HANCEVILLE, Ala. — The Wallace State Jazz Band is proud to announce the return of its Big Band Dance Friday, April 16 at the Burrow Center for the Fine and Performing Arts.
“Unfortunately, we had to cancel last year’s event due to the pandemic,” said Ricky Burks, director of the Wallace State Jazz Band and chair of the Fine and Performing Arts program at Wallace State. “We are excited to be able to host the dance again and welcome anyone who wants to dance or just sit and listen to the music.”
Along with the traditional dance tunes of the Big Band Era, waltzes, rumbas and the like, guests will also get to hear a tune composed by current Wallace State student Chandler Ogles. A dual enrollment student from Corner High School, Ogles was inspired to write “9 O’ Clock Rush (Waiting on a Train) by fellow band member Chad Tenney of Eva. Tenney is sometimes late to practice, it’s said, because he has to wait on a train to clear the tracks on his way school.
Another feature of this year’s Jazz Band is the all-female saxophone line. “We haven’t had an all-female saxophone section since 1996,” Burks said.
The concert will be held at 7 p.m. in the atrium of the Burrow Center for the Fine and Performing Arts. Suggested admission to the event is a $10 donation.
The Jazz Band is one of several ensembles in the Fine and Performing Arts program. Instrumental ensembles also include the Concert Band, Pep Band, Saxophone Quartet and Brass Ensemble.
Vocal ensembles include the Concert Choir, Wallace State Singers and Vocal Jazz Ensemble.
Other offerings include Wallace State Dance’s Allegro Dance Theatre and Wallace State Theatre.
Scholarships are available to students in the Fine and Performing Arts program. The Wallace State Singers will be hosting auditions May 1 at 9 a.m. at the Burrow Center.
For more information about the Fine and Performing Arts program, contact Burks at 256–352–8287 or ricky.burks@wallacestate.edu, or visit www.wallacestate.edu/fpa.
