Hollywood songwriter celebrated

Central New York Jazz Orchestra officials say the group's jazz octet will give long overdue attention to one of the most prolific American songwriters of the 20th century at its next concert.

The March 20 concert at the OnCenter Carrier Theater in Syracuse will feature the music of Harry Warren, who was born to Italian immigrant parents in Brooklyn in 1893.

Renowned arranger, composer and jazz musicologist David Berger will lead the select Central New York Jazz Octet through his recent album, "I Had the Craziest Dream." The album is a retrospective treatment of Warren's well-known hits.

According to the Songwriters Hall of Fame, in 1933 Mr. Warren made his home in Hollywood, where he was hired to work on Warner Bros.'s "42nd Street." He and Al Dubin co-wrote several well-known songs, such as "We're in the Money," "I Only Have Eyes for You" and "September in the Rain." In 1938, Mr. Warren wrote "Jeepers Creepers."

In the early 1940s, Mr. Warren went to 20th Century Fox where he worked with Mack Gordon, creating hits such as "Chattanooga Choo Choo," "Serenade in Blue," and "I Had the Craziest Dream."

His last popular hit came in the 1950s with "That's Amore." Mr. Warren died in 1981.

"This concert really has two guest artists," CNY Jazz orchestra executive Larry Luttinger said in a release. "Not only do we have one of the world's leading jazz preservationists providing us with his incredible interpretations, but the ghost of an icon of American culture will be in the room."

Mr. Berger, a seven-time recipient of national Endowment for the Arts fellowships and a leading authority on the music of Duke Ellington and the swing era, was a conductor and arranger for the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra from its inception in 1988 to 1994.

Mr. Berger's 15-piece band, the Sultans of Swing, performs Tuesday nights at Birdland in New York City.

Syracuse University's Supersax Ensemble will open the concert. Under direction of Joseph Riposo, SU director of jazz studies, the group will perform transcriptions of jazz standards made famous by Charlie Parker.