Glenn Miller band set to swing through Suffolk

Published 1:15 pm Sunday, April 24, 2022

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The Glenn Miller Orchestra will perform next weekend for the Suffolk Center for Cultural Arts’ 2021-22 season finale.

The show is at 8 p.m. Saturday. Pre-show fun with Swing Virginia will include dancing outside by the fountain in front of the building from 7-7:45 p.m.

Glenn Miller was one of the most successful dance bandleaders in the Swing Era of the 1930s and 1940s. His orchestra produced a string of hits, including “In the Mood,” “Pennsylvania 6-5000,” “Moonlight Serenade” and “Chattanooga Choo-Choo” – the first recording to earn a gold record distinction.

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Miller disbanded his musical organization in 1942, at the height of its popularity, to volunteer for the Army, where he organized the popular Glenn Miller Army Air Force Band. On Dec. 15, 1944, Maj. Miller took off in a single-engine plane from Europe to precede his band to France and disappeared over the English Channel, never to be seen again. His estate formed the present Glenn Miller Orchestra in 1956 after the box office movie hit “The Glenn Miller Story,” which starred James Stewart.

Today’s 18-member ensemble will play many of the original Miller arrangements and more modern selections performed in the Miller style and sound. The orchestra consists of Music Director Erik Stabnau, five saxophone players, four trumpeters, four trombonists and three rhythm musicians (piano, bass and drums). The show includes vocalist Jenny Swoish, who performs as part of The Moonlight Serenaders.

Tickets are $32, $38, $42 and $48 for reserved seating. Purchase online at www.SuffolkCenter.org or by calling the Box Office at 757-923-2900.