The Comedian Harmonists was an internationally famous, all-male German ensemble (5 singers plus pianist) that operated between 1927 and 1934. They were one of the most successful 20th century musical groups in Europe before World War II and were noted for using their voices to imitate musical instruments.
Members
History
In 1927, unemployed actor Harry Frommermann was inspired by The Revelers, a United States jazz-influenced popular vocal group, and wished to create a German group of the same format. Frommermann held auditions for parts, and once the group was assembled, quickly began rehearsal. After some initial failures, the Harmonists soon found success, becoming popular throughout Europe. They also toured the United States and starred in 12 films.
The Comedian Harmonists were heavily influenced by U.S. hot pop music and jazz, with the influence of early Mills Brothers being particularly strong in many of their recordings.
Their success continued into the early 1930s, but they eventually ran into trouble with newly-risen Nazi regime. Half the group members--Frommermann, Collin, and Cycowski--were either Jewish or of Jewish descent, and Bootz had a Jewish wife. Initially they were only forbidden from performing pieces by Jewish composers. Eventually, though, they were officially banned from performing in public. They gave their last concert in Munich on March 25, 1934. The three Jewish members subsequently fled Germany. The remaining members then replaced their counterparts and performed as separate groups, but were never able to re-achieve their original success.
However, the emigrant group, which performed under the names "Comedian Harmonists" and "Comedy Harmonists" enjoyed extensive success in Australia throughout the 1930s. In 1940, the group traveled to the United States for a tour, and, due to unsafe waters, were unable to return to Australia. German performers were unpopular in the United States during the war, and the group was not able to get a lot of work; they disbanded in 1941.
The German group, which was forced to rename themselves "Das Meistersextett", as not to have an English-language name, did not fare as well as the emigrants. Frequent political in-fighting and heavy censorship crippled their act. Members were drafted into the German army, and finally, they, too, disbanded in 1941.
The group was largely forgotten until filmmaker Eberhard Fechner created a four-hour black and white television documentary, interviewing the surviving group members. The documentary aired over two nights in German in 1975, and caused a resurgence of interest in the music of the Comedian Harmonists. Their old records were released on vinyl, and sold well. Royalties from these record sales provided some much-needed income for the aging Harmonists, who were then scattered throughout the world.
The King's Singers recorded their music in the 1980's "A Tribute To The Comedian Harmonists". In 1997, a German biopic, Comedian Harmonists (The Harmonists in the United States) was released. The musical scores in the movie were all original recordings, lip synched by the actors.
Since then, two Broadway shows about the Comedian Harmonists have been attempted, and there are many imitator groups.
Popular songs
- "Creole Love Call" by Duke Ellington
- Die Dorfmusik ("The Village Music")
- Ein bißchen Leichtsinn kann nicht schaden ("A Little Carelessness Can't Hurt")
- Hallo, was machst Du heut', Daisy? ("Hello, What Are You Doing Today, Daisy?")
- In einem kühlen Grunde ("In A Cool Place")
- Irgendwo auf der Welt ("Somewhere In the World")
- Kannst du pfeifen, Johanna? ("Do You Know How to Whistle, Johanna?")
- Mein kleiner grüner Kaktus ("My Little Green Cactus")
- Schöne Lisa, süße Lisa ("Beautiful Lisa, Sweet Lisa")
- Veronika, der Lenz ist da ("Veronika, Spring Has Come")
- Wochenend und Sonnenschein ("Weekend and Sunshine")
- Schöne Isabella aus Kastilien ("Pretty Isabel from Castile")
External links
- Comedian Harmonists at the Internet Movie Database
- Comedian Harmonists (movie) entry at the Internet Movie Database
- Fan page currently in German only, English promised to follow
- History and pictures
- Discography
- Links to audio samples
- The Web's Resources for The Comedian Harmonists Lyrics, photos, discography, and more.