Essay

Essay

It was nice Sunday night, I was having lunch with my girlfriend and we were deciding on what to do, I had mentioned to her that we I had to attend a live music performance in order to do my midterm paper. So we went home to check if there were any musical artists playing that day and sure enough there was a show at FitzGeralds night club at 6:00pm, Chicago Grandstand Big Band was going to be playing. We had no idea who that was but we made our way to Berwyn because it was quite a long drive and we got their just on time. It was quite a wonderful experience because neither of us had ever attended an event with a live musical group. Both of us were used to seeing Mexican bands at special family occasions but this was definitely different. I was taking notes throughout the performance because I knew I was going to forget all that I saw and heard that night.
Besides attending the show, I also did some research about the band. I did not find much but they are well known in our area. Chicago Grandstand Big Band has been an integral part of Chicago's entertainment community for over 30 years. They have performed all over the Chicagoland area, including Joe Segal's Jazz Showcase, FitzGerald's, Joe's Be-Bop Café, Grant Park Summer Dance, and numerous street fairs. They performed at the 25th anniversary of the Sears Tower. This band has been featured on WTTW's Wild Chicago and for many years, CGBB was the featured band at O'Hare Marriott's New Years Eve Ball. Members of the group have performed with the Count Basie, Maynard Ferguson, Tommy Dorsey, Les Elgart and Duke Ellington orchestras.
This band has an extensive selection of arrangements that encompass’ everything from the Swing Era (Benny Goodman, Glen Miller, Artie Shaw, etc) to Big Band Jazz (Count Basie, Stan Kenton, Duke Ellington, Woody Herman etc.). Vocals include great standards such as "When I Fall In Love," "Orange Colored Sky," and "It Had To Be You." The featured vocalist is Julie Ann Caselli, whose...

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