DATE: Thursday, May 29, 1997                TAG: 9705280169

SECTION: SUFFOLK SUN             PAGE: 10   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY FRANK ROBERTS, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   83 lines

SWING SHIFT'S SOUND BIGGER THAN SIZE

The young couple in the Outer Banks needed some music for their wedding reception.

Rock `n roll? Country?

Try swing.

Yes, the music of the 1930s and 1940s.

Hiring a swing band could take a chunk out of the wedded bliss funds, so the couple decided on Swing Shift, a trio duplicating the sounds created by orchestras of 50 or so musicians.

How does a trio re-create the big band sounds?

``With a three-piece group - it challenges us to stay authentic,'' said Dave Starkey, leader of the group, and player of woodwinds. ``We have to work a little harder because it's such a challenge.''

He gives a lot of credit to pianist, Steve Kolb who, when not with Swing Shift, is director of music at First Presbyterian Church in Norfolk. Recently, he performed with the Virginia Symphony.

``He covers a lot of territory,'' Starkey said. ``He's an extremely talented young man. He plays all styles and does them very well.''

The trio's third member is drummer, Mike Hawkins, who recently performed with the USAir Jazz and Dixieland band, a group sponsored by the airlines company.

A short drive is all you need to catch up with Swing Shift. They are playing Tuesday at the Suffolk Museum. And, it's free.

You will hear condensed versions of such popular big band arrangements as Glenn Miller's ``Tuxedo Junction'' and Woody Herman's ``Woodchoppers Ball.''

``Those are the songs most requested,'' Starkey said, ``but we offer a wide variety. We cover everything from ``Sing, Sing, Sing'' to ``Honeysuckle Rose.''

The first mentioned is Benny Goodman's quarter hour swing classic. The second is the familiar Fats Waller tune.

``Honeysuckle Rose,'' Starkey said, ``kind of ushered in the beginning of the swing era.''

The era began in the mid-1920s when jazz turned into swing with the help of such musical pioneers as Paul Whiteman, Count Basie and Jimmie Lunceford. Benny Goodman is usually credited with popularizing big band music.

Waller, who played piano and organ, and sang in a rather novel way, should be a piece of cake for the Swing Shift guys.

They certainly won't have any trouble with duplicating the Benny Goodman Trio, Artie Shaw's Gramercy Five, or Tommy Dorsey's Clambake Seven - small bands within the big bands.

``We do a lot of Duke Ellington,'' Starkey said. No surprise there. ``You have to study the masters.''

The swingin' old masters are getting rave reviews from today's young people when they do get a chance to hear big band music.

``That's encouraging. That couple who were wed in Nags Head - they were in their early 20s,'' Starkey said.

``They specifically said - no rock `n roll. They wanted swing music. The whole crowd really enjoyed it and responded well to it.''

Starkey works with younger people.

The 53-year-old Roanoke native, who has lived in Chesapeake since he was four, teaches music in area primary schools, and conducts the sixth grade orchestra at Oscar Smith Middle School.

``I used to teach junior and senior high school band members,'' Starkey said, ``so I made the rounds.''

Swing Shift usually makes the rounds for small gatherings.

``Mostly, we play private parties because there aren't enough places that are into what we play,'' he said. ``We love the music, but we like to get paid.''

Would they play the music of today?

Ask Starkey about that and he goes into the ``er'' routine.

``Just say I like playing what I'm playing,'' he said, neatly sideswiping the question.

There is no question about swing music appealing to those who do get the chance to hear it, including country music enthusiasts who often line dance to big band arrangements.

``A lot of people,'' Starkey said, ``are really getting into it.'' ILLUSTRATION: Graphic

ABOUT THE EVENT

WHAT: The Suffolk Museum Concert Series presents Swing Shift

WHEN: 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday

WHERE: Suffolk Museum, 118 Bosley Ave.

COST: Free

FOR INFORMATION: Call 925-6311 or 924-0448

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