The Mersey Band, the combined choirs of two long-established Liverpool churches, the Privateers Brass, the Saltwater Cowboys and the Sandy Bottom Boys will, throughout the program, take to the stage at the Zion United Church beginning at 7 p.m.

The Baptist Church Choir, made up of about 18 singers, will be under the direction of Ruth Ernst, while Lexi Morgan will act as an accompanist. The United Church Choir, consisting of about a dozen members will be directed through their four-part harmony arrangements by Marjorie Speed-Powell, who will also perform as an accompanist. These choirs, from adjacent Main Street churches, will make a strong religious contribution to the Sunday evening concert with a series of hymns of remembrance: Eternal Father Strong To Save, From Ocean Unto Ocean, Abide with Me, and Oh Valiant Heart.

The versatile Privateer’s Brass ensemble, led by Acadia University Music graduate, Scott MacDonald, who will be switching from tenor trombone to baritone horn on various numbers, will change the theme from religious to secular with a line-up of hit tunes from the 1930s and 1940s, including swing tunes such as: Sentimental Journey, Stardust and the ever-popular Glenn Miller number String of Pearls.

The Privateer’s Brass, formed in 2005, has an eclectic repertoire that includes classical, jazz, rock n’ roll, and music with a Latin beat. MacDonald does the arranging. These musicians, all Mersey Band members, often play at weddings, concerts, garden parties, and church services.

The Saltwater Cowboys, whose regular play list includes songs of the sea and the jigs and reels of Newfoundland-Labrador as well as cowboy and western music, are expected to bring to the program some of the atmosphere of a good old-fashioned “Newfie” house party. Robert Russell, lead singer, guitarist and button accordion player, rounds up the cowboys and has built up a following with his engaging jokes and anecdotes during the the years the group has been working together. The name is self-explanatory – Saltwater implying songs of the sea and Cowboys illustrating that they enjoy playing western and cowboy tunes.

This group plays often at senior citizen homes, benefit concerts and variety shows. However, for this concert they are scheduled to play another Glenn Miller tune, In The Mood. Then the mood will quickly change as the group plays: Soldier’s Last Letter followed by Sweet Forget Me Not and Fields of Anthrum Rye.

The Sandy Bottom Boys will possibly set a reminiscent tone with ballads along the lines of: The Way You Look Tonight, A Nightingale Sang In Berkley Square, It’s Only A Paper Moon, and Show Me the Way To Go Home. This talented combo based in Sandy Cove, Queens Co., is built around veteran drummer Cameron Crowell, and his enthusiastic saxophone-playing brother William. “They like to keep flexibility in their repertoire. They play various genres of music dependent on the occasion,” combo-briefing notes point out.

This small combo was formed as a dedication to their parents, William and Anne Crowell “who highly valued music” as an art form. “Dad enjoyed seeing young people develop self-esteem through performance and dedication towards working on a musical project and carrying it out,” said retired educator William Crowell. “Mother regularly played the button accordion for volunteer organizations.”

The 25-member Mersey Band, under the baton of Scott MacDonald, Bachelor of Music, will conclude the program with the playing of Oh Canada, a Glenn Miller Tribute, a big band bounce tune - popular with the soldiers of the Second World War - entitled Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy from Company B. Two trumpets will be featured playing bugle parts. On a more spiritual note the band will play Sunset Ceremony, an impressive piece of music used in a long-standing traditional exercise in Naval pageantry.

Guiding the audience through the musical program will be Cameron Crowell, who has a time-tested reputation with local audiences for his ability to keep an entertainment program moving along smoothly.

Admission to the event is a free-will offering. Profits from the concert will go towards the continued operations of the Mersey Band, an institution in the community for over six decades.