Big Band Jazz Double-Header: with the GTC Big Band

Free to attend, no registration required. For more information, please contact the band at velvettonesbigband@yahoo.co.uk.

The famous Oxford big band double-header gig has returned, kick-starting 2024 with two exciting performances and all the swing dancing you could ask for! The Velvet Tones Big Band is joined this month by the GTC Big Band, hailing from Green Templeton College and promising to deliver a knockout set of swing classics and modern songs. Led by Dr Nick Richens, the band is comprised of students and staff from the college, as well as stand-outs from the Oxford jazz scene.

The Velvet Tones is an Oxford-based Big Band playing primarily in the Glenn Miller and Count Basie traditions, led by bandleader Danny Riley. The format of the band is the classic Basie line-up of five saxophones, four trombones, four trumpets, and a four-piece rhythm section of keyboards, guitar, bass, and drums. While maintaining the traditions of big bang swing, the band has a diverse portfolio of music under their belt such as Count Basie, Sammy Nestico, Glenn Miller, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Michael Buble, Woody Herman, Don Ellis, and original compositions to name a few.

This month's gig is in aid of Sobell House Hospice, an Oxford-based charity that specialised in palliative care. For more information about this concert series or the Velvet Tones, please visit their website.