Category: News

  • Bullettes Little Big Band to Perform March 13 at Westminster

    Bullettes Little Big Band to Perform March 13 at Westminster

    square_500

    I’d like to thank Amy Bormet for having us back again for the Washington Women in Jazz Festival! I love this particular time of year, we see so many fantastic and talented women come out to perform. Amy has really built the WWJF into an amazing and high quality festival that everyone is still talking about throughout the year. I’m very thankful to get to play for the amazing audience at Westminster Church, one of the best venues in town. This year it will be the Bullettes Little Big Band with guests! I’m taking this opportunity to bring to light some of the amazing composition and arranging talent we have in this town. I’m also interested in promoting large ensemble music; too often, budget constraints keep people from putting large instrumental groups together. We’ll be premiering my arrangement of “Knives Out” (woo hoo Radiohead fans!) as well as the United States Premiere of “Wine Glass Perspective” by the great Australian composer Mace Francis. We’ll also be playing new original tunes by Todd Simon as well as Doug Pierce. I have three more charts on the back burner I’d like to get ready, if possible… We’ll see! We’ll be featuring Jessica Boykin-Settles on vocals as well.

    Shannon Gunn and the Bullettes
    Little Big Band (LBB)
    As part of Amy K. Bormet’s Washington Women in Jazz Festival
    Westminster Church
    400 I St SW, WDC
    Friday, March 13, 2015
    6 – 9 PM
    $5 at the door
    Personnel…
    Michelle Acton, Bari
    Savannah Harris, Drums
    Angel Bethea, Congas and Percussion
    Special Guest: Nicole Connelly, trombone
    Possible additional special guests, possible additional originals from local composers
    We will play some Ellington mixed in with our own original and new arrangements, including music from Australia and beyond! We will also feature local up-and-coming female jazz talent.
    Really looking forward to it! Thank you!
  • Bullettes Octet to perform at Jazz and Freedom Festival 1/18!

    Bullettes Octet to perform at Jazz and Freedom Festival 1/18!

    Bullettes_boldy

    The Bullettes Octet will perform a tribute to Mingus on Sunday, Jan 18th, at 5 pm at Union Arts! Songs include 5 horn arrangements by Shannon Gunn, and will be chosen from Work Song, Haitian Fight Song, Moanin’, and Fables of Faubus. (WOW!) We are excited to have everyone on board!

    • Leigh Pilzer – Alto Sax
    • Halley Shoenberg – Tenor Sax
    • Michelle Acton – Bari Sax
    • Charmaine Michelle – Trumpet
    • Shannon Gunn – Trombone
    • Miki Yamanaka – Piano
    • Cyndy Elliott – Bass
    • Angel Bethea – Drums
  • Bullettes Winter Concerts!

    Bullettes Winter Concerts!

    Hi everyone!

    I hope your holiday was filled with good food/friends/family/frenzy. I personally am still recovering from the food and fun.
    And now, for the big announcement: we are putting out a new album!
    The Bullettes Septet has been playing monthly at the Carlyle Club, so we decided to put that vibe to tape and put out a swing album. We hope you enjoy! We are introducing a new drummer in town – her name is Angeliqua Bethea and she is a Freshman at GMU this year. She’s grown up through the Ellington program (with some of the band members as her mentors) so it’s great to have her come full circle and play with us!
    CD Release Shows:
    Tuesday, December 9th
    Gotta Swing Presents: Bullettes Septet at the Carlyle Club
    411 John Carlyle Street, Alexandria, VA
    9 – 10:30 PM
    $10 cover
    Swing dance! Come out and meet new people! We have new charts and maybe even a holiday tune or two!
    Sunday, December 21st
    House Show in Falls Church, Virginia
    4 – 6 PM
    Donations
    Holiday Show – Kid friendly!
    This is the second year we have been invited back to play at John Dapogny’s house. Quite possibly my favorite gig of the year because the vibe there is so kind. If you’re interested, please email me or John Dapogny at johndapogny@yahoo.com to RSVP. He lives in Falls Church, Virginia.
    I’m also playing at Dukem Jazz on December 11th if you’re in the area. That’s not an official Bullettes show, but I’ll have CDs there. 9 pm – 12 am, no cover, jam session starts at 10:30 pm.
    Click here to hear some “teaser” snippets from the upcoming album:
     
    Click here to see the super cool 3D visual of the album.
     
    “It Don’t Mean A Thing…”
    CD Release December 9th, 2014
    Personnel:
    Jessica Boykin-Settles – vocals
    Leigh Pilzer – alto, tenor sax
    Halley Shoenberg – clarinet, tenor sax
    Shannon Gunn – trombone
    Lianna Gekker – piano
    Cyndy Elliott – bass
    Angeliqua Bethea – drums
    Track listing:
    1. Warm Woman Blues – by Bob Fields, adapted by Cyndy Elliott
    2. It Don’t Mean A Thing – by Mills/Ellington, arr. Leigh Pilzer
    3. Thaddish – by Leigh Pilzer
    4. How High The Moon – by Hamilton/Lewis, arr. Wolpe, adapted by Leigh
    Pilzer
    5. Lady Bird – by Tadd Dameron, adapted by Shannon Gunn
    6. Blue Moo – by Leigh Pilzer
    7. Shore Thing – by Cyndy Elliott
    8. Bye Bye Blackbird – by Dixon/Henderson, adapted by Leigh Pilzer

    Hope to see you soon!

  • Bullettes Septet Tonight at the Carlyle Club!

    Bullettes Septet Tonight at the Carlyle Club!

    septet_square2Looking to get away from it all? Come swing your heart out with the Bullettes Septet at the Carlyle Club! We will be there from 9 – 10:30 and it is located at 411 John Carlyle Street. The cover is $10 and it will be fantastic! There will be a swing dance so you can come alone or with a friend – there will be lots of people there! Tonight’s featured vocalist is Jessica Boykin-Settles! Our instrumentalists include:

    • Leigh Pilzer – Tenor
    • Cyndy Elliott – Bass
    • Halley Shoenberg – Alto
    • Oren Levine – Piano
    • Andrew Guterman – Drums
    • Shannon Gunn – trombone

    As always, our Bullettes Septet is available for swing dances, weddings and corporate functions. We get that big band sound with our own unique twist. Please contact Shannon Gunn at 216.789.5310 if you’re interested in hiring us for your next affair. We keep it classy!

    Hope to see you out tonight!

  • Bullettes Septet at the Carlyle Club July 22nd 9p

    Bullettes Septet at the Carlyle Club July 22nd 9p

    square_final3.jpg The Bullettes Septet is performing on Tuesday, July 22nd at the Carlyle Club in Alexandria Virginia at 9 pm – 10:30 pm in conjunction with Gotta Swing dance lessons! We hope to see you there! We will be featuring:

    Danielle Wertz: Vocals

    Leigh Pilzer: Sax

    Halley Shoenberg: Sax and Clarinet

    Cyndy Elliott: Bass

    Shannon Gunn: Trombone

    Wade Beach: Piano

    John Emrich: Drums

    There is a $10 cover charge which helps defray the cost of travel and musicians’ reeds, paper, ink, stand fronts, and metro rides. Hope to see you there!

     

  • Bullettes Quintet | NJW | July 10th | 3:30 PM | Free

    Bullettes Quintet | NJW | July 10th | 3:30 PM | Free

    NJW_BullettesJazzFinal.jpg

    I’m really looking forward to helping out and playing at the National Jazz Workshop this year! The Bullettes Quintet will be doing its favorite tunes from Hank Mobley/JJ Johnson/Curtis Fuller collaborations on Thursday, July 10th, at 3:30 PM in Armstrong Hall at Shenandoah University. The concert is free, so feel free to come on out and enjoy! This is a part of the National Jazz Workshop, one of the premiere jazz camps on the east coast. We will feature Anita Thomas on tenor, Lianna Gekker on piano, Lydia Lewis on drums, Shannon Fearon on bass, and myself on trombone.

  • Bullettes Septet at the Carlyle Club June 24!

    Bullettes Septet at the Carlyle Club June 24!

    septet_template3BullettesjazzCome on out and hear the Bullettes Septet swing the night away in conjunction with Gotta Swing on June 24th at the Carlyle Club! This time we’ll be joined by the illustrious Jessica Boykin-Settles on vocals! This is a swing dance so bring your dancin’ shoes and good spirits. There is a $10 cover and the dance starts at 9:00 pm and runs till 10:30 pm. Come on out for a swingin’ good time! Personnel for June 24th include: Jessica Boykin-Settles, Vocals; Halley Shoenberg, Alto Sax; Megan Nortrup, Tenor Sax; Shannon Gunn, Trombone; Miki Yamanaka, Piano; Nathan Kawaller, Bass; Tony Martucci, Drums! What a fantastic group of musicians!

  • Bullettes Septet at the Carlyle Club wsg Danielle Wertz May 20th!

    Bullettes Septet at the Carlyle Club wsg Danielle Wertz May 20th!

    septet_bullettesjazz.jpg

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Come swing the night away with experienced dancers and the Bullettes Septet featuring the Washington Women in Jazz Festival Young Artist Contest Winner ’13 Danielle Wertz! We will be playing on Tuesday, May 20th, at 9:00 – 10:30 pm at the Carlyle Club in Alexandria, Virginia. There will be experienced dancers already there so you don’t need to bring a partner! We hope to see you there! The Carlyle Club is located at 411 John Carlyle St, Alexandria, VA. There will be a $10 cover. CDs of our recent release, “Bullettes Play Basie” will be available.

    This time we are catching Danielle Wertz, the winner of the 2013 Washington Women In Jazz Festival Young Artist Contest, as she heads back home after two years at school for vocal jazz performance. We have an all star lineup, with a couple of guys to help us out.

    and our friends


    It will be fun!

     

  • Shannon Gunn and the Bullettes Quintet: A Tribute to Hank Mobley and Curtis Fuller on Blue Note

    Shannon Gunn and the Bullettes Quintet: A Tribute to Hank Mobley and Curtis Fuller on Blue Note

    website_front.jpgAs part of the Blue Note @ 75 celebration, the Bullettes all-female quintet will pay homage to the Blue Note artists Hank Mobley and Curtis Fuller with the photography of Francis Wolff, Blue Note co-founder, in the background. We will be so lucky as to have Anita Thomas on tenor, Isabel DeLeon on drums, Karine Chapdelaine on bass, Lianna Gekker on piano, and myself on trombone.  This quintet is a pull-out ensemble from my larger group called Shannon Gunn and the Bullettes. The performance will be from 8:30 – 9:30 PM on May 28th at the Goethe-Institut Washington in the FotoGaleria, 812 Seventh Street, NW, WDC, 20001-3718, $7/$4, (202) 289-1200

  • Two shows this week!

    Two shows this week!

    jjI just wanted to let everyone know that we’ll be playing two times this week- Tuesday night, April 22nd, is at the Carlyle Club for a swing dance with the whole big band, and Thursday night, April 24th, we’ll be playing as a quintet at Twins for a tribute to JJ Johnson. 

    So come on out, celebrate Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM), and join us for good jazz and swing!
    Here are the details:
    Tuesday – April 22nd – 2014
    Carlyle Club Swing Dance with Gotta Swing
    411 John Carlyle Street, Alexandria, VA
    9:00 – 10:30
    $10 cover
     
    Thursday – April 24th – 2014
    Twins Jazz
    1344 U St NW, Washington, DC, accessible on the U Street metro stop
    8pm and 10 pm sets
    $10 cover
     
    Take your pick – do you want big band or bebop? 
     
    Hope to see you there!

    Keep swingin’!
    Shannon Gunn and the Bullettes