Join the 40th Army Band for a night of traditional patriotic American tunes, as well as classical and contemporary music. Our soldier musicians rehearse one weekend a month and two weeks a year and perform all throughout the beautiful state of Vermont and beyond. When not drilling, the soldiers are engaged in such diverse civilian occupations as education, law, technology, medical and several are college students.
Stefan Hard / Staff Photo
Montpelier musician Dave Keller.
Based in Vermont, Dave Keller has performed for audiences across the U.S., including major festivals such as the North Atlantic Blues Fest, Discover Jazz Fest, and PA Blues Fest and many of the finest clubs, including B.B. King’s in Memphis and Biscuits and Blues in San Francisco.
Ever since renowned guitarist Ronnie Earl chose Dave Keller to sing on his 2010 album, Living In The Light, Keller has been on the rise, earning two nominations for a Blues Music Award for Best Soul/Blues Album, winning the International Blues Challenge ‘Best Self-Released CD Award’, and being chosen for Downbeat Magazine’s ‘Best Recordings of the Year.’
In addition to his own recordings, Keller has co-written and recorded with legendary guitarist Ronnie Earl (2010’s BMA-nominated Living In The Light). He tours regularly with Mississippi soul/blues master Johnny Rawls. Mentored by the late deep soul singer, Mighty Sam McClain, Keller continues to prove McClain’s words: “He’s for REAL!!”
Other well-regarded performers have invited him onstage, including but not limited to: Otis Clay, Fontella Bass, John Nemeth, Sugaray Rayford, John Primer, Mike Welch, Mike Ledbetter, Southern Avenue, Big Jack Johnson, Terrence Simien, Anthony Geraci, Alexis P. Suter, Dawn Tyler Watson, and Dwight and Nicole.
A bit of a late bloomer, Keller grew up in Massachusetts, loving music, but not picking up a guitar until age 16, and not singing in his first band until age 20. But blessed with mentors including deep soul singer Mighty Sam McClain, mystical soul guitarist Robert Ward, acoustic blues master Paul Rishell, and soul/blues man Johnny Rawls, Keller made up for the lost time.
Relocating to icy Vermont in 1993, Keller found fertile ground to grow his audience and has become a household name there. Famous for his live-wire shows, Keller can often be found fifty feet out in the crowd, teasing fiery licks from his trusty Stratocaster, and singing off-mike as the audience sings along.
The Red Clover Quartet has maintained a weekly presence on the central Vermont jazz scene since 2015 appearing at the Red Clover Inn and Restaurant. The band has also performed shows at a wide variety of Vermont venues and for private and public celebrations. The band presents a diverse program celebrating music of the great American songbook and jazz from the last 100 years. Favorite artists that they draw inspiration from include Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Henry Mancini, Vince Guraldi, Glenn Miller, and Dave Brubeck as well as many others. The diversity in musical styles is matched by the diversity of instrumentation the band offers with the four band members performing on flute, alto sax, tenor sax, trumpet, string bass, sousaphone, vibraphone, drums, and keyboards.
The newest member of the band is Mark van Gulden, music director at Artistree Community Arts Center in Barnard, Vermont. Mark is a freelance musician living in Barnard and working throughout the state and Northeast and performing in Artistrio with Kathleen Dolan, and Glendon Ingalls. Specializing in vibraphone and percussion, Mark has a BFA in Music Performance and Composition from Johnson State College.
Saxophonist/Flutist Steve MacLauchlan has long been a fixture on the central Vermont jazz scene performing with bands including the Vermont Jazz Ensemble, Blue Jay Way, the Green Brothers, and Sandra Wright. Steve’s style has often been compared to that of legendary sax player Paul Desmond.
Keyboard player Chuck Miller is a masterful accompanist/improviser/composer. Chuck is well known as a longtime Middlebury music educator/ performer and has performed with too many artists to mention here, but a few are Jenni Johnson, Sandra Wright, Rick Redington, and Aces.
Bandleader and bassist Glendon Ingalls is from Rutland and performs on trumpet and sousaphone in a wide variety of settings. Glendon is instructor of trumpet for Middlebury Community Music Center and serves as trumpet and bass instructor at Castleton University and Middlebury College. He is a founding member of Jazz in the Mountains music camp for adults (https://www.jazzinthemountains.com/) and has performed with a wide variety of artists in widely varied genres, including with Jimmy Beaumont and the Skyliners, the Temptations, and on a tour of Russia with vocalist Jenni Johnson.
Blue Jay Way, named after a lesser-known Beatles song, performs covers of classic hits by bands such as The Beatles, the Doobie Brothers and the Rolling Stones, with some modern songs by Amy Winehouse, Bruno Mars, and others added in.
