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Phonotone Orchestra

proudly presents:

Symphonia

Phonotone

and the Phonotone Quartet

SYNCOPATED Dance Music
of the 1920s and 1930s
TRADITIONAL Jazz

UPCOMING EVENTS
 

We cordially invite you

Please support Symphonia Phonotone with your donation!

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THANK YOU FOR

COMING TO OUR EVENTS!

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Hear and see us live
and dance with us on November 2, 2024 at the
Masonic Temple Ballroom,
1123 J Street, Sacramento, CA 95814
Event start: 6:30 PM
Food and drinks served!
Send your reservation, with your choice of food
(prime rib, chicken cordon bleu or vegetarian) to:
Phonotone@aol.com
1920s - 1930s period attire encouraged.
We can't wait to see you!

PREVIOUS Symphonia Phonotone  EventS

Watch Symphonia Phonotone during our European Tour 2024!
We played on Tinos Island in Greece on August 13, 2024
in front of 800 people at the Koumaros Theatre.
Click the link below to see the recorded live stream of our performance!

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This broadcast was sponsored by  Wilson Wolf Manufacturing  and David Hedin

Watch our holiday broadcast 2023 on YouTube 

https://youtu.be/q6Dw756Ap8w?si=Hg9l5RAoRuSFmk5B

Enjoy the Fall 2023 performance of Symphonia Phonotone together with the Phonotone Quartet playing your favorite titles - click the link below!

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For the five year anniversary of our internet radio station PhonotoneClassic, which occured on December 31, 2022,

we produced a video called

"Dance Into The New Year With Symphonia Phonotone",

featuring announcers Michael Edwards and Katrina Fontana, together with producer Gerhard Bauer showcasing our orchestra at its best.

You can still enjoy this event via the link below:
 

https://youtu.be/foHOEXEB-Uk

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this was the highlight

of the LAST pre-covid Season!

People sAw and hearD uS at the

Historic Masonic Temple Ballroom

and supportED a worthy cause!

THank you for a sold out performance!

https://joshuashousehospice.org/

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Symphonia Phonotone's Story

In 2017, Gerhard Bauer, a long term collector and aficionado of syncopated dance music of the 1920s and 1930s founded an internet radio station, PhonotoneClassic, which would be dedicated to playing original 78 RPM records of this musical genre, restored by him to pristine quality. For the opening of the radio station, he thought that live music would be a good idea, so he looked for local musicians who would be able to play traditional jazz and syncopated dance music. 2017 was a lucky year, since a group of very talented musicians, lead by the pianist Kevin Hamby, joined this endeavor and the "Phonotone Quartet" was born.

 

After a very successful opening event of the internet radio station with this jazz quartet on New Year's Eve 2017, Gerhard Bauer thought that founding a large dance orchestra that was able to play the orginal dance orchestra arrangements of the 1920s and 1930s would be an additional admirable goal. With the help of Kevin Hamby and the other original members of the Phonotone Quartet, the almost impossible feat of putting together a 20 piece vintage dance orchestra was accomplished.

 

In the beginning, the orchestra met in Gerhard's living room, rehearsed for some initial performances, and interestingly, this initial gamble turned out to be a much loved and appreciated orchestra making a lot of people happy. The orchestra soon incorporated as a 501(c)(3) non for profit organization, quickly outgrew the living room rehearsal space and moved into a professional rehearsal and performance space.

 

Symphonia Phonotone, produced and managed by Gerhard Bauer, under the musical direction of Kevin Hamby, plays in exactly the same style as the the big dance orchestras of the 1920s and 1930s, faithfully bringing back syncopated dance music and early jazz, which was once the most popular music in the US, the UK and continental Europe. Everybody, young and old, danced to this kind of music, and now can dance again to the tunes of Symphonia Phonotone.

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The orginal "Phonotone Quartet" is still contained within the large orchestra, and has evolved to the "Phonotone Quartet and their Friends", now a six member group, plus vocalist. The Phonotone Quartet entertains our audience with traditional jazz tunes of the early 20th century.

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Symphonia Phonotone is comprised of some of the best musicians of Sacramento and the surrounding area. We pride ourselves in performing syncopated dance music in the authentic way it was meant to be played, and every time we perform, our audience is treated to an experience that has not been around in live music for the last 90 or more years.

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