School of Rock
Random article All articles A–Z
2 languages

Irving Berlin

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Irving Berlin was born in 1888 as Israel Beilin, probably in Tyumen in Siberia, in the Russian Empire. In 1893 his Jewish family arrived in New York via Ellis Island. Berlin became one of the great names of Tin Pan Alley, the street of music publishers in Manhattan. He is an example of the writer as star: not the singer, but the maker of the song came first.

Music and breakthrough

As a boy Berlin sold newspapers and worked as a singing waiter. In 1907 his first published song appeared. The breakthrough came in 1911 with Alexander's Ragtime Band. About a million copies of the sheet music were sold that year, and another million the year after. Despite the title it is more a march than a rag, with little syncopation. Berlin could hardly read music and played the piano only in F-sharp major. For other keys he used a transposing piano. In sixty years he is estimated to have written 1,500 songs, for sheet music, Broadway and Hollywood.

Influence

He wrote White Christmas for the film Holiday Inn (1942). Bing Crosby's version is estimated to have sold more than fifty million copies, more than any other single. The song won an Oscar. He also wrote God Bless America (1938) and the musical Annie Get Your Gun (1946), with There's No Business Like Show Business. Berlin died in 1989 in New York, aged 101.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Alexander's Ragtime Band in Louis Armstrong's 1937 version. Berlin's melody moves like a march, with little syncopation. Notice how Armstrong and his orchestra nevertheless put swing into it.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

Mentioned in other articles

See also

Sources

  1. Wikipedia (en): Irving Berlin
  2. Wikipedia (en): Alexander's Ragtime Band
  3. Wikipedia (en): White Christmas (song
Categories: ArtistsTin Pan AlleyFilmmusical