- The Fresno Bee
Thursday, Feb. 07, 2013 | 04:46 PM
Chances are you won't walk into a music class taught by Larry Honda, Mike Dana or Craig Von Berg and find any of them wearing a tuxedo and a cooler-than-thou expression. And forget about any of them holding a martini in one hand and an untipped Camel cigarette in the other.
Those odds would be pretty long, indeed, considering that the three are faculty at Fresno City College. (Strict no-smoking policy, after all.) The dean would not be pleased.
But make no mistake: These three highly regarded jazz musicians are members of the Rat Pack -- if only for an evening.
When the Fresno Philharmonic takes the stage Saturday at Saroyan Theatre for a pops concert titled "The Rat Pack: A Symphonic Celebration," the orchestra's ranks will be augmented with such instruments as guitar, saxophone and drum set.
There's nothing new about such an arrangement, of course. Pops concerts are meant to extend beyond the reach of the traditional classical repertoire, and players are often brought in to add a contemporary sound to an orchestra.
But with "The Rat Pack" concert -- a tribute-style show featuring three Broadway veterans portraying Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr. -- it seems fitting to acknowledge Fresno City College's strong jazz program and its contribution to the community.
Joining Honda on saxophone, Dana on guitar and Von Berg on piano are two other players with Fresno City College connections: John Ayala on saxophone and Brian Hamada on drum set.
Also joining the orchestra will be local players Alan Durst, a Fresno State professor; Otto Lee, one of Durst's students; and Scott Englebright, a professional lead trumpet player who grew up in Kingsburg.
For Honda, who once saw Sammy Davis Jr. perform, the pops concert will be a chance to play some of the great songs of his youth, including "That's Amore," "The Lady is a Tramp" and "Mr. Bojangles."
"The music the Rat Pack sang really came out of the history of jazz music," Honda says.
Fresno City College's strong jazz program got its start in the late 1960s under Gilbert Rodriguez, who turned the college's jazz band into a serious ensemble, Honda says. Many students today go on to four-year university music programs or conservatories, with some becoming professional musicians.
The college's Jazz Composers Orchestra, a big-band-style ensemble consisting of faculty members, students and area music teachers, was founded a decade ago and has made a mark on the local jazz scene. Directed by Dana, it often features original songs written by its members.
When you're talking about the Rat Pack, the music is only part of the formula, of course. Sinatra, Martin and Davis -- along with such big names as Peter Lawford and Joey Bishop -- perfected a breezy, nonchalant style in their Las Vegas shows that just seemed to ooze sophistication.
The concert is loosely imagined as set in the 1950s or '60s -- about the time that Sinatra, Martin and Davis were playing at the Sands and Dunes casinos in Las Vegas, says Eric Jordan Young, who plays Davis.
Young and his two co-stars, Matthew Shepard Smith (as Sinatra) and Nat Chandler (as Martin) emphasize that their portrayals shouldn't be considered caricatures. Even the term "tribute" doesn't quite work.
"I like to say we are embodying the essence of these individuals," says Chandler, who has appeared in such shows as "The Phantom of the Opera" and "The Scarlet Pimpernel" on Broadway. "They are so iconic. They are so famous. They left such an incredible mark on their fans and on American history. It is impossible to stand on a stage and say, 'I am Dean Martin.' "
But the three performers do go a long way toward recreating the ambience and patter of the three.
"I think of it as an elegant Rat Pack concert with the looseness of a Las Vegas show," says Young, who appeared on Broadway in such shows as "Seussical" and "Ragtime." He currently stars in "Vegas! The Show" at the Saxe Theater in Las Vegas.
Smith, the third member of the trio, is making his debut as Frank Sinatra on Saturday -- actors in "packaged" shows as this one often rotate in and out of the roles -- but he's watched lots of video clips of Ol' Blue Eyes and is ready for his part in the scripted show.
And if Smith, a Broadway veteran and a New York University faculty member, could ask Sinatra one thing, what would it be?
"How could he sing so much while smoking and drinking?" Smith says with a laugh.
As far as Honda, the City College professor, is concerned, there are two things about the "Rat Pack" concert that will stand out. The first is the opportunity to meld the jazz sound he loves so much with a big orchestra.
"It's a different situation when you have the addition of the strings in particular. It adds a color to the jazz band that's always been attractive," he says.
And the other is purely personal. Honda's daughter, Marissa, will be playing with the Fresno Philharmonic for the first time. Now studying for her master's degree in oboe performance at the University of Southern California, she will play oboe and English horn in Saturday's concert.
"It will be the first time she and I will perform together as professionals," Honda says.
That's just about as cool as Frank Sinatra singing "My Way."
Post-concert party: A no-host bar, food and live jazz played by selected orchestra members will immediately follow the concert.
