440 expands the gypsy jazz tradition of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli with danceable swing standards from the era of Cole Porter, George Gershwin & Benny Goodman as well as originals by the band. Their toe-tapping, snappy, hot jazz, swinging style is a delight to experience. 

Tomoko Iwamoto, a leader of 440, has been in Boston jazz scene for more than 30 years. Being a "jazzy" violinist with a strong classical background, she expanded her repertoire in jazz, rock, pop to world music, toured with Hypnotic Clambake, while studying Jazz Composition and Arranging at Berklee College of Music. 

Mark Chenevert has been playing clarinet and tenor sax in the Boston area for some forty years now, working with various projects including Limbo Race ( 1982 WBCN Rumble winners ) , Willie Alexander , and Hypnotic Clambake. Currently , besides 440 , he works with the Hot Tamale Brass Band , David Champagne , Bertrand Laurence and others.

Jack Soref, graduate of Berklee College of Music, became captivated by the music of Django Reinhardt after attending the International Django Reinhardt festival in Samois-sur-Seine France in 2002. Jack is a mainstay of Django Festivals Django in June, where he has taught since 2009, and the Midwest Gypsy Swing Fest, where he has performed as recently as 2023.

Jim Guttmann’s career spans 40 years and many musical idioms. As a founding member of the Klezmer Conservatory Band, he has toured the world and has performed & recorded with Itzhak Perlman and Joel Grey, worked with Richard Stolzman and Dan Stepner he was part of the Grammy Award winning ensemble on Yehudi Wyner’s “The Mirror.”

$17 advance | $22 day-of

*fees not included

Sad Bastards / Loose Standards

Performance / Q&A (workshop)

Area men Chris Klaxton and Mike Effenberger join forces to plumb the depths of the great American songbook of jazz standards, the lesser American songbook, spirituals, new standards, and the good and bad news of this post-tonal musical world.*

SBLS aims to provide audiences with a proper blend of "Saturday Night" and "Sunday Morning", bridging the gap from The Club to The Church, thereby extending an invitation to share sacred moments, whether through traditional jazz standards, the music of today, spirituals and hymns, or the avant garde.

*“To plumb the depths” comes from the concept of lowering a lead weight into the ocean on a long rope to establish the water’s distance downward. To do so one would be required to drop the weight to the very bottom, extending the line entirely until the answer is found. May it be so.

The evening's performance will culminate in a Q+A session, through which Effenberger and Klaxton would be happy to speak on their particular take on the intersection of secular and sacred, as well as provide insights into their arranging process for jazz standards, modern radio favorites, and liturgical music.

$15 advance | $20 day-of

*fees not included

A special evening of swing and Gypsy jazz music in celebration of the legendary guitarist Django Reinhardt. Featuring Django’s compositions with a sprinkling of Holiday classics, this is bound to be an unforgettable evening that will bring you joy and that Holiday spirit!

The band includes Dance Hall favorites Jason Anick on violin, Matt DeChamplain on piano, Jack Soref on guitar, and Greg Toro on bass. 

Berklee College of Music Professor Jason Anick, has earned a reputation among string players as an imaginative improviser, versatile composer, and insightful educator.

Growing up playing fiddle tunes with his family and classical music with local orchestras, he developed a passion for improvisation, which led him to study jazz and classical music at Hartt Conservatory. In 2008, Anick started what would be a 10 year stint touring and recording with Grammy award-winning guitar virtuoso John Jorgenson while still a senior at Hartt Conservatory. 

As a band-leader, Anick has launched a variety of musical projects over the years, including the Gypsy Jazz group Rhythm Future Quartet, an Americana-inspired Acoustic Trio, and a contemporary jazz ensemble with pianist Jason Yeager. His string of recordings (Sleepless, Tipping Point, United, Travels, Rhythm Future Quartet and Friends) has earned him praise from Downbeat Magazine as a "Rising Star in the world of jazz violin." 

$20 advance. $25 door

The Dance Hall presents Concerts By The Bridge at The John Paul Jones Park.

Bucketlist Jazz Fusion is an energetic jazz/fusion band based in Kittery, Maine, with a growing following around the Seacoast area of New England.

Founded in 2017 by saxophonist Stefan Vittori, the band features a lively horn section, energetic rhythm and percussion, and often introduces guest vocalists. In recent years, the band has performed at leading live music venues around New England, including Cadenza, Port City Blue, the Kittery Dance Hall, and the Canal District Kendall Summer Concert Series in Cambridge, MA. Their repertoire features fresh arrangements of traditional standards, as well as 70’s fusion and the music of contemporary jazz artists.

The Band:

Mike Harrison (piano & keys), William Trafidlo (bass), Dan Lorenz (guitar), Sebastian Sink (drums), Anthony Gallo (percussion & vocals), John Hoar (trumpet), Justin Leach (trombone), Stefan Vittori (alto & tenor saxophone)

$15 or By Donation

Bring your blankets or folding chairs! 

PLEASE NOTE:

In the event of inclement weather, the concert will be moved inside at The Dance Hall @ 7:30pm

All performances indoors at The Dance Hall require:

PROOF OF FULL VACCINATION against COVID-19 or

PROOF OF A NEGATIVE COVID TEST administered within 72 hours.

MASKS are required until seated for patrons and staff.

Annie and the Fur Trappers are a Boston based traditional jazz and blues band which formed in 2016. Originally founded in St. Louis, Missouri, the band currently includes clarinet, trumpet, trombone, bass, banjo, guitar, washboard, and violin. Annie and the Fur Trappers is dedicated to performing and preserving the music of the 1920s and 30s today. The band plays traditional jazz, delta blues, ragtime, and swing music. Their version of "Delta Bound" was selected to be displayed at the Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience in Meridian, Mississippi. Annie and the Fur Trapper's original song "You Break It, you Buy It" was selected for the St. Louis Blues Society's 17 in 17 compilation album. Annie and the Fur Trappers have performed at a variety of music festivals including the Big Muddy Blues Festival, The Whitaker Jazz festival The Apple Butter Festival, Cherokee Street Jazz Fest, HONK!TX, Musikfest, The Cherokee Street Jazz Crawl, and The Rosebud Cafe Music Festival, to name a few.

The band released their second studio album, Muskrat Ramble, on vinyl in 2019. The album was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Paul Niehaus IV at Blue Lotus Studios. The album includes a number of blues, traditional jazz, and swing favorites, and won an award as “Best Self-Produced Album” by the St. Louis Blues Society. The vinyl was pressed by Standard Vinyl. The band, relocating to the Boston area in 2020 during the global pandemic, the band has been working on recording a new album at PBS studios in Massachusetts. The new CD is expected to release in 2022. Annie and the Fur Trappers is available to play for your function with ease in the New England area, or with travel arrangements wherever you are located.

$15/advance $20/door

All performances at The Dance Hall require:

PROOF OF FULL VACCINATION against COVID-19 or

PROOF OF A NEGATIVE COVID TEST administered within 72 hours.

MASKS ARE REQUIRED INDOORS for patrons and staff.

SAFETY PROTOCOLS REMAIN IN PLACE: PROOF OF VACCINATION & MASKING

The acoustic jazz ensemble, Rhythm Future Quartet has a straightforward agenda: to keep the spirit of Gypsy jazz alive and expanding in today’s musical universe. The virtuosic foursome, named for a Django Reinhardt tune, offers up a newly minted sound, influenced by the classic Hot Club of France, yet wholly contemporary. Led by violinist Jason Anick and guitarist Olli Soikkeli, the quartet performs dynamic and lyrical arrangements of both Gypsy jazz standards and original compositions that draw upon diverse international rhythms and musical idioms. With Max O’Rourke on second guitar and Greg Loughman on bass, Rhythm Future is dedicated to expanding the boundaries of a vital musical genre.

Jason Anick, an award-winning composer and one of the youngest violin professors at the esteemed Berklee College of Music in Boston, has shared the stage with an array of artists including Grammy award winning guitarist John Jorgenson, Stevie Wonder, The Jim Kweskin Jug Band, and Tommy Emmanuel. After relocating from Scandinavia Olli Soikkeli quickly became a top call guitarist in the bustling Brooklyn jazz scene. He has performed alongside Cyrille Aimee, and the celebrated guitarists Frank Vignola and Bucky Pizzarelli, and many prominent contemporary players. 

​Max O’Rourke was the winner of the 2015 Saga Award from DjangoFest Northwest, and at 22 has already toured/recorded with many of the top American Gypsy Jazz musicians including John Jorgenson and Gonzalo Bergara. Greg Loughman is a top call bassist in Boston and has been heard with such luminaries as Sheila Jordan, Curtis Fuller and George Garzone.

All performances at The Dance Hall require:

PROOF OF FULL VACCINATION against COVID-19 or

PROOF OF A NEGATIVE COVID TEST administered within 72 hours.

MASKS ARE REQUIRED INDOORS while in motion for patrons and staff.

$20/advance $25/door

The Bulkheads with Adrienne Mack-Davis are a high energy 5 piece funk-jazz band with Mack-Davis as lead vocals. Their sound and original music transcends from funk, rock, hip-hop and soul.

Expect hypnotic melodies, sultry sax, guitar and key solos, with bass and drum rhythms that will make you move and groove.

$12/advance $15/door

All performances at The Dance Hall require:

PROOF OF FULL VACCINATION against COVID-19 or

PROOF OF A NEGATIVE COVID TEST administered within 72 hours.

MASKS ARE REQUIRED INDOORS for patrons and staff.

THE JOE FONDA QUARTET features Joe Fonda -Composer, Bassist, Harvey Sorgen- Drums, Michael Rabinowitz -Bassoon, and Jeff Lederer, Clarinet and Saxophone.

Joe Fonda is a composer, bassist, recording artist, interdisciplinary performer, producer and educator.

An accomplished international Jazz artist, Fonda has performed with his own ensembles throughout the United States , Canada , Europe and Asia.

He has collaborated and performed with such artists as Anthony Braxton ,Archie Shepp, Ken McIntyre, Lou Donaldson, Bill and Kenny Barron, Leo Smith, Perry Robinson, Dave Douglas, Curtis Fuller, , Bill Dixon, Han Bennink, Bobby Naughton, Xu Fengia, Randy Weston, Gebhard Ullmann, Carla Bley, Carlo Zingaro, Barry Altschul, Billy Bang.

This concert is funded in part by a grant from South Arts in partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and Maine Arts Commission.

Please note: Safety Protocols will be in place including proof of vaccination, masking in motion, and limited seating.