MUSICAL OPINION:
(In recommending a small selection of CDs for Christmas 2005)

I can only tell you what has given me that special glow of excitement which demands a repeat hearing... to relax the temperament after much food and wine, why not take advantage of Divine Art's delicious 25034, containing 25 tracks of light music on Five-Fifteen played by Mart Sander and his Swing Swindlers in tribute to the BBC dance Orchestra in days gone by. My personal favourites are Jeepers Creepers and Keep Young and Beautiful.
Denby Richards

BIG BANDS INTERNATIONAL:
This is the first CD by the Estonian band recorded in 2004 playing a lovely tribute to our very own BBC Dance Orchestra. The band consists of three trumpets, two trombones, five saxophones, three violins, piano, guitar, bass and drums, two female vocalists Kelli Uustani and Mariliina von Uexkull and leader Mart Sander who is the principal vocalist plus a vocal quartet. It’s all here, the clipped phrasing of the saxophone section, the smoothness of the band with all the nuances of the BBC Dance Orchestra on display and all the vocalists in perfect accord with the period.

There are no fireworks just lovingly played dance music of pre-war Britain. If you are a follower of Malcolm Laycock’s “The Dance Band Days” you will thoroughly enjoy this CD with its excellent playtime. It’s all superbly recorded and as a tribute to the BBC Dance Orchestra it succeeds admirably.
Peter Green

LIGHT MUSIC SOCIETY NEWSLETTER:
This is a sensitively performed, beautifully recorded tribute to Henry Hall's BBC Dance Orchestra. Hall was the orchestra's leader during its golden age, 1935-37, when the band had adopted an unprecedented lush approach to its arrangements; that very British sound we love so much, with more strings and less brass. Hearing these songs in digital sound one hears so much fine detail for the first time, though perhaps without some of the natural contemporary drive of the original recordings.

Mart Sander's Swing Swindlers seem to have captured the original style very well. This kind of music is certainly jazzy but I always associate it melodically and harmonically with light orchestral music. It appears that the featured vocalists do not speak English as their first language, and this is noticeable although their tone is smooth and diction is perfect.
Peter Edwards

MUSICWEB JAZZ:
This record should not really be in the jazz section, Henry Hall’s orchestra was not a jazz outfit and I must admit to being surprised, to find a group of very talented young Estonian Musicians playing the Henry Hall Orchestrations. What I can report is that they play them very well and the rhythm section is a great improvement on the original. Whether that is because the recording techniques are so much better these days or the drum kits of today have a better sound, or perhaps they are just better players.

To the people who like the Henry Hall style of music, this is a welcome recreation of a very famous orchestra’s work.
Don Mather

MEMORY LANE:
Another recreation, but of a different sort, is "Five-Fifteen: A Tribute to the BBC Dance Orchestra" by Mr. Mart Sanders & his Swing Swindlers, on Divine Art 25034. Don't be misled by the title, because only a few of the songs were recorded by Henry Hall, and the arrangements lean more towards a big band rather than a dance band style. The orchestra hails from Estonia, but you'd be hard put to it to tell that from the vocals, although one of the female singers is a little on the strident side. Sound quality is superb and the overall result is something of a knockout.
Barry McCanna

JAZZREVIEW.COM:
The nostalgic swing music of the 30s and 40s is making a come back of sorts in a new release from the Divine Art label based in the United Kingdom. The new album is titled Five-Fifteen: A Tribute to the BBC Dance Orchestra. Performed by the internationally known musician and theatre personality, Mart Sander and a 16-piece orchestra from Tallin, Estonia, The Bel-Etage Swing Swindlers who have specialized in the British swing and stage music. Also part of the Swindlers band are two female vocalist, Kelli Uustani and Marlina von Uexkull who accompany Sander on the majority of the songs.

This album pays tribute not only to the BBC Dance Orchestra, which broadcast its music throughout Europe from 1927 to the 60s, but in particular to Henry Hall, bandleader who led the band for a brief time in the pre-war period of the late 30s. Under Hall's direction the band played the gentle slow dance music of the era that was less of a big band sound and more of a lighter upbeat and fun style of play. Much of the music has an obvious jazzy overtone and flavor that would fit nicely under the broader interpretation of the swing/jazz genre.

The CD contains 25 tracks of that old time music from familiar classics to uncommon standards. Cole Porter's "It's D'Lovely" is a spunky rendition of this old classic that the band plays well. "Avenue of The Trees" is one of many slow soft pieces with some fine vocals from Sander and Uustani. "Keep Young and Beautiful" is a grand big band number with a faster upbeat pace. I really enjoyed the Whiting & Mercer "Too Marvelous For Words" that finds Sander on deep baritone vocals. Another wonderful song is "What A Difference A Day Made" in which Uustani sings to the heart. "Some Day My Prince Will Come" marks the entrance of Marlina von Uexkull  who possesses a truly sweet voice. We all know the Warren/Mercer tune "Jeepers Creepers," well on this version all of the singers collaborate with the band on a fine jazzy number. "Yours and Mine" is one of the few cuts that is almost all instrumental until the near end when Sander sings a verse. "Pagan Love Song" is another track that starts off very jazzy with the ensemble playing a chorus only to be interrupted by a trio of singers. That is not a criticism only an observation because there are no instrumentals with this type of music.

I'll pull no punches here; this CD may not be for everyone. Enthusiast of the modern mainstream big band jazz sound may not appreciate the lighter, bubbly and softer dance tempo found in Five-Fifteen. The album does provide a wonderful and enchanting glimpse into the past innocence of a by-gone era that brought people together whether near the radio or on the dance floor. The music is delightful on many fronts. Sander does a magnificent job singing with emotion while the ladies add a cheery and heavenly touch and the band plays with the tightness of a small combo and the energy of a larger group. This album will appeal to a more mature audience and yet offer a slice of musical history to us all.
Edward Blanco

YORK EVENING PRESS:
I have received a new CD of studiedly nostalgic music which is a quiet joy, if only for a particular and limited audience. Dedicated to the music of Henry Hall and his BBC Dance Orchestra, Five Fifteen, by Mart Sander and his Swing Swindlers (Divine Art Records) aims to revive Henry Hall`s music in a new state-of-the-art recording. Hit tunes of the day include It`s D`Lovely, Keep Young And Beautiful, Jeepers Creepers and Sleepy Lagoon (spot the long-running radio show theme tune). Five Fifteen was the signature tune of the BBC Dance Orchestra and this album contains transcriptions from the original arrangements, including an authentic violin section alongside the swing band horns and vocalists.

The CD booklet lovingly catalogues the history of BBC swing bands, from Jack Payne, through Ambrose, Billy Cotton, Billy Ternent, Stanley Black and Cyril Stapleton, researched by bandleader Mart Sander. Additional notes are added, by Martin Sacks, violinist/saxophonist/clarinettist with Henry Hall for five years from 1937 and still around to write them.

The Five Fifteen CD provides an interesting link between those who are old enough to remember the BBC Dance Orchestras and those who may be interested to discover the genesis of such bands as the Pasadena Roof Orchestra.
Ron Burnett

AMAZON.COM & NEW ENGLAND REGIONAL PRESS:
There are those who remember the great tunes of the 1930s and 1940s and there are those who would have a wonderful time discovering them. There are two ways for a recording to capture those golden melodies and lyrics: transfer to CDs the original 78 rpm discs or have contemporary artists carefully reproduce their sounds.

A group in Great Britain called Mart Sander and his Bel-Etage Swing Swindlers has pretty well mastered the second method, and the results can be seen on the Divine Art disc “Five-Fifteen: a Tribute to the BBC Dance Orchestra”. Here, vocalists and players come very close to recreating the old-time recordings of such classics as “It’s D’Lovely” and “Some Day my Prince will Come”, and 19 others. Most of them are very familiar to those who grew up hearing them and all of them should appeal to younger listeners who would like to learn what bouncy tunes and cleverly mingled clichés were sung by vocalists who were trained to pronounce and enunciate the English language!”
Frank Behrens