It looks to be a fine Christmas for the members of Ernie Haase & Signature Sound. In so short a time, the young group has already won much acclaim and even a few awards. And now they have not one, but three new projects—a new studio album, a new concert DVD and a Christmas album.

Ernie Haase is, of course, a familiar face to many Homecoming fans. For the better part of 11 years, he sang tenor for his “dream quartet,” The Cathedrals. After retirement from the group in 1999, Haase had a successful solo career, along with filling in for the Old Friends Quartet.

But, as successful as his solo career was, Haase missed the “team” spirit that comes with being in a group. “There were times in the first few months that I felt very alone,” he says. “I jumped on planes alone, woke up in hotel rooms alone—a far cry from when I would be on a tour bus with at least four other group members.”

He admits to growing accustomed to life as a soloist. But Haase still looked forward to returning to the camaraderie and family atmosphere a quartet had to offer. “Southern Gospel is like one big family. It’s a tremendous group to be a part of and I looked forward to sharing that again with others.”

Enter Signature Sound: Tim Duncan, Doug Anderson, Ryan Seaton and Roy Webb. “Each of these guys have dynamic personalities in their own way,” Haase says. “We’ve got a great team here.”

While a group in the modern world might be tempted to “spice up” their beloved Southern Gospel, these young men think the classic sound is just fine, thank you very much. The members of Signature Sound are committed to sticking to the original formula—basically making what’s old new again.

“Except for me, every guy in our group is in his 20s,” Haase says, “and we were all raised on traditional quartet music. It’s something we love. We’re committed to keeping the original sound because that art form is what lights us up. Then when we get onstage, and we’re excited about it, we can get the crowds there. And then the crowd goes haywire because we’re up there just going crazy over what we love.”

Haase says that, for them, it all comes back to their passion for ministry and the music. “This is what God has made me to do, and I think it’s also for the people who come to our shows. But even if the people didn’t show up, I would still have my records out. I would still be singing while driving down the road listening to my CDs of gospel quartets I’ve loved through the years.

“When I was 15 years old, I heard the Cathedrals for the first time. Something happened to me that night and I’ve never wanted to do anything but that. And now, I’ve got other guys on my bus who are like me. We’ve all sacrificed great jobs and financial stability to go after our passion.”

Ernie Haase & Signature Sound has become a regular at Homecoming events. But when it comes to his friendship with Bill Gaither, Haase claims it’s all about net. Or, at least, partly.

“As a matter of fact, he called right before you called me for the interview—he just wants to talk basketball,” Haase says with a hearty laugh. “We share the same passions—quartet music and basketball.”

But apparently these common interests have been more than enough for Haase to sustain a long friendship with the gospel music legend—both personally and professionally.

“We’ve been friends for years. My very first concert with the Cathedrals was ‘Evening With Bill Gaither Vocal Band and the Cathedrals’ at TPAC [Tennessee Performing Arts Center] in Nashville. That was in April 1990; ever since then, he and Gloria have encouraged me and were always there to listen to anything I need advice for.”

As it turns out, the couple has also provided plenty of musical inspiration as well; Signature Sound recently recorded a song that Bill and Gloria penned more than 25 years ago, “This Could Be the Dawning of That Day,” which serves as the first single of Signature Sound’s sophomore project, Great Love (Cathedral Records).

“He called and wanted me to bring the guys by his office one day,” Haase relates. “We were singing close to his hometown in Anderson, Indiana. We sang for him a little, and he said ‘Hey, there’s a song that got buried. It was on the same album as ‘Because He Lives,’ and the other songs were so big, this song didn’t really get its due. But if you guys put your spin, your arrangement on it, I think that’s gonna make it a great song.’”

From the “home run” response Haase says the group has received when performing the song live, he certainly doesn’t regret taking Bill’s advice—even if the song’s age nearly matches the age of the majority of the members in Signature Sound.

If a packed tour schedule and a new disc to promote weren’t enough to keep Signature Sound busy, the group has also recently released a new live concert DVD (packed with plenty of fun extras) and a holiday album, Christmas With Ernie Haase & Signature Sound (Gaither Music Group).

Since the band had to squeeze in recording the album during the summer months, the Christmas feel had to be improvised a little. “We just turned the lights down low, turned the air conditioner down and burned some candles,” Haase recalls. “Maybe itwasn’t exactly the same as Christmas, but we managed just fine.”
Be sure to pick up the Nov/Dec issue of Homecoming Magazine!