John Swartz’s review of the joint Orillia Concert Band and Orillia Big Band Hillcrest Concert:
The Orillia Concert Band and the Orillia Big Band split the bill for a concert Saturday evening at St. Paul’s Centre. Randy Hoover put together a great lineup of tunes. The band played very well in the first half, the other band played their best gig of late. The OCB tackled von Suppe’s Poet and Peasant Overture, it’s a hard piece to play and they did a very good job with it. Following that they did Acker Bilk’s Stranger on the Shore, which most of the old folks in the audience would know, and Spanish March by Texidor. All three of the pieces above are different styles and it takes a well rehearsed ensemble to switch their heads and musical interpretations and serve the music they are playing.
The second half with the big band was great. They did Chick Corea’s Spain. I wouldn’t expect any band in town to even think of doing that tune. Too much going on, too many syncopated riffs that don’t start on a beat. I was impressed with how the band did it. It wouldn’t take much to die onstage playing this piece.
Then there were the moments with Milli Schop singing. She did Blue Moon with the OCB and The Look of Love and Orange Coloured Sky with the big band. Where has this girl been hiding? Holy cow can she sing. And it’s not just she has a pleasing and powerful voice; she bloody well knows how to sing those jazz tunes. I mean, she really knows how to interpret the phrasing, the inflections, and the melodies (which are not anywhere near the same as pop melodies today) and own the performance.
This was a fundraiser for Hillcrest Lodge and $5,856 was donated by the audience.
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