Tag: panorama

Music Memory from Ben Schenck

Panorama Jazz Band photo by Greg Miles

Ben Schenck is the recognizable face of the Panorama Jazz Band (and Panorama Brass Band). Tall, lanky, wielding his clarinet like a snake charmer, Schenck leads his vivacious troupes through the streets of New Orleans and on stages around the world. Their music is celebratory and joyful, drawing from New Orleans jazz, the tropical rhythms of the Caribbean and the exotic melodies of Eastern Europe.

In this episode of Confetti Park, Ben vividly recalls the elation of encountering a brass band during a parade when he was just a wee lad.

Thank you, Ben, for sharing this beautiful childhood music memory.
Ben Schenck wrote a song about a cockroach

Panorama Jazz Band photo by Greg Miles

When facing off with a cockroach in the shower, what would you do?

Some people would scream. Some people would hurl the shampoo bottle at the little sucker, and then run.

But Ben Schenck? He wrote a song for the cockroach.

“I was raised with a strong care module, so I cared deeply about this cockroach, but at the same time I didn’t want to touch it…. I set him free and then wrote him a song at the breakfast table.”

Here’s Ben on clarinet and vocals, performing with the Panorama Jazz Band of New Orleans on the “Cockroach Song,” which he wrote when he was 17.

Sing along, everyone: “Ya Ya Ya, Wally Wally Wah!”