Colorado Swing performs as a full-size big band and also as a smaller swing dance orchestra for your dance, fundraiser, party, wedding, summer festival or special event.
We can tailor the music for you to include exciting Big Band Era, Las Vegas Rat-pack, Broadway show standards, Blues, Great Gatsby, and traditional ballroom dance styles as well popular music arrangements from contemporary artists. Our jazz combo is available for the cocktail portion of your event.
“Colorado Swing” means Premier Musical Excellence!
The Colorado Swing played for my wife’s 50th birthday party and they were absolutely amazing. They brought a touch of class and a whole lot of fun to the party turning this milestone birthday into a truly wonderful celebration. Their presence, proficiency and professionalism elevated the ambiance and transported everyone back to the golden era of swing.
They are incredibly easy to work with and very responsive. They helped walk me through crafting just the right mood for the event. The song selection was a perfect blend of classic swing tunes- with some with modern twists added in, so that both the swing aficionados and those new to the genre found themselves getting caught up in the music and the atmosphere.
What truly sets this band apart, is their obvious enthusiasm and genuine connection to the music. These seasoned musicians have a passion for their craft They don’t just play music; they craft an experience for everyone present. A truly excellent choice!
Price Range: Contact for rates
Gig Length: 120 - 180 minutes
Languages: English
“Colorado Swing” means Premier Musical Excellence!
Colorado Swing Big Band has been entertaining and providing dance music for various events for greater than 20 years, throughout Northern Colorado. With the recent passing of Kip Scholl, Founder/Producer of Colorado Swing and its various ensembles, the group's musicians continue to move forward and strive to reach their old fans, and potential new fans, with the same professionalism, enthusiasm and musical excellence that Colorado Swing has been known to deliver. New management is in place.
Colorado Swing Big Band is available for your fundraiser, wedding, dance, summer festival or special event. We have a large library of great music and can customize the music of our performance to the theme of your event. We have your favorite songs, optional vocals, background music, Latin, Waltz, Foxtrot and Tango dance styles, Big Band Swing favorites and popular contemporary music.
We also have smaller versions of the full-size big band (an 11-piece band, and a "Swingtet"), that has the music, style and excitement that you expect, easily fits on a smaller stage, and may be just the right size for your venue.
A typical performances includes three 45 minute live music sets. One of the live music sets could be the "Swingtet", who can perform easy listening background music or energetic cocktail music during guest arrival time preceding the main portion of your event. We can add recorded background music during breaks at no additional cost, if desired.
Colorado Swing has great references from our many happy customers including ...
4th of July at City Park Fort Collins
Associates in Family Medicine
American Cancer Society
American Vernacular Dance
Avogadro's Number
Avo's Annual JazzFest
Avalon Ballroom in Boulder
Bas Bleu Mardi Gras
Beet Street Fort Collins
Ben & Jerry's Summer Concert Series
Big Band Bash Estes Park
Brookside Gardens Event Center
Cafe Columbine
Carbon Valley Chamber of Commerce
Cheyenne Botanic Gardens
City of Fort Collins
City of Loveland
Club Tico at City Park Center
Colorado State University
CSU 1870 Recognition Dinner
CSU Dining Services
CSU Lagoon Series Concerts
CSU Swing Dance Society
CSU ASAP entertainment
Columbine Health Systems
Columbine Knolls Recreation District
Dancetime in Loveland - Judy & Eldon Grimm
First National Bank Fort Collins
Friends of Traditional Dance
FortJazz Fest Jazz Festival
Fort Collins Arts Alive
Fort Collins Downtown Business Association
Fort Collins Jazz Experience
Fort Collins Knights of Columbus
Fort Collins Elk's Lodge
Fort Collins Lincoln Center
Fort Collins Library
Fort Collins Museum
Fort Collins Senior Center
Fort Collins Newcomers Club
Fort Collins Country Club
Front Range Community College
Foothills Mall Concert Series 2024
Good Samaritan Society Loveland Village
Goodtimes Dance Club
Harmony on the Green Concert Series
Historic Stanley Hotel in Estes Park CO
Intercollegiate Swing Battle
Loveland Corn Roast Festival
Loveland Foote Lagoon Concert Series
Lutheran Family Services
NewWestFest Bohemian Nights
Palmer Properties - First Community Bank
PIIAC Conference Beaver Creek CO
Rotary International
Poudre Valley Hospital Foundation
Rigden Farms Senior Living
Saint John's Benefit Gala
SAVA Center
Sunset Event Center
Tennyson Center for Children
The Jumpin' JiveCats
The Rhythm Company
Town of Windsor CO
Wildfire Community Arts Center
Windsor Big Band Boogie Ball
Windsor HarvestFest 2024
Young Life Northern Colorado
... and many private weddings and parties
Stage area Requirements:
Colorado Swing (11 piece swing dance band with vocalist) requires a
minimum 12'd x 16'w stage area or a preferred 12'd x 20'w stage area
Colorado Swing (full-size 18 piece big band with vocalist ) requires a
minimum 12'd x 24'w stage area or a preferred 16'd x 24'w stage area.
We offer smaller ensemble of our musicians who can perform easy listening background music or energetic cocktail music on the main stage during guest arrival time.
The band can perform without special stages or stage lighting, if needed. Raised stage and special lighting not included.
To prevent interruption due to weather, tents or enclosed patios are recommended for outdoor performances.
Sound reinforcement is needed for announcements, solos, vocals, and an overall well balanced sound. We can supply this service if desired. With our sound system, we can add recorded background music during breaks at no additional cost, if desired. You are welcome to use our on-stage mic for your announcements at the performance.
If you prefer to contract your own sound reinforcement services for your event, we can supply our technical sound and stage specifications to your vendor.
We can customize the music of our performance to the theme of your event.
A dance can include East Coast Swing, Waltz, Lindy, Shim Sham, Tango, Foxtrot, Mambo, Rumba and other dance styles. A Summer Festival Concert can include high energy show band ban music and more contemporary artists. For example:
New York, New York | Sinatra
Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy | big band era
Zoot Suit Riot | who's your daddy swing
Chattanooga Choo Choo | big band era
Fly Me to the Moon | Sinatra
Orange Colored Sky | Nat King Cole swing
My Way | Sinatra
La Cumparcita | tango
Moon River | waltz
At Last | bride & groom first dance
Livin La Vida Loca | hot hot hot
Sing Sing Sing | burn up your shoes
Stormy Weather | foxtrot
Oye Como Va | cha cha
Ain’t Misbehavin | roaring 20's
Lady is a Tramp | Sinatra
Lulu’s Back in Town | quickstep
Jump Jive & Wail | Louis Prima Brian Setzer jump swing
Just in Time | Dean Martin foxtrot
As Time Goes | Play It Again Sam
Girl from Ipanema | Antônio Carlos Jobim rumba
‘S Wonderful | Diana Krall
Sugar Blues | blues
All of Me | Paul Whiteman swing
Blue Skies | Ella Fitzgerald samba
Keep it a Secret | waltz
Hey Good Lookin’ | country swing
Don't Know Why | Nora Jones
Exactly Like You | cha-cha
It Had to Be You | foxtrot
In the Mood | Glenn Miller favorite
On the Sunny Side of the Street
Blues in the Night | blues
Daddy’s Little Girl | waltz
Kiss of Fire | tango
Come Fly with Me | old blue eyes
Sway | Michael Bublé
Star Dust | Hoagy Carmichael
I’ve Got You Under My Skin | Sinatra
Route 66 | Nat King Cole foxtrot
This Could Be the Start of Something Big | Steve Allen
A Swing Dance hour of selections might look like this:
Set 1_ 7:30-8:30 16 tunes
(Theme from) New York, NY east coast swing
Carefree cha-cha
Myles Collins arr. of Route 66 foxtrot – Cara vocal
All of Me east coast swing – Cara vocal
Nestico arr. Fly Me to the Moon east coast swing – Cara vocal
If waltz
Mambo Calliente mambo
Star Dust foxtrot
Bei Mir Bist du Shoen east coast swing – Cara vocal
Sway rumba – Cara vocal
Come Fly with Me east coast swing – Cara vocal
Daddy’s Little Girl waltz
Kiss of Fire tango
Blues in the Night west coast swing blues
On the Sunny Side of the Street foxtrot – Cara vocal
Glenn Miller arr. of In the Mood east coast swing
A recent Concert Event included these selections:
September
Crazy Little Thing Called Love
Girl from Ipanema
Rainbow Connection
That Old Black Magic
Granada Smoothie
Uptown Funk
More Soul
I’ll Never Smile Again/Dream
Ain’t That a kick in the Head
Days of Wine and Roses
Orange Colored Sky
| Mark Manges | musical director |
| Brian Scott | Operations |
Colorado Swing performs a wide variety of family-friendly music enjoyed by all ages, including Big Band Era, Las Vegas, and Broadway show standards as well as popular music arrangements from contemporary artists.
We feature the area's top musical talent including great vocalists. Our arrangements feature the music of Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Tommy Dorsey, Glenn Miller, Harry James, Stan Kenton, Frank Sinatra, Les Brown, George & Ira Gershwin, Rodgers & Hart, Hoagy Carmichael, Cole Porter, Buddy Rich, Brian Setzer, and many others.
Sound reinforcement is needed for announcements, solos, vocals, and an over all well balanced sound.
We can provide this service for you for the very low cost for small outdoor areas and most indoor venues.
If you want to contract your own sound reinforcement services, I will be happy to send them our technical requirements.
Golden, CO 
Big Band
1 Verified Booking Pat S. said “Outstanding band and great to dance to. Plays everything from Basie to Diane Schuur. Debra Stafford, the singer, is out of this world and the sax section…”
Denver, CO
Jazz Band
30 Verified Bookings Mary B. said “These guys are so talented. They performed for my Christmas Eve open house with 90 guests. The sound quality was perfect, music selection was a little…”
Denver, CO
Swing Band
50 Verified Bookings Gail G. said “We hired Odessa Rose to play for a Rehersal/Welcome Dinner the night before our son’s wedding in Vail. They were outstanding! Their music was enjoyed…”
Commerce City, CO
Cover Band
Jess B. said “If I could recommend just one thing to any couple planning their wedding… HIRE GROOVE AND MOTION!!!! I can’t gush about our experience enough. The band…”
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