Lester Lanin , who has died aged 97, was a "society" bandleader called upon to perform at the smartest parties on both sides of the Atlantic.

He provided the music for the Queen's 60th birthday; he played at the wedding of the Prince and Princess of Wales, for which he wrote the tune My Lady Love; and he brought over his orchestra to serenade the Queen Mother on her 100th birthday. In addition, his presence was required at every presidential inauguration from President Eisenhower to Bill Clinton, except for that of Jimmy Carter (who thought him too expensive).

A Lanin evening usually began with Cole Porter's Night and Day, and provided a bouncy yet tasteful mixture that included swing, Dixieland and rock 'n' roll; occasional slower numbers would be interspersed when he recognised that the dancers' mood was changing by the way their feet were moving.

Lanin would play until 5.30 am, if required. One American plutocrat, Charles Tandy, pressed wads of money into Lanin's hand to keep the music going. When the last chord was finally played, Tandy collapsed on the dance floor; he died the following day.

Nathaniel Lester Lanin was born at Philadelphia on August 26 1907, the youngest of 10 boys. His grandfather was a bandleader who used to travel by horse-drawn carriage; his father was also a bandleader, as were six of Lester's brothers; one, Sam, was known as "the Toscanini of the dance orchestra".

Lester first wanted to be a lawyer, but began piano and drums at five and, on leaving school at 15, he played for his brothers. He then started booking musicians, such as Louis Armstrong and the Dorsey Brothers, for them and other bandleaders.

Although Lanin later restricted himself to fronting his own band, he played the drums so loudly in his early days that some musicians were put off joining him. He traced his success as a leader from the coming-out party for the Woolworth heiress Barbara Hutton in 1930. From then on, he steadily built up a reputation; his Pink Petal Waltz, written for the New York Junior League in 1948, was one of the pieces that made him a firm favourite for weddings, charity balls and supper clubs across America.

From the late 1960s he was also a firm favourite in Britain, playing for the Royal Family and others. Not the least reason for his popularity was that he specialised in medleys which enabled dancers of all ages to jig, jive, waltz and quickstep. To give extra pep, he would distribute small hats with his name on them, which could be seen late in an evening adorning heads of great dignity.

At one time Lanin had some 12 bands on the road; and even when he died on October 27 he had two still in action. By 1992, he calculated that he had played at some 20,000 wedding receptions and 7,500 parties, and had released more than 30 long-playing records.

Claiming that he could manage with one hour's sleep a night, Lanin kept tight control of his band. He never danced in later life, and was so rarely seen to leave the stand that President Kennedy once asked if he ever went "to the bathroom".

He advised aspirant leaders: "Whoever you play for, try and make sure you are part and parcel of something happy. So, if the woman whose party it was sees you on the street 15 years from now, she'll say `Lester, you made my party'."

Lester Lanin was briefly married to Marilynn Weiss, an actress and former Miss Texas. He attributed his longevity to swearing off drinking, smoking and sex.