Carli Berry
reporter@pqbnews.com
Have you ever felt the secret desire to be a swing dancer? At this year’s Hi Neighbour Day you’ll have the opportunity to release your inner swing.
The Palace Band will be performing swing classics and more at the Hi Neighbour Day 100th birthday celebration to finish off the evening.
At 7 p.m. swing lessons will be given at the Errington War Memorial Hall on Aug. 15 and afterwards The Palace Band will offer different variations of swing and jazz to dance to.
Ashlee Sales, singer for the band, said the members met at a Night at the Palace fundraiser, formed a band and the name stuck. The band has been performing for approximately 10 years, she said, but only for four or five years with the current members.
They perform jazz tunes from the 1920s to the 1940s and Sales said to expect a variety of famous tunes from the era like Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, Sing Sing Sing and Sweet Georgia Brown.
The band members consist of: director of planning for Qualicum Beach Luke Sales on trumpet, Galen Mongeau on guitar/vocals, Kevin Robinson from Nanaimo on stand-up bass, Tom Bradbrooke from Gabriola Island on piano, Ashlee Sales on vocals and French horn, and Tony Toly on drums.
Sales said she has been singing since she was three or four years old. She studied music in university and teaches music lessons to children while performing on the side.
Her “alter ego gets to come out” as the band performs but it isn’t a full-time job, she said.
The band meets every few weeks to practise, but more so in preparation for the Hi Neighbour Day performance, she said.
Sales said usually at the Hi Neighbour Day they have bands playing from out of town but this year decided to have a “little local vintage performance.”
She described the band as fun, upbeat and positive that is perfect for a family atmosphere.
“It’s infectious,” Sales said.
The band wears classic white with black suspenders and has Sales wearing a colourful outfit that gives the ensemble a “vintage flair” she said.
The Palace Band has performed at local gigs in the past including a fundraiser for the Kathok Center and Night at the Palace.
The band is set to perform at 8 p.m. and tickets are $20. It is an all ages show.
