Insight into the musical compositions, collaborations and arrangements of a Russian orchestra leader in Shanghai, China Сергей Ермолаев Serge Ermoll Сергей Ермолаев, Chinese born Russian Manchurian jazz composer and bandleaderSerge Ermoll and His Music Masters was managed by Dick Hamilton-Mills Vaudeville Entertainments, Shanghai located in Hamilton House and enjoyed residencies at establishments such as The Paramount Ballroom (1934-36), Ladlows Casanova, Lido (1936) Astor House Hotel (1930), the big band at Cercle Sportif Français (1938-1943 French Club) signed with Dick Hamilton for exclusice cabaret the Arcadia club in the French Concession and the ‘Tower Nightclub’, level 9, The Cathay Hotel, Officer’s Club, Silk Hat (1945-1949) with trio at the [0] invitation of Sir Victor Sassoon, “where Charlie Chaplin and Paulette Goddard once twirled on the teak floorboards of a sprung dance floor.” This was reported in Asiaweek, in Forgotten Exiles: Memorial to the Exiles Shanghai Forgot. A sonic message in the bottle from old Russian cabaret in #Shànghǎi #上海 and the dance halls.
LISTEN Old Shanghai Serge playlist
Serge Ermoll and His Music Masters was managed by Dick Hamilton-Mills Vaudeville Entertainments, Shanghai located in Hamilton House and enjoyed residencies at establishments such as The Paramount Ballroom (1934-36), Ladlows Casanova, Lido (1936) Astor House Hotel (1930), the big band at Cercle Sportif Français (1938-1943 French Club) signed with Dick Hamilton for exclusice cabaret the Arcadia club in the French Concession and the ‘Tower Nightclub’, The Cathay Hotel, Officer’s Club, Silk Hat (1945-1949) with trio, At the Arcadia club (1937) Sergei met the celebrated crooner, poet and singer/ composer Alexander Vertinsky, during his Shanghai sojourn. The collision produced the immortal A and B side of a record – Чужие города Strange Cities (Chuzie Goroda) – music and words by Alexander Vertinsky, Serge Ermoll and Ira Bloch, and Над розовым морем Over The Rosy Sea/ The Pink Sea – (Nad Rosavuim Morem), music and words by Alexander Vertinsky, Serge Ermoll and George Ivanoff, [Registered with Melodiya Copyright Agency USSR 1972 & APRA] Sergei claimed to have played with Whitey Smith’s band at Chiang Kai Chek’s wedding to Mei-Lie Soong, and held a residency at the famous demolished Majestic Hotel 1930.
The Lambeth Walk
Crate digging The Lambeth Walk musicalscore arranged by Serge Ermoll’s Orchestra Arcadia Club old Russian cabaret in #Shànghǎi #上海 Сергей Ермолаев French Concession (Nikolay Plotnikoff), Kenlion, Route Doumer (Donghu Road). A song from the 1937 musical Me and My Girl (by #DouglasFurber and L. Arthur Rose & music by #NoelGay ) The song evokes Lambeth, London.”…Any time you’re Lambeth way. Any evening, any day. You’ll find us all. Doin’ the Lambeth walk. Every little Lambeth gal. With her little Lambeth pal. You’ll find ’em all. Doin’ the Lambeth walk. Everything free and easy. Do as darn well pleasey. Why don’t you make your way there?”
Contracted by Dick Hamilton-Mills Vaudeville Entertainments, Hamilton House, Shanghai.
The Lambeth Walk
Crate digging The Lambeth Walk musicalscore arranged by Serge Ermoll’s Orchestra Arcadia Club old Russian cabaret in #Shànghǎi #上海 Сергей Ермолаев French Concession (Nikolay Plotnikoff), Kenlion, Route Doumer (Donghu Road). A song from the 1937 musical Me and My Girl (by #DouglasFurber and L. Arthur Rose & music by #NoelGay ) The song evokes Lambeth, London.”…Any time you’re Lambeth way. Any evening, any day. You’ll find us all. Doin’ the Lambeth walk. Every little Lambeth gal. With her little Lambeth pal. You’ll find ’em all. Doin’ the Lambeth walk. Everything free and easy. Do as darn well pleasey. Why don’t you make your way there?”
Contracted by Dick Hamilton-Mills Vaudeville Entertainments, Hamilton House, Shanghai.
On A Tropic Night
Crate digging On A Tropic Night musical score arranged for Serge Ermoll’s Orchestra The Paramount #上海百樂門 #Shànghǎi #上海 #Сергей #Ермолаев also From film “Tropic Holiday” (Ned Washington / Agustín Lara) #dorothylamour… On a tropic night “…So lovely is the moon on a tropic night. No heart can be immune on a tropic night. As a lonely guitar plays a serenade. There’s music in the heart of each man and maid. Stars always linger low on a tropic night. When there’s wine in the air, lips are always careless…” #RudolfFriml Contracted by Dick Hamilton-Mills Vaudeville Entertainments, Hamilton House, Shanghai.
“Stars always linger low on a tropic night. When there’s wine in the air, lips are always careless…”
ON A TROPIC NIGHT – (Ned Washington / Agustín Lara) Dorothy Lamour
Lido Ballroom #MedhurstRoad #TaixingLu #Shanghai #上海 “It’s a Sin To Tell A Lie” #1936 by #BillyMayhew made popular by Fats Waller #Victor arranged by Serge Ermoll & His Orchestra for Lido club 🎺 🎼 “Be sure it’s true when you say I love you. It’s a sin to tell a lie. Millions of hearts have been broken. Just because these words were spoken…” recorded in French by Cajun singer Cléoma Breaux.
Lido Ballroom #MedhurstRoad #TaixingLu #Shanghai #上海 “It’s a Sin To Tell A Lie” #1936 by #BillyMayhew made popular by Fats Waller #Victor arranged by Serge Ermoll & His Orchestra for Lido club 🎺 🎼 “Be sure it’s true when you say I love you. It’s a sin to tell a lie. Millions of hearts have been broken. Just because these words were spoken…” recorded in French by Cajun singer Cléoma Breaux.
Old Russian cabaret in #Shànghǎi #上海 Сергей Ермолаев French Concession. Contracted by Entertainment by Dick Hamilton.
Serge Ermoll & His Orchestra 1929 the Majestic Hotel image quoted in V. D. Zhiganov Russians in Shanghai (1936) from “Cosmopolitan Shanghai” by 陈丹燕 Chen Danyan (2005) and Lynn Pan’s, Shanghai: A century of change in photographs, 1843-1949.
“Be sure it’s true when you say I love you. It’s a sin to tell a lie. Millions of hearts have been broken. Just because these words were spoken.”
IT’S A SIN TO TELL A LIE – #1936 by #BillyMayhew
Art and Literature in Pictorial Magazines during Shanghai’s Jazz Age
Series: China Studies, Volume: 41
Author: Paul Bevan
Над розовым морем
Music and words by Alexander Vertinsky, Serge Ermoll and George Ivanoff 1936
Над розовым морем вставала луна, Во льду зеленела бутылка вина.И томно кружились влюбленные парыПод жалобный рокот гавайской гитары. Послушай, о как это было давно!Такое же море, и то же вино.Мне кажется, будто и музыка та же…Послушай! Послушай! Мне кажется даже! Нет, вы ошибаетесь, друг дорогой!Мы жили тогда на планете другой.И слишком устали, и слишком мы старыИ для этого вальса, и для этой гитары.
Over The Rosy Sea/ The Pink Sea
“The moon rose over the pink sea. A green bottle of wine waited in the ice. Loving couples wistfully whirled around. To the mournful sound of the Hawaiian guitar Listen, how long has it been! The same sea, the same wine.Seems like the tune is also the same… Listen! Listen! It feels like that! No, you are wrong, my dear friend.Then we lived on the other planet. We are too tired and we are too old For that waltz and for that guitar….”
The moon rose over the pink sea. A green bottle of wine waited in the ice. Loving couples wistfully whirled around.
Over The Rosy Sea/ The Pink Sea – Alexander Vertinsky, Serge Ermoll and George Ivanoff 1936
Сергей Ермолаев Serge plays the #FrenchHorn Shanghai Symphony Orchestra 1946-1950 non-stop – #identitypapers #Shànghǎi #上海 until departure to #HongKong then Australia. https://👉🏽www.shsymphony.com/en/aboutus.asp Mario Paci by “Josepho” (June 4, 1878 – August 3, 1946), also known by his Chinese name Mei Baiqi #梅百器 was an Italian #pianist #conductor
Xenichka & Sergei on an old Shànghǎi bus/ tram 🎶💮 #上海 #中國 red star wartime…
Federation of Shanghai Musicians #1936 #NickKorin President Sin Lo Road headquarters #russe 29 Route Paul Henry (Xinle Lu i新乐路). Shànghǎi #上海 #中国 papers documents Russian male Serge #Сергей #Ермолаев Federation of Shanghai Musicians #sergeiermolaeff an interactive documentary: Strange Cities 🎼 🎬 #чужой #города an imaginary vision of my #emigre Russians …
Strange Black Box 