PREVIEW: Mt. Holyoke College, The Big Broadcast

Chapin Auditorium

Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA

March 7, 2020

The Jazz Ensembles of Mount Holyoke College present the 15th edition of The Big Broadcast! on Saturday, March 7 at 2PM & 7:30PM. Snow date is Sunday, March 8. Created and directed by Mark Gionfriddo, who is also onstage as “Matt Morgan”, The Big Broadcast!  is a re-creation of a live 1940's radio show featuring the Mount Holyoke College Big Band, Vocal Jazz, and Chamber Jazz Ensembles performing well-known tunes from the swing era and the American songbook. WWLP-TV meteorologist Brian Lapis is emcee “Fred Kelley” for his 13th consecutive season. Mount Holyoke alum, bassist and singer Caitlin Jaene Mercer, will join The Big Broadcast! as special guest. 

Mount Holyoke College music faculty member Mark Gionfriddo originally created The Big Broadcast! for a small cabaret group he directed, and incorporated it into the concert season at Mount Holyoke College. This year’s program will include: Benny Goodman's "All The Cats Join In"; "It's Been A Long, Long Time" by June Christy and Stan Kenton; the Glenn Miller classic “A String of Pearls”; Peggy Lee’s “Black Coffee”, and a rare radio rendition of “On The Atchison, Topeka, and The Santa Fe” by the Andrews Sisters, which was never officially released.

Tickets (general admission): $25 premium front and center seating, $20 regular seating. Senior Discounts: $10 in advance and $15 at the door. Students: $10.

For phone orders, call 413-545-2511. Doors open one hour prior to each performance.

Chapin Auditorium is fully accessible.

PREVIEW: Mt. Holyoke College Jazz, The Big Broadcast!

Chapin Auditorium, Mt. Holyoke College, South Hadley, MA

Saturday, March 2, 2019

www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/music/jazz

Brian Lapis, Photo by Dori Gavitt

The Jazz Ensembles of Mt. Holyoke College present the 14th edition of The Big Broadcast! on Saturday, March 2 at 2PM & 7:30PM. Created and directed by Mark Gionfriddo, the concert is a re-creation of a live 1940's radio show featuring the Mt. Holyoke College Big Band, Vocal Jazz, and Chamber Jazz Ensembles performing well-known tunes from the swing era and the American songbook. Once again, WWLP-TV meteorologist Brian Lapis is emcee.

Mt. Holyoke College music faculty member Mark Gionfriddo originally created this performance for a small cabaret group he directed, and incorporated it into the concert season. It has since been designated as a Signature Event at the College. Gionfriddo has worked at Mt. Holyoke since 1986. In 2006, he conducted the MHC Big Band during two episodes of the popular NPR radio quiz show Says You!. Gionfriddo is also well-known in the region as music director of the Young@Heart Chorus.

Music will include memorable pieces written in what is referred to as The Golden Age of Radio; i.e. Glenn Miller and others of that ilk. Accomplished fiddler Zoe Darrow will join the concert as a special guest.

General admission tickets are $25 premium front and center seating, $20 regular seating. Senior and student discounts apply. For information call 413-545-2511 or 800-999-UMASS. For online tickets, visit www.fineartscenter.com. Doors open one hour prior to each performance. Snow date is Sunday, March 3.