Van Django's 13th Annual Cool Yule!

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Renowned for the quality of their musicianship and as great entertainers, Van Django's show is a festive Christmas mix of nostalgic favourites, jazz standards, pop tunes, classical elements, and sing-alongs, plus a few surprises - all delivered in swinging gypsy jazz style. Folks of all ages can celebrate the season at this fun and festive yule-time show. Joining Van Django's violinist Cameron Wilson, guitarist/cellist Finn Manniche and bassist Brent Gubbels are stellar vocalist L.J. Mounteney and guitarist/vocalist Andy Hillhouse.

A huge success when they performed the show during the holiday season at The Rogue from 2013 through 2024, the band returns to the Mel Lehan Hall again this year! They will come armed with copies of their Christmas CD for those folks wishing to take memories of the concert home with them.

Also returning is the infamous Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest! Wear your best ugly sweater while watching the show and maybe win a great prize, including tix to upcoming Rogue Folk shows!! (For some tips on where to pick up the perfect item for the occasion, go here.)

Van Django's music is punchy, driving and rhythmically inventive, combining a wealth of musical influences while maintaining strong roots in the gypsy jazz made famous by Django Reinhardt and the 1930's Quintet of the Hot Club of France. On stage, "they effortlessly whip the audience into a joyful frenzy. Attending a Van Django concert is the most fun you can have sitting down with your clothes on." - Nick Lehr (Djangofest).

The perfect answer to the winter's chill is to come share some hot and swinging Christmas cheer with Van Django Bells this year!

BAND BIOS:

Cameron Wilson has been a fixture on the Vancouver music scene for the past three decades. He is recognized as one of the most versatile violinists able to play a wide variety of different musical genres. He was a long standing member of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, and performs or has performed with Van Django, Get Back Unplugged, The Wahs, Joe Trio, Hard Rubber Orchestra, Mariachi del Soul, and the Marc Atkinson Quartet. He is one of the city's most sought after studio musicians and he is also a composer/arranger whose works have been performed by a number of symphony orchestras and chamber ensembles across Canada and the US. Cameron’s compositions and arrangements have been featured by the Vancouver, Victoria, and Charlotte Symphonies, as well as numerous ensembles and soloists across North America. His compositions include themes for several CBC radio shows and feature films.

LJ Mounteney is a graduate of VCC’s highly regarded jazz program. Since then, she has sung in a wide variety of bands, lending her unique vocals to jazz, blues, swing, R&B, and pop music. As well as being the lead singer and co-host in Van Django’s annual Cool Yule tour, she fronts the LJ Mounteney Blues Band. She participates in two tribute bands: Zappostrophé (Frank Zappa)  and Get Back Unplugged (The Beatles). LJ was invited to participate in The White Album Revisited benefit concert with many other talented Vancouver performers, and was a featured guest in Motown Meltdown.

Andy Hillhouse is perhaps best known as the founder of the Celtic funk band Mad Pudding, who toured festivals and folk clubs in North America and Europe through the 1990s. Since 2000 he has toured with several of Canada’s most respected and exciting acoustic musicians, champion Canadian fiddler Pierre Schryer, and The McDades, with whom he has garnered a Juno and two Canadian Folk Music Awards. As a guitarist in Irish traditional music he has accompanied master musicians Paddy Keenan, Maeve Donnelly and Patrick Ourceau. He is currently a member of the Celtic band Collage Trad. Andy is a former member of the Juno nominated vocal ensemble, Musica Intima, and former music director of Vancouver’s Universal Gospel Choir and the Sarah McLachlan Music Outreach Choir. He has a PhD in ethnomusicology from the University of Toronto, and is currently Artistic Director for the Harrison Festival of the Arts.

Finn Manniche is a versatile and passionate musician with a Music degree fron UBC and a penchant for playing anything and everything, whether on guitar or cello. He plays Swing and New Music, Bach to Bacharach, Surf and other worldly sounds. As well as with Van Django, he can be heard playing live and on CD with: the Armadillo String Quartet, Ensemble Symposium, the Jazzmanian Devils, Soul Crib, the Paperboys, Denzel Sinclair, 54/40, Murray McLauglin, Mae Moore and Cam Wilson’s varying orchestral extravanganzas.

Brent Gubbels has been a Vancouver based professional musician and teacher for over three decades. In that time he’s worked with a number of local musicians and ensembles including Van Django, Get Back Unplugged, Zappostrophé, Hard Rubber Orchestra, Gypsalero, Rumba Calzada, John Reischman, the Vince Mai Project, Jesse Zubot, Dal Richards, Lee Aaron and Dee Daniels. Since 1992, he has toured North America and Europe extensively and played a variety of Canadian and international jazz and folk festivals. Brent can be heard on recordings by Oscar Lopez, Gypsalero, Juno nominees Susan Crowe and Compadres, Juno winner James Keelaghan, and others.

Allan Dionne has been an active part of the Vancouver music scene for many years. His first instrument was the accordion, but he went on to obtain a BMus in Percussion from UBC.  Since then Allan has performed with many notables in Celtic music, such as Ashley MacIsaac, Mad Pudding and Collage Trad.  He also plays accordion and percussion in the Francophone group Pastiche.  Allan is a fixture within the Celtic, Francophone and Brazilian music communities in Vancouver, where he plays accordion, drum set and percussion.

The Rogue Folk Club is pleased to provide great Sponsorship Opportunities for all our shows. For a nominal cost, individuals or businesses can sponsor any of our shows and reap a number of benefits - free tickets, reserved table, recognition on literature, our web site and at the concerts. Find out more here, or simply contact our Sponsorship Director Morris Biddle at [email protected]