Big Band

Big Band Alumni

Active since: 2000

The Big Band Alumni is a 17-piece big band that features some musicians that are graduates of the greatest big bands of all time like Benny Goodman, Harry James, Stan Kenton, Woody Herman, Count Basie, Jimmy & Tommy Dorsey, and many others from the Big Band Era.

The Big Band Alumni is in its 25th year of existence. The band was created by musicians who were members of the big bands (largely) of the 1940’s who were responsible for the swing era. Over the 21 years there have been replacements. Like many big bands of the 40’s we also have vocalists who have always been younger than the original band members.

David Bode

Some are raised in New Orleans’ musical tradition. Others join it by force of will. David Bode, a New Orleans-born saxophonist and composer, felt the pull of his city’s timeless, creative spirit from childhood. But as the first musician in his family, connecting with it required desire and persistence. A graduate of the renowned Loyola University and University of New Orleans music programs, Bode, who first began performing professionally while in high school, has spent more than two decades performing, writing, and recording in New Orleans and beyond. He is a regular at his city’s famed music clubs, concert halls, and festivals performing with New Orleans High Society, the New Leviathan Oriental Foxtrot Orchestra, and the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, among many others, and is the leader of the David Bode Big Band. Good Hang, Bode’s first release as a leader, blends his eclectic musical sensibility into the classic sounds of big band jazz, resulting in an energetic debut.

Desi Arnaz

Born: March 2, 1917

Jessika Smith

Lew Stone

Born: May 28, 1898

Lew Stone was a prominent British bandleader, pianist, arranger and composer during the 1930s and 1940s, known for writing sophisticated arrangements for various dance bands (including his own) and popularising American jazz rhythms in Britain's own swing era. Although his name isn't as widely known today as that of, say, Jack Hylton's, some of his songs are still popular today, partly thanks to the television series Pennies from Heaven.

Carroll Gibbons

Born: January 4, 1903

Carroll Gibbons was a distinguished American-born pianist, bandleader and composer who became a defining figure in British Dance Band music during the 1930s and '40s. Best known for his elegant work with the Savoy Hotel Orpheans, Gibbons brought a refined jazz sensibility to popular music, blending American influences with a uniquely British charm. His smooth arrangements, stylish piano playing, and keen ear for melody earned him acclaim both in the UK and abroad. Gibbons also composed several enduring tunes, including “A Garden in the Rain”, leaving a lasting legacy in the world of light jazz and popular standards.

Tommy Tucker

Born: May 18, 1903

Tommy Tucker was a popular swing-era bandleader, pianist, accordionist and trombonist who led one of the most refined "sweet" bands of the 1930s and '40s. Born Gerald L. Duppler on May 18, 1903, in Souris, North Dakota, Tucker adopted his stage name during his rise in the Midwest dance band circuit. His orchestra gained national attention through novelty recordings for labels such as Columbia and Vocalion, and also by maintaining a polished, danceable style that contrasted with the hotter swing bands of the time. Though not a jazz innovator in the same way as Duke Ellington or Earl "Fatha" Hines, Tucker’s ensemble featured skilled sidemen and occasional jazz soloists, and his music remains a perfect example of the elegant ballroom tradition

Lawrence Welk

Born: March 11, 1903

Before he became a household name as the host of his own self-titled television show, Lawrence Welk was a hardworking bandleader shaped by the rural Midwest, European folk traditions, and the rhythms of early American dance music. Born in 1903 in North Dakota to German-Russian immigrants, Welk’s first musical instrument was the button accordion, and his early gigs were steeped in polka, waltz, and regional styles that prioritized rhythm and melody for the dance floor.

By the 1920s and '30s, Welk was leading bands across the Midwest, developing a style that would eventually be dubbed "champagne music" - smooth, tightly arranged, and bouyant. Beneath its polished surface, however, his orchestras absorbed the styles of the jazz music that was evolving around them. While his band didn't swing in the way that Goodman or Basie's did, they found great success in foxtrots, rumbas and even jazz standards, bended to match their smoothness.

Brian Martin

Award-winning trombonist, composer, and educator Brian Martin is based both in the music scene of his home state of Iowa as well as the Greater Boston area where he currently resides. As a performer, Martin has performed alongside international and national touring artists in addition to leading his own groups. His most ambitious project is his Brian Martin Big Band, an ensemble ranging from 17-20 pieces dedicated to performing his original music, which is composed of musicians from New England and the Midwest.

As a writer, his compositions and arrangements have received accolades from the Jazz Educators Network and DownBeat Magazine