Learn more about Swingtime Big Band Coming to Madison Theatre this Sunday at 3pm Written by: Katie Killman - Molloy College English Student I had the wonderful opportunity to interview Steve Shaiman this past Monday about his ensemble’s upcoming performance at the Madison Theatre at Molloy College in Rockville Centre, this Sunday, February 16th at 3pm. Mr. Shaiman is the artistic director for Long Island’s premier swing band called Swingtime Big Band. This unique 20-piece ensemble, including two talented vocalists, is dedicated to keeping the sound of big band alive. Under the passionate eye of Mr. Shaiman, this band pays homage to the classics and allows their joy for music to delight their audiences. During this interview, I could literally feel Mr. Shaiman’s joy for the music that surrounds his life and I felt truly inspired by his passion. Experience this positivity for yourself: 1) This is your second appearance at the Madison Theatre. What about this stage appeals to you? A: It’s a really great room to play in because all the musicians are able to hear each other very well. Also, it is a very intimate environment; you feel as if the audience is on stage with you. The energy that we receive from the audience is incredible. We had a great time at our first show (the Christmas show) and we are very excited about returning to the Madison Theatre. 2) Are you bringing any new twists for the Valentine’s show at the Madison Theatre? A: Yes, new in the sense that it is a different program focusing on love songs. This is a blessing and a curse. The blessing is that there is so much amazing music to choose from, but the curse is how do you narrow this amazing selection to only two hours? We decided on a concise list of music consisting of a two dozen song set list. This is something that I enjoy [choosing the set list], but it is always a challenge. The set list for this show at the Madison Theatre represents all the greats from the big band era and we are paying tribute to artists. We are especially excited for this show because we are bringing two brand new arrangements. The first features our male vocalist, Jerry Costanzo, in a song called “Don’t You Go Away Mad”, in which he tries to make some excuses to his significant other for getting caught; it is a very fun number. The second is a fun medley with three songs: “People Will Say We’re In Love” from Oklahoma, “Love Me or Leave Me”, and “Bye Bye Baby”. This is a fun arrangement done in the classic big band swing style which I am certain people will enjoy. We are world premiering both these numbers at the Madison Theatre. 3) You have dedicated your music career to swing music and big band. What about this genre appeals to you and to your audience? A: I think what appeals to me and the audience is the positive energy and the optimistic quality of the swing era. The music perfectly captures this era and the unique American characteristics of the 30’s and 40’s which included an increased morale in our country. Swing music is a typical American style and I think that the big band brass is the quintessential American style. Frank Sinatra especially kept these songs alive. At the core of this music is the big band and we owe a lot to Frank Sinatra. There has been a resurgence in popularity in swing music with shows like Dancing with the Stars. I personally feel very strongly about swing music and I feel that I have a mission to keep this music alive for today’s audiences. The classic recordings are our holy grail to live up to because there is nothing like hearing it live. The energy that we receive at our live performances is a lot of fun. 4) How do you decide on your arrangements? A: I make the final decision about arrangements because I am the artistic director. I do get some input from the musicians in the ensemble, especially if they have heard a great arrangement recently, but I ultimately choose the arrangements. There is almost an Indiana Jones quality to this part of my job because most of this music was never published which makes finding copies of the sheet music nearly impossible. Often, I have to find copies of music which has been transcribed from recordings. These transcribed copies never sound like the original and we will only play a piece if it is good and if it sounds authentic. It is very exciting when find a chart that we have been after and then we finally get to produce it. 5) What about being Long Island’s premier swing band do you love most? A: We take great pride in where we are from and in being Long Island’s own swing band. Most of us live here and we live all over the Island, from Nassau to Suffolk Counties. There are tons of listeners who enjoy this music and who have seen us before. But, there are also a lot of new faces at our shows. There is always a mix and we enjoy seeing new fans and old fans. We get excited about our new fans. We have a reputation of being high quality, of playing in an authentic way, of being true to the music, and of being true to the bands that played the music before us. We pride ourselves on capturing the original spirit of both the original band and the original tune. These are not contemporary arrangements because we are sticklers for making sure that the stuff we play sounds like the classic recordings. The show isn’t about our interpretation, rather it’s about what people expect to hear. It is about re-creating the spirit and the essence of the swing era. We have a very big fan base and every summer we get busier and busier. We also travel quite a bit as we perform all over the tri-state area. 6) You have a 20-member ensemble. How do you pick these members? Do you rotate members for every show? Where do you rehearse? A: We have a steady membership. Our “regular players” are committed to band rehearsals and performances. However, some people have conflicts so I also have a reliable list of amazing musicians, who perform on a guest basis, if the original member has a conflict. We generally have the same group of people, although there are some new faces. We have no home base for rehearsals. We rotate between spaces in Nassau County and a couple in Suffolk County as well. We rehearse twice a month and we all get together, including our 2 singers. 7) You are artistic director of the ensemble as well as a saxophonist. Do you find it difficult to switch roles? How do you balance being a musician and a director? Was it hard transitioning from performer to director? A: I am the artistic director and the band leader. As the band leader, I run rehearsals, put everything together, and I talk to the audience as the MC. I also do play the saxophone. However, for the most part, I give the rest of the musicians the spotlight and act as the host; sometimes I take a solo. The one thing I miss is not playing as much. Being the band leader, I have to listen in a certain way so that we can improve and so that the performance sounds the way that it is supposed to. Therefore, I sacrifice playing music so that the band sounds great. I also book all the shows and keep up with our schedule. It is important that we live up to our commitments. 8) What can the audience members at the Madison Theatre expect from your ensemble on February 16th? A: Two hours of pure joy and positive energy. But at the same time, they can expect all aspects of love, including heartbreak. We also deal with the love of our country, including a tribute to veterans. This is American music and we love our country. We would like to pay tribute to those people that give us the freedom to play this kind of music. This is one of my favorite programs. In fact, we recorded quite a few tracks for our album In Living Color from our last love songs program. We expect to see a full house of old and new friends. Although this music has an obvious appeal to the older generation, everyone is drawn to it. This music has amazing energy and joy and is meant for all ages and families. This music is infectious. Join us on Sunday Tickets at: https://web.ovationtix/trs/pr/925644 or give us a call at 516-323-4444
Posted on: Sat, 15 Feb 2014 01:00:01 +0000
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