FORT LAUDERDALE, FL -- On Wednesday, November 13, the Gold Coast Jazz Society celebrates their twenty-second season of jazz presentations with the opening season concert featuring the Frank Derrick Big Band in a tribute to jazz legend Buddy Rich. Drummer, Frank Derrick, has led a multifaceted national and international music career. He is a virtuoso performer, composer, and educator. Frank will be pulling out all of the stops with this spirited concert featuring the charts of “the world’s greatest drummer,” Buddy Rich. In terms of speed, technique and showmanship, Rich was unsurpassed. The Frank Derrick big band will be swinging with their interpretations of Rich’s most popular tunes.
The concert will take place at the Amaturo Theater of the Broward Center for the Performing Arts, 201 SW 5th Avenue in Fort Lauderdale at 7:45pm. Single tickets are available for $40 per person. Students and teacher tickets are $10 with valid ID. To purchase tickets call the Broward Center AutoNation Box Office at 954-462-0222 or online at www.browardcenter.org.
Currently Derrick is the drummer, assistant conductor & personnel manager for the Palm Beach Pops and is the conductor and featured artist with the Bob Hoose Orchestra. Familiar to symphony audiences around the world, Frank Derrick has appeared with the Royal Philharmonic, the New York Pops, Pittsburgh Symphony, Calgary Philharmonic, and the Buffalo Philharmonic. His precision and driving rhythmic styling has been featured on the cast album of Bubbling Brown Sugar, Big City Swing-Veronica Martell, Strong & Graceful Oaks-Rejoice ensemble, The Cab Calloway Show Live in Freiburg Germany, and Something Old, Something New-The Bob Hoose Orchestra.
Derrick’s many theatrical credits include Bubbling Brown Sugar, The Wiz, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Sophisticated Ladies, Big River, and Catskills. He has performed with numerous legends and artists including Redd Foxx, Stephanie Mills, Della Reese, Freda Payne, Eubie Blake, The Platters, Eartha Kitt, The Duke Ellington Orchestra, Dorothy Donegan, The Pointer Sisters, Ken Peplowski, Dakota Staton, Steve Allen, The Louis Armstrong Legacy Band, Donna Summer, Keely Smith, Maureen McGovern, Ann Hampton Callaway, Benny Carter, and has conducted on the concert stage for John Pizzarelli and Lanie Kazan. He toured worldwide with Cab Calloway for ten years and was drummer for “The David Letterman Show” on NBC.
His most recent CD release is the jazz chart buster, The Beat Goes On for the Jazzed Media label.
His “Straight Ahead” composition garnered the A.S.C.A.P. Special Award. As an educator, he served as Chairman of Percussion at Henry Street Settlement in New York. He is the respected author of FOCUS ON TECHNIQUE for Drummers, (published by Hal Leonard) a contributing author to various educational publications, and is the Drum Set Editor for the international organization, the Percussive Arts Society.
Tickets are available for this concert at the Broward Center’s Auto Nation Box Office. For further information call the Gold Coast Jazz Society at 954-524-0805 or online www.goldcoastjazz.org
