The Cariboo Gold Dance Band is hosting An Evening of Remembrance concert and dance in November featuring renowned trumpeter Donnie Clark.
A professional trumpet player Clark has performed with stars such as Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong.
“He is a great musician and a gentleman — and now comes to play with the Cariboo Gold Dance Band,” says Bill Crook, trombone player and one of the original band members of the concert happening Nov. 14 in the Gibraltar Room.
The evening of music from the Second World War will be in honour of Remembrance Day and the music which boosted the moral of North Americans during the war effort.
“The music will follow a Remembrance Day theme and of course, there will be room for dancing,” Crook says.
The Cariboo Gold Dance Band is a classic 16-piece big band playing swing, jazz, Latin, rock, and some country since 1982. Several of the original band members still play in the band.
The band has won competitions and performed at many venues throughout B.C. and has been credited with being “the most danceable band” in the Cariboo.
Swing music will be a big feature of the evening, a form of music Cariboo Gold has helped to keep alive for the past 35 years.
“Swing music carried our nation through the Great Depression and the two World Wars and the post-war recession, and still holds a special place in the hearts of us all,” Crook says.
He says swing music of the big bands began in the early 1920s, and rose to prominence during the Second World War with such band leaders as Duke Ellington, Tommy Dorsey, Woody Herman, Glenn Miller, and Benny Goodman who earned the title of King of Swing.
“For those who experienced loss, you’ll remember that there were also feelings of love, of loyalty, of camaraderie,” Crook says. “This music has always shown that there is hope, encouragement and light at the end of the dark tunnel.”
An Evening of Remembrance concert and dance takes place in the Gibraltar Room, Sat. Nov. 14 starting at 7:30 p.m. and everyone is invited, he says.
Tickets are available from band members, at The Open Book and at the door: $15 for adults: $12 for seniors and children.
Net proceeds will go to the Williams Lake Legion Branch 139, and some legion members will be there to help with the show.
