United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy (also known as USNA, Annapolis, or simply Navy) is a four-year coeducational federal service academy adjacent to Annapolis, Maryland. Established on 10 October 1845, under Secretary of the Navy George Bancroft, it is the second oldest of the United States' five service academies, and educates officers for commissioning primarily into the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. The campus is located on the former grounds of Fort Severn at the confluence of the Severn River and Chesapeake Bay in Anne Arundel County, east of Washington, D.C. and southeast of Baltimore. The entire campus (known to insiders as "the Yard") is a National Historic Landmark and home to many historic sites, buildings, and monuments. It replaced Philadelphia Naval Asylum, in Philadelphia, that served as the first United States Naval Academy from 1838 to 1845 when the Naval Academy formed in Annapolis.
Navy Music Program
Ever since the founding of the Naval Academy in 1845, when the "Band" consisted of a fifer and a drummer, music has been an important part of Naval Academy life. Officially formed in November 1852, the United States Naval Academy Band lends musical support to the Brigade of Midshipmen and the surrounding community. However, the current version of the Naval Academy Band is a far cry from the thirteen men who reported to Annapolis over 150 years ago. Today, due to the unmatched versatility of its members, the band is able to blend tradition and change into a wide variety of musical styles.