Trombonist Buddy Morrow has had a career that spans decades, mostly in the world of big bands but also as a featured artist with symphony orchestras and jazz ensembles.

At one point, when he was leaving the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra to take up solo work and a more lucrative income with Paul Whiteman, Mr. Dorsey looked at his departing trombonist and said, "Someday you'll lead this orchestra."

"How prophetic his words were," said Mr. Morrow who, as conductor, will bring the original sound of "The Sentimental Gentleman of Swing" to Washington and Jefferson's Olin Fine Arts Center for a 7:30 p.m. concert next Thursday.

With 15 musicians and vocalist Nick Hilscher, the concert will focus primarily on Mr. Dorsey's music but will add older standards by composers such as Duke Ellington. The repertoire probably will include "Night Train," a pop version of the classic hit Mr. Morrow recorded with his own orchestra in 1952. It sold more than a million copies.

"Tommy Dorsey was a wonderful musician and a man I consider my mentor," Mr. Morrow said in a phone interview from his home in Maitland, Fla. "He treated me very well, but he was also a tough band leader who demanded the best from his musicians."

Known as a master at creating warm, sentimental moods and exceptional dancing and listening tempos, Mr. Dorsey and his orchestra had 17 No. 1 hits in the 1930s and '40s, including the biggest, "I'll Never Smile Again," which featured Frank Sinatra on vocals and was No. 1 for 12 weeks on the Billboard pop singles chart in 1940.

At next Thursday's concert, Mr. Hilscher, a baritone, will sing some of the songs made famous while Sinatra sang with Dorsey.

"Nick won't try to mimic Frank at the concert," Mr. Morrow said. "He has a fine big band sound of his own that really swings."

Although Mr. Morrow considers the orchestra a product of the past, he said younger audience members find the music fresh and end up liking it.

"People who come to hear us, hear us the way the orchestra is supposed to sound," he said. "We're authentic and play authentic arrangements. With Tommy, there was no excuse for a lax performance. He demanded 100 percent from his musicians at all times, and I try to carry on that tradition."

The orchestra musicians live all across the country but get together for bus tours that vary in length from a couple of weeks to several months.

"We no longer have to rehearse," Mr. Morrow said.

Brookline resident Lou Tracey, a songwriter and lyricist, caught the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra twice in live performance. His first encounter in the early 1940s was at the Stanley Theater, Downtown, with Frank Sinatra as vocalist. The second time, in the late 1940s, he got to dance to Mr. Dorsey's music at West View Park.

Mr. Tracey, who gives his age as "eleventy-seven," was born and raised in the Hill District about four blocks from Downtown. As a youngster, he started making the rounds of Downtown clubs.

"I got to hear a lot of great big band music," he said. "Even so, Tommy Dorsey is my favorite dance/swing band with Duke Ellington coming in as my all-time favorite true swing band."

Another Pittsburgh big band fan, Mike Plaskett, co-hosts with Dale Abraham "Rhythm Sweet & Hot," a program of vintage popular music, from 7 to 10 p.m. Saturdays on WDUQ, 90.5 FM.

"Nothing else has the grace, power and impact of a big band performing right in front of you, one that knows how to swing," he said. "No matter how young or how old listeners might be, they can feel it when a band is delivering the goods."

"I love the big, bright, rich sound that is made by a large dance band," he said. "People who grew up on these sounds were given a cultural treasure. It's hard to express how wonderful it was to the next generation, since the recordings only partially bring you the impact of what it was like 'live.' "

Bill Minkler, 74, of Bethel Park, got interested in big band music while a student at Carnegie Institute of Technology, nw Carnegie Mellon University.

"Big bands like the Sauter-Finegan Orchestra used to play Carnegie Tech's homecomings, but I also got to hear local dance bands while in high school and college," he said. "I love big band music but don't much go to hear them live. Now, I just listen to them on Mike Plaskett's Saturday evening show on WDUQ."

For tickets, call 724-223-6546.

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