Correspondent John Stehrs:
“Twenty-four men and women from Ithaca, New York, make up the Ithaca Ageless Jazz Band, and they’ve found a way to leave the cold and snow of home for sunny, warm Aruba, in exchange for their time and talent. “They’re lawyers, scientists, carpenters and from other professions. They’re also musicians, like Ira Kamp, who makes his living as a dentist but has his fun playing a mean guitar.”
Ira Kamp: “Music is such a nice thing to be able to do, a kind of therapy in itself and helps me relax.”
Stehrs: “Back home, the band plays clubs and restaurants, weddings and festivals. Here in Aruba, they play in exchange for hotel rooms–a chance to spend a week on an island paradise.
“For saxophone player Phil Erikson, this is a dream come true. He’s a graduate student majoring in astrophysics. He could never afford Aruba on his own.”
Phil Erikson: “This is great, one of the best vacations I’ve ever had. And I get to play music, too. What could be better?”
Stehr: “For two years running, this is how band members have spent their vacation: days at the beach and four hours a night under the bright lights. They’ll all tell you it isn’t any harder than it sounds. In fact, this may be the ultimate working vacation.
“Just ask trumpet player Mike Cerza. His regular job is a lot harder. He’s a carpenter. He’s also the newest member of the band, although his fellow musicians say he’s already sounding like a veteran.”
Mike Cerza: “We’re just down here to play. You play your horn, you play in the sand, play your horn, you play a little bit in the sand. This is paradise!”
Stehr: “For [then] director George Carvell, music is what pays his bills. He’s a junior high school music teacher. He’s so popular with the students that George needed help convincing the school board to give him the time off.”
Stehr to anchor Harry Smith: “Now of course not everyone has the talent to get a vacation like this.”
Smith: “So is the band going to go back to Aruba again next year?”
Stehr: “Well, they’re certainly going to try. In the dead of winter, Ithaca can be a cold place, and as you can see, they were all having a good time down there. If they don’t go to Aruba, you can bet they’ll go some place warm.”