By Mary O’KEEFE

Over the years music styles fade in, they fade out and some fade away, but for over seven decades the sound of swing has been the heartbeat of America. It is music that can transport listeners to sepia tone images of men in military uniforms trudging through small villages in Europe or hitting the beaches of Normandy. It was the music of the “Greatest Generation” and yet, as evidenced on Saturday night at Crescenta Valley High School, it is really the music of all generations.

The award-winning CVHS Jazz Band’s annual Jazz Night at the Café on Saturday once again had everyone up on their feet and dancing to the music of Glen Miller and Benny Goodman.

For many students and families this night is a tradition around which to plan their yearly calendars; for others, it was their first time on the dance floor.

Brandon Budwig, a junior at CVHS, joined Prom Plus Club at the dance for the first time and, to his surprise, not only liked the event – he actually got up and danced.

“It’s something that anyone can go to and have a blast and just let go and have a good time,” he said.

For those who didn’t know how to swing dance band parent David Blood was on hand to give dancers a few tips.

The best part beyond listening and dancing to the amazing CVHS Jazz Band, the band parents who decorated and turned the school’s cafeteria into a jazz club, the fun of seeing everyone up and dancing and the food, which was included in the reasonably priced ticket ($8) – was that the event was a fundraiser for the CVHS band so the arts can thrive and the music will never die. On Saturday, the event raised $2,000 for the CV Instrumental Music Foundation which helps pay for everything from instruments to band uniforms, and for transportation to and from events.

For those who could not make it to Jazz Night at the Café but want to support the music department more information is available at www.falconmusic.org.

  Mary Okeefe