Legends of Music
RETURNING TO CEntral dauphin in fall of 2010:
The world famous glenn miller orchestra! STOP BACK FOR DETAILS!!
About the Legends of Music Concert Series
In the 2007-08 school year, the Central Dauphin Band Boosters Association inaugurated the Legends of Music Concert series with the goal of providing our band students with the opportunity to work with, learn from, and enjoy the performances of some of the foremost musicians in the world. The Legends of Music Concert Series mission focuses on the positive growth and development of the Central Dauphin high school and middle school musicians. Consistent with that mission, the inaugural Legends of Music Concert featured the world renowned Dallas Brass and the subsequent event featured the world famous Glenn Miller Orchestra. The Central Dauphin Band Boosters Association's goal is to host at least one Legends of Music Concert each academic year. Here are the groups the Band Boosters have hosted since the inception of the event in Spring of 2008:
Fall 2009: Artie Shaw Orchestra
The
Central Dauphin High School Jazz I ensemble kicked off the evening with a
great set. The ASO audience gave them an appreciative and enthusiastic round
of applause after each number and a great ovation at the end of their set!
Then the sixteen-piece Artie Shaw Orchestra under the direction of
clarinetist and concert host Rich Chiaraluce treated the approximately 600
concertgoers, including many seniors, to a phenomenal demonstration of
clarinet virtuosity set to the timeless music of the late legendary
bandleader Artie Shaw. The ASO played many of the big Shaw tunes, of course
leading off with the King of The Clarinets’ haunting theme song, Nightmare,
and running the gauntlet during a first set that included Swonderful,
Moonglow, Frenesi, and the Artie Shaw! Grabtown Grapple, a piece that Shaw
wrote for his then-wife, Ava Gardner, in 1945. It was originally recorded by
his Gramercy Five small group. The second set included Shaw hits Back Bay
Shuffle and Traffic Jam; however, the set— and perhaps the evening — was
highlighted by Shaw's two biggest hits, Begin The Beguine and Stardust, a
piece that has been rated the most popular song of the Big Band Era and of
the 20th century. Shaw's 1940 version of the Hoagy Carmichael opus
originally featured Shaw on a magnificent and technically challenging solo.
Chiraluce paid homage to that inspired work playing flawlessly, note for
note, Shaw's exact solo. Despite the fantastic soloists, the real stars of
the evening was the band itself with its biting brass ensemble,
smoothsounding sax section, and pulsating rhythm crew, each combining to
provide the Shaw Orchestra with its unique sound underneath its leader's
soaring clarinet.
Fall 2008: Glenn Miller Orchestra
The
Central Dauphin Band Boosters Association was thrilled to welcome the
legendary Glenn Miller Orchestra to the state-of-the-art Central Dauphin
High School Auditorium on September 16, 2008 at 7:00 pm. The evening
included a special performance by the Central Dauphin High School Jazz I
Band. Glenn Miller was one of the most successful of all the dance
bandleaders back in the Swing era of the 1930s and ‘40s. A matchless string
of hit records, the constant impact of radio broadcasts, and the drawing
power at theatres, hotels, and dance pavilions built and sustained the
momentum of Glenn Miller's popularity. Glenn disbanded his musical
organization in 1942, at the height of its fame, volunteered for the Army
and then organized and led the famous Glenn Miller Army Air Force Band to
entertain servicemen. On December 15, 1944, Major Miller took off in a
single-engine plane from England to precede his band to France, never to be
seen again. The army declared him officially dead a year later. In response
to popular demand, the Miller Estate authorized the formation of the present
Glenn Miller Orchestra in 1956. The 19-member band continues to play many of
the original Miller arrangements, thrilling Glenn Miller's original fans who
have not heard them played for a while as well as a whole new generation of
fans. Most of the band’s shows are sell-outs. It has proven staying power,
and its popularity has never seemed to wane. Indeed, the Glenn Miller
Orchestra today is still the most sought after big-band in the world just as
it was in Glenn’s day. The sold-out auditorium at CDHS demonstrated that
quite well!
Spring 2008: Dallas Brass
The
Central Dauphin High School Band Boosters Association presented its
inaugural Legends of Music Concert, welcoming the world-renowned Dallas
Brass to CDHS on April 7, 2008. The Dallas Brass spent the day in a
residency with our band students and performed live at the Central Dauphin
High School auditorium in a concert. Selected Central Dauphin high school
and middle school band students joined the Dallas Brass onstage for part of
this performance! For more pictures of the Dallas Brass residency and
concert at Central Dauphin High School,
click here. For a review of the concert,
click here. Since its founding in 1983 by Michael Levine, the Dallas
Brass has become one of America’s foremost musical ensembles. The group has
established a unique blend of traditional brass instruments with a full
complement of drums and percussion, which creates a performing entity of
extraordinary range and musical challenges. The Dallas Brass repertoire
includes classical masterpieces, Dixieland, swing, Broadway, Hollywood and
patriotic music. In addition to their solo engagements, the Dallas Brass has
appeared with symphony orchestras nationwide. Symphonic credits include the
Cincinnati Pops conducted by Erich Kunzel, New York Pops conducted by Skitch
Henderson, and the Philly Pops conducted by Peter Nero. The Dallas Brass has
performed at Carnegie Hall, the John F. Kennedy Center in Washington, DC,
and has toured overseas to Europe and the Far East. They have shared the
stage with the late Bob Hope, have performed for Presidents Gerald Ford and
George H. W. Bush, have appeared on the CBS “Early Show”, and their music
has been used numerous times on the television show, “The Young & The
Restless”.
