Big Band

Burbank on Parade is having a Big Band Swing Dance fundraiser event from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Monday at the Veterans of Foreign Wars building, 1006 W. Magnolia Blvd. The Big Band Swing Express, conducted by Jonathan Goldman, will be playing music of the 1940s, popular modern jazz and a mix of movie theme selections, said Wayne Poirier, parade creative director. “This talented blend of local musicians and vocalists will provide this special performance for the Burbank on Parade fundraising effort,” he said.

Paul Andersen The way Gary Tole sees it, his mission in life is relatively simple: to keep the tradition of big-band music alive. And this year, as part of the city of Burbank's Fourth of July celebration at the Starlight Bowl, he will have a chance to do just that, with exclamation points added by fireworks. "Paying tribute to this great genre of music, documenting these great jazz standards, that's what it is all about," said the trombonist/bandleader.

It’s not often that one thinks of a hangover as an enjoyable experience, but that was certainly the case this past week as local seniors made their way to an event that has become a weekly tradition in Burbank. Every Thursday, the Joslyn Adult Center serves as the venue for the Swinging Seniors who kick up their heels to either The Silvertones trio or the 17-piece Clyde Reasinger Band. This past week the organization presented its annual “Hangover Dance,” a January tradition that officially marks the end of the holiday season.

Paul Andersen, Enjoy! BURBANK -- Since he was 3, Horace Heidt Jr. has known what he wanted to do when he grew up. After joining his father, a big band leader, at work one day, he knew he wanted to follow in his father's footsteps. Now, 30 years after taking over the family business, he still loves what he is doing. "Each job is different," he said, "and it is never boring." His next job is on the Fourth of July at the Starlight Bowl in Burbank, where he will lead the Horace Heidt Jr. Orchestra in a program of big band and patriotic songs, spinning out musical fireworks before the actual skyrockets are launched.

Karen S. Kim MAGNOLIA PARK -- Doug Halter, 75, was voted king of the prom on Saturday night -- king of the Joslyn Adult Center's Senior Prom, that is. "I was thrilled to win," said Halter, whose 71-year-old wife, Carol, was voted prom queen. "We marched around and got a lot of applause. Our ego was really built up there." About 150 senior citizens shimmied and shook to the 15-piece big band that performed at the prom on Saturday. The crowd was dressed to the nines and ready for fun. "Women who were in their 70s and 80s were wearing these beautiful beaded gowns, and some of the women, if I didn't know any better, I would have thought were teenagers," said Patty Jenkins, an 18-year-old staff member at the Joslyn Adult Center.

Joyce Rudolph, Weekend Award-winning violinist Linda Wang is a featured performer for the new 2000-2001 season offered by the Glendale Community Concerts Assn. One of six performances scheduled, Wang will appear on Nov. 5. Wang, a first-prize winner of the International Markneukirchen Competition in Germany, has appeared at the world's most celebrated concert venues, including Carnegie Hall in New York and the Berlin Schauspielhaus. Her solo debut was with the New York Philharmonic under Zubin Mehta at age 9. This year's Community Concerts season kicks off Sept.

Ben Godar Music was in the air and on display as sunny skies shined on this year's Burbank on Parade. Saturday's event, themed "Music Makes the World Go Around," marched its way down Olive Avenue as hundreds of spectators watched from curbside. The Burbank Girl Scouts were among the participants focusing on the parade theme, and were awarded the President's Trophy for best entry. Nearly 400 scouts, ranging from 5-year-olds to adults, rode flat-bed trucks or walked along the parade route singing Girl Scout songs, event director Diane McKinley said.

Joyce Rudolph, Weekend BURBANK -- Tom Thomas of Burbank is hoping to start a new big band trend this Sunday with his first Recorded Big Band Show. The commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Burbank invites dancers and listeners to join him at the VFW Hall from 2 to 6 p.m., when he spins vinyl recordings of 33s and 45s and CDs from his own collection. In addition to Glenn Miller, Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw, the music of Glen Gray, Charlie Spivak, Woody Herman and Les Brown will be played.

College jazz band plays at swing dance GLENDALE -- The Glendale College Jazz Band will perform at a big band swing dance at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Glendale Civic Auditorium, 1401 N. Verdugo Road. Raymond Burkhart is director of the band. Admission is $5. For information, call the GCC music department at 240-1000, ext. 5621. Burkhart also teaches several classes at GCC and is a trumpeter, conductor and composer. He has toured as a trumpet soloist with Yanni and has performed with Mannheim Steamroller, the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, Melissa Manchester, Peabo Bryson, Lionel Hampton, Joel Grey, Cleo Laine and more.

About 30,000 people are expected to flock to Olive Avenue on Saturday for the 32nd annual Burbank on Parade, with this year's theme “Let's Go to the Movies!” Dancers, clowns, floats, marching bands and equestrian entries, along with popular characters Bob's Big Boy and Ronald McDonald, are slated to walk, glide and trot down Olive from Keystone to Lomita streets starting at 11 a.m. “So many citizens wait all year long to share this special day with us, and we hope to live up to those expectations with this year's production,” said Joanne Miller, parade chairwoman, in a statement.

Burbank on Parade is having a Big Band Swing Dance fundraiser event from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Monday at the Veterans of Foreign Wars building, 1006 W. Magnolia Blvd. The Big Band Swing Express, conducted by Jonathan Goldman, will be playing music of the 1940s, popular modern jazz and a mix of movie theme selections, said Wayne Poirier, parade creative director. “This talented blend of local musicians and vocalists will provide this special performance for the Burbank on Parade fundraising effort,” he said.

S tan Kenton big band lovers were out in force at the Brand Library & Art Center's free special event on Saturday. The Recital Hall was standing room only as some 85 patrons listened to Kenton biographer Steven D. Harris present "The Artistry of Stan Kenton" in lecture, music and films. Kenton led his bands from the 1940s through the '70s. Glendale fans included Barbara and Bernard Schnipper , Vic Kalaba , Richard Sowby , Glen Roberts and wife Naomi Parry . Also out for an afternoon at the Brand Library were Hyunah and Jimmy Cho and daughter Liz Cho , 15 months old. Child psychologist Dr. Glen Roberts, founder of the Glen Roberts Child Study Center in Glendale, had fond memories of playing string bass in the Stan Kenton band for a month in 1953.

It’s not often that one thinks of a hangover as an enjoyable experience, but that was certainly the case this past week as local seniors made their way to an event that has become a weekly tradition in Burbank. Every Thursday, the Joslyn Adult Center serves as the venue for the Swinging Seniors who kick up their heels to either The Silvertones trio or the 17-piece Clyde Reasinger Band. This past week the organization presented its annual “Hangover Dance,” a January tradition that officially marks the end of the holiday season.

Glen Roberts performed big band music during its heyday in the 1940s and fondly remembers getting the chance to play with the Stan Kenton Orchestra. "I traveled for a month with the Stan Kenton Orchestra and it was a dream come true," the Burbank resident said. "He was my hero in high school and college." They played all the great clubs of the time, most notably the Blue Note, one of the top clubs in Chicago, he said. Roberts has continued to play his string bass over the years while building a career in child psychology.

Send DATEBOOK items to Glendale News-Press and Leader, 111 W. Wilson Ave., Suite 200, Glendale, CA 91203 or fax to (818) 241-1975. Submissions must be received two weeks before publication. TODAY A Summer Music Series continues with Chelsea Williams from 2 to 5 p.m. and Dee Dee O'Malley from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Glendale Marketplace shopping center on Brand Boulevard between Colorado Street and Broadway. Admission is free. The series will continue through Sept.

Ben Godar Music was in the air and on display as sunny skies shined on this year's Burbank on Parade. Saturday's event, themed "Music Makes the World Go Around," marched its way down Olive Avenue as hundreds of spectators watched from curbside. The Burbank Girl Scouts were among the participants focusing on the parade theme, and were awarded the President's Trophy for best entry. Nearly 400 scouts, ranging from 5-year-olds to adults, rode flat-bed trucks or walked along the parade route singing Girl Scout songs, event director Diane McKinley said.

Paul Andersen The way Gary Tole sees it, his mission in life is relatively simple: to keep the tradition of big-band music alive. And this year, as part of the city of Burbank's Fourth of July celebration at the Starlight Bowl, he will have a chance to do just that, with exclamation points added by fireworks. "Paying tribute to this great genre of music, documenting these great jazz standards, that's what it is all about," said the trombonist/bandleader.

Joyce Rudolph GLENDALE -- Big band singer Beryl Davis is a staunch believer that imitation is the greatest form of flattery. So when the Burbank resident listens to today's singers, she marvels at the new artists re-creating swing music from the 1930s and '40s. There is an interesting difference between the music performed by swing legends Glenn Miller, Gene Krupa and Woody Herman, she said, and today's singers like Celine Dion and Sting. "I love when they sing my songs," she said.