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By RICH DREES Times Leader Correspondent
Friday, January 28, 2000 Page: 14
The recent revival in swing music and dance suits trumpeter Warren Vache
just fine.
While the new swing music combines big band swing with jump blues and
rockabilly, Vache and the New York City All-Star Big Band are more than happy
to show modern audiences how swing was done “back in the day.”
“There’s been the quite a revival of interest in swing and swing dancing
over the last few years or so,” Vache says. “But some of the kids don’t have
an idea of what it was like, what their parents were dancing. It’s uniting the
young and the old.”
The New York City All-Star Big Band, along with the London-based Lindy
dance troupe The Jivin’ Lindy Hoppers, will present the show “Swingtime!”
Thursday, Feb. 3 at the Kirby Center in Wilkes-Barre.
Vache comes by his knowledge of traditional swing firsthand, having played
with the Benny Goodman and Woody Herman orchestras, among others. The 10 other
members of the New York City All-Star Big Band also have played with at least
one of the touring traditional big bands. In addition, the members of the
Jivin’ Lindy Hoppers have studied with Lindy dance pioneers such as Frankie
Manning and Mama Lu Parks.
“Both the band and the dancers have spent a lot of time getting the
history firsthand from people who did it originally, so there’s a historical
perspective,” Vache says.
“There will be a segment where the dancers will be demonstrating basic
steps to music,” Vache says. “At one point at the end of the show we urge
the audience to dance if they wish.” Although all the tunes on the band’s set
list are culled from the ’30s and ’40s, most of the band’s arrangements have
been written by Vache. There are several numbers the band performs with no set
arrangement.
“Everybody in the band knows certain songs, as in they know what key it’s
in,” Vache explains. “They’re good musicians and they know where they can
harmonize. I can look at the saxophone section and motion that I need a big
background section, and those guys will be able to play harmonized whole notes
for every bar. We’ve been playing these songs for so long we know the
harmonies very well, so we can come up with different things to do every
night.”
WHAT: “Swingtime!”, featuring Warren Vache and the New York City All-Star
Big Band and the Jivin’ Lindy Hoppers
WHERE: The Kirby Center, Public Square, Wilkes-Barre
WHEN: Thursday, Feb. 3, 8 p.m.
TICKETS: $27.50, $22.50, $17.50
INFO: 826-1100