“The Star-Spangled Banner” is one of the first songs played at every W.D. Packard Concert Band performance.

For the band’s Memorial Day Remembrance concert on Sunday, it also will be the finale. Two different arrangements of the National Anthem will be a part of the program when the band pays tribute to those who died in service of their country.

Thomas A. Groth, executive director of the band, said its traditional military arrangement of the Francis Scott Key composition will be played near the beginning of the program. The finale will be an arrangement created by composer John Williams for the pregame ceremony of the 2004 Rose Bowl.

“John Williams was guest conducting and wrote this arrangement of the ‘Star-Spangled Banner’ for the combined bands,” Groth said. “It has a big intro and a big ending, but we’ll still have the people stand, and (conductor) Steve (Gage) will ask them to sing along.”

Sunday’s program will be filled with patriotic fare and compositions that reflect the sacrifice made by those in combat.

“I try to find things that relate to the day,” Groth said.

The concert will open with Frank Cosenza, co-principal trumpet player with the band, performing taps to lead into Lauren Kiser’s “To Those We Remember.”

Groth will read the poetry written by Samuel J. Hazo while the band plays the music written by Hazo’s son, Samuel R., to accompany “Each Time You Tell Their Story.”

Other selections on the program include Paul Murtha’s “Heroic Fanfare,” John Williams’ “Hymn to the Fallen,” James Barnes’ “Valor,” John Philip Sousa’s “Bullets and Bayonets” and “The Rifle Regiment” marches and Antonin Dvorak’s “Goin’ Home.”

The band also will play a medley of the songs associated with each branch of the military, and veterans in attendance will be asked to stand when the song for their branch is played.

And before the ‘Star Spangled” finale, Groth programmed a song of optimism — an arrangement of “Let There Be Peace on Earth.”

“If everyone got along, we wouldn’t have to have taps and everything else on the program,” Groth said.

agray@tribtoday.com