FTO Big Band to make big sounds and even bigger impact at Wyvern Theatre, Swindon

Lovers of swing and jazz music are in for a treat as the Wiltshire-based ensemble FTO Big Band takes to the stage at the Wyvern Theatre, Swindon. Big Band Night takes place on Sunday November 21.

Performing all the greats, including hits from Glen Miller, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra and Gershwin, the 20-strong jazz orchestra is gearing up for an evening of high-energy toe-tapping classics.

FTO Big Band launched in August this year, to an ecstatic reception, at the Fulltone Music Festival in Devizes. Now Musical Director Anthony ‘Tone’ Brown is preparing to take the band to the next level.

“We’re combining some of the best players in the West with knockout singers to create music that’s the stuff of magic,” he says. “It’s a must for any Big Band lover out there.”

One star of the show will be Swindon-born Ruby Phipps, who at just 11 years old will be duetting with fellow vocalist Jemma Brown. “It’s ridiculously exciting giving someone so young, with such a fantastic voice, the opportunity to sing on a large stage,” Anthony says.

FTO Big Band is a jazz-loving offshoot of the popular Wiltshire-based Fulltone Orchestra, which played at the Wyvern before the pandemic. Now FTO Big Band is aiming to turn up the volume and provide a joyful treat to those of us who have missed live music so much.

Big Band Night starts at 7.30pm on Sunday November 21. Tickets cost £25 from the Wyvern box office, swindontheatres.co.uk