Michael Gamble

The Process in Richmond, VA – July 22, 2016

The Mint Julep Jazz Band is returning to The Process in Richmond, Virginia this year, to perform at the Friday night main dance on July 22, 2016! This Lindy Hop workshop weekend is unique in that it focuses on “the process of learning, teaching, and performing,” but definitely offers more than just workshops – there’s a ton of live music, including MJJB, Michael Gamble and the Rhythm Serenaders (who I’ll be joining for the Friday late night!), the Low Down Sires, the Resonant Rogues, and 504 Supreme. Come swing out with us for a weekend of focused learning and amazing dancing!

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June is amazing!

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Lincoln Center’s band shell and dance pavilion at Damrosch Park.

Seriously, it’s going to be one of the best months for the Mint Julep Jazz Band and, thus, for myself – here’s a rundown of the goodness to come:

June 3 – Mint Julep Quintet is performing at Beyu Caffe, our local jazz and supper club at its new spacious and wonderful location. Durham, come hear your hometown swing band!

June 4 – Live Love Lindy is Winston-Salem’s first and NC’s only Lindy exchange for 2016! Looking forward to returning to the fabulous Vintage Theater (and its teeny tiny stage, it’s going to be tight for 8 people!) with the Mint Julep Jazz Band and also looking forward to performing with Michael Gamble and the Rhythm Serenaders at Camel City BBQ for the Saturday late night dance!

June 16-19 – I’ll be making my annual pilgrimage to Cleveland for All Balboa Weekend to pull triple duty: 1) DJ’ing, 2) performing at the Friday night dance with Michael Gamble and the Rhythm Serenaders, and 3) performing at the Saturday night dance with the Mint Julep Jazz Band.

June 24 – I am still pinching myself to make sure this is real and not a dream, the Mint Julep Jazz Band is performing at Lincoln Center’s Midsummer Night Swing! We are flying to New York to perform at this wonderful event, part of a three week concert series with social dancing to live music in an outdoor pavilion under the stars in Damrosch Park! I’ll tell you if it was a dream at the end of the month… 😉

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Lindyfest – March 24-27, 2016

My first Lindyfest was two years ago where I served as the Balboa DJ for competitions, a special Bal dance, and I even DJ’ed some for Lindy Hop. 😉 This long-running workshop weekend is a huge event in Houston, Texas and I’m delighted that they have invited me back to be the Balboa DJ again and sing two nights with the Jonathan Doyle Swingtet! This will be my first time performing with his group, after I first performed with Jonathan at the Nevermore Jazz Ball in St. Louis this past November as part of Michael Gamble and the Rhythm Serenaders, and I’m excited to be working with an amazing group of Austin musicians lead by this powerhouse reed man. World class instruction, the Lone Star Championships, great live and DJ’ed music, and I see that Sugar Sullivan will be joining us! Come to Texas and dance!

Swing Into Spring 2016

I’m happy to be returning to our neighboring state to the south for a weekend of swing dancing in Columbia, South Carolina at Swing Into Spring! I’ll be singing and swinging with Michael Gamble and his Rhythm Serenaders at the Saturday night main dance on February 20, 2016. This event has a great lineup of instructors, Andy Reid, Nina Gilkenson, Kate Hedin, Bobby White, Casey Koroshec, Mike Faltesek, Jenny Shirar, and Christian Frommelt – come out, Southeast dancers, don’t miss it!

Farewell 2015, It’s Been Swell!

Just a little note to say thank you to everyone who has come out to a gig, hired me to sing with their band, hired the Mint Julep Jazz Band, and supported the Mint Julep Jazz Band’s Kickstarter and resulting album. In 2015 I performed 58 nights with 4 different bands in 13 states – 2016, I am ready for you! Look for more singing, DJ’ing, and an appearance on Michael Gamble and his Rhythm Serenaders‘ new album!

Lindy Focus 2015

What could be better than five nights of big band music featuring a different swing era bandleader each night? Doing it all over again, getting another crack at those charts, and delighting dancers, both who loved the experience before and dancers who missed the joy of this event last year. I am delighted to be returning to Lindy Focus to sing five nights with the all-star Lindy Focus edition of the Jonathan Stout Orchestra and I’ll be lending my voice to Michael Gamble and his Rhythm Serenaders at one of the late night dances. I’ll also be DJ’ing in the Balboa room at some of the late night dances – this will be a very DO ALL THE THINGS kind of Lindy Focus for me! See you in Asheville December 27-31, 2015 to ring in the new year!

Here’s the lineup of musicians this year, in case you were curious:

Albert Alva (Saxes & Clarinet)
Gordon Au (Trumpet & Music Instructor)
Lucian Cobb (Trombone)
Josh Collazo (Drums & Music Instructor)
Paul Cosentino (Saxes, Clarinet, & Music Instructor)
Jonathan Doyle (Saxes, Clarinet, & Bandleader!)
Michael Gamble (Bass)
Craig Gildner (Piano)
Ryan Gould (Bass & Music Instructor)
Jake Handelman (Trombone)
Noah Hocker (Trumpet)
David Jellema (Cornet)
Jason Jurzak (Bass & Music Instructor)
Ken McGee (Trumpet)
Keenan McKenzie (Saxes, Clarinet, & Music Instructor)
Dean Mitchell (Saxes)
Ben Polcer (Trumpet & Music Instructor)
James Posedel (Piano)
Brooks Prumo (Guitar)
Hal Smith (Drums)
Jonathan Stout (Guitar & Bandleader!)
Allan Vache´ (Clarinet)
Dave Wilken (Trombone, Music Instructor and Program Overseer)
Russ Wilson (Drums, Vocals on “Basie Night”!)
Laura Windley (Vocals & DJ)

Nevermore Jazz Ball and St. Louis Swing Dance Festival, November 5-8, 2015

I am pleased as punch to be taking my first trip to St. Louis, MO and the excitement is twofold – I have several old, dear friends who have moved there that I am excited to visit and I will be performing at the Nevermore Jazz Ball for two nights with Michael Gamble and the Rhythm Serenaders! I hope to also take in some sights (re: vintage shopping) and look forward to listening to some great St. Louis bands at the event’s Cherokee Street Jazz Crawl – like a bar crawl (actually a bar crawl?) for Lindy Hoppers with different dance bands at each bar/venue. See you soon, St. Louis!

Bal-ast Off in Huntsville, Alabama – July 31-August 2, 2015

I’m excited to be visiting and singing, for the very first time, the state of Alabama to perform at Bal-ast Off with Michael Gamble and his Rhythm Serenaders! I will also be DJ’ing this weekend of Balboa workshops and dances in Huntsville, along with head DJ Kyle Smith and DJ Erica Vess. As of the date of this post, the event is almost sold out – get your tickets fast and join the flight crew at Bal-ast Off! 😀

Swing Into Spring with Michael Gamble and his Rhythm Serenaders

It’s back to back weekends singing with Michael Gamble and his Rhythm Serenaders, this time I’ll be heading south to warmer climates for Swing Into Spring, a weekend of swing dance workshops in Columbia, South Carolina. We’ll be performing at the Saturday night main dance on February 14, 2015 from 8:00 p.m. to midnight. Come spend Valentines Day with us! 😉 For more information on the weekend, visit the Swing Into Spring website.

Slow Dance Soiree with Michael Gamble’s Rhythm Serenaders, February 6-7, 2015

This weekend I will be flying to Rochester, New York for the very first time to sing with Michael Gamble’s Rhythm Serenaders at the Slow Dance Soiree, a swing dance event hosted by Groove Juice Swing that will focus on slow dancing for Lindy Hoppers. I am looking forward to performing again with the Rhythm Serenaders and visiting a new city, but I must admit that I am not sure what to do with these extremely cold temperatures! Wish me luck in staying warm!