Hummingbird Parade provides musical escape for wintry weather

Our latest WEMU discovery is The Hummingbird Brigade, an 11 piece jazz ensemble from Vancouver, British Columbia led by saxophonist/clarinetist/flutist James Danderfer.  Danderfer explains the tone of his music as “New Orleans brass band-inspired”.  Building on the rich legacy of New Orleans street bands and the new approaches coming from the Crescent City by The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, The Soul Rebels and The Hot 8 Brass Band, Danderfer and his band-mates are adding to the street beat repertoire with well-crafted, highly rhythmic original music.  Mardi Gras day is coming up on Tuesday, February 12^th so you can expect the lively sounds of the Hummingbird Brigade to come from your speakers in the next few weeks as WEMU leads up to Fat Tuesday.  Even though they are not from New Orleans, this new band has the feeling and the party energy!  Click here to see this morning’s playlist.