Atlanta Freedom Bands (AFB) represents Atlanta’s gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community through music for a quarter century. Atlanta Freedom Bands started in 1993 with a marching band, which has appeared in every Atlanta Pride parade since as well as numerous neighborhood festivals, community events, and pride events in other cities. AFB was also the first LGBT-identified group to perform in Atlanta’s “Salute to America” Independence Day and Saint Patrick’s Day parades, as well as the first to perform during an Olympic event.

AFB has expanded its mission over the years to include several different groups. The MetroGnomes Stage Band appears at community events and other gatherings. The Atlanta Freedom Concert Band, now in its sixteenth year, has professional direction from Dr. Kathleen Nicole Fallin, Ph.D. Music Education from the University of Georgia. AFB’s Color Guard adds panache to the band’s outdoor performances, parades and even concerts. AFB celebrated its 25^th anniversary in 2018 by commissioning a new work from Hollywood composer Rossano Galante and will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2023 by commissioning a new work from Dr. Erica Svanoe.

AFB members have traveled the country and the world to perform in events with other LGBT musicians through the Lesbian and Gay Band Association (LGBA). AFB has sent musicians to Gay Games events in Amsterdam, Sydney, Chicago, Cologne and Paris; the inauguration of Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama; the 2000 March for Equality on Washington; the Greenwich Village Halloween Parade; the Southern Decadence Parade and yearly LGBA conferences and gatherings. AFB hosted the 2013 LGBA annual conference, featuring the commissioning of a new work, a 200-piece massed-band concert with members of 32 different bands on stage, and the largest-ever marching unit to appear in the Atlanta Pride parade. AFB is a 501 c(3) non-profit arts organization.