At the height of the Swing Era, a racially integrated women’s big band called the International Sweethearts of Rhythm attracted the finest women jazz instrumentalists and toured to national acclaim in the 1930s and 40s. From 1942 through 1949, the band’s home base was in one of South Arlington’s historically African American neighborhoods. Inspired by the Sweethearts, Amy K. Bormet has composed a suite of new music for her large ensemble, Bitter Sweethearts.