Sidney vocalist Edie Daponte shines when she’s singing with a small combo.
But in front of an energetic 17-piece jazz band like the Don Leppard Big Band, she really sparkles.
Daponte and the Leppard band will perform well-loved big band classics with a touch of Paris at Pat’s House of Jazz in Crofton’s Osborne Bay Pub on Sunday, May 19. Admission is $20.
This follows a sold-out show with Daponte and the Leppard band at the pub in December and Daponte’s sold-out show From Rio to Paris at the pub in September. She was also there on Valentine’s Day.
Daponte’s sultry, passionate voice lends itself perfectly to a wide range of jazz standards, seamlessly moving from jazz to bossa nova and back again.
Vancouver Island Music Awards honoured Daponte with Jazz Recording of the Year in 2017 for her original song Island Rain and nominated her as Vocalist of the Year in 2016.
The Leppard band plays everything from authentic dance music of the ’30s and ’40s, to the inspirational swinging sounds of Count Basie and Duke Ellington, to the energetic, richly coloured music of contemporary jazz arrangements.
Its repertoire also includes works from the libraries of such jazz greats as Woody Herman, Benny Goodman, The Boss Brass, Buddy Rich and Louie Bellson, along with many compositions and arrangements written by members of the ensemble.
A retired military band director and arranger, bandleader Leppard is also the drummer — the guy who drives the bus.
A member of the prestigious RCAF band in Toronto, Leppard received his certificate of arranging from the Berklee College of Music in Boston.
He also became the “pops” drummer with the Winnipeg Symphony and set-drummer with the Manitoba Theatre Centre for 20 years. He has recorded more than 50 albums with various artists and taped more than 600 television shows.
The band has backed such international notables as Johnny Mathis, The Moody Blues, The Temptations and Engelbert Humperdink.
The performance is part of the weekly Pat’s House of Jazz series, presented by the Chemainus Valley Cultural Arts Society.
It runs every Sunday from 2 p.m. at the all-ages pub, 1534 Joan Ave. in Crofton, a stone’s throw from the Salt Spring Island ferry terminal.
Reservations are highly recommended. Tables will be held until 1:30 p.m. Phone 250-324-2245 or visit http://osbornebaypub.com.