17-piece Dues Band brings jazz to free Browne’s Addition Concert Series

For one of the few big band jazz groups in the region, it’s all about keeping the music alive and well.

The origins of The Dues Band stem from founder Alan Hirayama wanting to create a musical experience for his mother living at Rockwood Retirement Community on the South Hill. Although she is a lifelong, classically trained violinist, Hirayama’s mother also has a love for jazz and always heavily supported her son’s venture into the art form – which includes a degree in music from Indiana University Bloomington.

So, the saxophone player used his local connections to put together a larger 17-piece jazz group similar to those once very popular during the early 20th century to perform for his mother. But this group soon became much more than a one-off performance.

“From there, it developed into a little project of mine,” Hirayama said. “What I was trying to do from that point on was try to put together a bunch of musicians that are like-minded in that we want to preserve big band music by performing it in front of audiences.”

The Dues Band plays big band classics from what many would consider swing’s prime in the early 1940s all the way up to the ’80s. During the early years, swing became the most popular music in the country and was essentially what we know as the pop hits of today. But as the years went on, big band music became less about the dancing and more about the outright jazz.

“What separates jazz music from let’s say classical, mainly is the improvisation,” Hirayama said. “That’s probably what makes it so special for me … it allows individuals from the band to express themselves individually through the process of jazz improvisation.”

In fact, the name “The Dues Band” stems from this desire to pay homage to not only the classic big band sound, but the instrumentalists themselves.

“Paying your dues” is an age-old saying, and the musicians within the Dues Band look to pay their dues by continuing to celebrate the musicians who came before them. A few of these big bands they actively admire include the Count Basie Orchestra and the Glenn Miller Orchestra, as well as Woody Herman and His Orchestra.

The 17-piece band consists of fellow musicians that Hirayama not only considers friends, but also known as some of the most skilled jazz musicians the Spokane area has to offer. This sense of comradery, talent and sheer love for big band music will be on full display for free at the Browne’s Addition Concert Series in Coeur d’Alene Park on Thursday.

“For one, each musician is very accomplished through their own efforts, and two, they have a passion for the big band music like I do,” Hirayama said. “Combine those two elements together and you’ve got yourself a pretty decent band.”