Are you looking for something a little bit different at your wedding reception?

If so, and you are getting married within the Yorkshire area, why not book the Dearne Big Band who play swing hits from the 1940’s. The band consists of 4 trombones, 4 trumpets, 5 saxophones, a rhythm section and vocals.

Dearne Big Band

Here are just a few of the pieces in their repotoire: American Patrol, A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square, A String Of Pearls, Begin The Beguine, Chattanooga Choo Choo, Come Fly With Me, Don’t Sit Under The Apple Tree, I Get A Kick Out Of You, In The Mood, Little Brown Jug, Mack The Knife, Moonlight Serenade, Pennsylvania 65000, Take The A Train and Tuxedo Junction.

The band playing at a recent wedding

Playing great music by the best of the classic big bands (Glenn Miller, Artie Shaw, Benny Goodman, Harry James, Ted Heath), they are guaranteed to get your guests up dancing and jiving!

On a more serious note, as a member of the band myself, I would like to tell you about our most recent gig in Switzerland, which was to raise money for a small charity called Rainbows4children. After seeing what the charity has achieved so far, I felt compelled to write about it.

The charity was set up by Kathryn and Max Robinson whose aim was to help the children of Ethiopia, by building a school in memory of Max’s son Nicolas.

The school is situated in Mekele and opened on September 12th 2005. Since then, with the help of the Tigray Disabled Veterans’s Association (TDVA) it has steadily grown, with new classrooms built each year. Over 600 pupils now attend the school. 70% of the children are from family’s with disabled parents and their school fees are subsidised, giving them the chance for an education which they previously would not have had.

Nicolas Primary School (2008) - An extra floor has now been built since this photograph was taken.

Children in class at the Nicolas Primary School (2007)

Children enjoying play activity at the Nicolas Kindergarten (2008)

Children at the Nicolas Primary School enjoying a break from lessons (2007)

Next year a music room, library and an outdoor eating area are all planned. The music room is going to be named after the Dearne Big Band’s former Musical Director ‘Holin Hammerton’.

Mr Holin Hammerton

It was a great privilege for us to perform at the charity concert to help raise more money for this fantastic cause. If you would like to find out more about the work done, please visit the Rainbows4childrens’s website at www.rainbows4children.org

The Dearne Big Band with Max and Kathryn Robinson