But which King are we talking about?
A.) The King of Rock—Elvis Presley
B.) The King of Pop—Michael Jackson
C.) The King of Soul—Sam Cooke
Sorry, but the correct answer is none of the above. On the Friday, June 14 we welcome you to join in commemorating the 75th anniversary of the King of Swing’s debut performance at Ravinia Festival. Benny Goodman single handedly influenced the modern programming style of Ravinia; the incorporation of jazz and popular music. In his spare time he also took the stage of the countries’ most famed venues with the first integrated big band. His legendary live performances at the Palomar Ballroom, the Congress Hotel, Carnegie Hall, and Ravinia Festival made him an ambassador for jazz music and its beloved fans.
Our soirée to swing will feature the extraordinary talents of Artistic Director Jeff Lindberg, the Chicago Jazz Orchestra, singers Sylvia McNair and Cyrille Aimée and clarinetists Anat Cohen, Larry Combs, and Eric Schneider. They have prepared a program of Goodman Gig classics: “Don’t Be That Way”, “Stompin’ at the Savoy”, “Avalon”, “Swingtime in the Rockies”, and of course “Sing, Sing, Sing” to name a few.
Don’t forget that this concert will also be our 8th Annual Women’s Board Dance Contest. We are building a dance floor on the lawn and handing out some fantastic prizes to the best Swing-Dancing pairs out there! The park opens at 3 p.m. with tickets still available in the pavilion and on the lawn.
Let’s party like it’s 1938.
Madison Cottingham
Communications Intern