Swing along: Annual Western Swing Music Showcase set for May 14, 15 and 16

Ready to jam? The ever-popular Western Swing Music Showcase will return to Cape Girardeau this month, drawing singers, dancers and music lovers from far beyond Southeast Missouri.

The 11th annual showcase will be held May 14, 15 and 16 at the VFW on North Kingshighway in Cape Girardeau. Showcase hours are 2 to 11 p.m. Thursday and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

There is no charge for admission on Thursday. On Friday and Saturday, admission is $5 for members of the Western Swing Music Society of the Southwest and $5 for VFW members. Admission for nonmembers of either organization is $10. All ages are welcome.

"On Thursday, we just jam, and anybody can join in," says Bob Dolle, who, along with his wife, Virginia, organizes the event. "On Friday and Saturday, we'll have about four or five (western swing bands) per day."

Western swing is a style of music that began in the 1920s among popular string bands of the American Southwest. It is a dance music, often with an upbeat tempo.

Hack Starbuck, right, talks with Bob Cobb Friday, May 13, 2011 as the Western Swing Music Society of the Southwest presents the seventh annual Showcase and Dance at VFW Post 3838 in Cape Girardeau. (Laura Simon)

"It also includes some waltzes and slow songs, too," Bob Dolle says.

Western swing music showcases were started by the Western Swing Music Society of the Southwest, a not-for-profit organization that began in 1998. Bob and Virginia are charter members of the WSMSS.

"We try to preserve old western swing music by (people such as) Bob Wills, who was the king of western swing," says Dolle.

The WSMSS coordinates five showcases each year.

"There are two in Texas, two in Oklahoma and the one here in Missouri," Dolle says. "Everyone plays (in the showcases) for free. None of the musicians are paid."

Proceeds from the showcase help fund music scholarships for people learning to play western swing music, and the music is played by young and old alike.

"I saw a 9-year-old once that played so well, it would make you sick," laughs Dolle. "It made me not want to get up and play after hearing him!"

The Missouri showcase draws a large crowd from a wide region.

"Last year, we had between 1,100 and 1,200 people attend from 16 different states," says Dolle.

Homer and Martha Matney of Decatur, Texas, dance the night away Thursday, May 12, 2011, as the Western Swing Music Society of the Southwest presents the seventh annual Showcase and Dance at VFW Post 3838 in Cape Girardeau. (Laura Simon)

Dolle became involved in the WSMSS while playing in a band called the Texas Travelers. His wife, Virginia, shares his passion for western swing music, and both are in the WSMSS Hall of Fame -- Bob for playing music and Virginia for promoting the showcases.

Bob says being involved in the WSMSS and its showcases has helped him fulfill a lifelong dream.

"I always wanted to be on the Grand Ole Opry," he says. "Doing this has fulfilled my dream of that."

Bob, 85, is a retired truck driver, and Virginia, who is "a little younger than that," as she puts it, is a retired school secretary. They will have been married for 65 years in September.

They have two grown children, four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, all of whom live in the St. Louis area.

Besides sharing their love of western swing music, they own a motor home and do a lot of traveling.

"We have a lot of fun!" Bob says.