Jazz Age Rumpus IV

Featuring:
Southside Aces
Maud Hixson and her Town Talkers
Tony Balluff and The Four A.M. Orchestra

• The Hook and Ladder Theater
• Doors 2:30 pm :: Music 3:00 pm :: 21+
• $22 ADV (Box-Office) / $27 DOOR

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Once again Hook and Ladder Theater welcomes listeners and dancers to revel in the sounds of the Jazz Age! Year four of the festival kicks off with Davenport’s most famous son, Bix Beiderbecke, the cornetist whose genius continues to influence jazz musicians nearly a century after his death. You’ll also indulge in the hothouse music of Lee Wiley’s Cole Porter songbook. In the late 1930s, she became the first singer to make records of all one composer. And finally, a septet bringing you the rollicking small band sounds of Duke Ellington’s first two decades on the scene.
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Your magnanimous Jazz Age Rumpus hosts, Southside Aces, are a Twin Cities institution. They’ve been performing the music of Jazz Age greats such as Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, and Fats Waller, just to name a few, since 2003. They’ve played for clubs, dancers, and festivals in the Twin Cities and throughout the midwest, including the 50th Anniversary Bix Beiderbecke Jazz Festival in the summer of 2021. They’ve released eight albums of jazz including 2022’s Minneapolis Bump, featuring all originals in the traditional style.
“Some 1500 miles from New Orleans and the Mardi Gras, and what do you think? It’s bouncing around the Mississippi River up here close to the Northern Star.”

Leigh Kamman—The Jazz Image
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Hailed as “gently virtuosic” (All About Jazz), Maud Hixson is a devoted exponent of great songs, ranging from the classic Great American Songbook to the often unsung or forgotten compositions awaiting rediscovery. Based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, Maud teamed with Sir Richard Rodney Bennett in 2012 for the long-running Midtown Jazz at Midday concert series at Saint Peter’s in New York City, and debuted her show, Skyscraper Wits, in London and New York in 2015. She has made three appearances at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Rose Hall for the New York Cabaret Convention, presented by the Mabel Mercer Foundation. Her newest recording is devoted to the music of her mentor, Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, which earned a 2024 Bistro Award. Pianist Rick Carlson is the instigator of the Town Talkers accompaniment in presenting the Lee Wiley Cole Porter songbook.
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Tony Balluff and The Four A.M. Orchestra Jazz Age Rumpus and the Hook and Ladder Theater has the pleasure of the world debut of Tony Balluff and The Four A.M. Orchestra, dedicated to the swinging small band Duke Ellington records of the ‘20s through the early ‘40s. Duke’s unique, crepuscular composing changed the world of jazz forever. The band is led by clarinetist Tony Balluff, with the piano bench occupied by the inimitable Rick Carlson. The rest of the Four A.M. Orchestra: Dan Eikmeier—trumpet Eric Johnson—trombone Brad Holden—alto saxophone Dave Michael—drums Steve Pikal—string bass.
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taught himself to play the piano by studying the vast works of Count Basie and Duke Ellington and capitalizing on a long string of happy accidents. He has performed on concert stages in London and New York City, and along the way appeared with Count Basie drummer Butch Miles, horn stars Warren Vaché, Delfeayo Marsalis, Evan Christopher and Wycliffe Gordon. He has been the pianist for the Wolverines Big Band since 1980.
Tony Balluff Tony has been playing clarinet most of his life. He received his higher education in traditional jazz from local legends, The Hall Brothers Jazz Band, including Charlie DeVore and Butch Thompson. He leads many bands featuring early jazz, is a composer of jazz, and is a founder and director of Jazz Age Rumpus.
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BOX-OFFICE Tickets Are Available in The Zen Arcade During Hours of Operation.
For More Information visit www.ZenArcadeTHC.com
NO REFUNDS

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The Hook recognizes all CDC and MDH guidelines as relates to capacity, safe-distancing, hand-washing, sanitation, masking, etc. The mandates are frequently changing, so please read

By purchasing a ticket to this event, you and your party agree to abide by:

NO REFUNDS

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Host or Publisher The Hook and Ladder Theater