MILLENNIUM MOMENT

Newport Beach saxophonist Freddy Martin was a major figure of the Big

Band era, commanding his own band at Manhattan’s Hotel Roosevelt and

other venues across America.

Martin combined a popular sensibility with a thorough familiarity of

classical music -- a blend that led to his 1941 No. 1 hit, a dance

version of Tchaikovsky’s “Piano Concerto in B Minor.”

Along the musical road, Martin performed with more than a few performers

who went on to fame. Merv Griffin sang and played piano for Martin’s band

for five years. And in 1956, Martin opened for a young rocker named Elvis

Presley.

* MILLENNIUM MOMENT celebrates the people who have made a major

contribution to the Newport-Mesa community during this century.