The Glen Miller Orchestra

The Glen Miller Orchestra
Adelaide Cabaret Festival 2015. Dunstan Playhouse. June 19, 2015

The Adelaide Cabaret Festival revisited the grand era of Swing as The Glenn Miller Orchestra celebrated its 78th anniversary and brought the timeless hits of the War years to town.

Glenn Miller’s theme song Moonlight Serenade was recorded in the spring of 1939 and featured his trademark clarinet lead sax section. Glenn Miller also added a fourth trumpet and fourth trombone that year, with his genius resulting in an orchestra with a unique sound that stood out amongst the hundreds of bands playing during the Swing era.

The 21st Century incantation of the orchestra is currently touring Australia and still features superb musicians. It has been in Adelaide on the final weekend of the city’s Cabaret Festival, giving South Australians the privilege to experience a band that in the late 1930’s and early 1940’s became a new dimension in Big Bands and into which Miller also introduced trombones as a new true section.

The Glenn Miller Orchestra Honouring the Centenary of ANZAC was indeed a trip down memory lane for the Adelaide audience, but only a very few of those present would actually remember the so-called War years and certainly not WWI. The music and lyrics are nostalgic for most of us because we either remember the songs being played and sung by our parents or grandparents, or simply because they are of such a timeless, often war-related and personally emotive quality that they have been performed by well-known artists ever since they first hit the air waves.

Led by Musical Director Rick Gerber, the show’s repertoire included original Glenn Miller arrangements and World War II melodies, plus songs from legendary artists such as Frank Sinatra and Vera Lyn. There was also a smattering of songs from WWI years. Among his other roles, including as orchestra conductor, Rick Gerber provided intermittent low key narration, including referencing historical context. His gentle patter and humour kept the show moving between solely orchestral performance, vocals and accompanying dance numbers.

Respectful recognition of the Anzacs was a welcome inclusion too.

Hits such as the iconic Moonlight Serenade, as well as A String of Pearls, In the Mood, Pennsylvania 6-5000, Rhapsody In Blue, Chattanooga Choo-Choo, American Patrol, Little Brown Jug, Don’t Sit Under The Apple Tree, White Cliffs of Dover and many more were all acclaimed by the very appreciative Adelaide audience. However, despite being well-meant, I’m not sure sophisticated Australian audiences these days want the token rendition of Waltzing Matilda included in the repertoire of international artists; it happens just a little too often.

Glamorous Wendy Smith and suave Mark Kopitzke (looking decidedly like a young Frank Sinatra) were fine vocalists and the four energetic Broadway Swing Dancers presented plenty of terrific dance numbers, including fantastic interpretations of the jitterbug. Soaring instrumental solos by members of the orchestra were highlights of the night.

The show was described as “a colourful and flamboyant evening” in one marketing quote prior to the show, but despite the marvelous musicianship, the enduring lyrics and the undeniably authentic arrangements, I found the staging lacked something. This ‘something’ was an elusive quality though, possibly caused for me simply by the fact that we were not in a ballroom. Instead, we were confined to rows of seats in a theatre listening to wonderful Swing…music made for dancing.

Even so, the timeless and unique sound of Glenn Miller was what we were there for. On a night more than seventy years after the famous bandleader’s wartime death his iconic and enduring orchestra delivered in spades.

Lesley Reed

Subscribe to our E-Newsletter, buy our latest print edition or find a Performing Arts book at Book Nook.