OCTOBER 5, 2017 // 15
dining
out
A STORIA
C ORNER
D ELI
SUBMITTED PHOTO
The Dukes of Swing, a group of professional musicians based in Aberdeen, Washington, will
appear Saturday, Oct. 7, at a salute-to-veterans concert hosted by the Peninsula Association of
Performing Artists at the Fort Columbia Theater in Chinook, Washington. notforsale
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visits to the Peninsula.
“When they play ‘In The
Mood,’ it’s such a sound. It’s
awesome, with fi ve saxes
out front.”
Cindy Flood, president of
PAPA, has appeared in mu-
sicals with Babikoff for the
past 10 years. She said the
“salute to veterans” event
is suitable for all ages. It
runs 5 to 8 p.m., a time slot
deliberately chosen so more
mature audience members
can enjoy it.
Several Peninsula restau-
rants are donating plates of
hors d’oeuvres. Admission
is by $10 donation, and all
funds raised will be pre-
sented to the Don R. Grable
American Legion Post No.
48, which serves the Long
Beach Peninsula.
“It is something that we
feel we can do to give back
to the community and our
veterans,” Flood said. “We
put the chairs around the
sides, the band is on stage,
and there’s room to dance,
although that’s optional.”
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The Dukes of Swing is
the band of the Elks Lodge
No. 593 of Aberdeen,
Washington. The group,
which also performs jazz
concerts, has opened for
Manhattan Transfer and Big
Bad Voodoo Daddy, as well
as performing at last year’s
Washington Governor’s
Ball.
Leaders draw on the tal-
ents of Grays Harbor County
and Olympia, Washington,
musicians who want to con-
tinue long after their school
band years. One original
member, Bernie Edwards,
who died last year, was still
playing his tenor saxophone
at 98. Norm Fosburg joined
60 years ago and still per-
forms.
Director Dave McCrary, a
longtime professional trum-
pet player, is a former music
teacher at Elma High School
just north of Pacifi c County;
former director Bob Neis-
inger, who plays drums and
sings, held a similar position
in Raymond, Washington, in
the 1960s. Both have been
associated with music in
the region for more than 50
years.
Neisinger, who joined
the group in 1967, said
that despite the emphasis
in the past few decades on
rock ’n roll and country
music, most college and
high school band repertoires
include the big-band tunes
that boosted morale during
World War II.
“That was how they got
through the war and kept
their sense, because the
music was happy,” he said,
enthused about the upcom-
ing Peninsula show. “There’s
something about being part
of an ensemble. Individually
we wouldn’t survive, but as
part of a large group it’s very
rewarding.”
Dukes of Swing per-
formers include their former
students from the 1970s,
something that delights
McCrary, who still calls his
protégés “good kids,” even
though they are long grown
up. “It gives me a great
sense of pride that they are
able to play as professional
musicians in the Dukes of
Swing, because music is part
of their heart and soul,” he
said.
A nod to the Duke
The group’s roots go
back to 1912 when the Ab-
erdeen Elks Lodge formed
an orchestra and later a
marching band. The swing
band was formed in 1948,
and its musicians played at
the fraternity’s national con-
ventions. The name Dukes
of Swing was adopted a
while later, in part as a tip
of the hat to Duke Ellington.
Classic tunes from the 1940s
Big Band Era dominate the
repertoire.
“The World War II gen-
eration is infatuated with the
music of Glenn Miller and
Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey
and the Andrews Sisters,”
McCrary said. “We enjoy
keeping that music alive,
especially for the next gen-
eration who can hear how
wonderful it is and learn to
dance to it.”
Like the PAPA hosts,
the director is excited. “We
always have a good turnout
and we are appreciative that
they keep inviting us back,”
he said. CW