Sarasota Jazz Project Orchestra Leads Off With Reverend Arthur Hallett and Bob Miner.
The Sarasota Jazz Project Orchestra [1] (SJP), a popular 16-piece band formed in 2010, brings its big band sound to the William H. Wakeman III, Cultural Center Theater, 2280 Aaron Street, Port Charlotte, for a series of seven monthly concerts beginning on Monday, Oct. 22, at 7 p.m.
The SJP, known as “the Band with a Punch,” opens the series with music from the “Great American Songbook”—familiar and best-loved songs from the 1920s to the present. Jazz lovers can enjoy the old standards, sometimes presented in new arrangements, along with original compositions by talented band members according to George McLain, SJP leader and saxophonist. As a special treat, the opening concert features gospel, jazz and pop vocals by Rev. Art Hallett and Gulf Coast alto sax player Bob Miner. McLain describes the October 22 concert, “A Little Down Home Cooking,” as a Southern stew blending the early roots of New Orleans jazz with classic swing in the style of Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Woody Herman and Glenn Miller.
Themes of future Monday night concerts include “A Big Band Jazz Christmas,” “The Big Band Girl Singers,” “The Music of Sinatra” and “Salute to Stan Kenton and Buddy Rich.” Remaining dates for the 2018 concerts are November 19 and December 17. Concerts in 2019 are scheduled for January 21, February 18, March 25 and April 22.
TICKETS: Reservations are recommended for the concerts, which all begin at 7:00 p.m. Admission is $17 for members of the Port Charlotte Cultural Center and $19 for nonmembers. Tickets are available by phone at 941.625.4175; online by clicking the “buy tickets” tab at www.theculturalcenter.com [2]; and at the door, 2280 Aaron Street, Port Charlotte.
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