A swinging Christmas beckons as 28-piece jazz ensemble Down for the Count tour Britain
A concert orchestra that formed at the height of the COVID-19 lockdown and gained recognition for their charming online performances are set to take the stage at the Royal Hippodrome Theatre on 20th November, with their spectacular touring show Swing Into Christmas. Performing quintessential Christmas songs and classic tunes from the swing and big band eras, it’s a festive treat not to be missed!
The Down for the Count Orchestra wowed the British public with their charismatic music video series during lockdown - even receiving commendation from Michael Bublé, who described their performance as “awesome!”.
The musicians’ isolated performances were cleverly edited together to create witty and hilarious interactions to brighten the publics’ lockdown lives. With 1,000,000 views online, the videos even resulted in a full-length album, Lockdown for the Count, the proceeds of which went towards the charities Mind and Refuge.
Now, after nearly two years, the orchestra is reforming in person to bring a spectacular Christmas show to Eastbourne, featuring music from their Swing Into Christmas album, as well as their trademark wit and wry sense of humour.
Before the pandemic Down for the Count had a reputation of being one of the busiest bands on the UK swing and vintage music scene. They were frequently found performing as a 12-piece “mini big band” at prestigious venues such as Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club, and festivals such as The London Jazz Festival. With normality coming to a grinding halt during the first lockdown, the band’s artistic director Mike Paul-Smith saw a unique opportunity to create a super-sized incarnation of the band. So, the Down for the Count Orchestra was thus formed, forging new collaborations with a number of professional musicians including TV star Richard Shelton.
Wanting to do something positive for both the Down for the Count musicians and fans, Paul-Smith decided to establish collaborations with a larger number of musicians; the result of being a 28-piece orchestra that went on to spread joy to the public through their popular series of
light-hearted lockdown videos.
“We didn’t know what to expect when we released our first lockdown video” explains Mike Paul-Smith. “We wanted to keep spirits high and continue performing during the early days of the pandemic, so we all got dressed up and filmed ourselves playing Nat King Cole’s Let’s Face The Music and Dance in our living rooms, kitchens, bedrooms and bathtubs. Then one of our string players, Sophie Poteratchi, did a masterful job of collating everyone’s individual video clips into a joyful 3-minute film which got viewed around the world - including by a certain Michael Bublé!”.
Buoyed by the success of the first video, the group released a whole series - forming additional collaborations with the likes of Birmingham’s Town Hall Gospel Choir and LA-based singer Richard Shelton. As Down for the Count’s vocalist Hannah Castleman says, “making these lockdown videos was something to keep us feeling creative in a time where performing in person wasn’t possible. It was a real pleasure to stay engaged with our fans in this way and to also be doing something as a team.”.
Even though the videos helped the orchestra reach worldwide audiences, closer to home the financial situation was still perilous until support was found in the Cultural Recovery Fund, administered by Arts Council England. “There’s no question that the Cultural Recovery Fund was a lifeline to us - it helped us continue to rehearse and perform together later in the pandemic, when things were still struggling to get back to normal” explains Paul-Smith. “We were able to use the funding to produce live streamed concerts, which supported the individual musicians in the band, and receiving it has put us in the fortunate position where we’re able to plan a tour of exciting venues throughout the UK, many of which we are visiting for the first time.”
Down for the Count’s enchanting show,
Swing Into Christmas, offers a glamorous and sophisticated evening of festivities for the whole family. The band’s joie de vivre and irresistible humour, twinned with top class musicianship and sublime vocal performances creates a warm and engaging show that is not to be missed! The orchestra breathes new life into festive and jazz classics through original arrangements, whilst also paying homage to the sounds of the great Capitol Studios recordings of the 1950s, which brought Frank Sinatra, Nat ‘King’ Cole and Judy Garland to worldwide fame.
As the orchestra’s trumpeter Simon Joyner says, “this music really is the epitome of Christmas for us, and it is a pleasure to be touring so many beautiful and historic concert venues, sharing all of our musical holiday favourites with the new audience who discovered us over lockdown.”
This is a Christmas concert not to be missed - so grab your friends and loved ones, and head along to the Royal Hippodrome Theatre on 20th November for a joyful evening of the best live swing music and festive cheer this Christmas.
Tickets available now from:
TESTIMONIALS
"Awesome!" Michael Bublé
"A sonic ride back to the sounds of Capitol Studios in the 1950s" DownBeat Magazine
"A potential competitor to the John Wilson Orchestra" Jazzwise Magazine
"A breath of fresh air on the swing scene" Twinwood Festival
