For Dave Christianson, forming the Downtown Horns was pure self-interest. “As a trumpet player, there weren’t too many opportunities to play in Grand Forks,”Christianson said in a recent interview. “I always enjoyed the music of the 70s and 80s, and I just felt we were missing something musically in this area. This seemed to fill the bill.”

A staple with the Dick King Classic Swing Band since 1983, Christianson has always appreciated the opportunity to play professionally and he’s done so since college. “I went through public schools and learned music the traditional way,” he said. “My profession now is a music teacher. I teach at Twinning Middle School on the Air Base. I’m the band director.”

But the Dick King Classic Swing Band made an impact on his playing life. “That was the really big influence for me. It was just a tremendous learning opportunity,” he said. “I owe an awful lot to Dick King and so do a lot of musicians in this area that had playing opportunities.” Christianson marvels at how King was able to keep that band going. Even after King’s death, the band continues as his legacy. “Those of us who are here now, trying to keep it alive are discovering just how much work Dick King put into it to keep the band active and playing, finding musicians and sponsors, and finding jobs.”

So, it wasn’t much of a leap to step away from the Dick King Classic Swing Band periodically and launch a band of his own. Though the Downtown Horns had its beginnings earlier, the current sound gelled two years ago. “We got together because we enjoyed playing this music. It was good to see that there were still people who listen to this stuff, too,” Christianson said of the wide range of music the Downtown Horns plays from the 70s and 80s, including classic rock and some Motown soul.

But what makes the Downtown Horns so unique isn’t necessarily their choice of material but the fact that this multi-generational band actually enjoys the music. Christianson and some of his bandmates actually grew up listening to this music. Mike Blackmun, a flight instructor at UND who plays bass, is very familiar with this music and so is Lynn Schroeder, publisher of the Cavalier Chronicle who plays trombone. Then there is Jenny Loer, a middle school band teacher in East Grand Forks, who plays sax and sings occasionally, and Dr. Mike Wittgraf (keys), a music composition/theory professor at UND who used to play with the Minneapolis Molines during his college years. These two may have heard the music of this era from their older siblings or had broad tastes in music. But it is the youngsters of this group, Dave Berger (lead vocals) who is the youth co-ordinator at Sharon Lutheran, and Dan Christianson (lead guitar) and Phil Jensen (drums) who both graduated from Red River High School this spring, who are really stretching their musical ears and talents.

Dave Berger

“The older guys all grew up with this music, and the younger kids have really taken to it,” Christianson said. “Some of this you hear once in a while on the radio. But I think playing in this band has really exposed them to a lot more of it.”

Since everyone in the band can read music to some degree, Christianson has tried to provide scores for each player. “We don’t play enough together where we can learn by heart and just play it,” he said.
“When I started the band, it was always my intent that I was going to write out arrangements and parts for everybody. That way if it ever gets to where we need a substitute, it will be easy enough for someone to come in and there’s a part for them. They can just sit down and play it. We have had to have subs on a couple of occasions.”

Christianson actually has had to search for new members, even in a band that isn’t very old. So having scores written out has really helped new members come up to speed quickly. “We’ve been through a few drummers already as a matter of fact,” Christianson admitted. And, in the fall, he will have to find a new guitarist. Dan Christianson, Dave’s son, will be doing to Moorhead State University to begin study on a double major in music education and music industry.

Dan actually began his musical studies with piano as a child and took up trumpet like his dad. His fondness for guitar came when his uncle bought him a guitar. Though Dan had begun listening to bands his peers like such as Green Day, he was soon influenced by his father’s choice in music, especially Chicago’s great horn sounds. The elder Christianson even stepped back on occasion to let Dan set his guitar aside and take lead on trumpet. Dave Christianson has even brought in some of the funky sounds of Tower of Power with their signature horns section. Because Dan is profecient in both instruments, he will also be a trumpet student and a guitar student at MSU. “That’s pretty hard to do and be able to do both well,” Dave Christianson said. “But I think that having that diversity and being able to be in different genres musically will really be a benefit down the road wherever he ends up.”

Luckily, Christianson will not have to replace his drummer this year, too. Phil Jensen will be going to UND this fall and will be available for gigs.

With all of this incredible talent, the Downtown Horns could have been just another instrumental band. But Christianson knew that the music he chose of the 70s and 80s was really vocally driven but that would take a power singer. That came in the talents of Dave Berger, who also serves as frontman for the band, engaging the audience in light banter. Being a church youth coordinator, there’s no danger of Berger saying something that would embarrass the band. His engaging personality really connects with the band’s audiences. “He does have a real ability to communicate with the audience,” Christianson said. “He’s comfortable in that role, and that’s what it really takes, I think, is someone who’s not afraid to do the banter and kind of put himself out there.” Plus, Berger can really sell a tune without his ego getting in the way.

The Downtown Horns has the potential for some day transforming into the legacy that the Dick King Classic Swing Band has become. Only this band is solidly founded in classic rock and soul.

http://www.myspace.com/downtownhorns

This entry was posted on Friday, July 3rd, 2009 at 12:48 pm and is filed under Issues, July 2009. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.