Swing Dance: Ya Like Jazz?
Lucia Moss
The night of February 25th, the 24th annual Swing dance was held at the Champaign Country Club with live music performed by local school’s jazz bands.
These included jazz bands from Jefferson middle school and Mahomet junior high school, as well as Central’s Lab Band, Stage Band, and Jazz Ensemble.
Preparations for this highly anticipated event were not easy. These student musicians put in hours of early morning practices and their own practice time to deliver their robust set list. Senior Lawrence Parks, an alto saxophonist for Central’s Jazz Ensemble, said “thanks to everyone’s skill and ability to adapt…we were still able to get a lot done and perform some really fun tunes.”
According to Band Director John Currey, the Swing dance was created “to try and capture the swing craze at that time.” Their first year holding the dance was a success. Held at the then new Champaign Illinois Terminal, many students attended rather than going to prom that evening.
With all of the history behind this event, students, musicians, and the community alike were grateful to have it held this year after not having been able to last year during lockdown. Currey expressed that it was a relief “to be able to have things in person. To be able to offer the kinds of things that have made kids want to be a part of the [music] program, have made people be excited about being a musician, that's awesome.” On what it means for those who get to perform, Currey says, “they get to see people dance. That's what the music is really created for.”
Our student musicians also missed being able to perform at this event last year. Layla Khan, a pianist for jazz band and clarinetist for Central’s wind symphony, stated, “hanging out with groups, hearing live music, and dancing is such a special thing and we never got that during quarantine. I feel like we are finally getting our high school experience back again.”
Things still looked different this year due to the pandemic, with one big difference being no dinner service offered to students. You could however reserve a table in the main room to order dinner. Not only that, but many Central students didn’t know about this event due to not having it for a year. “We have a whole new faction of kids. Half of our kids hadn’t done it before,” said Currey. Numbers this year were also smaller than in prior years, with numbers as high as 600-800 of people in attendance. Still, around 240 tickets were sold, and according to Senior Maaike Niekerk, baritone saxophonist for Jazz Ensemble, “the energy was insane.” Parks agreed, stating, “all my friends…[were]... there listening to the performance and having a fun time. Soloing is also super fun because everyone is cheering for you and bringing energy to the band.”
If you are interested in Central’s music program, think about joining. They are a welcoming, diverse community. Niekerk stated, “definitely join the Central jazz program! It's a super fun time; even if you don't play a jazz instrument, the Currey's can teach you and you can learn super quickly. It's really great to be able to perform at different spots around town and travel to competitions all over the place.”