Describing themselves as an “orchestra for everyone,” the Renegade Orchestra is taking the stage on Sunday, Jan. 12.
Doubling down on the fact they are indeed for everyone, the show will be at 2pm, which avoids a late evening on a school night. However, this show has a clever catch—the location won’t be revealed until one purchases a ticket.
Renegade Orchestra is led by local musician Jason Eckl, who, when he’s not touring with bands like Dirty Cello, Death and Taxes Swing Band and the San Francisco Yiddish Combo, is the leader of the rock band program at Cal State East Bay.
If one didn’t know there was a rock band program at Cal State East Bay, they are not alone. According to Eckl, “This is a new program that seeks to prepare students to be employed as rock musicians when they graduate. It’s a pretty unique program—imagine learning the ins and outs of how to be a rock star!”
When asked about how the idea for a rock and roll orchestra for all came about, Eckl dove in on the feeling that orchestral performances can be a bit stiff. “My wife is cellist Rebecca Roudman, who is a member of a number of Bay Area orchestras [including both the Oakland East-Bay Symphony and the Santa Rosa Symphony], and this means I’ve been to a lot of orchestra concerts,” he said.
“Often, while watching her concerts, I thought about how many barriers there are to enjoy a standard classical orchestra. These include the formality, the hard-to-enjoy modern pieces, and the unspoken rules about how and when you can applaud,” Eckl continued.
While Eckl is a trained conductor and says his main instrument is the guitar, it’s refreshing to hear a frank answer from someone intricately involved in the orchestra scene.
“With the Renegade Orchestra, we remove all of these barriers—we want people to relax and have fun, perhaps even dance. The orchestra loves mid-song cheering. Our concerts feel like rock and roll shows, not sleepy orchestral concerts. There is improvisation, joyful playing and some surprises,” he noted.
Those who have not heard Renegade Orchestra before might be surprised. The group covers a variety of rock classics, inspiring the Mercury News to proclaim, “The Renegade Orchestra would rather tackle Hendrix than Handel.”
Indeed, the band’s setlist often includes Hendrix’s “Purple Haze,” Iron Butterfly’s “In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida” and Creedence Clearwater Revival’s classic “Proud Mary,” just to name a few. A real highlight is their rendition of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” as well as local and worldwide faves Metallica with a cool cover of “Enter Sandman.”
Since Renegade Orchestra is such a large group of working, professional musicians, how difficult is it to get everyone nailed down for rehearsals and shows? Eckl says there is not as much cat herding as one would expect.
“Getting everyone into the same place at the same time is always an interesting task, but what makes it easier is that these are professional musicians who make a living playing music at a wide variety of events,” he said. “They are tied to their calendars and can tell you where they will be playing, often over a year in advance. The members of the Renegade Orchestra are also chosen not only for their playing ability and responsibility but also because they are nice and fun people who rock out on stage.”
In terms of what this different style of music means to Eckl and the rest of the Renegades, he said, “One of the best parts of Renegade Orchestra is the diverse and exciting musicians that make up the group.
“These are folks who have spent years and years becoming amazing musicians, and in a standard orchestra, they are often treated as interchangeable parts—dressed the same, seldom individually acknowledged and easily replaced. With the Renegade Orchestra, our players finally get the cheers and appreciation they deserve as individuals and as part of the group,” he continued.
“They all went to the top music schools, and everyone has heard them on Hollywood soundtracks, Grammy award-winning albums and in wedding string quartets, but in the Renegade Orchestra, they really get to let their hair down,” noted Eckl.
Speaking of music soundtracks, readers may have heard some of Eckl’s music in the soundtrack of Pacific Sun editor Daedalus Howell’s feature film, Werewolf Serenade. Of the experience, Eckl said, “The movie has a cellist in it, so I wrote some new music for the cello scenes. I’ve written music for a lot of independent films that never saw the light of day, so it was exciting to see Werewolf Serenade on the big screen.” (One can hear Eckl’s contributions to the soundtrack by streaming it on Amazon Prime Video.)
Curious about the secrecy in terms of the location of the Jan. 12 performance, Eckl would only say the show will be “someplace near Mill Valley.” When pressed if the secrecy was due to the size of the band, the type of music, fearfulness of the word “orchestra” or a variety of reasons, Eckl replied, “It is always a challenge to find a place that will host a rock and roll orchestra. Sometimes it is the size of the stage, but more often it is an issue that venues don’t want to book an orchestra.”
He added a great point: “Since we aren’t the standard Marin style, Grateful Dead cover band, we had to seek out a place that wasn’t afraid of orchestral rock. The secret theater was willing, and we will be the first orchestra on their stage.”
As for the show on Jan. 12, Eckl is excited, saying a few reasons to come out include “a reasonable ticket price, easy parking and plenty of chairs.” Renegade Orchestra also promises “no sleepy pop songs, no overly-lush jazz standards, but the pure unbridled fury of what an orchestra can truly do.”
For more information about the band, including other upcoming shows throughout the Bay Area, as well as tickets for the Jan. 12 show, which are $25 at their website, see renegadeorchestra.com.
