◆ The Orlando Big Band performs
tonight for a cause, with its show “Swingin’ With the Big Band” raising money for the American Cancer Society.
The Bob Carr Theater is about to get a taste of something that doesn’t come around Orlando much anymore — big-band music.
“Swingin’ With the Big Band,” scheduled for tonight at 7:30 p.m., is the latest performance from the Orlando Big Band, a 20-piece orchestra that covers the era of swing jazz in the style of classic band leaders such as Tommy Dorsey and Glenn Miller. (Tickets are $25-$150, available at drphillipscenter.org.)
“We’re just getting the word out that this music is still alive,” said trombone player Gerry Bostick.
Created four years ago by band leader Bennett Harmon, the Orlando Big Band has a mission to “preserve vintage music,” according to Bostick. The local outfit plays shows around the area to audiences of all ages. “Some of these gigs we play, these kids just eat them up.”
But this particular performance will have an added significance to the usual revelry. In April, Bostick, 56, lost his wife of 32 years, Diane, to breast cancer.
As a tribute, portions of the proceeds from tonight’s show will be donated to the American Cancer Society. “Nobody gets a paycheck in this band,” said the Orlando resident. “Everything goes back to the charity.”
With October designated as Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Bostick, who also plays trombone in the VFW of Winter Park band, believes this is an important fight to bring to the community. “Knowing that one in eight women will end up having to deal with cancer,” he said, “the thing I’m passionate about is all my brothers and sisters in the band and everybody buying a ticket to this show, we’re going to be make a difference, because we’re going to be supporting the American Cancer Society and everything they stand for.”
Several other members of Diane’s family are also planning to be in the auditorium. “It will mean a lot to a lot of people to fill the Bob Carr,” he said.
The concert will cover works from Miller, Gene Krupa, Benny Goodman, Artie Shaw, Woody Herman, Cab Calloway and more. The arrangement even features the band’s own version of close-harmony trio The Andrews Sisters. “It really is a show; it’s not really just a concert.”
Bostick doesn’t see cancer or his own tragedy as coloring the entirety of what the Orlando Big Band does going forward. He wants to stay on the quest of keeping the swing era in the spotlight. But for one night, he will be using his talent as a weapon to fight against cancer and for his wife. “On that night, I will,” he said. “But otherwise we’re just 20 guys and women who enjoy playing with each other.”