WAMMIE Nominations for some of my favorite groups & individuals!

A number of my favorite groups and individuals have been nominated for WAMMIE awards. These awards are from WAMA – the Washington Area Music Association – and recognize “significant career achievements by area musicians.” It’s a real honor just to be nominated.

Congratulations to Doug Bowles & His SingCo Rhythm Orchestra, Washington Revels, Charlie Pilzer, Jennifer Cutting, Mary Cliff, and all the other nominees!

If you are already a WAMA member you should have received your online ballot. You, as a music lover, can join WAMA (just $35, and it supports a whole range of great local musical resources). Then cast your votes! (Make sure you really join, because WAMA will check, and if any voters turn out to be non-members, it will look bad for the group or person you are voting for.)

To become eligible to vote:

• Go to https://plus9.safe-order.net/crosstownarts/wama/apply_for_membership.html, an online membership form where you can sign up with your credit card.
• Then, go to: http://www.wamadc.com/wama/wammies/wbal25.htm which is an online clickable ballot.

And the nice part of it is, you can vote in as many categories as you want. If you follow classical, folk, or [name your genre] and have any favorite group or artist on the ballot, vote for them too!

Voting ends THIS FRIDAY, January 21, 2011 at 10pm.

I cast (some of) my votes for:

* BIG BAND/SWING VOCALIST -- Doug Bowles
* BIG BAND/SWING GROUP -- Doug Bowles & His SingCo Rhythm Orchestra
* BIG BAND/SWING RECORDING -- New Deal Rhythm CD (Doug Bowles, with Alex Hassan, piano --incorrectly called “New Deal Swing” on the ballot)

* FOLK - TRADITIONAL DUO/GROUP – Jennifer Cutting’s OCEAN ORCHESTRA

* MUSICAL THEATER ARTIST -- Washington Revels

* EXECUTIVE OF THE YEAR -- Greg Lewis, Washington Revels

* STUDIO ENGINEER -- Charlie Pilzer (producer for Washington Revel’s new CD, Le temps des Fêtes)

* RECORDING STUDIO -- Airshow Mastering (Charlie Pilzer’s studio)

* MOST SUPPORTIVE OF WASHINGTON MUSIC -- Mary Cliff (of WAMU Radio’s “Traditions”)

Deadline to vote is Friday, January 21^st – so vote early, and encourage your WAMA friends to vote too!

Art Deco Society of Washington Fundraiser

Retro-Politans to Present Program of 1930s World’s Fair Songs

October 1 at 7:30pm
The Sumner School, 1201 17th Street NW

The Retro-Politans, whose popular Shakin’ the Blues Away show pleased crowds at the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage and venues throughout the mid-Atlantic region, will introduce a new program--Dawn of a New Day: World’s Fair Songs of the 1930s--at the historic Charles Sumner School October 1, 2010.

Sponsored by the Art Deco Society of Washington as part of its World’s Fair Weekend, the 7:30 PM performance will be preceded by a reception. The Sumner School is located at 1201 17^th Street NW just blocks from the Farragut North Metro station.

Proceeds from the concert will support restoration of the Belgian Friendship Pavilion from the 1939-40 New York World’s Fair. Dismantled and moved to Virginia Union University in Richmond as a gift from the Belgian Government following the closure of the New York World’s Fair, the Pavilion is one of only two major buildings surviving from the New York fair. It is the only building in the United States designed by famed Belgian modernist architect Henry van de Velde. The Belgian Friendship Pavilion requires significant exterior restoration and lacks a carillon for its bell tower, the original bells having been donated to the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.

The Retro-Politans consists of three of the finest musicians in the Washington, DC area— Doug Bowles, vocals, Cindy Hutchins, vocals, and Alex Hassan, piano. Each has travelled around the world performing in shows, concerts, and cabarets. Their expertise in the style and repertoire of the 1920s - 40s is unparalleled.

•Doug Bowles leads a 12-piece 1920s-40s big band—The SingCo Rhythm Orchestra-- playing original charts and arrangements of the period. He has sung throughout the world in opera, operetta, musical theatre, popular, jazz and big band styles. He has also directed and/or conducted over 100 musical productions.

•Cindy Hutchins, featured female vocalist with the SingCo Rhythm Orchestra, has toured the United States performing big band music of the 30s and 40s, performed in numerous concerts for the Smithsonian, and appeared in most of the major theatre venues in Washington. In addition to Washington, she has performed in Europe, New York and China.

•Alex Hassan is one of a very few torch bearers for the style known as "novelty piano" and is a sought after performer at venues around the world. Alex has numerous CD recordings and an active concert schedule both in the United States and abroad. He is president of the Northern Virginia Ragtime Society.

Dawn of a New Day will take the audience on a musical tour through America’s world’s fairs of the 1930s, including songs introduced at the 1933-34 Chicago “Century of Progress” World’s Fair, the 1936 Ft. Worth Frontier Centennial Exposition, the 1937-38 Great Lakes Exposition in Cleveland, the1939-40 New York World’s Fair, and the 1939-40 Golden Gate Exposition in San Francisco. It also includes songs from two movies filmed on location at the 1936 Texas Centennial Exposition in Dallas. Songs by some of America’s finest composers, such as George and Ira Gershwin, Dana Suesse (“the female Gershwin”), and Nobel Sissle, are included in the program

In addition to Dawn of a New Day, the Art Deco Society of Washington’s World’s Fair Weekend includes a bus tour of Washington’s Art Deco Architecture including a visit to the New Deal town of Greenbelt, Maryland and other activities.

For tickets or additional details about the concert and other weekend activities go to www.adsw.org or phone 703-568-3745. Concert tickets are tax deductible.

Doug Bowles sings with the Congressional Chorus

Saturday, November 14 from 8:00 pm to 9:30 pm

SingCo Music's "silver tongued crooner" Doug Bowles joins the Congressional Chorus -- directed by David Simmons -- on this concert of contemporary arrangements of American Folk Songs and Sprituals.

This wonderful 70-voice chorus has been a collaborator with the SingCo Rhythm Orchestra on two other events in recent years, and now SRO's Maestro appears as one of three guests soloists to show off his chops in an arrangement of LITTLE DAVID PLAY ON YOUR HARP that feels almost like it came out of the SRO playbook.

Other fine soloists on this concert include: Rhea Walker, Soprano and Aaron McNeil, baritone.

Tickets are $28 and are available at www.chorusmarket.org.

Location: Church of the Epiphany, 1317 G Street, NW, Washington, DC