NEW ORLEANS--The Swing Dolphins, a jazz orchestra comprised almost exclusively of junior high school students from a tsunami-stricken city in northern Japan, got the audience rocking at the Satchmo Summerfest here on Aug. 3.
NEW ORLEANS--The Swing Dolphins, a jazz orchestra comprised almost exclusively of junior high school students from a tsunami-stricken city in northern Japan, got the audience rocking at the Satchmo Summerfest here on Aug. 3.
The festival celebrates the life of jazz giant Louis Armstrong, who was born here and nicknamed “Satchmo.”
Nineteen members of The Swing Dolphins belted out jazz standards, such as “What a Wonderful World,” one of Armstrong’s most beloved songs.
The orchestra is from the city of Kesennuma, Miyagi Prefecture, which was devastated in the tsunami generated by the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011. Many of the members lost instruments in the disaster.
A local jazz club operator in New Orleans came to their rescue with a donation that allowed them to buy new instruments and start afresh.
The orchestra decided to perform at the birthplace of jazz to express gratitude for the support that its members have received.
On stage, one of the members greeted the audience by saying, “We appreciate the support of the people in New Orleans.”
With that, the concert kicked off. As the sound echoed in the auditorium, the audience started to dance. Each number was greeted with hearty applause.