BRATTLEBORO — To celebrate the coming of spring, and to benefit the Brattleboro Women's Chorus, the Vermont Jazz Center is hosting a Bayou-themed dance party with three local dance bands. The event on Sunday, April 7, from 5 to 8 p.m., will present music hailing from the Louisiana Bayou to the streets of Brazil and from points all over the Afro-Creole culture sphere.
Featured will be two of Brattleboro's signature New Orleans roots music ensembles, Bayou X and the Celebration Brass Band, with a special guest appearance by SOVESA, the Vermont Jazz Center Samba Ensemble.
First up will be Bayou X, based in Langdon, N.H., and Brattleboro, a high-energy band that performs an eclectic blend of popular and folkloric material, both original and traditional. They incorporate Cajun and Creole zydeco dance music of southwest Louisiana, New Orleans rhythm and blues standards, and music from across the global Afro-Creole diaspora.
The band is led by New Orleans native Peter Simoneaux on fiddle and vocals, with Linda Simoneaux on accordions and vocals, Lucas Houk on electric bass, Bob Everingham on electric guitar, and Ben Carr on drums.
Following Bayou X, SOVESA, the VJC Samba Ensemble hits the dance floor.
SOVESA performs classic and contemporary Brazilian samba rhythms under the direction of Julian Gerstin, Ron Kelley, and Veronica Stevens. The group practices every other Sunday at the Vermont Jazz Center, and welcomes new members.
The last set of the evening will feature the Celebration Brass Band, Brattleboro's own New Orleans-style brass band, directed by Pete Simoneaux on bass drum and vocals, with Tim Ellis and Linda Simoneaux alternating on sousaphone, Stephen Voorhees on snare drum, Julian Gerstin on percussion, and a dynamic cast of leading Brattleboro horn players including co-directors Walter Slowinski and Ron Kelley on saxophones, Dan DeWalt on trombone, and Anders Burrows on trumpet.
Finger foods, both savory and sweet, will be provided. There will be plenty of room for both seating and dancing.
The Brattleboro Women's Chorus welcomes all women and girls age 10 and up and provides the opportunity to sing and perform in a group. The operating budget is only partially covered by membership dues. Financial aid is offered, and funds are raised through donations, concert proceeds, and fundraisers such as this one.