Description

REINALD WERRENRATH (BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, AUGUST 7, 1883 – PLATTSBURGH, NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 12, 1953)

 

 

 

 

Reinald Werrenrath was an American baritone and opera singer who also recorded popular songs and appeared regularly on radio during the early decades of the twentieth century. He often used the pseudonym Edward Hamilton.

Born in Brooklyn, New York, he was the son of George Werrenrath, a Danish-born operatic tenor. Reinald studied at New York University and made his operatic debut in 1907 in Die Meistersinger. That same year, he began recording for Edison Records before embarking on a long association with the Victor Talking Machine Company. Between 1906 and 1929, he made several hundred recordings for Victor, both as a soloist and as a member of ensembles such as the Orpheus Quartet and the Victor Opera Quartet. Among his most successful recordings were “As Long as the World Rolls On” (1907), “Hello Frisco!” (from Ziegfeld Follies of 1915), and “Smilin’ Through” (1919).

Werrenrath made his Metropolitan Opera debut in 1919 in Pagliacci, in a cast that included Enrico Caruso. He toured extensively and gave more than 3,000 concert performances. He was also one of the earliest singing stars to appear regularly on radio, notably on station WEAF in New York. In 1930, he made a private recording of Christmas greetings accompanied by Harpo Marx and others. Two years later, he joined the music staff of NBC, and in his later years devoted himself mainly to teaching, primarily at the Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, Maryland. He also operated a summer music school at Chazy Lake, New York.

Werrenrath was married three times. He died on September 12, 1953, in Plattsburgh, New York, after suffering a heart attack while at Chazy Lake. His residence there, Werrenrath Camp, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2010.

 

 

TRACKLIST

 

 

Don Juan’s serenade (Tchaikovsky) Victor 16981 B-10400 5-15-1911

Dreaming alone in the twilight (Moore) Victor 64843 B-23444 10-28-1919

Drink to me only with thine eyes Old English (Jonson) Victor 45114-A B-18942 12-28-1916

Drumadoon (Sanderson) Victor 1072 B-29222 12-27-1923

Euridice (Peri) Non piango e non sospiro Victor 45069 B-15526 12-17-1914

Euridice (Peri) Funeste piagge Victor 55051 C-15643 1-29-1915

Every little movement (Hoschna) Victor 5784 B-9333 7-28-1910

Face to Face (Johnson) Victor 1120-A 1120A 8-4-1925

Faust (Gounod) Even bravest heart Victor 55079 C-18152 7-26-1916

Flag of my heart (Ferrari) Victor 45124 B-19856 4-30-1917

Follow me (Nathaniel Dett) Victor 6472 C-28892 12-27-1923

Forza del destino (Verdi) Solenne in quest’ora (w. Murphy) Victor 70103 C-12174 7-10-1912

Freedom for all forever (Hilliam) Victor 45151 B-21616 3-19-1918

Fuzzy-Wuzzy (Athur Whiting) Victor 45109-B B-15830 3-25-1915

Goin’ home (Dvořák) Victor 74815 C-27953 5-11-1923

Guide thou my steps (Cherubini) Victor 55075 C-17535 4-21-1916

Gypsy love song (Herbert) Victor 64897 B-10401 5-15-1911

Heart o’ mine (Herbert) Victor 1055 B-30986 10-9-1924

Heaven at the end of the road (Osgood) Victor 66145 B-27334 12-20-1922

Hérodiade (Massenet) Vision fugitive Victor 74610 9-11-1916