Free at Noon Flashback: P.A.C.E.’s Trumpet Chics bring the brass to World Cafe Live

Trumpet Chics | photo by Makena Duffy for WXPN

Trumpet Chics brought the party to Free at Noon today, making audience members glad they stayed in town for the holiday weekend. Part of P.A.C.E. program (Preparing Artists for College Entrance) in Camden, NJ, which helps increase opportunities for students in the arts, the ensemble features a talented group of young musicians who aren’t afraid to have some fun onstage.

The energetic group, which included up to 14 musicians onstage at a time, showed off their instrumental skills while setting their tunes to upbeat choreography that encouraged everyone to dance along. With trumpet, trombone, and saxophone taking center stage, the Trumpet Chics provided their own brassy renditions of popular songs, with plenty of instrumental interludes in between to keep the music going. We heard the Trumpet Chics’ signature song, Beyoncé’s “Crazy In Love,” and their take on Bruno Mars’ “Treasure You,” before they led the audience in a dance off and invited a few participants onstage to join in the fun.

Many of the Trumpet Chics onstage today will move on to pursue their own careers in the arts, some with full college scholarships this fall. (The group’s former members include trumpeter Arnetta Johnson, who graduated from Berklee College of Music and has gone on to tour with Beyoncé and build a solo career of her own; her new album If You Hear A Trumpet It’s Meshe plays Chris’ Jazz Cafe later this month was just released, and .) You can find them making waves at gigs throughout the region, as more and more student musicians join the band.

Revisit photos from today’s performance below.