The Third Herd was a transition orchestra. Many of the members of the Second Herd completed their enlistments in early 1961. As the Second Herd evolved into the Third, musicians came into the band who were to be the backbone of the Airmen of Note for the remainder of the 1960's - men like lead alto Don Grossi, jazz trumpet Vince Somma, trumpeter/flugelhorn specialist Scott Waller, tenor Jim Towsey, bass trombonist Gary Ross, drummer Charlie McIlroy, and pianist Tom Baldwin.

As new men came in, the character of the band started to change, also. The band had some outstanding jazz soloists during this period in Somma, alto John Dodge, tenor Tony Osiecki, and pianist Dick Reitan, and some fine ballad soloists in Grossi, Waller, and lead trombonist Bill Tole. But much of Johnny's effort during this period was devoted to developing the polished musicianship and tight ensemble sound that would become the hallmarks of the Johnny's Fourth and last Herd.

Sammy Nestico continued to supply excellent dance and vocal charts. On the up-tempo numbers, the Basie sound exerted a strong influence, although a variety of other jazz styles could also be found in the book. One of Kenny Sampson's last efforts for the Note was an extended jazz suite on Porgy and

Alto Sax Don Grossi John Dodge (61-63) Tenor Sax Tony Osiecki (--63) Jim Towsey (61--) Baritone Sax Frank Denton (60--) Piano Dick Reitan (60-61) Tom Baldwin (61--) Bass Don Dempsey (--63) Drums Charlie McIlroy (60--)	Trumpet Ken Grasley (--62) Jim Fuller (62) Ray Stone (--60) Vince Somma (61--) Scott Waller Ron Viera (61-62) Tom Sullivan (62--) Trombone Bill Tole (61--) Jack Schnupp (--61) Jim Buchanan (--61) Houghton Peterson (--62) Cliff Stark (61--) Chuck Sayre (61--) Gary Ross (62--) Vocalist Duff Thomas (--61) Jackie Roberts (61-62) Jerry Whitman (63--)

Bess that was widely used at concerts. Chuck Sayre came on the band during this period to fill the second trombone chair. He was an excellent arranger and was soon writing for the band also.

About this time, Air Force Band Chief Arranger Floyd Werle conceived the idea of augmenting the Airmen of Note with a full string section, horns, and additional woodwinds and percussion. This 53-piece ensemble, which became known as the Symphony in Blue, made a large number of recordings during the early and middle 1960's for the Serenade in Blue radio series. They also performed in the DC area at park concerts and other special events. Johnny Osiecki usually fronted the orchestra, and arrangements were contributed by Werle, Sammy Nestico, Chuck Sayre, Fred Kepner, staff arranger Ralph Raynor, and later Paul Kelly and Kim Richmond.

In 1961, Jackie Roberts joined the Airman of Note as featured vocalist. She was the first woman to be assigned full-time to the Air Force musical program. She was followed in 1963 by Jerry Whitman, another fine vocalist, who went on to sing with the Ray Conniff Singers and become a top jingle singer.

Some of the noteworthy special jobs the band did during this period were The Mid-East Instrumental Music Clinic (1961), the Chicagoland Music Festival (1961), a community relations tour of California (1962), and a jazz concert at Case Institute (1962). The summer of 1961 also saw the first of what would become an annual trek to the Texas Bandmaster's Association, where the Note would do both clinics and concerts.

From time to time the band would get a call from the White House, either to provide dance music or dinner entertainment. The Airmen of Note has performed for most of the presidents who have been in office over the past 40 years. John F. Kennedy especially enjoyed the band.

Entertainment for military personnel continued to occupy most of the band's time. In the last half of 1963, for example, 71 percent of their time was spent on "troop morale and ceremonial" jobs, 13 percent on public relations, 6 percent on recording, and only 10 percent on rehearsals.