George Hamilton Green
George Hamilton Green Jr. (May 23, 1893 – September 11, 1970) was a xylophonist, composer, and cartoonist born in Omaha, Nebraska. He was born into a musical family, both his grandfather and his father being composers, arrangers, and conductors for bands in Omaha. His father was the conductor of an army band and growing up in his house, he had access to many musical instruments. From age four G.H. Green showed a prodigious talent as a pianist; he then took up the xylophone and by the age of eleven was being promoted as the “world’s greatest xylophonist” and was playing for crowds of 7,000-10,000. In 1915, when Green was 22 years old, a review in the United States Musician stated: "He has begun where every other xylophone player left off. His touch, his attack, his technique, and his powers of interpretation in the rendition of his solos being far different than other performers. To say his work is marvelous and wonderful would not fully express it." George Hamilton Green wrote several pieces for solo ragtime xylophone with accompaniment, as well as a xylophone method book which continues to be used by percussion pedagogues across the country. Some of his compositions for xylophone include: "Ragtime Robin", "Cross Corners", "Charleston Capers", "Rainbow Ripples", "Log Cabin Blues", "The Whistler", "Chromatic Fox Trot", and "Jovial Jasper" for piano and xylophone because of his experience on both instruments. He was a popular recording artist starting in 1916 with the Edison Company and was employed, along with his two brothers, Joe and Lew Green, as the original sound music crew for Walt Disney's first three cartoons. According to Nathaniel Shilkret, Green was not only a "wonderful xylophone artist," but an inventor. Shilkret said that Green designed the vibraharp at Shilkret's request. Green was an important ragtime composer and authored many pieces that remain standards for the instrument even today. He retired from performing in the late 1940s to pursue a successful career in cartooning. Green would die in 1970, just a few years before a revival in the popularity of his ragtime xylophone music, and before his induction into the Percussive Arts Society Hall of Fame in 1983 The rebirth of his music was led by members of the NEXUS Percussion Ensemble in the late 1970s. Through their efforts, G.H. Green's xylophone music has been preserved and remains a relevant part of contemporary percussion pedagogy and performance. |
Birth and Death Data: Born May 23, 1893 (Omaha), Died 1970
Date Range of DAHR Recordings: 1916 - 1934
Roles Represented in DAHR: xylophone, composer, vibraphone, marimba, arranger, celeste, leader, percussion, bells, lyricist, songwriter, drums
= Recordings are available for online listening.
= Recordings were issued from this master. No recordings issued from other masters.
Recordings (Results 226-250 of 355 records)
Company | Matrix No. | Size | First Recording Date | Title | Primary Performer | Description | Role | Audio |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Brunswick | 8109-8110 | 10-in. | approximately May 1922 | A bunch of roses | George Hamilton Green | Xylophone solo, with orchestra | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | 8275-8276 | 10-in. | approximately June 1922 | General Boulanger march | George Hamilton Green | Bells solo, with orchestra | instrumentalist, bells | |
Brunswick | 13884-13886 | 10-in. | 10/7/1924 | Waiting for the dawn and you | Allen McQuhae | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | 13889-13890 | 10-in. | 10/7/1924 | Where the rainbow ends | Allen McQuhae | Male vocal solo, with orchestra | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | 14749-14751 | 10-in. | 1/29/1925 | Let me call you sweetheart | Ernest Hare ; Billy Jones | Male vocal duet, with orchestra | instrumentalist, vibraphone | |
Brunswick | 14799-14801 | 10-in. | 2/4/1925 | Triplets | George Hamilton Green | Xylophone solo, with piano | instrumentalist, xylophone, composer | |
Brunswick | 14802-14805 | 10-in. | 2/4/1925 | Log cabin blues | George Hamilton Green | Xylophone solo, with piano | instrumentalist, xylophone, composer | |
Brunswick | 14853-14855 | 10-in. | 2/7/1925 | Hawaiian ripples | Castlewood Marimba Band | Marimba band | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | 14917-14920 | 10-in. | 2/14/1925 | The whistler | George Hamilton Green | Xylophone solo, with piano | instrumentalist, xylophone, composer | |
Brunswick | 14921-14924 | 10-in. | 2/14/1925 | Triplets | George Hamilton Green | Xylophone solo, with piano | instrumentalist, xylophone, composer | |
Brunswick | E1744-E1746 | 10-in. | 11/17/1925 | Meet me tonight in Dreamland | Miami Marimba Band [Castlewood Marimba Band] | Marimba band | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E1803-E1804 | 10-in. | 11/23/1925 | I'd love to live in Loveland with a girl like you | Castlewood Marimba Band | Marimba band | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E2068-E2070 | 10-in. | 1/7/1926 | Someone to love | Castlewood Marimba Band | Marimba band | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E3355-E3357 | 10-in. | 7/1/1926 | Ting-a-ling | Meximarimba Band | Marimba band | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E3358-E3360 | 10-in. | 7/1/1926 | Am I wasting my time on you? | Meximarimba Band | Marimba band | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E3423-E3425 | 10-in. | 7/15/1926 | Kentucky lullaby | Meximarimba Band | Marimba band, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E3426-E3428 | 10-in. | 7/15/1926 | Cheritza | Meximarimba Band | Marimba band, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E3652-E3653 | 10-in. | 8/31/1926 | Trail of dreams | Miami Marimba Band | Marimba band, with male vocal solo | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E3654-E3655 | 10-in. | 8/31/1926 | My Hawaiian serenade | Miami Marimba Band | Marimba band, with male vocal duet | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E3746-E3747 | 10-in. | 9/9/1926 | Blame it on the waltz | Miami Marimba Band | Marimba band, with male vocal trio | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E3748-E3749 | 10-in. | 9/9/1926 | In a little Spanish town ('Twas on a night like this) | Miami Marimba Band | Marimba band, with male vocal trio | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E3860-E3861 | 10-in. | 9/28/1926 | Blame it on the waltz | Miami Marimba Band | Marimba band, with male vocal trio | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E3862-E3863 | 10-in. | 9/28/1926 | In a little Spanish town ('Twas on a night like this) | Castlewood Marimba Band | Marimba band, with male vocal trio | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E16372-E16374 | 10-in. | 9/11/1925 | Garland of old-fashioned roses | Castlewood Marimba Band | Marimba band | instrumentalist, xylophone | |
Brunswick | E16899-E16901 | 10-in. | 11/14/1925 | Carolina sweetheart | Castlewood Marimba Band | Marimba band | instrumentalist, xylophone |
Citation
Discography of American Historical Recordings, s.v. "Green, George Hamilton," accessed October 31, 2024, https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/104861.
Green, George Hamilton. (2024). In Discography of American Historical Recordings. Retrieved October 31, 2024, from https://adpprod1.library.ucsb.edu/names/104861.
"Green, George Hamilton." Discography of American Historical Recordings. UC Santa Barbara Library, 2024. Web. 31 October 2024.
DAHR Persistent Identifier
Linked Open Data Sources
LCNAR: Green, George Hamilton, 1893-1970 - http://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n85072593
Wikidata: George Hamilton Green - http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q5540185
VIAF: http://viaf.org/viaf/105139051
MusicBrainz: George Hamilton Green - https://musicbrainz.org/artist/ad8bc914-efba-40e3-9ed2-fbc5673dcb24
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