Join us at 6:00 pm CDT on Tuesday, September 6th to celebrate the opening of HOT 8: A New Orleans Second Line Culture Exhibit and Tribute to Bennie Pete on the one-year anniversary of his passing with a special Balcony Concert featuring The Hot 8 Brass Band and Prince of Wales.
The memorial and balloon release will start at 6 PM and performances by The Hot 8 Brass Band and Prince of Wales will follow.
HOT 8: A New Orleans Second Line Culture Exhibit will be in the Education Center at the New Jazz Museum.
Bring your blanket! Seats are not provided for outdoor programs.
In case of inclement weather, this event will be moved indoors or rescheduled.
Enjoy jazz music from home with the New Orleans Jazz Museum! Join the Jazz Museum online for their weekly Courtyard Live-Stream Concert Series, in which dynamic jazz musicians perform live from the Jazz Museum’s balcony! Tune in every Tuesday at 5 pm on facebook.com/nolajazzmuseum/live to watch for free.
September 6, 2022, is the 1st anniversary of the death of the beloved Hot 8 Brass Brand bandleader Bennie Pete.
“On September 6, 2021, we the Hot 8 Brass Band lost our beloved bandleader, Bennie Pete. He was more than just our leader; he was a constant galvanizing force within our own family of fellow musicians and beyond. Bennie was a rock in our lives. Yes, he was a leader, a teacher, and a mentor. More than that, Bennie was an inspiration to our band and to many other musicians, and the entire musical and cultural community. He helped each and every one of us, from our horn players to the folks dancing in the second lines and to the entire New Orleans community, during the most difficult and darkest times. Bennie helped all of us endure, to heal by encouraging us to continue to play our music despite any adversities.” - The Hot 8 Brass Band
The Hot 8 Brass Band photographed by Silver Loop Studios
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Hot 8 Brass Band:
For over 20 years one of the most popular and visible funk-style brass bands in community parades and funerals has been the Hot 8 Brass Band. In 1996, sousaphone player Bennie Pete was instrumental in merging two former Fortier High School student groups, the High Steppers and the Looney Tunes Brass Bands, to form the Hot 8. The players grew up together and maintain strong, family-like bonds and regular membership. Most of them were born between 1975 and ’87 in a generation that grew up hearing mainly modern-style brass bands in community functions. The band can be larger than many younger groups often featuring ten members, including three trumpets, three trombones, tuba, bass drum, and snare drum.
As is common among some more modern groups, the Hot 8 uses only one reed player and like most of the younger bands, the Hot 8’s funk style is a blend of influences from the Dirty Dozen and Rebirth, with more elements of contemporary r&b, rap, and its local variation, “bounce.” The uniqueness of their sound is mainly due to a steady stream of creative original songs and ideas composed or introduced by various band members. Since the Dirty Dozen, the sousaphone has had a more prominent role in brass bands as a feature and solo instrument; it frequently sets up and maintains short rhythmic (often melodic) grooves that dominate and propel most songs in the band.-Dr. Michael White, 2015
Prince of Wales:
The Prince of Wales Social Aid and Pleasure Club was formed in 1928 in the 12th Ward—the New Orleans neighborhood bounded by Tchoupitoulas and Magazine Streets to the north and south, and Louisiana and Napoleon Avenues on the east and west.
The early club members worked on the riverfront as stevedores and railroad men for the sprawling port. Though it began with the purpose of mutual aid, Prince of Wales has evolved into a club whose main focus is their annual second line.