The Savoy Havana Band was a British dance band of the 1920s. It was resident at the Savoy Hotel , London, between 1921 and 1927. The band made their first live outside broadcast on the British Broadcasting Corporation from the Savoy Hotel on 3 October, 1923.
8-631: The band was formed by the American saxophonist Bert Ralton ( aka Bert Louis Ralton; né Albert Lewis Ralton; ca. 1885–1927) in 1921. Originally there were six players including Ralton. It was later increased to ten players. From 1924 it was led by the English violinist Reginald Batten. Both the Savoy Havana Band and their colleagues the Savoy Orpheans were under the management of Wilfred de Mornys. Among
16-572: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Savoy Orpheans The Savoy Orpheans is a British dance band currently led by Alex Mendham . They were resident at the Savoy Hotel , London. The band was formed by Debroy Somers , an ex-army bandmaster, in 1923. Both the Orpheans and the Savoy Havana Band were under the management of William de Mornys. The Orpheans were later led by
24-588: The BBC. The owner of the Savoy Hotel, Rupert D'Oyly Carte , called the original Savoy Havana Band and the Savoy Orpheans "probably the best-known bands in Europe." When de Morny's contractual arrangement with the Savoy Hotel company ended on 31 December 1927, the band went on tour, and disbanded in 1930. They appeared in the 1930 film After Many Years . This article on a United Kingdom band or other musical ensemble
32-608: The Savoy Hotel company ended on 31 December 1927, the Orpheans disbanded. In early December 1927 there were newspaper reports of the Hotel management denying the rumour that the Savoy Orpheans, Savoy Havana Band and the Sylvians were to leave. Reg Batten, of the SHB, stayed on at the Hotel and led a band with the clumsy name "Savoy Orpheans (1928)". This would indicate legal tussles over the rights to
40-495: The best-known bands in Europe." Among their popular songs was " Let's All Go to Mary's House " from 1925. D'Oyly Carte's judgment was echoed by music historian Brian Rust , who wrote in 1971 of the original Orpheans: "their very name personifies the Dancing Twenties … and their broad versatility … made this imprint in a way that no band had done before and few have achieved since". When de Morny's contractual arrangement with
48-514: The original name. It was not until 1931 that pianist Carroll Gibbons returned from working at MGM in Hollywood and, with saxophonist Howard Jacobs, formed a new ensemble "the Savoy Hotel Orpheans" for the hotel. The drummer during this period was Max Abrams . Brian Rust wrote of this group, "it was a purely straight, typically smooth supper-club band." Gibbons continued as bandleader at
56-450: The players was a young American saxophonist, Rudy Vallée , whose attempts to become a vocalist were discouraged by his fellow players. Another member of the ensemble was the pianist Billy Mayerl . On 15 June 1925, alongside the Orpheans, the band played in the first British performance of George Gershwin 's Rhapsody in Blue with Gershwin himself on piano. The performance was broadcast live by
64-465: The violinist Cyril Ramon Newton, and by the pianist Carroll Gibbons . On 15 June 1925, Somers conducted the Orpheans in the first British performance of George Gershwin 's Rhapsody in Blue , alongside the Savoy Havana Band and Gershwin himself on piano. The performance was broadcast live by the BBC . The owner of the Savoy Hotel, Rupert D'Oyly , called the original Orpheans and their colleagues, "probably
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