Dance

Bix Fest is Back! – March 12-15

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“A Tribute to Bix Fest” is a weekend-long swing jazz fest in Mt. Pleasant celebrating Leon “Bix” Beiderbecke. Bix was a musical prodigy that lived hard, died young, and made an unforgettable impact on trad and early swing jazz. Learn more about Bix here. This yearly fest started in 1989 as a ‘birthday party to Bix’ by the early jazz enthusiast Phil Pospychala. It grew over the next 31 years to be a destination for some of the best known hot jazz bands, rare 78 disc collectors, and the dancers and jazz aficionados that filled the crowd.

The last fest occurred a month before the COVID shutdown. For some, this was the last music/dance event for several years. But like the legend of Bix himself, the fest lives on and has been resurrected by the efforts of Jack Garrison, Allissa Norland, and others. With new Grand Masters also comes a few new events. Shag and Balboa lessons and vintage clothing vendors that will be joining the usual band concerts, record vendors, late night jam sessions, movies, and such. The content/level of the Shag and Balboa lessons will modulate based on the attendees.

The band list is impressive with both local talent from Milwaukee and Chicago and bands from around the US. The music is true to Bix’s time of being 1920 and earlier 1930s-inspired. For newer Milwaukee dancers who are wondering exactly what that sounds like, think The Sweet Sheiks and The Westerlees (which are both playing Friday night!).

You can see the schedule and buy day passes or a whole weekend pass by clicking here. The organizers are offering a $25 off of Full Weekend Passes discount for dancers at https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/544LERR2QUBXS. They are also offering $10 off the a-la-carte passes at the door for dancers.

If you go for just a day – try to do the whole day. If you can stretch that weekend a bit earlier, then join the Thursday “Bus Tour to Hell” – a 9:00 to 5:00 bus tour of Chicago’s early jazz history. Jack will be leading this guided tour. He says, “We sniff the molecules, as Phil would say, and take in the spots where jazz history was made”. Jack is currently working to include entering a space where recordings were made and speakeasy bar at the end of the tour.

After the bus tour, we go back to the hotel for the round-robin record spinning by the vendors. Jack says that “You will hear music that – in some cases – only exists on the one copy of the 78 RPM disc in that room.”

Events like this are rare. To have it just a 40 minute drive from Milwaukee is a treat indeed.

Traditional Tuesday Dance – Black History Month!

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The hot jazz we love and the swing dance to which we groove were created and enriched by Black Americans. The weekly Traditional Tuesday night swing dances (with live bands!) is adding to the typical routine in February to pay homage to the Black artists and dancers that have forever changed the world.

Each Tuesday night at Falcon Bowl we will be teaching the swing line Dance “Shim Sham” from 7:30 to 8:00 (basic swing lesson at 7:00) and we will have a 2-hour Shim Sham lesson on Sunday February 23 from 7:00 to 9:00 PM. All free! Lessons by music/dance educator Meaghan Heinrich. Video below is Meaghan demonstrating the entire routine, along with us dancing the Shim Sham on a recent Tuesday night.

The DJ breaks feature a different pairing of early Black musicians who have inspired each other. The pairings and sets are being crafted by band leader John Mroz (Troubadours of Rhythm).

Week 1: The band break musician pair was King Oliver and Louis Armstrong. Based in New Orleans, Oliver shaped the landscape of early jazz. His move to Chicago in 1918 marked a turning point and in 1922 he summoned his protege – Louis Armstrong – to join his Creole Jazz Orchestra. Armstrong flourished and this duo ignited a musical revolution. Listen to the bands Creole Jazz Orchestra, Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five, and Louis Armstrong and His Hot Seven.

Week 2: Fletcher Henderson was paired with Duke Ellington – both influential band leaders, composers, and arrangers. Henderson was a pioneer of big band jazz and paved the way for many other band leaders, such as Ellington. In turn, Ellington became a leading figure in the Harlem Renaissance, blending blues, ragtime, and swing into a uniquely Black American sound. Henderson and Ellington both played in New York City and would be inspired by each other’s work. The great depression was hard on Henderson and he began composing for Benny Goodman. Henderson essentially created the structure for the sound of the swing big band era.

Week 3: Black women were highlighted by DJ and music educator Meaghan Heinrich during this week’s band break. Black women have deeply shaped swing jazz and swing dancing, often with the their contributions overlooked or under-appreciated due to the double hit of both misogyny and racism. Big Maybelle, Big Mama Thornton, Julia Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, Etta James, Mildred Bailey, and Norma Miller are a few of the Black women we honored this week through the music we played and the Lindy Hop we danced.

New Year’s Dancing

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Ring in the New Year with these two fantastic dance options:

The swinging band, The Flat Cats, is playing in West Bend at The Bend Theater’s Gatsby New Years Eve Event. There is dancing opportunity at the stage as The Flat Cats are a renowned dance band. Raffles throughout the night, tasty treats, savory hors d’oeuvres, craft cocktails and champagne at midnight. This is a full-service type event from 8:30 to 12:30 for a ticket price of $35. Read more and purchase tickets here.

The other option is the weekly swing dance at the Falcon Bowl ballroom in Milwaukee. A basic swing dance lesson occurs in the main ballroom and a basic blues dance lesson occurs in the room behind the stage from 8:00 to 9:00. The Jonathan Stout Orchestra from Lindy Focus (a national Lindy Hop dance week) livestreams on a projector from 9:00 to 12:00. At 12:00 the music switches to blues with DJ Hot Jazz Cass. This event is free to enter. Falcon Bowl is a ballroom, bar, and bowling establishment with plenty of fun options for the night. Read more here on Facebook.

Blues Dancing Workshop – January 20, 2024

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Brew Town Blues, the Milwaukee-based blues dancing group is hosting their third workshop on January 20, 2024. Titled “Blizzard Blues Workshop” will be featuring the amazing Emily Troe Djrouko (She/Her) hailing all the way from the twin cities. Emily is the Head Teacher at Collectively Blue (Minneapolis’ Blues Dance Community), and a regular national finalist in Solo Cutting, Lead and Follow.

This is an amazing opportunity to 3 hours of top level instruction without needing to travel from Milwaukee! After the classes, come back and join us for a social dance that evening.

Early Bird pre-registration can be done by sending the amount via Venmo (@Milwaukee-Stomp) or in person if you see Trevor Williams or Cassidy Kuchenbecker at a local event. Email for more questions at milwaukeestomp@gmail.com

$30 = Workshop – Early Bird Price (Social is included for Free)
$40 = Workshop – At the Door (Social is included for Free)
$7 = Social – At the Door

1:30-3:00 Class Session 1: Grooving and Musicality in Solo
3:30-5:00 Class Session 2: Grooving and Musicality in Partnership

8:00-8:30 Blues basic lesson
8:30-11:30 Blues Social Dance – DJ’s TBA

Both the workshop and social is being held at the Irish Cultural and Heritage Center at 2133 West Wisconsin Avenue in Milwaukee. A bar is not present for this event, so plan accordingly if you imbibe alcohol or sodas.

If you are traveling from out of town and need a place to stay for the night there is housing available. Please send an email to MilwaukeeStomp@gmail.com or DM Cassidy/Trevor for coordination.

Instructor Emily Troe Djrouko