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

 

 

The Little Old Log Cabin in the Lane (Hayes) Victor 1159-B 1159B 4-30-1926

The little shawl of blue (Hewitt) Victor 66087 B-25718 10-14-1921

The Lord is my shepherd (Smart) (w. Miller) Victor 16869 B-9826 1-19-1911

The lost chord (Sullivan) Victor 45089 B-10948 9-14-1911

The Palms (Faure) Victor 45089-A B-17243 3-2-1916

The Prisoner’s Song (Massey) Victor 1159-A BVE-35405 4-15-1926

The radiance in your eyes (Novello) Victor 45155-B B-21615 3-19-1918

The Song Is Ended (Berlin) Victor 1310-B 1310B 1928

The star spangled banner (Scott Key) Victor 45135 B-20316 7-3-1917

The Watch on the Rhine (Wilhelm) Victor 16882-A B-10427 5-22-1911

The world is waiting for the sunrise (Seitz) Victor 951 B-27708 3-26-1923

There’s sunlight in your eyes (Harling) Victor 64987 B-25502 7-22-1921

Think love of me (Grey) Victor 45166-B B-21966 6-4-1918

Tommy lad (Margetson) Victor 45101 B-18153 7-26-1916

Vittoria, mio core! (Carissimi) Victor 17703-A B-15219 9-24-1914

When the nightingale shall sing (de Coucy) Victor 17290 B-12856 1-29-1913

When you were sweet sixteen (Thornton) Victor 991 B-27952 5-11-1923

Where my dear lady sleeps (Breville-Smith) Victor 66018 B-25564 9-16-1921

Who is Sylvia (Schubert) Victor 17634-A B-15030 7-2-1914

Your flag and my flag (Nesbit) Victor 45124 B-20001 5-28-1917