(Adapted from an article written by Grady Kerr for the Barbershop Wiki Project and Buzz Haeger’s personal recollections from the archives)
Warren John “Buzz” Haeger was born October 24, 1925 at the West Suburban Hospital in Oak Park, Illinois. He grew up in LaGrange and attended public schools until his second year of high school when he transferred to Western Military Academy in Alton, Illinois. He graduated in 1943, enrolled at Purdue University, and was drafted soon afterwards.
While in the service, Buzz played baritone saxophone with, and arranged music for, the Halls of Montezuma Marine Corps Band. He had occasion to work with many different professional musicians and stars, including Frank Sinatra, Mel Tormé, Bob Hope, Debbie Reynolds, Donald O’Connor, Ava Gardner, the Alvino Ray Orchestra, and Artie Shaw Band.
In 1945, a barbershopper from San Diego encouraged him to go and listen to some guys who were getting a chapter together. After attending, Buzz fell in love with barbershop singing and joined the group. While finishing his education at Purdue University, Buzz joined the West Lafayette, IN Chapter and sang with a quartet called The Playtonics. After returning home, Buzz began directing the new Skokie Valley Chapter. It was while he was singing with the Q-Suburban Chapter that he got recruited to sing with The Four Tissimos – a group that later went on to win the Illinois District championship in 1954 and garnered a third place finish at the 1955 international competition in Miami. (See FTV Summer 2023 Issue)
It was around this time that Buzz met the love of his life, Jean. They were married in December of 1957 and had two children together, Diane and Mark. Even though his barbershop hobby kept him on the road most weekends, he cared deeply for his wife and kids and was an outstanding provider for his family.
Buzz was a businessman, a sailor, a truck driver, a pilot, an auxiliary police officer, movie theater projectionist, golfer, and baseball player. He even worked for the Aurora and Elgin Railroad, switching cars. Buzz went out on his own to start a real estate company called Indust-Realty, Inc. and became an industrial real estate broker. Musically, he was even more versatile. He was an organist, guitarist, played clarinet, flute, and saxophone. He even formed a sax quartet called the Sax Maniacs – of course they played Buzz’s four part arrangements, many of which were created for the Dapper Dans of Disneyland.
A passionate barbershop singer, gifted arranger, director, coach, and emcee, Buzz also held the distinction of being the youngest international competition judge – he was only 23! He wrote over 300 barbershop and modern vocal arrangements. A serious musician, Buzz had perfect pitch, and always “heard” the entire arrangement in his head before he put it down on paper.
Buzz was an international quartet medalist earning four medals in his seven appearances – all top ten – prior to winning his gold medal in Boston in 1965 as the tenor of The Four Renegades. The quartet performed more than 1000 shows and went on several USO tours where they entertained at hospitals, particularly in contagious wards.
Four-part harmony ran strong in the Haeger family. Buzz’s brother Bob “Moose” Haeger was an active quartet man and sang with the 1949 Illinois District championship quartet, Barber-Q-Four. Buzz’s sister, Phyllis, got her gold medal with the 1955 Queens of Harmony, The Nota-belles (She always enjoyed reminding him she got hers ten years before he did!) Buzz won his second international gold in 1994 as a senior competitor in The New & Improved Industrial Strength Mini-Chorus.
Buzz was recognized in the Illinois District as an A.B.E. (Award for Barbershop Excellence) winner. Likewise, he was the first recipient of the QCA’s “Music Man” Award in 1992. Buzz was also named to the Barbershop Harmony Society’s Hall of Fame in 2005 and given the 2006 Association of International Champions (AIC) President’s Award.
He was a major and generous supporter of the Youth in Harmony program for the Barbershop Harmony Society and specifically for the Illinois District. In his own recollections, Buzz stated that the legacy he would like to leave is “to be able to go to the schools and show the kids what barbershop is all about. I was one of the lucky ones because I discovered it in my teens.” To that end, a traveling trophy was created in Buzz’s honor that is annually bestowed on the winner of the district’s high school quartet competition.
Buzz passed away on Saturday, November 3, 2007 at the age of 82 near his home in Oak Brook, Illinois. A memorial service was held November 17 with well over 100 barbershoppers filling the overflowing choir loft. Hundreds of family, barbershop, and business friends gathered to pay tribute to their dear friend.
Buzz could do it all – sing every part, arrange it, judge it, coach it, direct it, and was perhaps the greatest woodshedder of all time. He had a keen memory and knew more songs than most other barbershoppers. Buzz often taught not intros or tags, but … “middles”.
For those of us that were lucky enough to sing a tag (or a “middle”) with Buzz, it is a cherished memory of a man who is a legend within the Barbershop Harmony Society. Perhaps his good friend Jim Bagby said it best upon his passing – “Rest in peace, Buzz – there will never be another one like you.”
