Stupidy 101- Page 2

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 12/18/04 at 6:58pm

pab, don't confuse the warped soul that was bob crane with paragon of wit and grace that was colonel hogan. bob crane indeed might have made a porn, but col. hogan would have had carter make a bomb, lebeau a feast, and he and kinch would have tag teamed helga...huh, damn it turns out porn either way.

[pab]

Posted: 12/18/04 at 7:01pm

Thanks for that. Best laugh of the day.

[Plum]

Posted: 12/18/04 at 7:30pm

To go back to an earlier statement on this thread, there's a difference, in my opinion, between a composer having a certain style and all his/her scores sounding alike. Sondheim may have a certain style, but you can't take a song from Company and stick it into Sunday in the Park With George.

[paradox_error]

Posted: 12/18/04 at 7:52pm

Or a song from Sweeney into Pacific Overtures...

I would actually challenge someone to find a song of Sondheim's that could be put into a different musical. His songs only really work in the context of the show they were written for. And while his songs are distinctly Sondheim, they are each written in a vastly different style.

[Justice]

Posted: 12/18/04 at 7:56pm

If you can tell the composer of a musical without knowing who wrote it before listening, then, in a way, their music is all the same. Herman's music is easy to tell. His musicals sound the same as do Webber's and Sondheim's. They all have one particular style that they will never be able to escape. This is why I Love Ahrens & Flaherty - not one of their musicals or songs sound like another.

[paradox_error]

Posted: 12/18/04 at 8:52pm

So Justice, are you saying that Sweeney Todd sounds like Sunday in the Park with George? That Assassins sounds like A Funny...Forum? THat Pacific Overtures sounds like A Little Night Music?
I DO NOT think that Sondheim songs sound the same...not at all. I think you can easily tell that they are Sondheim, mainly because he is unparalleled in this business, and no one can write a score the way he can. Each of his scores, and dare I say songs, has its own unique style, and draws from different styles of music. Sweeney Todd is the bold, Romantic Operetta, Pacific Overtures draws from traditional Japanese music, Into The Woods has a distinct "fairytale" quality. While one can easily tell that the musicals are Sondheim, it is not because they sound the same.

That said, I love the way Ahrens and Flaherty write, and think their scores are just wonderful!

[Plum]

Posted: 12/18/04 at 9:37pm

Even in musicals that have similar musical vocabularies, like A Little Night Music and Sweeney Todd, which are both rather classical, you can't switch the songs around. If anything is a mark of Sondheim, it's extremely sophisticated lyrics.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 12/18/04 at 11:33pm

I agree with the comment about Herman's scores sounding very similar, but I can't agree with the comment about no melody. "Song on the Sand," The Best of Times" and the title number have been in my head ever since I saw the show regionally almost three years ago.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 12/18/04 at 11:36pm

And can I just say that it's ironic that this post is entitled "stupidy 101."

[CanWeTalkBroadway?]

Posted: 12/19/04 at 12:46am

And can I just say that you should read the whole thread so you don't ironically point out previously pointed out ironies?

[bjivie2]

Posted: 12/19/04 at 1:14am

And can I just say that you're rude? Just tell me. Don't be rude about it.

[Addicted2Seaweed]

Posted: 12/19/04 at 11:11am

ok so back to the other topic. I think the composer whose song sound most alike is Elton John. Not his old stuff but his new stuff like Aida. Everything sounds like Can You Feel The Love Tonight to me. But I think every composer has a style. And that's fine I think!

Updated On: 12/19/04 at 11:11 AM

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 12/19/04 at 11:14am

i'm just glad the cwtb's stuff doesn't have that painful similarity to it of sondheim's dreck. it's a fresh new voice full of vibrant tones remniscent of life itself screaming and wailing into existence. that's hot.

[CanWeTalkBroadway?]

Posted: 12/19/04 at 11:16am

You don't have to be kind about it. Just tell me.

[paradox_error]

Posted: 12/21/04 at 7:36am

Did someone just call the work of Sondheim "dreck"?

Oy