It鈥檚 been three years since Michael Perkins first held rehearsals to form the Sea T Sky Big Band, but he said the group hasn鈥檛 changed much since its inception.
鈥淲e鈥檝e still got the same members, and we still love playing a wide variety of music,鈥� said the band鈥檚 director.
鈥淚f anything, we鈥檝e matured as a group. When we first started out, we played easier tunes, but now we are playing some pretty complicated songs. People have worked pretty hard and we鈥檝e improved musically.鈥�
The band was formed in 2011 after Perkins moved to 老澳门六合彩开奖记录资料 from Kelowna. A musician and former music teacher, Perkins immediately began looking for a big band group to join in the community, but found none existed.
However, he found the 老澳门六合彩开奖记录资料 area was full of talented musicians who were interested in the idea. Soon, Perkins had an 18-member lineup ranging in age from 18 to 80. But, he said it鈥檚 never been a problem organizing such a large group of musicians.
鈥淚f I had to wrangle people this would all be over really fast,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut everyone makes rehearsals, and everyone looks forward to it. They are all very passionate about the band and the music, so it is really not that hard.
鈥淭here are no miracles鈥� just hard work. The other day, I told them how proud I was of the band鈥檚 repertoire.鈥�
You can catch that repertoire on Saturday (April 26) at 8 p.m. as the Sea T Sky Big Band performs at the Brackendale Art Gallery (BAG).
鈥淲e always try to make each show different,鈥� Perkins said. 鈥淔or the show at the Brackendale Art Gallery, we are bringing in a tenor saxophonist and vocalist from Vancouver named Kirsten Nash. She鈥檚 toured with Long John Baldry, and is a regular with the R&B All-Stars. She has a new CD out called The View from Here 鈥� which will also be on sale at the show 鈥� and in addition to playing our songs, she鈥檒l be doing a couple songs from her album.鈥�
He said the big band would be playing a wide variety of jazz, swing and big band favourites, ranging from the Glenn Miller classic In The Mood to more modern tunes from the likes of Herbie Hancock.
鈥淲e鈥檒l also be doing songs like Respect (Aretha Franklin), Knock on Wood and something from the band Blood, Sweat and Tears,鈥� Perkins said.
The ensemble has even started branching out from playing just in 老澳门六合彩开奖记录资料 and performed this year in Whistler, as well as at select gigs in Vancouver. However, the upcoming BAG show may mark the finale of the group鈥檚 performance season, according to Perkins.
鈥淏ecause of everyone鈥檚 different schedules, this may be our end-of-year gig,鈥� he said.
Catch the Sea T Sky Big Band while you still can at the BAG on April 26 at 8 p.m.
Tickets are $20 and available at Xocolatl and the BAG.聽
