This is old stuff. But the swing band was a big part of my life for a while, so I'll keep this up for another couple of years.




Above band photo by Michele Testa

Shauna and Wade photo's by Todd Torok

Vivo Presto Swing
Click here for a little taste of Greenbacks (Real Audio ra file)

For more music, mp3 and Windows Media Player files, go to the Sounds page.

Vivo Presto Swing
Shauna on Vocals and charm
Larry Goldman on Tenor, Alto Saxes and Clarinet and additional Horn Arrangements
George Harper on Baritone, Tenor Saxes and excellent posture
George McMullen, Stu Pilorz (pictured), or Eric Jorgensen on Trombone
(depending on who's available)
Ron Suffredini (pictured) on Stand Up Bass and Vocals or
Osama Afifi on Stand Up Bass and gleaming white teeth,
(again, depending on who's available)
Jeff Falcone (pictured) on Drums (he can't help that chicks dig 'im) or
Kris Berry on Drums
and me, Piano, Vocals, Conducting, Arranging and Zoot Suit

The Vivo Bio
Vivo Presto Swing!

Wade Preston’s Swing / Jump Blues band takes off!

     In July of 1998, Wade Preston decided he wanted to form a Swing / Jump Blues band and call it something, anything other than his own name, since the name Wade Preston is associated with a vast eclectic mix of music. While discussing his idea with Shane, one of the owners of Pointe 705, he was put on a dare.
     "Put together a swing band, and we'll book you," Shane said.
     Hmm. A challenge. Okay ...
     Wade decided to act on Shane's dare immediately. On August 6th, 1998, Vivo Presto Swing (Italian musical terms roughly translated as ‘lively and fast’) made its debut at the popular Hermosa Beach venue. The show was sold out and very well received. Vivo Presto Swing played there every Wednesday ("Swing Night") for six months. They have played every other Wednesday ever since, up until August of '99, sharing the bill with the likes of Jumpin' Joz and Dwight Kennedy. Vivo also plays at the world famous Derby (usually once a month), Tony P's, Deuces and Arcadia in the LA area, as well as many corporate and private parties from San Diego to San Francisco, including the famous Golden Gate Club. Most recently they peformed a string of private parties at the Sony Pictures Plaza, the sony movie lot in Culver City, and the Catalina room at Long Point in Palos Verdes.
     Wade’s original concept of the band was "a late 1930’s, early 1940’s radio swing program meets Louie Jordan and the Timpani Five." He soon learned that most swing dancers enjoy a variety of both East Coast and West Coast swing. Yet virtually every current swing band performed either one or the other. Wade decided to create a mix of both East and West Coast, Big Band to Jump Jive, slow and fast, Ballad to Lindy Hop to Jitterbug styles of swing. The popularity and repertoire of this South Bay band has resulted in rapid growth, much faster than anyone ever expected.
     Vivo Presto Swing is a seven-piece ensemble, featuring some of Southern California's finest musicians. Wade is featured on piano and lead vocals, Ron Suffredini or Osama Afifi on stand up bass and vocals, and Jeff Falcone or Kris Berry on drums. The three-piece horn section consists of Larry Goldman on tenor sax, doubling on alto sax and clarinet, George Harper plays baritone sax, doubling on tenor sax, and Eric Jorgensen, George McMullen (when he's not on the road with Brian Setzer) or Stu Pilorz, depending on who's available, play trombone.
     Shauna Torok (introduced simply as "Shauna"), a very talented and spirited vocalist, fronts the ensemble with Wade. Her lovely voice and look are truly reminiscent of the early swing era. Shauna is also well versed in theatre and stage work. Her most recent role as Adrianna in "Tea And Crumpets", peformed at the Laguna Beach Arts Theatre and at the arts and music festival in Edinboro, Scotland would earn the respect of any knowlegeable musician in terms of her technical abilities and range. For the month of August, "Tea and Crumpets" traveled to Europe.
     Shauna and Wade’s chemistry on stage is truly charming. Their harmonies are delightful. Having a gal and a guy trading lead vocals is a great advantage for Vivo's versatility. Audiences have responded enthusiastically to the diversity. Shauna and Wade even dress in vintage clothing from the 30’s and 40’s to add to the ambiance.
     Most of the arrangements are Wade’s. "You can’t find charts for this kind of orchestration. Vivo Presto Swing has a rather unusual instrumentation, and even with scores that are close, I find that there are many things I would do quite differently. I decided to compose my own arrangements, while taking care not to lose the authenticity of this wonderful sound. It's a lot of work, but I never stop learning from it and that's something I truly love."
     Larry Goldman has contributed several excellent horn transcriptions as well to help lighten the load for Wade.
     Rather than condense big band scores, Wade has chosen to create his own arrangements tailored specifically to his own ensemble, taking what he likes from the classic recordings of the swing era. This gives the band a unique new sound while not diminishing the spirit of these timeless classics. "Tricky business," says Wade, "but oh so educational!"
     While keeping a busy schedule performing solo and with his jazz and rock trios, arrangeing and peforming for numerous recording sessions, and film scoring, Wade is finding time to record his newly found love. The CD is almost finished and should be out by winter of 1999.
     "People have been asking us for CD’s from the beginning. I've been handing out these preliminary CD's for now to give poeple an idea of what we have. It's almost done, and there is actually enough material for two CD's! The wonderful music of this era and the spirited talent of this band warrant as good a representation as can be produced. I want to do it right."
     Wade has recorded most of Vivo's live performances with his mobile sixteen track digital studio. "Vivo Presto Swing Live" represents some of what he's captured. "There is a lot of fun in these tracks!" Indeed!

The day of our first performance, an article about me and Vivo came out in the South Bay Weekly section of the Los Angeles Times. Click here if you'd like to see it.

     I've had the pleasure of using some great musicians to sub for the regulars when they can't make it. Among them are (listed fairly consecutively):  Michael Jay on Drums and Vocals, Adam Novicki on Stand Up Bass, Hilary Jones on Drums and Vocals, Michael Daigeau on Trombone and bizarre stage etiquette (he's SO fired, but I learned an awful lot from him), Dan Wienstein on Trombone (who also taught me a lot about arranging and making the music swing), Susan Wullf on Stand Up Bass and Vocals, Andrew Schnurr on Stand Up Bass, Ira Schulman on Baritone and Tenor Saxes, Tom Hansen on Trombone (and a great arrangement of Oliver Nelsons "Stolen Moments" that we've used ever since), Lon Price on Tenor and Alto Saxes and Clarinet (another great arranger who knows all the Louie Jordan stuff better than any of us, check out his web site, you've definitely heard him before!), Charlie Orena on Saxes and Clarinet, Lynn Woolever on Stand Up Bass, Jake Jacobs on Drums, Andy Bearst on Drums (who drove all the way from Alta Loma to do a gig in Newport Beach with us, what a guy!), Josh Egan on Drums, David Heddad on Drums, Stu Pilorz on Trombone, science, astronomy and astrophysics, Keri Loeschen on trombone, Eddie Synigal on Baritone and Tenor Saxes, Mark Vanderpoel on Stand Up Bass, Dave Owens on Drums, George McMullen (when he's not touring with the Brian Setzer Orchestra) on Trombone, the lovely Tomasina (aka Binga) on Vocals, Phil Ranelin on Trombone, Jeff Delasante on Saxes (when he's not on the road with The Young Dubliners), Saratoga Ballentine on Vocals, Bruce Escovitz on Saxes and Clarinet, Johnathan Dressle on Drums, LuAnne Ponce on Vocals and charm, Denny Croy on Stand Up Bass, Ron Suffredini on Stand Up Bass and Vocals, Ken Tussing on Trombone, Larry Wolff on Baritone and Tenor Saxes, Kris Berry on Drums, Marco Minagan on Drums, the very young and talented Nadir Jeevanjee on Drums, Jonno Brown on Drums, Jennifer Hall on Saxes, John Setar on Saxes, Fred Morgan on Trombone, Steve Ferguson on Trombone, Sharon Harata on Tenor and Alto Saxes, Darren Smith on Tenor and Baritone Saxes, and Roger Bissell on (excellent!) Trombone, Larry Steen on Bass, Hank Van Cycle on Bass, and Darren Ross on Drums and Vocals. As this list grows, I must confess that I feel very fortunate to know so many talented people.

You can read the most recent Cyber Mailer Update by clicking here.

Thanks for reading this. I appreciate your interest in the music we make,
and I look forward to seeing you.

All my best wishes,

Wade