Home	Events	Contact

Affiliates | Big Band  | Orchestra | History | Saturday Workshop 

The Hazleton Philharmonic Big Band Sound

It is relatively safe to say that, from its very beginning, the present day Hazleton Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra was predisposed toward having a stage band or a Big Band Sound as it is referred to today.

At its inception in 1954, the orchestra would more properly have been termed a “symphonic band”. As such, it had a preponderance of brass and woodwinds, particularly clarinets and saxes. It wasn’t until the late 1960’s however that big band music started to be actively pursued.

It started innocently enough with a group of the younger orchestra “rookies” who hankered to play the top 40s stuff of that era. There were barely enough people to play all the necessary parts. The music, though somewhat lacking in style, was nonetheless identifiable and the group played a few obscure gigs.

It really wasn’t until the early 1970’s that the concept began to blossom. At that time, some of the orchestra’s personnel who had musically matured were joined by some of Hazleton’s older and more seasoned musicians and a more cohesive group developed.

A new library of swing music was started and practices were more regularly scheduled. As time progressed, the younger members became more acclimated to the style of music and its rhythm patterns and the sound became more refined. The membership gelled a bit and the “Philharmonic Big Band Sound” was born.

Its first big opportunity to perform came in 1974,on the eve of the big orchestra’s three-week concert tour of communist Romania. The trip was sponsored by the Ambassadors for Friendship program but the Philharmonic had to come up with 2/3 of the cost of the trip, or roughly about $42,000. The organization utilized many fund-raising schemes but the jewel in the crown turned out to be the first ever dinner dance featuring the Big Band Sound.

The event turned out to be quite a spectacle. It was a formal affair that even featured a ‘20’s style mirrored ball. As the lights dimmed, a thousand points of light danced about the room, the band played “Moonlight Serenade” and a new tradition was formed. The big band performed several times on the concert tour and, after returning, it was utilized for many subsequent dinner dances and other cameo appearances.

Between 1975 and 1990 the band was always convened at least once during July of each year when, one or two of the five Ferrwood concerts would include a big band set featuring the late, great Nuncio “Toots” Mondello on the Alto sax. After Mondello’s passing in the early 1990’s the group met only sporadically and then, by the end of the 1990’s, became completely dormant.

2002 marked the resurgence of the big band. There are many new faces now but the quality is still the same. The group still plays dance gigs however the appearances are usually limited to one or two sets. Nowadays, the band is usually joined by the full orchestra for a part of the gig. The orchestra plays a set of traditional tempos for the ballroom dancers’ enjoyment and then the big band takes over for a set of swing music.

Today's Membership