 The Clarinet BBoard
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2002-08-29 19:00
Did you other "seniors" [and juniors] have the opportunity to watch/hear the well- organized/presented story, at last solving one of the WW II mystery/tragadies of our music world. There were also [last nite on OK PBS] some pics/original music of the early and the service bands, bringing back memories to yours truly. Don
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Author: Sherwood w. Franklin
Date: 2002-08-29 19:28
I agree with you. The music of this era, in my mind, is the best. I note that this music is still played on commercials, etc.shown on TV. I wonder how much of todays music and rap will still be played fifty years from now. It's truly ashamed that the world lost Glenn Miller, even with his so called faults. I still enjoy his music. Wes Franklin
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Author: ron b
Date: 2002-08-29 20:05
There's a radio station in California's southern San Jaoquin Valley, out of Wasco I believe, that plays nothing but Glen Miller recordings from dawn to dusk seven days a week year 'round. I don't remember the call letters but if find yourself in that neck o' th' desert you can scan the AM dial for some beautiful sounds to travel and/or reminisce to. I suppose the station is financed by (a) still dedicated fan (or fans). Yessiree, such music endures because it's good
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Author: Vic
Date: 2002-08-29 20:13
I'm 55, so I don't remember him as a "live" phenomenon, but I grew up in the fifties listening to my parents' old 78s. As a total band in that genre, the Glenn Miller band was the best, in my opinion. His music captured the entire era of pre and early-WWII America. It was listening to Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw that got me interested in the clarinet, but the Miller band was something truly special. It's interesting how his music lives on. I've known adolescents who know practically nothing of that era, who don't recognize the names of Tommy Dorsey, Duke Ellington, or even Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw, who do recognize the name of Glenn Miller. I didn't get to see the program last night, but I taped it to watch tonight, and am eager to do so. As Sherwood said, the man had his faults, no doubt - I guess he was a real jerk to work for (so was Goodman), but his music will still be around when rap is less than a footnote of musical history. Rap merely exacerbates and perpetuates anger, hostility, violence, and hatred, Miller's music makes you want to dance and hug your loved ones.
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Author: Steve
Date: 2002-08-29 20:23
So, what was the solution to the mystery of his disappearance over the English Channel? I missed the show and was just wondering.
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Author: nzdonald
Date: 2002-08-29 20:29
i'm a 33 year old mainly classical musician (i have worked in "alternative rock" as well, but now mainly focus on classical stuff)...
for me- Glenn Miller made me want to play Clarinet/Saxophone, as a 10 year old i hadn't really heard much music that i really liked until i saw "the Glenn Miller story" on television... it's probably quite lucky for Mr Miller that his character was played by that nice man who died a year or so ago... um, what was his name? the one from the corny Christmas movie...
i hear TUXEDO JUNCTION about twice every day. My students love it, and even when they get more advanced we go back to it for a warm up, and no one has ever told me they were finally sick of it (i don't think GM actually wrote TJ, but his bands version is definately the definative one).
donald
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2002-08-29 20:38
I just didn't want to spoil the mystery-tension the show creats, its VG! It does show some of G M's "shortcomings", mediocre on tmb, but good arranger-innovator-perfection/rehearser and judge of musicians. If too many cant find it [mine was a PBS "Preview", so perhaps there will be repeats] , others and I will summarize the well-researched conclusions. Don
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Author: JMcAulay
Date: 2002-08-29 22:05
Not only was Glenn Miller a great arranger, he also wrote a book on arranging. One of those likely would be tough to find nowadays (except in my library).
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Author: diz
Date: 2002-08-30 01:27
And it's not just you old geezers who were affected by Mr Miller - I too spent a lot of my early clarinet days entranced by his music/arrangements.
diz - the not-so-old-geezer
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Author: jean
Date: 2002-08-30 02:19
The latest theory about his death is this....While enroute from bombing in Europe it was customary for planes to drop any remaining bombs into the English Channel before returning to England. Supposedly bombs were dropped on top of Miller's plane as they were flying lower than bombers. I believe for many years the RAF was blamed for shooting his plane down.
Jean
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Author: bob gardner
Date: 2002-08-30 02:58
the guy who played miller in the movie was Jimmy Stewart. He was not the guy from the goofy Christmas movie. He was the guy from the great Christmas movie.
To each his own.
bob
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Author: Don Berger
Date: 2002-08-30 16:19
Great comments above, TKS. I'm adding to and slightly revising Jean's description of the tragic accident. From last nite's discussion of WW II planes, flying etc with my tpt-playing Tulsa Comm. Band [we have a web-site] car-pooler [he flew the "hump", India/China, in C47's and survived!!], I was able to understand more of the "logistics" given in the PBS 1 hr. show. Yes, it was concluded to have been due to an unused [over Germany], but "armed" [block-buster] 4000# bomb from an RAF Lancaster [big] bombing plane, dropped into an air-forces-known bomb disposal area in the [western] English Channel at the same time the G M/pilot-officer 's plane, flying low [bad weather], STRAYED into the area. My recall of the description is that the air-water turbulence from the bomb's explosion , rather than a [highly-improbable] direct hit on the small plane, is what caused it to dive into the Channel, observed by the RAF pilot/navigator, but un-reported [many planes were being shot-down/crashing then !!]. A number of other possibilities/objections/theories were dealt with and dismissed [IMHO] in this suspenseful presentation. Comments from other BBoarders are certainly welcome. Don
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