Getting that 'live band' atmosphere at lindy hop dances

[Haydn]

In the 1930s and 1940s they didn't have DJs at dances, just live bands. The best ones were excellent, and you could have a great night out and dance to some fine music.

In today's Lindy Hop 'scene', promoters often book live bands, and these help give an evening a good atmosphere. However, the bands often disappoint the dancers, as they don't play suitable music or perhaps don't play the music well enough to satisfy the dancers.

It seems to me that -

1. Live entertainment helps create a lively atmosphere. When musicians stand in front of you playing, you tend to respond in some way.

2. It's hard to find a live band that will satisfy people used to dancing to great music from the 1930s and 1940s

One solution is to use DJs only at a dance. But it's harder to attract people, and harder to create a great atmosphere. If you can find a great live band that will satisfy demanding dancers, they may be expensive. If you're putting on a series of dances, you don't want to have the same band every time.

Are there any imaginative solutions here?

[fredo]

One idea I'm thinking of trying for the next event I put together is to hire a smaller group of musicians I know people respond well to and to hire them for the weekend. With these few musicians as the core, I can then work with them to put together different arrangements for each night of the weekend.

For example, one night I might have a small group combo with a gypsy guitar player to get that "Django and his american friends" sound. The next night I might have them play with a larger group to get an 8-10 piece band sound. Then on the last night I could have them play with a locally known musician and see what kind of chemistry happens there.

With this approach hopefully you can satisfy a general level of taste by keeping a core of proven favorable musicians each night, but avoid having it get old by mixing up the arrangements they play with.

I haven't started working out the details of this yet, and who knows if the right musicians will be available (and affordable), but I figure its worth a try.

As for bands disappointing dancers, it's either a matter of taste or talent, and that will differ from scene to scene.

[djstarr]

well the best big bands I've danced to recently have been led by very talented musicians who are also swing dancers -- specifically Jonathan Stout and Solomon Douglas. Joel from Vancouver specifically courted musicians he liked and worked with them over a series of gigs to help them become more appealing for the lindyhop crowd.

I had a great experience at a dance where I was Dj'ing breaks; it was a combo led by a very seasoned musician; they played a set and then I played big band music from 30's/40's that I didn't think he would cover; he responded with another set tailored based on what I dj'ed, which I thought was very cool - he told me "you showed me what the crowd liked to dance to". So as a promoter it's definitely worth the time to spend with the band discussing styles etc. if they are open to it.

[remysun]

I find that the biggest trouble with a live band is when they want to show off their jams, while a dancer needs a song. A dancer is always reacting to the music, whereas the band is in full control of the music. Fast tempos, non-tonality, unusual structures, etc. show off a band's talents, but it just doesn't make for easy dancing. And most bands have one favorite style. This lack of variety wears on a dancer, since it's easier to play fast than to move fast.

Then again, I'm getting old. Even with all those problems, live music is great. There's nothing like a band feeding off the dancer's energy, creating a synergetic loop. But in order for that to happen, they both need to be on the same page.

[Albert System]

What you say is totally true. There are certain tunes and song forms that I will not play at a dance for the reasons you suggest. I will save those tunes for concerts or clubs whgere people are listening and not dancing.

Many bandleaders do not believe in tailoring their sets to the audience. They look at it the other way around.

But in order to make a living playing music- even jazz- you have to be somewhat flexible. There are different songs, forms, styles etc. that are appropriate for dances, corporate events, weddings, concerts, etc. If you want all those gigs, you better know what to play in each situation.

Paul Cosentino
Boilermaker Jazz Band
www.boilermakerjazzband.com

[julius]

Basie's book had waltzes and Latin numbers. And, judging by a few CD releases, horrible arrangements of James Bond and Beatles songs.

I think some musicians are afraid to change their material to accomodate audiences because they perceive it as 'selling out', artistically speaking. The problem with that attitude, in my opinion, is that artistically sound musicians can take the banal material and transcend its banality. (Which is something I thought of in the other thread about Ella and 'disposable pop fluff' songs such as 'Tisket, Tasket'.)

[Eyeball]

Basie's book had waltzes and Latin numbers. And, judging by a few CD releases, horrible arrangements of James Bond and Beatles songs.

Those were awful. One horrid release after another in the 60s.

[CafeSavoy]

Basie's book had waltzes and Latin numbers. And, judging by a few CD releases, horrible arrangements of James Bond and Beatles songs.

I think some musicians are afraid to change their material to accomodate audiences because they perceive it as 'selling out', artistically speaking. The problem with that attitude, in my opinion, is that artistically sound musicians can take the banal material and transcend its banality. (Which is something I thought of in the other thread about Ella and 'disposable pop fluff' songs such as 'Tisket, Tasket'.)

I think you can find great musicians on both sides of the "selling out" argument. Although I wonder if it is not more prevalent in the post-war era since pre-war music had a significant live audience component and more post-war jazz had the art-for-art-sake vibe. In the liner notes to Ellington's "Braggin in Brass: the Immortal 1938 Year" the reviewer notes how Ellington would change arrangement during breaks if he felt he wasn't getting the response from the audience that he wanted.

BTW, I think the disposable songs comment in the other thread had more to do with the quality of the material given Ella then with the value of her performances. The same sort of comment could be and was made about the material given Billie Holiday. It is a measure of their genius that they could, in some cases, spin straw into gold.

[Lawrence]

I think musicians should never, ever sell out but instead should continue to perpetually live in squalor so as to satisfy my Bohemian ideal of nobility.

[SoundInMotionDJ]

I think musicians should never, ever sell out but instead should continue to perpetually live in squalor so as to satisfy my Bohemian ideal of nobility.

Sleep safe in the thought that almost all of them do. Sharing a couch with about half the swing dancers I know...

[SoundInMotionDJ]

Live bands create a great "visual theater" that is almost impossible for a DJ to match. The way that a DJ can reply to that is by using the larger range of music (artists, tempos, arrangements, etc) to their advantage.

Live musicians like to "explore" the bridges and solos and jams within the songs. That's great for listening, but not as good for dancing. DJs can exactly (in many cases digitally) reproduce the same song time after time. What you lose in the interaction, you gain in predictability and "average quality."

In most cases, bands do not select their rehearsed set list with dancers in mind. So, occasionally some of their selections are wholly unsuitable for dancing - either above or below the common tempo range, or with just the wrong feeling for the dance at hand. DJs can (in theory) select each song from their catalog that is appropriate for the audience at hand.

While it can be very hard for the DJ to match the "energy" of a live band...please to check that the band is not attempting to play louder to gain some or all of that energy. Spinal Tap was, after all, one of the loudest bands to come out of England.

--Stan Graves

[Albert System]

Actually, I never script my sets ahead of time. I always call all the tunes as we go so that I can gauge the room, and decide what we need next. I also know the scene pretty well in most cities- I can play more fast tunes in DC than I can anywhere else for example.

One of the reasons I can do this is because I have had my band for 20 years, and our repertoire is gigantic- probably upwards of 700 songs.

If you have a smaller repertoire, or if you don't play for dancing all the time, you might need to script your sets. But you could get stuck calling a tune that is inappropriate.

Paul Cosentino
www.boilermakerjazzband.com

[djstarr]

I just got back from the Portland Lindy Exchange, and they did something quite clever; they hired 11 bands for the weekend and gave them all 1 hour sets. I'm not quite sure how they managed the finances; 10 of them were local bands so there was not that much travel; and most of them were small groups.

Still I was impressed. Even the worse bands couldn't get into too much trouble with 1 hour sets, and they had 30 min DJ breaks in between during band teardown/setup.

I thought it was very successful from keeping the dancers entertained. And I got to preview a bunch of bands in one weekend. A couple of them we need to get up to Seattle!

[Haydn]

I just got back from the Portland Lindy Exchange

Ah - so that's why you've been enthusiastically posting

[djstarr]

I just got back from the Portland Lindy Exchange

Ah - so that's why you've been enthusiastically posting

ha ha. more like I'm finally catching up with work, been heads down in computer junk so no time for posting until just recently. But Portland was awesome and did give me some spark. Next month DCLX and Fleur d'Lindy so expect more from me