Great American Songbook

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center
presents its ever-popular Great American Songbook

American Standards set the stage for generations of musicians and music fans alike

October 20, 2011 Dix Hills, NY -- The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center proudly presents the next engagement in its long-running Great American Songbook standard series, Saturday, Oct. 29th at 7:30 pm here at the Center. Tickets for this Five Towns favorite are only $10 for this senior-friendly series open to all.

Five Towns College continues its devotion to presenting The Great American Songbook, the remarkable era between the 30s and 50s when songwriting reached a peak of perfection featuring strong melodies, intricate harmonies and carefully crafted lyrics from Broadway, Hollywood and the heartland of America. The Great American Songbook performed by the gifted students of Five Towns College is sure to be an entertaining evening, featured composers such as George Gershwin, Jerome Kern, Rodgers and Hart, Cole Porter and other greats.

Presented under the direction of Arnie Gruber and his band, the evening will also feature ballroom dancing at 7:00 pm, just prior to the performance by Arnie Gruber and his band, playing a variety of dance classics.

For Arnie Gruber, pianist, vocalist and one-time music director at the Rainbow Room, the memorable experiences, during his every-Friday-night, three-year engagement were too many to recount. “I led a 10-piece orchestra,” he said. “I played for Paul McCartney and did three of Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s birthday parties.” That he would land the assignment at the Rainbow Room was perhaps a foregone conclusion, given Gruber’s resume, which included stints at the Waldorf, the St. Regis and the Pierre hotels.

“I was born in The Bronx but I’m told I don’t sing like I come from The Bronx,” Gruber said with is ever-present sense for humor. “As a pianist, I would describe myself as classically trained and Jazz influenced. I particularly enjoy accompanying myself and other singers.” Gruber teaches piano, violin and voice out of his home in East Northport and is an adjunct music professor at Five Towns College in Dix Hills. He is a frequent performer at concert halls and private social functions, including the recent sell-out show at Dix Hills Performing Arts Center and as musical director for the very successful Catskills in Dix Hills summer series at DHPAC.

The Great American Songbook series prepares the best of Five Towns College rising cabaret stars for careers in show business, locally and nationally.

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center at Five Towns College is one of Long Island’s most vibrant cultural organizations, combining the finest in world-class music and performance education in our acoustically superior theater. Five Towns College, founded in 1972, as a community resource for jazz/commercial music education, and today’s Dix Hills Performing Arts Center, provide entertainment, education and inspiration for more than 20,000 Long Islanders each year.

The Dix Hills Performing Arts Center is located at Five Towns College, 305 North Service Road, Dix Hills, New York, 11746-5857. For more information and ticket sales, please contact the Dix Hills Performing Arts Center box office at (631) 656-2148 or visit online at www.DHPAC.org *Become a fan on Facebook (Dix Hills Performing Arts Center).