OCEANSIDE — Attendees put on their dancing shoes for the 12th annual Big Band Bash by the Beach on Sept. 27 to enjoy an afternoon of nonstop Big Band, swing and jazz at the Pier Amphitheater.
A $5 ticket bought an afternoon of live music performed by Oceanside Society Orchestra and Big Band and Jazz Hall of Fame Orchestra, a hotdog lunch, and a chance to win at an opportunity drawing. All proceeds from the event went to local nonprofits.
The Big Band Bash was a unique opportunity to enjoy music of days gone by. Big Band was popular in the late 1940s and early 1950s before the advent of rock ‘n’ roll or television. “You can’t hear the music anywhere,” Tom Morrow, event coordinator, and Oceanside Society Orchestra conductor, said. “People love to listen to it, but most musicians playing it are in their 80s,” Morrow said. “Everyone in the Oceanside Society Orchestra is over 71.”
While the music may be more of a hit with those over 70, the event drew dancers of all ages. “Lots of younger people have discovered swing dancing,” Morrow said.
“We’ve been dancing nine years together,” John Yelusich of Fallbrook said. Yelusich was out on the dance floor with his wife Melvia. Looking sharp in all black, a plumed hat and sliver-sequined vest, Yelusich said he has a dance wardrobe of 31 different vests. “If you don’t look the part, you don’t feel the part,” Yelusich said.
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