ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Musician 1st Class Robert Kurth, a native of St. Clairsville, will be among the performers in the United States Navy Band Sea Chanters’ chorus during its 2022 tour.

The group is coming to Newark, Ohio, one of 13 cities spanning seven states to host a performance. The Sea Chanters performance is scheduled for April 22 at 7 p.m. at MidlandTheatre, Newark, Ohio.

All Navy Band performances are free and open to the public. More dates can be found at www.navyband.navy.mil/events/tour/sea-chanters-2022

Kurth joined the Sea Chanters in 2014. He earned his Bachelor of Music in music education from Heidelberg University in Tiffin, Ohio, in 2003, and was the recipient of the Ferris and Dorothy Ohl Award. In 2008 he completed his Master of Music at Duquesne University, where he received the Phillip H. Inman Award in choral conducting.

Kurth has served as assistant director of choral activities at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, where he directed the Pappert Men’s Chorale and taught conducting and voice classes. In 2013 Kurth was awarded Teacher of the Year, as voted by the student body. Kurth actively performed throughout the Pittsburgh area with many small roles and chorus parts for the Pittsburgh Opera and as a soloist around the greater Pittsburgh area. During that time Kurth also taught at Point Park University, guest conducted for PMEA events and was the worship leader at Covenant Community Church in Wheeling.

The U.S. Navy Band Sea Chanters is the official chorus of America’s Navy.

The ensemble performs a variety of music ranging from traditional choral music, including sea chanteys and patriotic fare, to opera, Broadway and contemporary music.

The SeaChanters chorus is frequently found at the center of high-profile national events. Athome in Washington, D.C., the group performs for the president, vice president, and numerous congressional, military and foreign dignitaries.One of the U.S. Navy Band’s primary responsibilities involves touring the country. All of the band’s primary performing units embark each year on concert tours throughout specified regions of the country, allowing the band to reach out to audiences in areas of the country that do not have opportunities to see the Navy’s premier musical ensembles on a regular basis. The concerts are family-friendly events, meant to be entertaining to veterans, families, individuals and those interested in joining the Navy.

“For many years, Navy bands have been where it matters, when it matters, just like the rest of our Navy. Today, we have Sailors performing around the world, improving relations with our allies abroad as well as telling the Navy story here at home,” said Capt.Kenneth Collins, U.S. Navy Band commanding officer.

The U.S. Navy Band is the flagship musical organization of the Navy and one of 11 Navy bands located around the world. The U.S. Navy Band is based at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C.

The Sea Chanters 2022 tour will cover 13 cities and more than 3,000 miles. The Navy Band has been touring the country since 1925. There are six performing ensembles in the Navy Band: the Concert Band,Ceremonial Band, Sea Chanters chorus, Commodores jazz ensemble, CountryCurrent country/bluegrass ensemble and the Cruisers popular music group.

Ensembles from the Navy Band tour nationally 12-15 weeks each year. Sailors in the Navy Band are full-time professional musicians. Almost all of the Sailors in the Navy Band have undergraduate degrees in music, and most have graduate degrees.