Biography
Vic Schoen ranked among the most active arranger-conductors in popular music between the late 1930s and the 1960s. Though he never earned the same recognition granted to Nelson Riddle or Gordon Jenkins, he compiled an impressive string of achievements alongside Dinah Shore, Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Ethel Merman, Andy Williams, and, above all, the Andrews Sisters, with his name linked to dozens of hit records and nearly all of the trio’s landmark successes.
He first appeared in music as a trumpeter before turning, entirely self-taught, to arranging in the mid-1930s. A decisive opportunity arrived when bandleader Leon Belasco engaged him to work with the young Andrews Sisters. Schoen secured the group a radio slot that produced an audition and a late-1937 recording contract with Decca Records; he also performed on their pivotal second session, which produced “Bei Mir Bist du Schoen,” the trio’s first hit, early the following year. Although the Andrews Sisters sometimes recorded with other established ensembles and, especially during their final Decca period, with Gordon Jenkins, Schoen remained the arranger and conductor with whom they collaborated most frequently. Forming his own orchestra in 1938, he supported them on stage, in films, and in the studio throughout the ensuing decade. His own lack of formal training aligned closely with the sisters’ inability to read music, making him their nearest creative ally and a defining element of their signature sound during their peak years. Even on pieces that held little appeal for him, such as “Beer Barrel Polka,” his charts proved effective, while on selections like “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,” which genuinely engaged him, his writing reached notable heights of inspiration.
The string of successes with the Andrews Sisters quickly positioned Schoen as a highly sought arranger and conductor. The 1940s proved exceptionally demanding, encompassing sessions with Ella Fitzgerald, Dinah Shore, Dick Haymes, Bob Hope, and Bing Crosby—including the latter’s hit “Don’t Fence Me In”—yet centering primarily on the Andrews Sisters. He stayed connected with the trio until the close of the decade, when altered personal dynamics and shifting public tastes prompted his departure. In the 1950s he supplied arrangements for Patti Page, the Weavers, Andy Williams, Pat Boone, and other leading artists of the era while also serving as an arranger for television. He rejoined the Andrews Sisters for occasional Capitol sessions in the mid-1950s. During the same period he recorded his own pop-instrumental albums for Decca, Kapp, and Liberty, explored “space age” pop for RCA, and issued two bossa nova collections on the Mainstream label.
He first appeared in music as a trumpeter before turning, entirely self-taught, to arranging in the mid-1930s. A decisive opportunity arrived when bandleader Leon Belasco engaged him to work with the young Andrews Sisters. Schoen secured the group a radio slot that produced an audition and a late-1937 recording contract with Decca Records; he also performed on their pivotal second session, which produced “Bei Mir Bist du Schoen,” the trio’s first hit, early the following year. Although the Andrews Sisters sometimes recorded with other established ensembles and, especially during their final Decca period, with Gordon Jenkins, Schoen remained the arranger and conductor with whom they collaborated most frequently. Forming his own orchestra in 1938, he supported them on stage, in films, and in the studio throughout the ensuing decade. His own lack of formal training aligned closely with the sisters’ inability to read music, making him their nearest creative ally and a defining element of their signature sound during their peak years. Even on pieces that held little appeal for him, such as “Beer Barrel Polka,” his charts proved effective, while on selections like “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy,” which genuinely engaged him, his writing reached notable heights of inspiration.
The string of successes with the Andrews Sisters quickly positioned Schoen as a highly sought arranger and conductor. The 1940s proved exceptionally demanding, encompassing sessions with Ella Fitzgerald, Dinah Shore, Dick Haymes, Bob Hope, and Bing Crosby—including the latter’s hit “Don’t Fence Me In”—yet centering primarily on the Andrews Sisters. He stayed connected with the trio until the close of the decade, when altered personal dynamics and shifting public tastes prompted his departure. In the 1950s he supplied arrangements for Patti Page, the Weavers, Andy Williams, Pat Boone, and other leading artists of the era while also serving as an arranger for television. He rejoined the Andrews Sisters for occasional Capitol sessions in the mid-1950s. During the same period he recorded his own pop-instrumental albums for Decca, Kapp, and Liberty, explored “space age” pop for RCA, and issued two bossa nova collections on the Mainstream label.