Published: September 24, 2009 05:34 pm      

Harry James Orchestra to perform at BCA's first concert of season

Get out your dancing shoes — or at least your toe-tapping ones if you don’t dance anymore. The Harry James Orchestra will perform today in the Beckley Concert Association’s first event of the 2009-10 season.

The performance begins at 7:30 p.m. at the Woodrow Wilson High School auditorium.

Lovers of the Big Band era will certainly enjoy hearing “Ciribiribin” as the orchestra opens the concert with the James’ theme song under the direction of Fred Radke. “The 2:00 O’clock Jump,” “King Porter Stomp” and “Take The A Train” are a few of the tunes the orchestra, one of the outstanding big bands still in existence, will play.

James formed his band in the late 1930s following a stint with Benny Goodman where he, Ziggy Elman and Chris Griffin made up a powerful trumpet section.

According to Colin Larkin, writing in the Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music, “In his early years, James was a brashly exciting player, attacking solos and abetting ensembles with a rich tone in what was sometimes called an overwhelmingly powerful sound.

With his own band, he exploited his virtuoso technique, performing with great conviction the ballads and trumpet spectaculars that so disconcerted his jazz followers, but which delighted the wider audience at whom they were aimed.“

The James Band continued into the 1960s and ’70s, dividing its time between residences at major hotel and casinos venues, mostly in Las Vegas, and touring internationally. Late in his career, James combined the best of both worlds, jazz and the more flashy style. He remained popular into the 1980s, never losing his enthusiasm despite a battle with cancer. He died in 1983.

It is interesting to compare Fred Radke, the present conductor, with James. The latter was playing trumpet in a circus band by the age of 8. Radke was playing professionally by the age of 15. Both became great trumpet soloists and formed their own bands.

It has been said that Radke’s style of trumpet playing is so similar to James’ that listeners often cannot discern the difference. Both toured with their bands, made movies and recorded albums.

When the Harry James Foundation, which owns the band’s charts and is dedicated to preserving the legacy, was searching for a musician to lead the Harry James Orchestra for the 50th anniversary of Harry James, Radke was the first choice because of his unique talents and broad area of expertise.

Radke is presently a full-time instructor of Jazz Studies at North Seattle Community College, is musical director for the Four Seasons Olympic Hotel in Seattle and is an authority on big-band history.

Tickets for today’s performance are available from BCA membership chair, Freda Soter; call 304 253-9591.