ARTIST PROFILE: GABBY HORLICK

ARTIST PROFILE: GABBY HORLICK

By Esmeralda Ramirez

At first glance, Gabby Horlick appears to be quiet and reserved. But, put her on a stage in front of a crowd, and the East San José musician transforms into a fierce conductor as she leads a 22-person orchestra through the beat of her drums.

“...the East San José musician transforms into a fierce conductor ...”

Horlick, 33, is the founder of 7th Street Big Band, a jazz orchestra that’s as diverse as San José. The band is a passion project Horlick started 14 years ago when she noticed there were little to no opportunities to join a big band outside of an academic setting. Horlick missed playing music with others so much that she sought to make her own band — but failed. Twice.

“We performed once and then the band totally fell apart,” she shares.

“Horlick, 33, is the founder of 7th Street Big Band...”

Still, that didn’t stop her. On her third attempt, Horlick asked a few friends who went to San José State University if they knew anyone in the music department who would be interested in joining a jazz orchestra. Word-of-mouth recruiting was a good strategy for Horlick because in 2013 she found enough musicians to build the base of what the band is today.

When I first started, other than playing in a band, I didn’t have experience leading a band,” Horlick reflects. “I was grateful for everyone to stick with me while I learned how to lead a group of this size. But what kept everyone around is that we were playing cool music and we started to write our own music.”

“I was grateful for everyone to stick with me while I learned how to lead a group of this size...”