NOLA Jazz Band Performs at Clarke

The NOLA Jazz Band, founded in Des Moines, Iowa, performed at Clarke University for the Music Department’s Night in New Orleans on Wednesday, October 8. The event was held in the Wahlert Atrium, where guests can try an array of various foods from the New Orleans culture, and then the event was moved to Jansen Music Hall for the band’s performance. Every year, the Music Department holds performances like this to showcase different cultures around the world and the music that emerges from them.

The NOLA Jazz Band playing in Jansen Music Hall

The first hour of the Night in New Orleans allowed guests to try different foods that come from New Orleans in Clarke’s Atrium. Clarke’s Dining Services prepared a buffet that consisted of crawfish and cheese dip served with crackers, shrimp and andouille etouffee with white rice, hushpuppies with remoulade, bananas foster tart and more. The Music Department’s Assistant Professor, Rob Stull, set the tone and played New Orleans style trumpet solos as everyone was grabbing their food, eating, and conversing with one another as well as Clarke’s Music students showcasing their musical skills both vocally and instrumentally.

The guests were then moved to Jansen Music Hall for the second half of the night; the NOLA Jazz Band of Des Moines, Iowa was to perform a variety of music from New Orleans from multiple time periods. Rob Stull introduced the band and also added that this show had “the most sold tickets in quite some time.” The NOLA Jazz Band consists of seven members: a clarinetist, trumpeter, trombonist, percussionist, bassist, pianist, and a singer who was also a violinist. The band was told that Music Students had to write an essay on their performance for the night, so clarinetist and leader of the NOLA Jazz Band, Jeff Kane, made sure to give every song a proper introduction and a little bit of historical context to each piece as well. The band performed “Bourbon Street Parade” (1949), “Delta Bound” (1932), “Jack I’m Mellow” (1938), “Elbow Bump” (2020), “Rattlin’ Bones” (2008), “It Don’t Mean a Thing” (1932), Flat Foot Floogie (1938), and “Sweet Georgia Brown” (1925).

To end the night, the band went around and introduced themselves to the audience and stayed for a while after the concert for a couple of people who wanted to talk to the band one-on-one. The Night in New Orleans was a smooth success for both Clarke University’s Music Department and Des Moines, Iowa’s NOLA Jazz Band.