QUESTIONS:
1-How did ragtime music contribute to the development of barbershop harmony?
2-Two ragtime smash hits from the turn of the 20th century became beloved barbershop chestnuts, one of which is sung by the Blue Chip Chorus to this day. Name them.
3- From the perspective of the history of American popular music, what is significant about the following songs: "Bill Bailey, Won't You Please Come Home", "Mandy Lee", and "Down Mobile".
4- The three songs noted in question #3 are all extremely popular close harmony songs (the term barbershop harmony had not yet been coined) of the late 19th century. What are the two most influential and popular songs arranged in the barbershop style of harmonization once the 20th century arrived?
5- Vaudeville, barbershop's premier showcase for the best part of a half-century - approx. the last 20 years of the 19th century and the first twenty years of the 20th century, is a corruption of a French term. What is that term and its definition?
ANSWERS:
1- Ragtime songs were filled with dominant 7th chords (aka barbershop 7ths ) and syncopation, both of which are hallmarks of the barbershop style.
2- "Hello My Baby" and "Goodbye, My Coney Island Baby".
3- All were originally extremely popular ragtime hits which later became barbershop favorites.
4- "Sweet Adeline" and "By the Light of the Silvery Moon".
5- It is derived from the French voix de ville which translates as "voice of the city".
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