Come ring in the New Year at The Kessler – Dancing & Desserts with The Singapore Slingers plus La Pompe!
Ticket purchase includes dessert and a complimentary champagne toast.
The Singapore Slingers is Dallas’ number one source for pre-swing dance music. The orchestra features an expansive repertoire, specializing in the popular music of 1895- 1935- fox trots, rags, marches, waltzes, and hot jazz, as well as one-steps, two-steps, tangos, and rhumbas.
The Singapore Slingers are unique- easily one of the most entertaining and fascinating musical acts around for miles. There is nothing like them in Dallas, or the entire state of Texas. The group has been under the direction of Matt Tolentino since 2007. The orchestra is his brainchild, and he has stocked it with some of Dallas’ finest players.
The Slingers are a true orchestra- they proudly boast 3 violins, viola, and cello, in addition to flute, clarinet, 3 saxophones, 2 trumpets, trombone, tuba, string bass, piano, drums, and banjo. The drummer doubles on xylophone, and the banjoist also plays guitar. Many of these instruments are of the period. The arrangements they perform are also true to the period, as they use authentic ‘stock’ orchestrations.
Old chestnuts from the American songbook (“Dream A Little Dream Of Me,” “Am I Blue?,” “Love Me Or Leave Me”) share the spotlight with rare gems (“Lena From Palesteena,” “My Sweet Tooth Says I Wanna But My Wisdom Tooth Says No,” “Zulu Wail”). The orchestra has a vast expanse of hot jazz (“Dinah,” “Rosetta”) as well as sweet ballads (“I’m In The Mood For Love,” “Confessin’ That I Love You,” “Home”). The group is a true dance orchestra, and the Slingers are equally at home performing for dances, as well as concerts, with rhythms like the rhumba (“Siboney,” “Carioca”), the tango (“Jalousie,” “El Choclo”), and the waltz (“Alice Blue Gown,” “Falling In Love Again”). Ragtime (“Pineapple Rag”) as well as parlor tunes (“Take Me Out To The Ball Game,”) are regular features of their performances. On any night they perform, they conjure up sounds as wide and varied as Paul Whiteman to John Philip Sousa.
Attire and appearance is key- the orchestra frequently performs in tuxedos and evening gowns to preserve the image of the 1920s society orchestra. Equally vital to the group’s onstage presence is Tolentino’s vast knowledge of the music performed by the orchestra, which he frequently shares with the audience. Trivia, year of composition, anecdotes on composers and lyricists, and detailed information as to which artists originally waxed these songs, are staples of any Singapore Slingers performance; they go way beyond simply playing the music. Every performance is a fully guided tour.
The age range of the musicians is a testament to the greatness of this music- Tolentino himself is 32, and the scope of ages within the orchestra’s musicians is immense. Tolentino fronts the orchestra with vocals, as well as performances on clarinet, C melody saxophone, bass saxophone, and accordion.