In 1923, Miller entered the University of Colorado at Boulder, but he spent most of his time away from school. He played auditions and gigs. He did not do well in school. He dropped out of school, and decided to start a career as a professional musician. He later studied under Joseph Schillinger and composed "Moonlight Serenade". In 1926, Miller toured with several groups, eventually landing a good spot in Ben Pollack's group in Los Angeles. While playing with this band, Miller wrote several musical arrangements and also co-wrote his first composition, "Room 1411", with Benny Goodman. In 1928, he married Helen Burger in New York City. At first, he was the main trombone soloist of the band. But when another trombone player joined, Miller was given fewer solos. At this point, he decided he should mainly be a composer. In the late 1920s, he wrote and published a songbook.
In the early 1930s, Miller was a trombonist, arranger, and composer in The Dorsey Brothers. Miller composed the songs "Annie's Cousin Fannie", "Dese Dem Dose", "Harlem Chapel Chimes", and "Tomorrow's Another Day" in 1934 and 1935. In 1935, he started an American orchestra for British bandleader Ray Noble. In this band, he featured a lead clarinet over four saxophones. He later used this arrangement in his own bands.
Glenn Miller formed his first band in 1937. The band broke up after playing its last show at the Ritz Ballroom in Bridgeport, Connecticut, on January 2, 1938.
Miller was discouraged and returned to New York. He realized that the band needed to have a "sound" that was different from other bands. He decided to make the clarinet and tenor saxophone play the melody together, while three other saxophones played harmony. Miller hired a saxophonist named Wilbur Schwartz, but instead had him play lead clarinet. This was unique because it did not rely on repeated motifs, like other bands.
Miller had a staff who wrote and arranged songs for the band. They were Jerry Gray, Bill Finegan, Billy May, and George Williams.
In September 1938, the Miller band began making recordings for Bluebird Records. Cy Shribman, a prominent East Coast businessman, began financing the band. In the spring of 1939, the band played at the Meadowbrook Ballroom in Cedar Grove, New Jersey and at the Glen Island Casino in New Rochelle, New York. At Glen Island, 1800 people attended Afterwards, the band became much more popular. The band's recording "Tuxedo Junction" sold 115,000 copies in the first week.
On February 10, 1942, Miller received a gold record for "Chattanooga Choo-Choo". "Chattanooga Choo Choo" was performed by the Miller orchestra with his singers Gordon "Tex" Beneke, Paula Kelly and the vocal group, the Modernaires. Other singers with this orchestra included Marion Hutton, Skip Nelson, Ray Eberle, Kay Starr, Ernie Caceres, Dorothy Claire and Jack Lathrop.
Miller and his band appeared in two films. The first one was "Sun Valley Serenade" (1941) The second was "Orchestra Wives" (1942).
In 1942, Miller decided to join the war effort because he was too old to be drafted. At first, he volunteered for the Navy but was told he was not needed. Miller then wrote to Army Brigadier General Charles Young. He asked to lead an army band so he could entertain the Allied Forces, and was accepted this time. He earned the rank of captain and he was soon promoted to major by August 1944.
He was placed in the United States Army at first, but was then moved to the Army Air Forces. Captain Glenn Miller served as an officer at the training center at Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama, in December 1942. He played trombone with the Rhythmaires, a 15-piece dance band, both on the base and in the town.
Miller formed a large marching band. He tried to modernize military music. Some officers didn't like it, but he continued because other leaders supported him. For example, he combined blues and jazz with the traditional military march. He formed the Army Air Force Band, with 50 members. In the summer of 1944, he took it to England, where he gave 800 performances and recorded a series of records. The music was used in American Forces Network radio broadcasting for entertainment and counter-propaganda against fascism. Miller also talked on the radio. One time, he said:
"America means freedom and there's no expression of freedom quite so sincere as music."
On December 15, 1944, Miller was to fly from the United Kingdom to Paris, France, to play for the soldiers there. His plane departed from Clapham and disappeared while flying over the English Channel. There were two other people on the plane: Lt. Col. Norman Baessell and pilot John Morgan.
There have been many theories about what happened to the plane. According to a 2014 article in the "Chicago Tribune", Miller's plane crashed because it had a faulty carburetor.
In February 1945, Miller's wife, Helen accepted the Bronze Star Medal for him.
When Glenn Miller was alive, various bandleaders like Bob Chester imitated his style. In 1942, Miller gave singer Mel Tormé advice about songwriting.
By the early 1950s, more bands started to copy Miller's style.
The Miller estate authorized an official Glenn Miller "ghost band" in 1946. This band was led by Tex Beneke, former tenor saxophonist and a singer for the civilian band. It was similar to the Army Air Force Band because it had a large string section. At first called the "Glenn Miller Orchestra Under the Direction of Tex Beneke", it later became "The Tex Beneke Orchestra".
A film about Miller's life, "The Glenn Miller Story", was released in 1953. Because of this, the Miller estate asked Ray McKinley to lead a new ghost band in 1956. This band still tours the United States.
After Miller's disappearance, his Army Air Force band was decommissioned and sent back to the United States. Another band, called "the 314", took its place.
Miller composed at least fourteen songs, both by himself or with other people. He added lyrics to another song. These and other songs were recorded by Miller's civilian bands and his Army Air Force band.
Glenn Miller had three recordings that were put into the Grammy Hall of Fame after he died. This award is for recordings that are at least 25 years old and that have "qualitative or historical significance."
Notes
Bibliography
New Palestine, Indiana
New Palestine (pronounced "PAL-es-teen") is a town in the state of Indiana, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 2,055.
The Ghan
The Ghan is a passenger train between Adelaide, Alice Springs, and Darwin on the Adelaide–Darwin railway in Australia. The train is operated by Great Southern Rail. It takes 54 hours to travel the with a four-hour stop in Alice Springs.
The train's name is a short version of its nickname "The Afghan Express". This nickname is said to have been first used in 1923 by one the train crew. The train's name honours Afghan camel drivers who arrived in Australia in the late 19th century to help find a way to reach the country's unexplored interior.
Another view is that the name was an insult. In 1891, the railway from Quorn reached Oodnadatta. This was home to about 150 cameleers, known as 'Afghans'. 'The Ghan Express' name was used by train crews in the 1890s as a joke because, when an expensive sleeping car was put on from Quorn to Oodnadatta, 'on the first return journey the only passenger was an Afghan'. As early as 1924, it was known as the 'The Afghan Express' because it was so unreliable, often days, or weeks late. By 1951, when steam engines were replaced by diesel-electric locomotives, the insult of the names, like the cameleers, had faded away. Modern marketing has turned the name into a term of pride in its heritage.
"The Ghan" was sold to a private company in 1997 and is operated by Great Southern Rail. GSR was sold to Allegro Funds, a Sydney investment fund, in March 2015.