"Using his voice as a vehicle and the trombone as a weapon, the legendary Ray Conniff whisked his way to incredible success around America in the 1930s, establishing wordless vocal choruses that led the way to extreme popularity in the 1960s. Conniff was known for his easy listening orchestral pop musical style, and his influence in several different bands will forever be remembered in the form of chart-topping albums and singles and one Grammy Award, as well.Conniff was born in Attleboro, Massachusetts, where the inspired musician grew up under the influence of his trombone player father and pianist mother. Following in his parents' footsteps, Conniff began playing in a local band while in high school, picking up the trombone and starting to write his own arrangements in his youth. Conniff got his first taste of the big leagues when he got the chance to play with Dan Murphy's Musical Skippers, and by the mid-‘30s the budding musician had moved to Manhattan, jiving with Bob Crosby's Bobcats before teaming up with Artie Shaw and, later, Glen Gray.Taking a break from the music industry in the ‘40s with the rise of World War II, Conniff returned to the scene in 1954 by accepting a position alongside Mitch Miller with Columbia Records. Conniff arranged beautiful pieces for Guy Mitchell, Johnny Mathis and Marty Robbins, and eventually the musician popularized his type of instrumental music. From the 1950s onward, Ray Conniff was a smash success in the music industry. His holiday albums garnered as much success as other Top Ten albums like ‘S Marvelous and Concert in Rhythm, and the easy listening king even won a Grammy Award in 1966 for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal for the song ""Somewhere, My Love."""