Crystal Lake Community Band

100 years before the current Crystal Lake Community Band was founded, both the Village of Crystal Lake and the Village of Nunda were forming their own town bands.

Little is known about the original Crystal Lake Band of the 1880s, although it is apparent from newspaper snippets that one did exist. The Nunda Herald newspaper reveals the band in Nunda was organized in May, 1884. It was known as “The Nunda Brass Band”. By 1893, a raised bandstand with roof was erected in Crystal Lake’s public park on Virginia Street. The bandstand was located on the west side of the park toward Florence Street, approximately where the water tower is today.

Photo courtesy of Crystal Lake Historical Society

In 1906, an announcement was made that, “The citizens of Crystal Lake have organized a band of 20 pieces with E. Militzer of Algonquin as leader.” The group was proud of its new uniforms which were blue, trimmed in black. The Crystal Lake Community Band performed at the bandstand which had been built more than a decade before.

The sound of music in the park was silenced from time-to-time as the Crystal Lake Community Band would disband and then reorganize. Efforts to reorganize occurred in 1913, 1931, and 1942.

However, none of these efforts had lasting results. And like all good things, the life of the charming bandstand in Crystal Lake’s public park on Virginia Street came to an end when it was demolished in the late 1940s.

Photo courtesy of Crystal Lake Historical Society
CLCB Performs at the Crystal Lake Sesquicentennial Celebration in 1986

Today’s Crystal Lake Community Band was founded in the Spring of 1984 by a group of amateur musicians looking for an outlet for their love of music. Gordon (Gordie) Triefenbach, the District 47 Music Department Chairman at the time, was a founding member who was instrumental in the organization of the current CLCB. The Crystal Lake Park District also played an integral role in the Band's start up by providing the administrative support for the organization including securing grants to fund CLCB.

Dale Johannsen was selected as the inaugural Music Director and rehearsals began in the spring of 1984. CLCB is proud to say that several of its current members are also founding members. CLCB performed their first concert that summer at the 4th of July celebration.

The band grew and Rich Johnson took over as Music Director in January 1986. Mr. Johnson however moved out of state for a new university teaching position and Don Ehrensperger became Music Director in the summer of 1986.

CLCB flourished under the direction of Don Ehrensperger. Performances expanded to outdoor summer concerts in surrounding communities, indoor auditorium concerts, as well as our annual Pops Concerts which began in the Spring of 1989. A special highlight of the 2000 Spring Pops Concert was the performance of "Lincoln Portrait", featuring Tom Petersen, WGN News Director as orator.

Crystal Lake Community Band was incorporated as a 501 (c) (3) not-for-profit organization in 1992.

The band had the extraordinary opportunity in the summer of 1993 to travel abroad and participate in the International Band Festival in Besana Brianza, Italy. CLCB performed along with other bands representing 6 different countries. More travel opportunities became available when Crystal Lake established a Sister City partnership with Holzgerlingen, Germany in 1995. CLCB traveled to Holzgerlingen in 1995, 1997, 2003 and 2007 to perform at Holzgerlingen’s annual 'Stadfest' city celebrations. The band also traveled on an amazing trip to Alaska in 2000, where they performed at the “Bear Paw Festival” in Eagle River and the "Moose Dropping Festival" in Talkeetna, Alaska.

Don Ehrensperger passed the baton full-time to Marty Magnini in 2010, and CLCB continued to evolve. Pops Concerts featured professional guest soloists such as pianist Michael Langlois, trumpeters Steve Patrick (Nashville studio musician) and Peter Bond (Metropolitan Opera). Under Marty’s direction CLCB partnered with MCC Concert Band to establish the annual combined Halloween Concert event in October of each year. His leadership also brought about more performance opportunities for the CLCB small ensembles, including the “Big Band” Jazz Band, New Orleans Jazz Band, Jazz Combo and several instrument section quartets. Marty Magnini retired in August of 2022 and moved to Nashville TN, allowing for another chapter in CLCB history with the hiring of new Music Director, Terry Grossberg.

Under Terry Grossberg’s leadership, CLCB is continuing to thrive with expanded music repertoire and experiences, while also maintaining many of the Band's traditions. In July of 2024, the band had the opportunity to travel once again - this time to Nashville, TN.

For over 40 years, the Crystal Lake Community Band has been entertaining audiences with their music at concerts and parades, while providing opportunity for adult musicians to have an outlet for their musical expression, growth and fellowship.

Conductor Emeritus
Marty Magnini

Marty Magnini studied clarinet performance and conducting at the University of Illinois in Champaign and Roosevelt University. His teachers included Walter Wollwage of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Melvin Warner of the St. Louis Symphony. Marty has played clarinet with the Chicago Civic Orchestra, Chicago Symphony and the Lyric Opera Orchestra. After 15 years of performing, he graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music from Northern Illinois University. He also completed a Master’s Degree in education from North Central College, and a Master’s Degree in music from Kent State University. Marty taught at Cary-Grove High School from 1995 to 2022, where he conducted the concert bands, jazz ensemble, and marching band. He was a member of CLCB for over 30 years, as a musician, Assistant Conductor, and then Music Director from 2010 to 2022.

Conductor Emeritus
Don Ehrensperger

Don Ehrensperger graduated from Northwestern University with both a Bachelors and Masters of Music Degree. He studied conducting with John P. Paynter and trumpet with Vincent Czichowitz of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He taught at Cary Grove High School in Cary, Illinois, from 1963 to 1993 where his Marching, Concert and Jazz bands won acclaim throughout the area. A clinician and adjudicator in Illinois and Wisconsin, he is a member of numerous Musical Associations. Mr. Ehrensperger was the Music Director for the Crystal Lake Community Band from 1986 to 2010, leading the group throughout the area and abroad to Italy and Germany as well as performances in Alaska

Rich Johnson

Music Director
January 1986 – May 1986

Rich Johnson was the Director of Bands at Crystal Lake Central High School for 6 years from 1980-1986. He received his Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Music Education from University of Illinois. Rich completed his post graduate doctoral studies in Conducting at the University of Michigan.

Dale Johannsen

Music Director
May 1984 - Dec 1985

Dale Johannsen was the inaugural Director of CLCB. He was a past Associate Bandmaster of the United States Military Academy Band, West Point, NY. Dale received his Music Education Degree from the University of South Dakota and had extensive private conducting lessons from Mr. Hugh Vianello, Assistant Director of the Kansas City Philharmonic. He was employed at Karnes Music Company and resided in Algonquin, IL.