Tom Rogers and Sally Anderson
With Irvine Barclay Theatre present
Battle of the Bands
The Barclay Jazz & Beyond Orchestra
Shelly Berg - The Tom and Mayumi Adams Music Director
Featuring the Stellar Soloists of the Band
Wednesday, September 16, 2026 at 8pm
Media Sponsor
This performance will include a 15-minute intermission.
Shelly Berg: Music Director/Piano
Saxophones
Sal Lozano
Michael Czają
Alex Johnson
Frank Fontaine
Tim McKay
Trombones
Alex Iles
Joey Sellers
Charlie Morillas
Tiffany Johns
Trumpets
Ryan DeWeese
Landon Grigsby
Harry Ostrander
Sarah Bauza
Rhythm Section
Adam Alessi: Drums
Nick Schaadt: Bass
Will Brahm: Guitar
Danny Taylor: Percussion
Set One
The Big Bands: Arranged by Shelly Berg
Groovin’ Hard: Composed by and Arranged by Don Menza
West Side Story Medley: Composed by Leonard Bernstein & Stephen Sondheim
Arranged by Bill Reddie
Featuring: Adam Alessi – drums; Alex Iles – trombone; Frank Fontaine – tenor sax
After You’ve Gone: Composed by Turner Layton and Henry Creamer
Arranged by Bill Holman
Featuring: Sal Lozano – clarinet; Harry Ostrander – trumpet; Will Brahm - guitar
Four Brothers: Composed and Arranged by Jimmy Guiffre
Featuring the saxophone section
La Fiesta: Composed by Chick Corea
Arranged by Tony Klatka
Featuring: Shelly Berg – piano; Alex Johnson – tenor sax
First Act Winning Song TBD
Set Two
Blues in Hoss Flat: Composed and Arranged by Frank Foster
Featuring: Ryan DeWeese – trumpet; Joey Sellers - trombone
Shiny Stockings: Composed and Arranged by Frank Foster
Featuring: Sarah Bauza - trumpet
Basie: Composed and Arranged by Ernie Wilkins
Featuring: Frank Fontaine – tenor sax; Alex Johnson – tenor sax
Take the ‘A’ Train: Composed by Billy Strayhorn
Arranged by Duke Ellington
Featuring: Harry Ostrander – trumpet; Tim McKay – baritone sax
Mood Indigo: Composed by Duke Ellington and Barney Bigard
Arranged by Duke Ellington
Featuring Sal Lozano - clarinet
Braggin’ in Brass: Composed by Duke Ellington, Irving Mills, and Henry Nemo
Arranged by Duke Ellington
Featuring the brass section
Second Act Winning Song TBD
Overall Winning Song TBD
Battle of the Bands is a showcase for the amazing musicians of The Barclay Jazz & Beyond Orchestra, directed by Shelly Berg. Tonight, our band will inhabit the personalities and music of four iconic big bands: Buddy Rich, Woody Herman, Count Basie, and Duke Ellington. You, the audience, will vote for the winning band in each half and the overall winner!
Big band battles go back at least to the 1930s, with legendary head-to-head competitions featuring the bands we salute tonight, along with Chick Webb, Benny Goodman, Glenn Miller, and others. During that time, the Savoy Ballroom in New York City had two bandstands to accommodate these competitions, which were broadcast nationally on radio. Carnegie Hall hosted the 1939 battle between Goodman and Miller, which remains one of the most famous jazz concerts of all time.
Act One kicks off with “The Big Bands,” a medley arranged by Shelly Berg of songs from prominent big bands from the 1920s through the 1970s.
The “Battle” begins as our band takes on the persona of the Buddy Rich Band. Rich was perhaps the greatest drum virtuoso of his era, and his fiery band showcased exciting young soloists along with his own explosive drumming. “Groovin’ Hard” was composed and arranged by tenor saxophonist Don Menza, who contributed fantastic solos and compositions throughout his tenure with the band. This piece swings hard, as the title indicates.
Next up is a complex medley from the musical West Side Story, arranged by Bill Reddie, including the songs “Prologue,” “Cool,” “Somewhere,” and “Something’s Coming.” Adam Alessi channels Buddy Rich in the extended drum solo, and Alex Iles interprets the beautiful trombone solo on “Somewhere.”
Now the band morphs into the style of the Woody Herman Orchestra. Herman was a clarinetist and saxophonist who led a series of great bands, known as his “herds,” for almost 50 years. Tonight, you’ll hear music from the First and Second Herds and the subsequent “Thundering Herd.” First up is the jazz standard “After You’ve Gone,” reimagined as a thrilling up-tempo swing number, arranged by Bill Holman, one of the most innovative arrangers in jazz history. Our lead alto player, Sal Lozano, does the honors with Woody’s clarinet solo.
Next is a true Herman classic, “Four Brothers,” from the great Second Herd. This band and this song featured a slugger’s row of saxophonists, including Stan Getz, Zoot Sims, Al Cohn, and Serge Chaloff. The Barclay’s own slugger saxophone section will go toe to toe on this one.
As the Herman band evolved into the 1970s, Woody stocked the roster with great young players graduating from top university jazz programs. These young bandmates brought rock and contemporary jazz into the repertoire, including the next selection, Chick Corea’s “La Fiesta,” arranged by trumpeter Tony Klatka and featuring our musical director, Shelly Berg. Tonight, you’ll hear an interesting story about this one!
Next, it will be time for you to vote for your favorite among our two initial contenders, and we will close Act One with a powerful selection by the winning band.
Act Two celebrates jazz royalty, a Count and a Duke! We start with William “Count” Basie.
The Count Basie Orchestra has its roots in Kansas City blues and “riff” tunes that began as group improvisations by the sections of the ensemble. Basie’s signature spare piano style, along with the band’s spectacular cohesion and dynamic effects, earned a prominent place in the lexicon of jazz.
Tenor saxophonist Frank Foster was a great soloist and arranger for the band and led the group for a period of time following Basie’s death. We’ll start our Basie set with Foster’s very recognizable “Blues in Hoss Flat,” which was heard in a hilarious scene in the Jerry Lewis movie The Errand Boy. On this one, you’ll hear solos by our lead trumpeter, Ryan DeWeese, and trombonist Joey Sellers.
Next is another Frank Foster and Basie classic, “Shiny Stockings,” a showcase for Basie-style phrasing and dynamics and the trumpet playing of Sarah Bauza.
The Basie set concludes with an exciting number featuring the entire band, composed by the great Ernie Wilkins and appropriately entitled “Basie.” This song includes another kind of battle that Basie’s band ushered in: the tenor sax battle, this time between Barclay bandmates Frank Fontaine and Alex Johnson. You might not be able to stay in your seats when this battle heats up!
Our final band tonight is Edward “Duke” Ellington and His Orchestra. Like Woody Herman, Ellington also led his band for 50 years, beginning in the 1920s in clubs of Harlem and ending on the great concert stages of the world. Ellington composed and wrote the arrangements for almost everything the band played, tailoring his work to the personalities of the individual musicians.
Almost everyone knows “Take the “A” Train,” an Ellington band classic composed by Duke’s cherished collaborator, Billy Strayhorn. This song invites the listener to get on the train to Harlem, where the great jazz is happening. Our trumpeter, Harry Ostrander, has solo honors for this jazz favorite, along with Tim McKay, whose unique style reminds us of Harry Carney, Ellington’s great baritone saxophone player.
“Mood Indigo” was composed in 1930, based on a melody by clarinetist Barney Bigard, who heard a version of the tune in his native New Orleans. The lyric captures the song’s somber intent: “You ain’t been blue, 'til you’ve had that Mood Indigo.” The Barclay’s Frank Fontaine will channel Bigard’s New Orleans blues.
Hold onto your hats for our final selection in the Ellington set! “Braggin’ in Brass” is a tour de force for the entire band, and especially the brass section. Solos include Landon Grigsby on trumpet and Alex Iles on trombone.
Next, our audience must vote for the Second Act winner, a very tough choice, followed by a great song from the winning band.
Finally, you will choose between tonight’s two winning bands to select the overall winner of our Battle of the Bands. Our final selection will raise the roof as The Barclay Jazz & Beyond Orchestra sends you home with a classic from the overall winner.
The Barclay Jazz & Beyond Orchestra is a premier ensemble comprised of Orange County musicians that is dedicated to exploring jazz and popular music through the creation and presentation of unique and entertaining concert programs. Led by Music Director Shelly Berg, The Barclay Jazz & Beyond Orchestra brings a fresh approach to the genre through new compositions, compelling arrangements of jazz classics, and collaboration with world-class guest soloists.