CAMILLUS — After more than a year of inactivity, the Rhythm-Airs big band has resumed its Wednesday-evening dances at the Camillus Elks Club, 6117 Newport Road, just north of the village of Camillus.
Led by trumpeter Maureen Clum, the 18-piece orchestra plays from 7 to 9 p.m. every Wednesday. Admission costs $6 per person or $10 per couple and food and drinks are available. For info, call the Lodge at 315-672-3106.
The rhythm section for the Rhythm-Airs features drummer Tom Anderson, guitarist Kevin Curry, pianist Patricia Dougherty and bassist Jim Herkimer.
The brass section includes trumpeters Dave Brown, Ruth Florey, Byron Pagot and Ron Stewart along with trombonists Jim Goloski, Barney Molldrem, Jim Morrow and Cliff Stage.
The reeds are played by saxophonists Ed Chapman, Lawrence Czajkowski, Carol Rothwell and Chris Stewart.
The band specializes in Swing Era tunes such as Glenn Miller’s “In the Mood” and Duke Ellington’s “Take the A Train.” They often cover material made famous by Harry James, Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong, Tony Bennett and Count Basie.
Blind vocalist Scott Dennis is on leave for two months while he moves into a new apartment, but other band members are stepping up to sing a tune or two, such as “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.”
The Rhythm-Airs established on the heels of a predecessor band called the Legionnaires, which rehearsed in the 1970s at the American Legion Post 188 in Liverpool.
More recently, the big band has showcased on the main stage at the Northeast Jazz & Wine Festival in Clinton Square for several summers in a row. In 2016, they were featured at the Oswego Harborfest, and in 2018, the band performed at the Art & Home Center on Senior Day at the New York State Fair. The following year they played at Bullhead Point for the Fulton Jazz Festival.
“Since the resurgence of interest in ballroom dancing,” observed Rhythm-Airs fan Joanne Britton of Baldwinsville, “the floor at the Elks Club is crowded with people having the time of their lives doing the fox trot, swing dance, waltz, polka and Latin numbers.”
Submitted photo
Trumpeter Maureen Clum (left) leads The Rhythm-Airs, an 18-piece big band specializing in Swing Era standards, every Wednesday evening at the Camillus Elks Club.
