Name Les Elgart | Role Musician | |
Died July 29, 1995, Dallas, Texas, United States Albums The Band Of The Year, Half Satin Half Latin Similar People Larry Elgart, Charles Albertine, Barry Manilow | ||
Les elgart and his orchestra trees
Lester Elliott Elgart (August 3, 1917 – July 29, 1995, Dallas, Texas) was an American swing jazz bandleader and trumpeter.
Contents
- Les elgart and his orchestra trees
- Les elgart and his orchestra begin the beguine
- Career
- Discography
- References
Les elgart and his orchestra begin the beguine
Career
Born in New Haven, Connecticut, Elgart grew up in Pompton Lakes, New Jersey with his brother Larry. Both brothers attended Pompton Lakes High School.
He began playing trumpet as a teenager and was playing professionally by the age of twenty. During the 1940s he was a member of bands led by Raymond Scott, Charlie Spivak, and Harry James, occasionally finding himself alongside his brother Larry. They formed the Les & Larry Elgart Ensemble in 1945, hiring Nelson Riddle, Ralph Flanagan, and Bill Finegan to write arrangements. The union was short-lived, however, due to the Musician's Union strike and the waning of swing jazz's popularity. The ensemble broke up in 1946.
In 1952, the brothers reunited and released albums on Columbia Records, many to considerable sales success. Among their popular tunes was "Bandstand Boogie", which was used by Dick Clark as the theme song for the television dance show American Bandstand. By the end of the decade, Elgart quit performing, preferring to handle the business aspects of the band.
The brothers reunited again in 1963, hiring arrangers Charles Albertine and Bobby Scott for music that could be categorized as easy listening.
A resident of Dallas, Elgart worked until his death from heart failure in 1995.