Minton again thanked us for our support and the relationship we'd been able to develop. After this event, we went to the airport to return to our home bases. From my perspective, this was an incredibly successful and affective trip. I honestly believe we've started something big and I look forward to seeing the seeds we sowed as they develop. I look forward to any questions or additional information I can provide. I plan to brief this trip to the band career field leadership and encourage continuing to develop relations between our music program and Mongolia's. I think it could be a rewarding and productive partnership. I'd also like to specifically recognize the following folks for their "above and beyond" contributions to this trip: LtCol Matt Schwab, DAT and his entire staff. Their support on messaging emphasis, translators and general operational support was first class. CMSgt Kyle Bauman was especially helpful with interactions with the Mongolian people and cultural sensitivities. SSgt Vlad Tchekan, OPs representative for the PACAF band for his detailed planning and dedication throughout the trip. This trip didn't happen (especially to this level of success) without his incredibly hard work! MSgt Steve Ekland, NCOIC of Pacific Brass, for his leadership and musical planning. His programming reinforced the messaging very well and created the perfect tool to achieve our strategic communication goals. SSgt Scott Wise for his world-class arrangement which exponentially increased our effectiveness in our community relations events as well as our interaction with the Mongolian band. Bottom line results: 11 performances in 9 days (minus travel days), for nearly 4,000 live audience members and broadcast opportunities in Darkhan, Erdenet and UB which made our messaging available to 2.5 million throughout Mongolia and 5 other countries.