
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]
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]
Victor recordings


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
References

- 1 2 Victor: Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings. "Samuel Siegel (instrumentalist: mandolin)". Retrieved 2014-07-07.
 - ↑ Victor: Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings. "Samuel Siegel (composer)". Retrieved 2014-07-07.
 - ↑ Victor: Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings. "Samuel Siegel (arranger)". Retrieved 2014-07-07.
 - 1 2 3 4 5 6 Sparks, Paul (1995). The Classical Mandolin. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 123–125, 223. ISBN 978-0-19-517337-6.
 - ↑ J. Garber. "Rootsweb, Siegel-L-SamuelSamuel". Retrieved 2014-07-08.
 - ↑ Mair, Marilynn (2011). Complete Mandolinist. Mel Bay Publications. p. 4. ISBN 9781610653213.
 - ↑ Dalton, Jim (2006). Duo Style Mandolin (PDF). Sining String Music Publications. p. 3.
 - ↑ Gregg Miner. "Roy Butin, Revealed!". Retrieved 2014-07-20.
 - ↑ Victor Records, Encyclopedic Discography of Victor Recordings, Miss M. Caveny (instrumentalist: ukulele)
 - 1 2 National Park Service, Thomas Edison National Historic Park, New Jersey, Popular Instrumental, Ragtime
 - ↑ United States Census, Year: 1910; Census Place: Chicago Ward 25, Cook, Illinois; Roll: T624_268; Page: 3A; Enumeration District: 1057; FHL microfilm: 1374281
 - 1 2 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"
 - 1 2 3 Cylinder Preservation and Digitization Project, Department of Special Collections, Donald C. Davidson Library, University of California, Santa Barbara
 - ↑ 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)