The music of the roaring '20s is about to come alive in the city. Spirit 20 is coming to Yorkton on March 11, and the group is living up to its name by playing jazz in the spirit of the era.
The band consists of James Campbell on clarinet, Guy Few on trumpet, James McKay on bassoon, Chloe Dominguez on cello, Mark Fewer on violin, and John Novaceks on piano. While the members of the group have been in the classical world for a long time, the group is a relatively new creation, only starting in the summer of 2010.
Campbell says the group began at the Festival of the Sound in Perry Sound, Ontario. Campbell was the artistic director of the festival, and got band members together to play a program in the spirit of the festival, which was evoking the 1920s that year. They soon realized they had something good, and decided to take the show on the road and tour the country.
The 1920s were an age of optimism and a willingness to try new things, and that is reflected in the music itself.
"That was an age of experimentation, and people doing crazy things. That's when George Gershwin started to really go. So there's lots of really great music written in that period that mixes classical and jazz, and that's really our interest," Campbell says.
The program in the evening will be a mix of different songs that evoke the era, the most famous being Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue. Campbell adds that pianist Novacek "owns" the piece. While many songs featured are well known, Campell promises that the group handles them in their own way, with plenty of jazz improvisation and new arrangements.
The group is less about reviving older music than it is about reviving the spirit of the age, and that is best represented by the piece from which the group takes it's name, Spirit 20 by Edmonton composer Allan Gilliland.
"It was written last year, but it sounds like it could have been written in 1920 by a dixieland band. I think people are surprised by how it immediately has the sound of the 1920s about it," Campbell says.
The group was formerly known as Mosaique, and recently changed the name. Campbell explains that it was still the early days of the group, and they felt that the piece was something that best reflected what they do and the music they play.
The tour is something special for the group, Campbell explains, because it's a chance for everyone to get together and play music they enjoy, an enthusiasm he says spreads to the audience.
"We enjoy each other and we enjoy playing, so it's kind of like a party for us too."
The show is the next performance in the Stars for Saskatchewan series, and will take place at the Anne Portnuff Theatre on March 11. Tickets are $35 and available at the Arts Council office or at Welcome Home Floral & Gift Shop on Smith Street East.
