A. The full orchestra has 5 saxophones, 4 trombones, 4 trumpets, piano, bass, drums, guitar and a vocalist. That's a total of 18 musicians. If constraints due to limitations of budget and/or space, we can perform with fewer musicians.
A. The full 18 piece band needs a minimum area of 24 feet wide by 18 feet deep. We prefer a larger space than that of course, but we can do fine in 24' x 18'. Mind you, rock bands typically have only a handfull of players but use as much as we do, if not more, because they use so many amplifiers and other electronic equipment. We are an acoustic band. We do not use microphones for the musicians and can thus stand much closer together.
Naturally if we bring a smaller band, we can work with a smaller space.
A. Click here for what I have to suggest about wedding receptions.
A. If we had our druthers (and you had unlimited resources), we'd prefer to have you provide us with a 7 foot grand piano for the event. If there is an upright acoustic piano available, that will do and we'll just mike it. We offer a discount if a piano is provided for us, otherwise we can bring our own electric piano and amplifier.
The orchestra also needs to have electrical power for amplifiers, our PA system, and our stand lights if your event is to be performed with lowered lighting.
A. We can provide a combo of any size you wish.
A. That's no problem. We can just have a combo from the orchestra perform for you before dinner.
A. For formal functions, we wear either black tuxedos, or dark trousers, white shirts, and a long tie, as you prefer. Your event is going to be a classy affair if you're intending to hire a swing orchestra and we strive for a professional appearance and performance to make your event or reception one to remember.
A. Most rock and roll bands and DJ's are much louder than we are. They just crank up the knobs all the way to 11. Russ Button's Swing Orchestra is largely an acoustic ensemble. The bass player, guitar player, and keyboard players use small amplifiers to enable them to balance with the horn section. We use our PA system only for the vocalist and announcements.
A. Please listen to some of the sound samples we have on the web page here. We feel that our demo tape and/or sound samples are representitive of the musical direction and quality of the orchestra. Most of what we play is swing dance music. We do have some bossa nova and salsa latin tunes, and we have waltz, tango, and rhythm 'n blues numbers in the book. If we are playing for more of a concert setting, we have some exciting big band jazz numbers that are more oriented for listening. We present dance music that was often played by Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Woody Herman, Nat King Cole, and Glenn Miller.
A. It's unfortunate, but big band music is not as common as it once was, so most people nowadays don't know that the term "big band" really means 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, 5 saxophones, piano, bass and drums. That's a big band!
Big band music started out as dance music. Kids have always liked their music loud and exciting, and back in the 1930's, they didn't have amplifiers like we do today. So to get a louder sound, you needed more musicians.
Most people seem to associate the term "big band" with the a certain kind of sound. So I've taken the word "orchestra" just because it has the connotation of a large ensemble. My wife is a professional violinist and she always gives me a funny look when I refer to the band as an orchestra. She's really the orchestral musician, not me.
A. With a 4 week lead time, we can pretty much acquire any published arrangement.
A. That music is not our style, but as I said above, we are willing to perform a tune that is not part a standard part of our repertoire if there is a published arrangement of it for big band.
A. We do not have an arrangement of "Melancholy Baby", but if you can provide us with one, Aunt Mathilda is welcome to sing it with us.
A. Our rates vary depending upon the size of the ensemble.
Please call Russ Button at 510-769-2968
or send
e-mail.
A. We require a 50% non-refundable deposit upon acceptance of the contract to commit the orchestra for your event. The balance is to be paid at the performance. Payment may be made by check or in cash. Payment for custom arrangements must be paid when the contract is signed and the committement is first made.