G. H. Snazelle was born George Snazel, son of William Snazel, but changed his name for the stage. He was educated in England, France and Germany. At 15 he started work, first with the London merchants Robinson and Fleming, then at the London banking firm of Herries, Farquarham and Company. Snazelle became a renowned vocalist, actor and entertainer, and travelled the world performing. He visited Australia a number of times in the late 19th and early 20th centuries (for example, he performed in a comedy by George Sims titled 'Skipped by the Light of the Moon' at the Melbourne Opera House in 1891, and in William Manning's comedy 'Kindred Souls', that opened at the Princess Theatre in Melbourne on March 26th 1891).
Snazelle was involved in one of the earliest film presentations in Australia, at Parramatta Town Hall on 18 June 1901. He described to the audience the scenes from the documentary series Our Navy, as well as offering humorous anecdotes and songs. In Tasmania the press called him 'Snarling Snazelle' because of his habit of barring critics from his performances and letting them know with verbal tirades. He toured the United Kingdom with the Carl Rosa Opera Company for many years, performing in musical versions of well-known plays, including The Merry Wives of Windsor (1878), The Lily of Killarney (1878), Esmeralda (1883-1884) and Carmen (1883-1884).
Snazelle also recorded songs and comical monologues for the Gramophone and Typewriter Company of London between 1898 and 1906. While in New Zealand he wrote the chorus lyrics for and performed the song 'The Old Land and the New' (circa 1900). He presented his one-person show 'Music, Song and Poem, Pictorially Illustrated' (variously titled) around the world. It consisted of live recitals from Snazelle, accompanied by projected images from a machine called the Stereopticon (some of which were photographed by Snazelle in Australia). An anonymous New York Times critic was less than enthusuastic about this show's presentation at Palmer's Theatre in 1894.
