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King Of Swing Era Returns

January 31, 2024

Swing into the weekend as Bosque Arts Center Troubadour Series presents iconic 1940s sound with the World Famous Glenn Miller Orchestra Feb. 10 in the Frazier Performance Hall

“It don’t mean a thing if it don’t got that swing”

One of the most successful bands of the Swing Era of the 1930s and 40s, the Glenn Miller Orchestra had a string of hit records before their legendary leader disbanded the group to volunteer for the Army in World War II. Miller, a highly successful bandleader, arranger, composer and trombonist was most popular in the late 1930s and early 1940s.

The orchestra was revived in 1956 and has been touring ever since. Today, the 18-member ensemble continues to play many of the original Miller pieces, as well as some more modern selections arranged and performed in the Miller style and sound.

This world-renown Glenn Miller Orchestra – under the musical direction of saxophonist Erik Stabnau and accompanied by female vocalist Jenny Swoish – returns to Frazier Performance Hall on Feb. 10. The group delighted the Bosque County audience in 2022 with impeccable musicianship on nostalgic tunes like “Moonlight Serenade,” “In the Mood,” and “Chattanooga Choo-Choo.”

Keeping the King of Swing’s legacy alive, the Bosque Arts Center Troubadour Series presents the World Famous Glenn Miller Orchestra at 7 p.m. as doors open at 5:30 p.m. with food and beverages for sale in the Atrium Café. Reserved seating remains on sale for the following prices: $100 (first tier sponsor), $75, $50, and $25 through the BAC website (BosqueArtsCenter.org) or by calling (254) 675-3724.

More than any musical ensemble, Bandleader Glenn Miller and his Big Band Orchestra inspired the World War II generation and boosted morale with many, many number one hit chart songs.

To many listeners, jazz and swing were the same, but most fans found swing easier on the ear and more suitable for dancing because of the rhythm. The WWII movies and memories of couples jitterbugging to the swing tunes are etched in our memories.

Swing has appealed to many people through all the different music genres since the 1930s. It even had a quirky revival in the 1990s with swing music infiltrating the Olympics, the Super Bowl, and even a presidential inauguration.

In 1954, Miller was the subject of a partly fictionalized film biography, The Glenn Miller Story, starring James Stewart which kept his musical legacy and memory alive. Additionally, Miller posthumously received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003.

Miller had no pretensions of being too artistic to be popular, and gave his audience what they wanted. But he was quoted saying “A band ought to have a sound all of its own. It ought to have a personality.”

Miller's original recordings continue to sell millions of copies, and the Glenn Miller Band is delighted to play them over and over, for their audiences to enjoy.

Except for a few years following his disappearance, Glenn’s orchestra and music have been heard around the world continuously since 1938. It is now more than 75 years since Glenn Miller first succeeded with the Orchestra, which still bears his name until this day.