Boston Commandery

"Boston Commandery" is a Masonic march written by Thomas W. Carter in 1892. It was dedicated to the regional office of the Freemasony that was headquartered in the city of Boston, Massachusetts. In the march, Carter used the hymn "Onward Christians Soldiers" by Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan as the melody for the trio, with the woodwinds providing the obbligato above the music. There have been many composers who were Masons; among them are Edward E. Bagley, W. Paris Chambers, Herbert L. Clarke, Merle Evans, Henry Fillmore, Karl L. King and John Philip Sousa. And Freemasony also includes in its ranks such musical luminaries as Louis Armstrong, Gene Autry, Count Basie, Ludwig van Beethoven, Irving Berlin, Roy Clark, Nat King Cole, Duke Ellington, George Gershwin and Paul Whiteman.