“Dancing With the Stars” will sound a bit different when it returns for its 18th season.
Producers are doing away with the live band in favor of more pre-existing sound recordings, and have therefore fired the show’s longtime bandleader Harold Wheeler.
American Federation of Musicians president Ray Hair is not happy with ABC and blasted the network for replacing the live backing band with what he referred to as a “small electric band.”
“People who love ‘Dancing with the Stars’ also love the superb performances of the orchestra because it is such an integral part of the show,” said Hair. “The tight, elaborate musical productions that catapulted the show into the top 10 in 17 countries can’t be duplicated by recordings and a small combo. Viewers, whether they are young or old, will reject that as artistic fraud.”
The Harold Wheeler Orchestra and Singers, which goes with Wheeler, consists of 28 members and has performed on the show for 17 seasons. A joint statement from BBC Worldwide Productions and ABC acknowledged that history, while shedding no light on the reason for the band’s departure: “Our talented Music Director, Harold Wheeler, will not be joining us for season 18 of Dancing with the Stars. Since season one, Harold and his band have performed brilliant music in our ballroom for our dancers and the American viewers at home. We are grateful to him and his band for their amazing work and years of collaboration. We wish him the best of luck.”
A source close to the show tells The Hollywood Reporter that live music will continue to be a large component on the show, and Wheeler’s replacement will be choosing a new band.
The union claims that “network sources say that a recent shift in ABC/Disney’s executive staff in charge of primetime reality series programming led to pressure on ‘DWTS’ producer BBC Worldwide to cut corners and pander to a younger viewing audience.” (ABC tapped Lisa Berger as head of alternative and late-night back in September after the departure of longtime reality chief John Saade.)
In a September interview with THR, executive producer Conrad Green commented on the recent introduction of recorded music, which the series started using for some performances in recent seasons. “We feel that there are some types of music and types of songs, a lot of modern music particularly, is so produced that it’s impossible for an 18-piece band to replicate that sound,” said Green. “You get to a point where you’re forcing a band to try and do sound that they just literally can’t pull off.”
Green added, “It took hundreds of hours in a studio to get some of those sounds. So in some cases we’re thinking, let’s just use that song. What’s the point in forcing a band to try to do something that’s impossible to achieve?”
Hair says the motivation is strictly dollars and cents. “It’s not like ABC and Disney don’t have any money and can’t afford an orchestra. It’s about the insatiable thirst for profits at the expense of music, art, and those who create it,” said Hair. “Firing the band, using recordings, and hiring fewer musicians won’t boost ratings. It will kill the show.”
