Inauguration 2013: Iowa City Native to Play Key Role in President Barack Obama's Inauguration, Parade

Four years ago, Kara Santos was planning to audition for a flute position on the "The President's Own" U.S. Marine Band, when she watched President Barack Obama be inaugurated for his first term as president from the comfort of her Coralville home.

Monday, she'll get a slightly better view.

Santos, 36, now a flute player in the U.S. Marine Band, will perform at the swearing-in ceremony seated with the band on the platform just below the president. She will also accompany Kelly Clarkson and Beyonce during their respective renditions of "America the Beautiful," and the National Anthem. Finally, if that weren't enough, she will later march in the inaugural parade held that afternoon.

Santos, who started her flute playing days at the tender age of seven and honed her skills as a member of the West High School Trojan band, is understandably thrilled.

"I think just to be such an integral part of the whole day is really exciting," Santos said. "We're actually the only group that's performing in the ceremony and the parade."

Santos got her undergraduate degree in flute playing from the University of Michigan and went on to get a masters degree and a doctorate in the instrument at the University of Iowa. 

Prior to joining the Marine Band,  Santos was principal flute of the Quad City Symphony in Davenport, Iowa, and a flute instructor at the University of Evansville in Indiana. She was also principal flute of the Evansville Philharmonic and a member of the Owensboro Symphony in Kentucky.

She said in her role as part of the U.S. Marine Band, she is member of a corps of more than one hundred and fifty musicians and support staff that performs at hundreds of White House functions assembled in different configurations during the year.

"We are the band that supports the White House," Santos said.

The band also has a busy tour schedule that includes touring Marine Barracks and performing at national monuments in the Washington D.C. area.

Staff Sgt. Santos said that although she has played numerous White House functions before, and she will likely play inaugurations in the future, there's something special about the first one, when she will officially become a part of the long and storied tradition of the U.S. Marine Band and its role in welcoming president's to office.

"Considering that the band has played at every inauguration for every 54 inaugurations, it's really cool for me that I can be a part of that tradition," Santos said. "The first performance is something I'll always remember."

Santos' mother, Agnes De Raad, still lives in Coralville, and will likely be watching on Monday, she said. She said she expects the band will play a variety of selections, including "Hail to the Chief" for the president, "Hail Columbia" for the vice president, as well as a number of other patriotic selections.

"We'll be playing for quite awhile," Santos said.

Staff Sgt. Santos said she hopes to play on with the Marine Band quite a bit longer still. She said she just is going through the re-enlistment process now, and that many of the musicians who join the Marine Band end up sticking with it for their entire careers.

She currently lives in Virginia with her husband, Vladimir.

You can see when Santos will be playing and where here: .