About
B# is a big band for hire in Hawthorn, VIC.
Sharp by name, sharp by nature. Melbourne's B# Big Band recreates the swing eras of the 30s, 40s and 50s, then keeps going into horn filled 60s and 70s dance numbers. Classic swing covers the Cotton Club and trad jazz end through to the mid century crooners and chanteuses: Sinatra, Dean Martin, Bobby Darin, Michael Buble, Ella Fitzgerald, Anita O'Day, Peggy Lee, Natalie Cole. There's salsa and Latin in there too, Tito Puente and Celia Cruz, and swinging 60s London with Dusty Springfield, Petula Clark, Tom Jones and Frankie Valli, and groove and funk from Earth Wind & Fire and Stevie Wonder. If a full big band is more than your room can hold, they play as an 11, 7, 5 or 3 piece. They need a stage area and a PA to suit, and they arrive earlier in the day to build the stage.
Watch
The show
The repertoire is the selling point, and it's deliberately broad. Classic swing across the 20s to the 50s, from Cotton Club and trad jazz through to the mid century crooners and chanteuses, Sinatra, Dean Martin, Bobby Darin, Michael Buble, Ella Fitzgerald, Anita O'Day, Peggy Lee, Natalie Cole. Salsa and Latin with Tito Puente and Celia Cruz. Swinging 60s London through Dusty Springfield, Petula Clark, Tom Jones and Frankie Valli. Then horn filled 60s and 70s groove and funk, Earth Wind and Fire, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, Barry White, James Brown, Sam Cooke, the Jackson 5. There's rock and roll in there too, plus Broadway, cocktail and lounge jazz, Vegas cabaret, and play ons and stings for formalities.
On the day
A stage area big enough to hold the band, and PA equipment to match whichever size you've booked. They come in earlier in the day to build their stage components, so venue access well before guests arrive is the main thing to arrange.
Performance options
The band comes in several sizes, so pick by the room. A full big band where there's space for it, or an eleven, seven, five or three piece where there isn't. If your venue has no sound system, they can quote separately for supplying, running and packing down a PA to suit the band size you've chosen: mics, speakers, mixing desk and playback for music between sets.
Insurance and paperwork
Public liability insured
Song list
See 'What to Expect' above.
