Samuel Siegel

American mandolin virtuoso and composer
Samuel Siegel, from a 1918 tour with William Foden and Frederick J. Bacon

Samuel Siegel (born 1875, Des Moines, Iowa — died January 14, 1948, Los Angeles, California) was an American mandolin virtuoso and composer who played mandolin on 29 records for Victor Records, including 9 pieces of his own composition and two that he arranged.[1][2][3][4][5] Siegel was the first mandolinist to record on Emile Berliner's phonograph disk-records.[4] He was labeled "America's Greatest Mandoline Virtuoso" and "The King of the Mandolin" in the May 1900 Banjo World.[4]

Siegel performed both in vaudeville, as well as in concert halls.[4] He had no formal training in music, but saw that the mandolin needed original music, rather than relying on the transcribed violin music.[4] His compositions and arrangements were well known in his day.[4]

He was the author of Siegel's Special Mandolin Studies, published by Joseph W. Stern & Co., 1901, in which he covered left-hand Pizzicato and harmonic duo style.[6][7]

Recording partners

Siegel recorded with Roy Butin in 1908 on four Victor records, the tunes: Southern Fantasy, Estellita Waltz, American Valor March, and In Fairyland.[8]

Samuel Siegel and Roy Butin play Gavotte
A 1909 Edison Amberol recording of Samuel Siegel on mandolin and Roy Butin on guitar
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He recorded Edison Diamond Disk record Ragtime Echoes in 1918 with Marie Caveny, with her on ukulele, and also Dance, Mouse Dance, and Medley.[9][10] Marie and her husband James Frank Caveny lived with Siegel as lodgers in Chicago during the 1910 United States Census.[11] They were performers or lecturers in the Lyceum movement.[12] James Franklin was a cartoonist and Marie sang soprano in their performance.[12]

Samuel Siegel and Marie Caveny play Ragtime Echoes, one of Siegel's compositions, recorded on an Edison Diamond Disk record
A 1918 recording with Samuel Siegel on mandolin and Marie Caveny on ukulele
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Victor recordings

1911 advertisement from The Cadenza for a class taught by Samuel Siegel
1902 advertisement for Samuel Siegel

Recorded for Victor records between October 20, 1900 and December 28, 1918.[1]

  • The foxhunters two-step
  • Espagnole waltz
  • Hawthorne club
  • Remembrance of thee
  • Medley of coon songs
  • Ma lady Lou
  • Volunteer patrol
  • American valor march
  • La bonita waltz
  • Romance
  • In olden times
  • Nearer my God to thee
  • Manzanillo
  • An autumn evening
  • A-sa-ma
  • Maritana mazurka
  • Navajo medley
  • La cinquantaine
  • Träumerei
  • Intermezzo
  • The whirlwind march
  • Boston Ideal march
  • Estellita waltz
  • American valor march
  • In Fairyland
  • Medley, (December 28, 1918) with Marie Caveny (ukulele)
  • Dance, (December 28, 1918) with Marie Caveny (ukulele)
  • Ragtime echoes, (December 28, 1918) with Marie Caveny (ukulele)
  • Mouse dance, (December 28, 1918) with Marie Caveny (ukulele)

Columbia Records

He made records for Columbia Records.[13]

  • La bonita waltz (1901), Samuel Siegel (mandolin)
  • Zenda waltz (1901), Samuel Siegel (mandolin)
  • Hawthorne Club (c 1904-1909), Samuel Siegel (mandolin)
  • Ivanhoe Intermezzo with Geo. Stehl & Hans Von Wegern
  • Mazurka Brillante

Edison recordings

He recorded for Edison Records on their Blue Amberol, Gold Moulded, and Diamond Disk albums.[10][13]

Gold Molded

  • Home, sweet home (1902), Samuel Siegel (mandolin)
  • Manzanilo (c. 1902), Samuel Siegel (mandolin)
  • The story teller waltz (1903), Samuel Siegel (mandolin)
  • My Old Kentucky Home (1903), Samuel Siegel (mandolin)
  • Just One Girl (1904), Samuel Siegel (mandolin)[14](Music written by Lynn Udall, 1898)
  • An autumn evening (1905), Samuel Siegel (mandolin) and M. Loyd Wolf (guitar)
  • Evening on the plaza (1905), Samuel Siegel (mandolin)

Blue Amberol

  • Castilian Echoes (1908), Samuel Siegel (mandolin) and William Smith (guitar)
  • Waltz (1909), Samuel Siegel (mandolin) and Roy H. Butin (guitar)
  • Gavotte (1909), Samuel Siegel (mandolin) and Roy H. Butin (guitar)
  • Waltz (1913), Samuel Siegel (mandolin) and Roy H. Butin (guitar)
  • Kuu ipo i ka hee pue one medley (1919), Samuel Siegel (mandolin) and Marie Caveny (ukulele)

Diamond

  • Ragtime Echoes (1918), Samuel Siegel (mandolin) and Marie Caveny (ukulele)

Indestructible Records

He made records marketed by the Indestructible Record Company.[13]

  • Estellita waltz (1908), Samuel Siegel (mandolin) and Roy Butin (guitar)
  • Southern fantasie (1908), Samuel Siegel (mandolin) and Roy Butin (guitar)

See also

  • List of mandolinists (sorted)

References

A 1902 advertisement for a concert tour for Samuel Siegel, from The Cadenza
  1. ^ a b Victor: Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings. "Samuel Siegel (instrumentalist: mandolin)". Retrieved 2014-07-07.
  2. ^ Victor: Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings. "Samuel Siegel (composer)". Retrieved 2014-07-07.
  3. ^ Victor: Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings. "Samuel Siegel (arranger)". Retrieved 2014-07-07.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Sparks, Paul (1995). The Classical Mandolin. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 123–125, 223. ISBN 978-0-19-517337-6.
  5. ^ J. Garber. "Rootsweb, Siegel-L-SamuelSamuel". Retrieved 2014-07-08.
  6. ^ Mair, Marilynn (2011). Complete Mandolinist. Mel Bay Publications. p. 4. ISBN 9781610653213.
  7. ^ Dalton, Jim (2006). Duo Style Mandolin (PDF). Sining String Music Publications. p. 3.
  8. ^ Gregg Miner. "Roy Butin, Revealed!". Retrieved 2014-07-20.
  9. ^ Victor Records, Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings, Miss M. Caveny (instrumentalist: ukulele)
  10. ^ a b National Park Service, Thomas Edison National Historic Park, New Jersey, Popular Instrumental, Ragtime
  11. ^ United States Census, Year: 1910; Census Place: Chicago Ward 25, Cook, Illinois; Roll: T624_268; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 1057; FHL microfilm: 1374281
  12. ^ a b The Lyceumite Art and Talent, Their Art Appeals to Eye and Ear, Why J. Franklin Caveny Has Been Thirteen Years on the Platform and How Mrs. Caveny Completes the Pictures. A Glimpse of Two Artists in the Art of "Making Good"
  13. ^ a b c Cylinder Preservation and Digitization Project, Department of Special Collections, Donald C. Davidson Library, University of California, Santa Barbara
  14. ^ YouTube video of Just One Girl by Samuel Siegel, showing the recording case and label

External links

  • Works by Samuel Siegel at Project Gutenberg
  • Works by or about Samuel Siegel at Internet Archive
  • Samuel Siegel recordings at the Discography of American Historical Recordings.
  • Library of Congress record listing digitized recordings in their collection by Siegel
  • Library of Congress record and online stream of Navajo Medley, arranged and played by Siegel
  • Library of Congress record for a recording Siegel made of his arrangement of Nearer My God to Thee
  • Mandolin Cafe thread with pictures of a program of music in which Siegel played
  • Cylinder preservation and Digitization Project, University of California, has digitized Siegel public-domain recordings and made available to download.
  • Advertisement for Siegel's mandolin method
  • Mandotopia page, has links to public domain book of mandolin music, arranged by Siegel
  • A recital program cover for Samuel Siegel
  • Website for a mandolin teacher which contains one page of Siegel's method book
  • Endorsement by Samuel Siegel of Regal mandolins. also details of one of his transcontinental tours
  • Advertisement for Siegel's music school, the Siegel–Myers School of Music (then also named University Extension Conservatory)
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