ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A tribute to the band ABBA featuring musicians and singers from that group’s native Sweden is coming to Allentown’s Miller Symphony Hall, according to online listings.
Also coming is a tribute to the band Chicago.
Symphony Hall has not announced the show by Direct from Sweden: The Music of ABBA, which concert industry website Pollstar.com lists for July 18, nor does the group list it on its website.
Tickets for Brass Transit, which describes itself as “The Musical Legacy of Chicago,” are on sale on the Miller Symphony Hall website at $25-$74.
MillerSymphonyHall.org
But Symphony Hall Marketing Director Lori Beneyton confirmed the venue is working on shows for 2 and 7:30 p.m. that day.
“While we do not have a fully executed contract for the ABBA Tribute group in July 2026, we are in the process of completing it,” Beneyton said in an email.
Ticket prices and on-sale dates have not been announced. Beneyton said shows for Miller Symphony Hall’s next season usually are released around Feb. 1.
But the July 12 show by Brass Transit, which describes itself as “The Musical Legacy of Chicago,” is listed on the Miller Symphony Hall website, and tickets are for sale at $25-$74.
Sweden’s biggest musical act
The website for Direct from Sweden: The Music of ABBA describes it as “A fun colorful family show, all the way from Sweden.”
“With hits like ‘Mamma Mia,’ ‘Waterloo,’ ‘Fernando’ and ‘Dancing Queen,’ ABBA, Sweden’s biggest music export group ever, made their way into the hearts of people all around the world,” the website says.
“We will give you the closest ABBA experience you’re ever going to get with some of the most experienced and talented musicians and singers from Sweden.”
www.sosabba.com
“We will give you the closest ABBA experience you’re ever going to get with some of the most experienced and talented musicians and singers from Sweden in a tribute that will bring you down memory lane through stunning, mirroring images of their stage costumes, hairstyles and voices.”
ABBA indeed was Sweden’s biggest musical act ever — and is the No. 10 best-selling musical group of all time, with a certified 72.2 million albums sold and a worldwide estimate of 150 million.
It released seven gold and platinum albums in the United States, with its 1992 album “ABBA Gold” selling six times platinum.
Making those numbers more amazing is that the group had a recording career of only eight years — 1973-81 — before it returned in 2021 with “Voyage,” its first album of new material in 40 years. That disc gave ABBA its highest-charting U.S. album at No. 2.
ABBA had 13 Top 40 hits in the United States, with “Dancing Queen” as its only No. 1 hit and 1981’s “When All is Said and Done” being its last.
Distributed by Brass Transit
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‘Spectacular attention to detail’
Brass Transit’s website says that since 2008, it has “toured North America steadily, dazzling audiences with flawless performances and spectacular attention to detail.”
It says it plays “hits like ‘Saturday In The Park,’ ’25 or 6 To 4,’ ‘If You Leave Me Now,’ ‘Feelin’ Stronger Every Day’ and ‘You’re The Inspiration.”
“Brass Transit goes far beyond just replicating the songs; they embody the music.”
www.brasstransit.com
But “Brass Transit goes far beyond just replicating the songs; they embody the music,” it says.
Chicago is one of the longest-running and most successful rock bands of all time.
The group is among the Top 30 best-selling music acts of all time with more than 120 million copies of its 46 albums sold worldwide.
Chicago was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2016.
Billboard magazine says that besides The Beach Boys, Chicago is the second-most successful American rock group of all time.
The group has had 37 Top 20 hits in its 46-year career, eight of which went to No. 1 — “If You Leave Me Now,” “Hard to Say I’m Sorry,” “Look Away,” “Here in My Heart,” “You’re the Inspiration,” “Wishing You Were Here,” “Call on Me” and “Beginnings.”
“If You Leave Me Now” won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group in 1977.
In addition, Chicago had the iconic hits “Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is” and “Colour My World.”
In all, it has had 22 gold and 18 platinum albums, five of which went to No. 1. Its album “Chicago 17” in 1984 was its biggest seller, with 6 million copies.
At one point Chicago had five consecutive No. 1 albums. It is the first American band to chart Top 40 albums in five different decades.
Its latest studio album, “Chicago XXXVIII: Born for This Moment,” was released in 2022. In addition to its 38 studio albums, it also has released nearly 20 live and compilation discs.
In all, it has won five Grammy Awards and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2014.
