Dr. William Kinne, conductor of Casco Bay Wind Symphony, poses for a portrait on the Eastern Promenade where he will conduct a night of music on July 4. The symphony will perform for free but is trying to raise $15,000 to cover expenses, including a sound system. Ben McCanna/Staff Photographer

Live music will return to Portland’s Fourth of July celebration, but the musicians are hoping to raise at least $15,000 for a sound system that can reach an estimated 30,000 guests.

The annual fireworks show has been a cappella for three years because of a lack of funding from the city or a private partner, but the Casco Bay Wind Symphony offered to perform for free this year. The nonprofit ensemble will bring two hours of Hollywood classics and patriotic mainstays to the Eastern Promenade before the fireworks begin.

“There’s a great deal of excitement throughout the band,” said William Kinne, the conductor and artistic director. “We’ve never had this type of exposure that I’m aware of in the history of the band, and it’s a really exciting opportunity for us. We do feel the pressure to put our best foot forward and to make sure that everyone in attendance who wants to hear us can hear us.”

Andy Downs, director of public assembly facilities for the city, said he is grateful for the symphony’s generous offer.

“We are delighted to add a musical performance this year, as a musical production adds to the overall pageantry of the event,” Downs said.

Founded in 1980, the Casco Bay Wind Symphony has 80 members who play woodwind, brass and percussion instruments. Kinne, who is also director of bands and assistant professor at the University of Southern Maine Osher School of Music, said the volunteer group attracts some musicians who drive more than an hour to attend rehearsals.

“We saw that the funding was no longer available to support the Portland Symphony (at the Fourth of July),” Kinne said. “We figured that, as the Greater Portland area’s community band, it was an opportunity for us to serve our community at this large celebration. Really, what a community band is all about is bringing people together through music.”

Still, the event does come with costs. The symphony needs to pay for the transportation of musicians and equipment on the day of the performance, as well as sheet music. But Kinne said the real expense is hiring production company Ocean AVL to provide, set up and run a sound system that could project their program over the crowd of thousands – an estimated $12,000.

“Doing this performance in such a way that everyone that’s there for the celebration can hopefully hear us requires that we bring in some professionals,” Kinne said.

Kinne said the band will perform no matter what, but a lack of funds might prompt it to scale back the sound equipment. The city agreed to pitch in $1,500 to help with expenses, but the nonprofit is seeking individual donations and corporate sponsors to help cover the rest. It had raised about $6,000 as of Monday. Kinne said any size donation is welcome, and it is not too late for a major sponsor to underwrite the cost of the event. Ocean AVL has donated lights and a video screen to project ads or logos from sponsors.

The Portland Symphony Orchestra performs on the Eastern Prom in 2019 before the Fourth of July fireworks show. Gregory Rec/Staff Photographer

The Portland Symphony Orchestra has performed on the Eastern Prom before and during the fireworks show several times since 2010. A nonprofit called July 4th Portland produced and funded the annual celebration, which had been estimated to attract 50,000 or more people before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2018, the concert was canceled because of a lack of funding, though the fireworks went on as planned.

In 2019, Shamrock Sports and Entertainment stepped in, and the orchestra returned. The event was free, but the organizers also sold tickets to reserved and VIP areas, which included special perks. However the city did not have any celebration in 2020 because of the pandemic, and since then, the event has been fireworks only.

Brian Corcoran, CEO and founder of Shamrock, said last year that his team had turned its focus to the new Drive Fore Kids charity golf tournament in late June and did not have the capacity to organize a big July 4 celebration. He didn’t rule it out for future years but said Shamrock would be unlikely to take on the event again by itself because of its scale and cost.

The scaled-back events of recent years have still attracted between 15,000 and 30,000 people. This year, the city expects attendance at the top end of that range. Portland covers the cost of the pyrotechnics (about $30,000).

Portland native Bea Hemingway previously attended the “Stars and Stripes Spectacular,” as it was called when the Portland Symphony Orchestra performed. She liked the musical accompaniment for the fanfare and rode the Maine Narrow Gauge Railroad as part of the event.

“I thought it was the greatest thing ever,” said Hemingway, 59.

So she was glad to hear that music would return, although the day-of traffic would determine whether she would watch the fireworks from the Eastern Prom or Baxter Boulevard.

“The parking’s tough,” she said.

Michelle Fox and her family moved to Portland’s North Deering neighborhood last year but skipped the fireworks display because her son was too young. This year, Quinton is 3 1/2 and ready to celebrate. She was excited to learn that the Casco Bay Wind Symphony would bring added entertainment to the event.

“The fireworks are great, but for little ones, they’re late,” Fox, 42, said. “So it’s nice to have something beforehand.”

The concert will begin at 7 p.m. Thursday and the fireworks typically start at 9:15 p.m.

“We are the hometown community band for Greater Portland, and we look forward to sharing our music with the largest audience, potentially, that we’ve ever performed for,” Kinne said. “We encourage folks to get there early and to get a good seat.”

People can make a donation at the Casco Bay Wind Symphony’s donation page.

For information about becoming a corporate sponsor, click here to email the symphony.