Skip to content

True Okanagan big band fills Vernon Jazz Club

Transport back to the swing era with the pleasing sounds of the Okanagan Valley Big Band
web1_170320-VMS-BigBand-web
Under the direction of Monty Hughes, the Okanagan Valley Big Band performs music from the swing era at the Vernon Jazz Club Saturday, March 25 at 8 p.m. – Image submitted

Candice McMahon

For The Morning Star

Get ready to be transported back to the swing era Saturday with the pleasing sounds of the Okanagan Valley Big Band.

Reminiscent of early jazz clubs, the Vernon Jazz Club venue boasts nostalgic jazz memorabilia on its walls. The original heritage building dates back to the early 1900s. Put all this period authenticity together, and you don’t need much imagination to “be in the groove.”

Originally known as the Mark Rose Big Band, which was first established in 2000, the Okanagan Valley Big Band changed its name in early 2014. Like its predecessor, the OKVBB revitalizes the classic music of the Big Band era with jazz and swing hits from the likes of Duke Ellington, Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman, and Artie Shaw. However, they also bring their unique big band sound to a variety of songs and styles, including Latin, funk, blues, and rock. Live music lovers and dancers alike can find something to love in this energetic and elegant music that encompasses foxtrot, quickstep, samba, jive, and more.

Some people mistakenly call bands with many players a big band, when actually they are simply a large band. A “big band,” according to Wikipedia, “is a type of musical ensemble associated with playing jazz music and which became popular during the swing era from the early 1930s until the late 1940s. A big band typically consists of approximately 12 to 25 musicians and contains saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section.”

“The Big Band sound became popular during the swing era. Our band keeps up that tradition, but also incorporates many of the popular songs that have become standards from that time to the present. Arrangers have kept to the true sense of the swing style even today, and that’s what we are all about,” said OKVBB conductor Monty Hughes.

Gail Thomas is the band’s poignant singer. The spicy saxophonists showcased are Peter Nickoli and Sandy Cameron on alto sax, Paul Hunter and Pat Hughes on tenor sax, and Kerry Hunter on baritone sax. The resonant trumpet players are Al Szeliga, Barry McDougall, Dave Reim, Julia Lissau, and Rosalynn MacGregor. The tootling trombonists include Rod Densmore, Chris Schmidt, Guido Wagenvoorde, Phillip Wagner, Jane Nielson, and Natalie Ingrim. Rounding out the band is the steadfast rhythm section of Rod Goodrick on drums, Manfred Harter on guitar, Dustin Schmauder on piano, and Brian McMahon on bass.

The Okanagan Valley Big Band takes the stage at the Vernon Jazz Club (3000-31st St.) Saturday, March 25 at 8 p.m. Doors open at 7:15 p.m. Cash bar onsite. Tickets are $20 online at www.vernonjazz.com and at Expressions of Time (2901-30 Ave.), with a $5 rebate at the gig for VJS members.