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25-649: The name "American Quartet" was first used on some recordings around 1899 by the group that became more widely known as the Haydn Quartet - that is, John Bieling, Jere Mahoney, S. H. Dudley , and William F. Hooley. That line-up recorded for Edison Records as the Edison Male Quartet, for Berliner as the Haydn Quartet, and for other companies as the American Quartet. After Harry Macdonough replaced Mahoney,

50-795: A contract with the Victor Talking Machine Company , and in 1902 also traveled to the UK to record for the Gramophone Company , which was Victor's affiliate. The group had great success over the next decade as one of the premier recording groups of the time, on a par with the Peerless Quartet . The Haydn Quartet often sang material at a slower tempo and in a statelier fashion than other groups. The ensemble also performed vaudeville and minstrel show songs, one of which, "The Camp Meeting Jubilee", released in 1904 as Victor no. 4003, includes

75-483: A group that is still recording today. Artists like The Beatles and Simon & Garfunkel used close harmony, echoing their chosen role-models, The Everly Brothers . The Louvin Brothers were a duo that used close harmony in the genre of country music . Barbershop harmony has a unique harmonic structure: the melody is in the 2nd tenor or "lead" voice, while the 1st tenor takes the next part up, usually in 3rds, with

100-483: A much lower level than previously. Some of the group's later recordings were recorded by Murray with Porter, Young and Chalmers, rather than with the new line-up. The group's final recording, " Alabamy Bound ", was recorded in 1925, just before Victor switched from acoustic to electrical recording; the Quartet did not record with the new technology. Haydn Quartet (vocal ensemble) The Haydn Quartet , later known as

125-638: A new group, the American Quartet , in 1910, with Murray, Bieling and Hooley from the Haydn Quartet, and baritone Steve Porter . The group's name was spelled Hayden after 1910. The quartet disbanded in 1914. As well as members participating in the American Quartet, Macdonough and Hooley, together with Reinald Werranrath and tenor Lambert Murphy, also formed the Orpheus Quartet, who recorded successfully until 1919. In his book Pop Memories 1890-1954 , music archivist and statistician Joel Whitburn assessed

150-579: A variety of sources such as Talking Machine World ' s lists of top-selling recordings, and Billboard ' s sheet music and vaudeville charts, to estimate the most successful recordings of the period. He concluded that the Haydn Quartet had 62 " top ten " hits in all between 1898 and 1914, and in the decade 1900-1909 had more successful recordings than any other group, behind only Macdonough and Murray, who recorded as solo artists in addition to their group performances. Although Whitburn's methods of assessment have been criticized, this confirms that

175-427: A very early recorded use of the phrase "rockin' and rollin'", albeit used with a spiritual rather than secular connotation. Recordings credited to the Haydn Quartet began to be phased out in 1908. After that time, Billy Murray frequently sang lead with the group, and S. H. Dudley was often replaced by Reinald Werrenrath . Following the successful collaborations between Murray and the Haydn Quartet, Victor organized

200-551: A victim of the 1918 flu pandemic . The group continued thereafter, with Hooley replaced by bass singer Donald Chalmers who, like Young, had been a member of the Criterion Quartet. After Murray's exclusive contract with Victor expired, the group of Murray, Porter, Young and Chalmers recorded for many companies, including Edison, Columbia , and Okeh , before retiring as a recording entity in 1920. Singer and entrepreneur Henry Burr then proposed that Murray should replace him in

225-601: The Hayden Quartet , was one of the most popular recording close harmony quartets in the early twentieth century. It was originally formed in 1896 as the Edison Quartet to record for Edison Records ; it took its new name when recording for other companies. The name was a homage to Joseph Haydn , the classical composer; the spelling was later revised to Hayden, which reflects the way it was pronounced. The group disbanded in 1914. The Haydn Quartet originally formed under

250-466: The 1930s. Close harmony singing was especially popular in the 1940s with pop and R&B groups using the technique quite frequently. The Andrews Sisters also capitalized on a similar style with swing music . Many gospel and soul groups in the 1950s and 60s also used this technique, usually 3- or 4-part SSAA or TTBB harmony with one person (either bass or lead) doing a call-and-response type lead. Examples of this are The Blind Boys of Alabama ,

275-521: The Haydn Quartet (in which they continued to sing), and Steve Porter from the Peerless Quartet . Their debut release, "Denver Town", in the then-popular " cowboy song " genre, was released in February 1909 and, like many of the group's recordings, was arranged (and in this case co-written) by George L. Botsford. The group also recorded the song for Edison, where it was credited to the Premier Quartette;

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300-473: The Peerless Quartet, and that the new group - Murray, Albert Campbell, John H. Meyer, and Frank Croxton - should record for Victor, as the American Quartet. This was agreed; the group signed exclusively to Victor, with Murray and Burr receiving $ 35,000 each per year, and Campbell, Meyer, and Croxton $ 10,000 each. The new group had some success with songs such as "In The Little Red School House" (1922), but at

325-413: The baritone and bass voices supporting. The bass line tends to be more rhythmic and covers the root notes of the harmonic progression, providing more "support" and independence than in classical vocal music, since Barbershop is usually sung a cappella. Barbershop can be sung by people of any gender. Public domain pieces, such as " Sweet Adeline ", and newer pieces are abundant. National organizations promote

350-430: The chords have four or more notes and the harmonies are more complex. In jazz , this influence flowered in the works of George Gershwin and Duke Ellington . A well-known example of consistent instrumental close harmony is Glenn Miller 's " Moonlight Serenade " which uses the full range of single-reed wind instruments (soprano clarinet, alto, tenor, and baritone saxophones) to make a distinctive sound by harmonizing

375-464: The different sections all within a single octave. Miller studied the Schillinger technique with Joseph Schillinger , who is credited with helping Miller create the "Miller sound", and under whose tutelage he himself composed what became his signature theme, "Moonlight Serenade". In organ performance, block harmony means that close position chords are added below the melody in the right hand, and

400-689: The group in mid-1913 because of the strain on his voice, which worsened when he was required to make "cowboy whoops" on some records. He was replaced by Robert D. Armour, a young tenor from Mobile, Alabama . Armour then left in mid-1915, and was replaced by John Young, who had previously recorded under the name Harry Anthony . The group continued to make successful recordings, including "Rebecca of Sunny-brook Farm" (1914), " It's A Long, Long Way To Tipperary " (1914), " Chinatown, My Chinatown " (1915), " Oh Johnny, Oh Johnny, Oh! " (1917), " Over There " (1917), and "Turkestan" (1919). William Hooley died in October 1918,

425-423: The group were one of the most popular of their era. Close harmony A chord is in close harmony (also called close position or close structure ) if its notes are arranged within a narrow range , usually with no more than an octave between the top and bottom notes. In contrast, a chord is in open harmony (also called open position or open structure ) if there is more than an octave between

450-480: The melody in thirds or sixths . Origins of this style of singing are found in harmonies of the 1800s in America. Early radio quartets continued this tradition. Female harmonists, like The Boswell Sisters (" Mood Indigo ", 1933) and The Hamilton Sisters and Fordyce ("Who? You That's Who!", 1927), who then became Three X Sisters , performed and recorded this style in the 1920s, and continued it on commercial radio of

475-588: The more traditional TTBB or SSAA 4-part structure, but with heavy use of solos and call-and-response, which is rooted in the African American church. These groups sometimes sang a cappella but also used instrumental backing, especially when recorded by the bigger labels. Pop music and doo-wop can be seen as a commercialization of this genre. Impressionist composers like Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel often used close harmony in their works and other intervals, such as 7ths, 9ths, and 11ths may be used since

500-457: The music with local chapters in many communities. Soul and gospel groups flourished in America in the years after World War II, building on the foundation of blues, 1930s gospel songs and big band music. Originally called " race music " by white mainstream radio and its target market, it was the precursor to rock and roll and rhythm and blues of the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, influencing many English and American artists of that era. They often used

525-552: The name "Edison Quartet" in 1896, with a membership of John Bieling ( tenor ), Jere Mahoney (tenor), Samuel Holland Rous (who performed under the name S. H. Dudley , baritone ), and William F. Hooley ( bass ). Mahoney was soon replaced by John Scantlebury Macdonald, who used the pseudonym Harry Macdonough . They recorded as the Edison Quartet (or Edison Male Quartet), before taking the name Haydn Quartet in order to record for companies other than Edison. In 1901 they signed

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550-425: The name was used by Edison on some of the group's recordings. Another line-up credited with the same name comprised Albert C. Campbell , W. T. Leahy, Dudley, and Hooley, on recordings for Victor from 1901. The best known line-up of the quartet was formed in 1909, when Victor Records needed a vehicle for their new singing star, Billy Murray. They formed a group around Murray, with Bieling and Hooley brought in from

575-466: The record company claimed that Will Oakland sang on the record rather than Macdonough, but according to Jim Walsh this was probably an error. In 1910, the group recorded " Casey Jones ", with Victor Records orchestra leader Walter B. Rogers temporarily replacing Steve Porter. The song was very successful, "perhaps the first recording to sell over a million copies in American music history". "Casey Jones"

600-439: The top and bottom notes. The more general term spacing describes how far apart the notes in a chord are voiced. A triad in close harmony has compact spacing, while one in open harmony has wider spacing. Close harmony or voicing can refer to both instrumental and vocal arrangements. It can follow the standard voice-leading rules of classical harmony, as in string quartets or Bach chorales , or proceed in parallel motion with

625-431: Was also recorded by Billy Murray, with a chorus, for Edison Records as one of their " Blue Amberol " series. The group's recordings became hugely popular, their other early successes including "Call Me Up Some Rainy Afternoon" (with Ada Jones , 1910), " Come, Josephine, In My Flying Machine " (also with Jones, 1911), " Oh, You Beautiful Doll " (1911), " Moonlight Bay " (1912), and "Everybody Two-Step" (1912). Bieling left

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