In the mid-1970s, Floren formed an orchestra of his own while still employed by the Welk organization. He also took over some of the maestro's announcing duties. During the time The Lawrence Welk Show was on television, Floren was a featured solo performer and an assistant conductor. It began with the band's migration to California, along with concert dates on the road, and exposure to television, first on local broadcasts from the Aragon Ballroom in Santa Monica, California and later on the ABC network in 1955. Over the next thirty-two years, Floren became one of the most popular members of the band and the organization itself. "Lady of Spain" also became Floren's trademark song and he played it countless times on the Welk show.Īlthough Floren's musical technique made him a much better accordion player than Welk, the two men developed a close working relationship, and Welk never hesitated to allow Floren to display his virtuosity occasionally the two would even play duets. The number turned out to be " Lady of Spain", and from the overwhelming positive response from the audience, Lawrence hired Myron to be a permanent member of his band. When the maestro recognized the accordion virtuoso in the audience, he invited him to play a number with his band. Louis, Missouri at which the Lawrence Welk Orchestra was then playing. In 1950, Floren, who was performing with a music group known as "The Buckeye Four", went to a dance at the Casa Loma Ballroom in St. Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. This section relies largely or entirely on a single source. The couple eventually had five daughters and gained three sons-in-law and seven grandchildren. After the war, he returned home to South Dakota, where he married Berdyne Koerner in 1945. However, he insisted on serving his country by joining the USO, performing in Europe with notable stars such as Lily Pons and Marlene Dietrich. He tried to enlist in the Army when the United States entered World War II, but was turned down for active duty because of a damaged heart caused by the rheumatic fever he had suffered as a child. He worked his way through Augustana College in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, by working at radio station KSOO as "The Melody Man" and teaching accordion in the area. At a 1980 performance at Norsk Høstfest in Minot, North Dakota, Floren mentioned that he had a heart valve replacement (from a pig's heart) two years earlier. His accordion playing saved his life, as the exertion strengthened his heart back to pre-fever performance. He suffered from rheumatic fever as a child. Soon he was performing solo around the community, often at fairs and social events. He often spent several hours a day using his own methods of study.
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He taught himself how to play the instrument. He took up playing the accordion at the age of six when his father bought him a $10 mail-order squeezebox. Before Myron played the accordion he had piano lessons from Dorothy Swenson, his music teacher, who identified with Myron because she also had had rheumatic fever. Dewey) and four sisters Valborg, Genevieve, Virginia, and Gloria. A first-generation American of Norwegian immigrant parentage, he grew up on a farm near Roslyn in Day County, South Dakota with two brothers Arlie and Duane (a.k.a. ( August 2017) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message)įloren was born to Ole and Tillie Florence. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources.