Drew Fennell says "we're not in the Golden Age" of TV soundtracks, but believes a short trip into the past can fix that.
Denis Colwell apologizes for resorting to using the theme of "Hawaii 5-0," but says it's all in the script.
Meanwhile, Lance LaDuke has found other players for the sitcom-like concerts in which he stars.
Such are the plot lines for this episode of the Adventures of the River City Brass Band, a long-running show that fairly consistently blends comedy with harmonic drama.
"Timeless Television Tunes" will features some classic theme songs from shows that aren't necessarily classic themselves.
"I'm just a fan of good music," music director Colwell says, "and it's fair to say there has been a good deal of it on TV."
Cornetist-arranger Fennell will get a chance to use many of them in the medley he's writing that will wrap up the concert.
"It's mostly evocative," he says of the piece built around TV snippets. "I just want people to remember things when they hear it."
The medley will include themes from "The Wild, Wild West," "I Love Lucy," "The Price is Right," "The Bob Newhart Show," "Little House on the Prairie" and "The Dick Van Dyke Show."
This romp with the cast of the brass band also will include a guest-starring role from Mike Tomaro, director of jazz studies at Duquesne University, who will be arranging some classics by Quincy Jones. That medley will use the themes from "Ironside" and "Sanford and Son."
Tomaro also will be doing a version of "Here's Johnny," the "Tonight Show" theme that will give LaDuke a chance to show off his work with I-Factor, an Oakland-rooted improvisational comedy group.
LaDuke says he and his comic conspirators will do "two to four bits a night" -- depending on how the concert is going.
The concert also will use the section from the "William Tell Overture" that is better known as the theme to "The Lone Ranger" and the "Funeral March of a Marionette," the theme from "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour."
"A lot of good music has been co-opted by television," Colwell says. "And there are just two kinds of people: those who love TV music and those who hate it." Additional Information:
River City Brass Band
When:
Admission: Prices vary
Details: 412-322-7222
