Top Ten Greatest Composers of Musical Theater- Page 2

[IdinaBellFoster]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 7:33pm

PWT my number 11 would probably be Meken

[ClapYo'Hands]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 7:35pm

@ GatorNY - You don't say!? xD

[FanofGreen]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 7:43pm

Quick list of 6 whose work I never tire of seeing:
1. Schoenberg
2. Rodgers & Hammerstein
3. Webber
4. Lerner & Loewe
5. Kander & Ebb
6. Schwartz

[Paul W. Thompson]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 7:50pm

I do love "Maddalena."

Arlen is great! Though I'm dismayed by lack of love for Kern and Gershwin. And I don't think we've had a mention of Cy Coleman!! Not to mention Hamlisch or Lippa.

[myshikobit]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 7:51pm

For me, the criteria was to have three shows that I could point to and say they had complete mastery of an aspect of composing for theatre (which is really a surprisingly hard feat).

No particular order other than

SONDHEIM (Follies, Sunday in the Park, Passion)

LaChuisa (Wild Party, Bernarda Alba, Hello Again)
Rodgers (South Pacific, Sound of Music, No Strings)
Kander (Chicago, Cabaret, Kiss of the Spiderwoman)
Bernstein (Candide, West Side Story, 1600 Penn.)
Webber (Evita, Song and Dance, JCS)
Stein (Gypsy, Funny Girl, Prettybelle)
Loesser (Guys and Dolls, Most Happy Fella, How to Succeed)
Blitzstein (Juno, Cradle Will Rock, Regina)
Finn (New Brain, March of the Falsettos, Spelling Bee)

Updated On: 1/25/11 at 07:51 PM

[Paul W. Thompson]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 7:59pm

There's Loesser, finally! Along with Blitzstein, nice!

Noel Coward???

And was that Stephen Schwartz, or Arthur?

[AwesomeDanny]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 8:17pm

Hm... as a *younger* member on this board, let's see what I have to say.

In no particular order (other than Sondheim being first) and narrowed down to my top five:

Sondheim
Jason Robert Brown
Adam Guettel
Kander & Ebb
Bernstein

No, Rodgers & Hammerstein aren't on my list [gasp!] because, at the risk of sounding young and naive, I just don't feel like I get anything from their music. It's not a point worth arguing, I just don't get the same emotions listening to their music as I do listening to something like Passion, Candide, or Light in the Piazza (my choices for the three most beautiful musical theatre scores in descending order). I have to give Ahrens & Flaherty credit for Ragtime, but I really have trouble accepting Seussical from them.

[Pippin]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 8:40pm

I am rating from a purely musical standpoint. No Lyrics are counted here.

1. Bernstein
2. Sondheim
3. Gershwin
4. Loesser
5. Arlen
6. Coleman
7. Porter
8. Bock
9. Berlin
10. Rodgers

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 8:45pm

I need to really think about this but I do want to give a shout out to John Dempsey and Dana P. Rowe. I'm obsessed with The Fix and The Witches of Eastwick!

[After Eight]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 9:44pm

Here's a list from an oldster:

1-6, in no particular order:

Rodgers
Kern
Porter
Gershwin
Berlin
Herbert

7-10' in no particular order:

Arlen
Arthur Schwartz
Bernstein
Loewe

[jasonf]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 9:53pm

I'd guess I'm somewhere in the middle age-wise here.
My top ten, more or less in order, based purely on who has shows that I like:

1)Sondheim
2)Rodgers and Hammerstein
3)Lerner and Lowe
4)Loesser
5)Coleman
6)Weber
7)Bock and Harnick
Brown
9)Porter
10)Kander and Ebb

[Reginald Tresilian]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 10:03pm

Thank God that snotty creature went away.

I like Pippin's list, but I'd switch Bernstein and Sondheim, as well as Berlin and Rodgers.

Fun topic!

[jasonf]

Posted: 1/25/11 at 10:39pm

oh - forgot Bernstein. Hmm. Can I put him in instead of the second half of Weber's career?

[Paul W. Thompson]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 1:26am

I figured I had better weigh in with my thoughts. And here are some rules I set down for myself, so I could sort through my own thinking regarding this topic.

RULE ONE: “Musical theater” means the style of joint music and theater that emerged on the popular stages of America and England in the middle of the 20th century. (This means, for instance, that the American, early-20th century European-style operetta composers [Herbert, Friml, Romberg] are ineligible).

RULE TWO: To be eligible, a composer or team of composers may also write lyrics, or not, but the act of doing so or not doesn’t help or hurt. (This means no bonus points for doing both music and lyrics, and no penalties for writing only music.)

RULE THREE: Consider the music and lyrics both as songs and as components of musical theater.

RULE FOUR: Consider only works created originally for the theatrical stage, not for film or for purely musical performance.

RULE FIVE: To get started, and in order to encourage chronological diversity, choose five composers that roughly correspond to each decade. (With eight decades of history, this will yield a working list of forty composers.)

This yields (notice I said ROUGHLY correspond):

Pre-1940s

George M. Cohan
Noel Coward
George Gershwin
Jerome Kern
Cole Porter

1940s

Harold Arlen
Frederick Loewe
Richard Rodgers
Harold Rome
Kurt Weill

1950s

Richard Adler and Jerry Ross
Leonard Bernstein
Jerry Bock
Frank Loesser
Jule Styne

1960s

Cy Coleman
Jerry Herman
John Kander
Harvey Schmidt
Stephen Sondheim

1970s

Marvin Hamlisch
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Stephen Schwartz
David Shire
Charles Strouse

1980s

William Finn
Henry Krieger
Alan Menken
Claude-Michel Schoenberg
Maury Yeston

1990s

Jason Robert Brown
Michael John LaChiusa
Jonathan Larson
Stephen Flaherty
Frank Wildhorn

2000s

Adam Guettel
Elton John
Marc Shaiman
Jeanine Tesori
David Yazbek

From this list of “nominees,” I’ll post my final top ten list next……

[Mildred Plotka]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 1:27am

Idina Menzel's name hasn't once been mentioned on this thread. You people ought to be ashamed of yourselves.

[Paul W. Thompson]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 1:28am

OK, here it goes! IHMO:

1. Stephen Sondheim. I mean, come on. He took the best of the old and forged something new, using modern, complex harmonies, unexpected melodies and surprising subject matter during an entire lifetime of superbly crafted work centered in musical theater.

2. George Gershwin. From the insertion of his “Tin Pan Alley” songs (with brother Ira, of course) into shows written by others, all the way to the Broadway opera “Porgy And Bess,” composer Gershwin’s career trajectory was steady and true, producing immortal scores for “Girl Crazy,” “Of Thee I Sing” and “Strike Up The Band.”

3. John Kander. His songs with lyricist Fred Ebb define the sound of Broadway for many people. Two legitimate legendary shows and a host of snazzy, jolting tunes, bringing out the best work in great directors, choreographers and stars along the way.

4. Leonard Bernstein. A symphonist with an eye toward the songs of the street and the opera house, Lenny gave us songs, ballets and underscoring that are instantly recognizable as his, and yet also seem perfectly suited to the mostly New York characters who sing them.

5. Richard Rodgers. His career in musical theater lasted over fifty years, making him the undisputed king of Broadway during the Golden Age. He wrote the music that inspired Lorenz Hart’s lonely lyrics, then took Oscar Hammerstein 2nd’s lyrics and wrote the songs that made post-war America proud of itself. The master of the unexpected melody note could hit upon a tune in an instant, and it would be unforgettable.

6. Andrew Lloyd Webber. England’s baby boomer billionaire, and a fan of Rodgers and Rock and Roll, Lord Lloyd-Webber’s hugely successful shows and songs conquered the world in new ways. Complex rhythms married to an unerring gift for memorable, singable, soaring melody lines gave us songs that just won’t quit.

7. Jule Styne. Razz-ma-tazz and workmanship joined for the man whose long career and knack for bringing out the best in his leading ladies produced great shows and great songs. He worked with a long line of lyricists and churned out winner after winner for decades.

8. Frank Loesser. In a handful of shows, the Hollywood-bred Loesser moved from comedy to drama to satire, with complex musical lines that are great to sing and easy to dance to. At first hearing, his shows don’t sound alike at all, save for a harmonic freedom that only a master technician could achieve.

9. Stephen Schwartz. The voice of American pop-rock in New York in the 1970s and again today. Long-running hits and fascinating misses populate his biography, but they all have his rhythmic drive, catchy tunes and soaring emotions in common. Take another look at this underrated music man.

10. Cy Coleman. The jazziest composer Broadway has produced since the death of Gershwin, Coleman’s synchopated and chord-crunching songs fell out of favor, but then came back with two big, award-winning shows in back-to-back seasons. Smoky clubs and neon lights merge onstage when fingers snap, suits flap and voices wail.

Honorable Mention: Jerome Kern, Maury Yeston, Harold Arlen, Claude-Michel Schoenberg and Adam Guettel.

Those who haven’t weighed in yet, what do you think?

[After Eight]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 1:45am

Paul:

A couple of thoughts.

First, if you felt that Herbert and Romberg should be excluded, and I don't at all agree with you here, you should have set up your ground rules at the start.

Second, to your remark, "Stephen Sondheim. I mean, come on," I say, you come on. Not every likes or thinks highly of his work. Learn to accept that and live with it.

And after that comment, I stopped reading the remainder of your assessments.

[Paul W. Thompson]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 1:52am

Wow. I love being misunderstood.

Almost nobody mentioned Herbert, Friml and Romberg in this thread, so I took everyone's cue and excluded them from my personal list. I happen to love their work. It's just a list.

And pretty much everybody mentioned Sondheim, and it's not like he's an unknown quantity. So I thought I could be a little informal in my annotation. That's all.

[After Eight]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 2:10am

To Paul:

I don't think I misunderstood you in the least. I just don't happen to agree with you.

In any event, in the spirit of friendship, I wish you a good evening.

[mallardo]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 7:38am

Sondheim
Bernstein
Gershwin
Coleman
Rodgers
Loesser
Stein
Larson
LaChiusa
Guettel

[onedaymore]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 8:26am

^I'm with mallardo :)

[leefowler]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 8:37am

Kern
Berlin
Porter
Rodgers
Gershwin
Loesser
Styne
Kander
Bernstein
Sondheim

This is probably the most conservative list on here. I don't understand listing people like Guettel and Shaiman, talented as they are, since they've only written a couple of shows each.

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 8:38am

Focusing on composers who wrote predominantly for Broadway, writing at least 5 Broadway scores...

1. RICHARD RODGERS - for his gift of melody in evidence even in his very last show coupled with his ability to write longer pieces such as Slaughter on 10th Avenue and Carousel Waltz.

2. GEORGE GERSHWIN - from his delightful musical comedies and revues of the 1920s, through comic operetta (OF THEE I SING) and ultimately a Folk Opera, he did it all. His concert music (Rhapsody in Blue, American in Paris) isn't too shabby either.

3. JEROME KERN - SHOW BOAT alone would have assured him a place on the list but he wrote dozens of shows that sadly are not really revivable now (ROBERTA, MUSIC IN THE AIR, LEAVE IT TO JANE) but his scores overflow with rich melodies.

4. LEONARD BERNSTEIN - in 5 years he wrote a jaunty score for WONDERFUL TOWN, the opera-buffa CANDIDE and the electric WEST SIDE STORY. Too bad he abandoned theatre for the concert hall.

5. FRANK LOESSER - his range is impressive: GUYS AND DOLLS, THE MOST HAPPY FELLA and HOW TO SUCCEED in a dozen years. Even his cut songs have inventive ideas.

6. JULE STYNE - Even his flop shows overflow with wonderful tunes. BELLS ARE RINGING, FUNNY GIRL, GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES/LORELEI, and GYPSY would alone guarantee him a place of honour.

7. JERRY HERMAN - the master of the reconstituted show tune. A shame he essentially retired after LA CAGE we could have had another 4 or 5 scores from him.

8. JOHN KANDER - Can anyone pack so much emotion into a simple melodic phrase. It's too bad so many of the shows he wrote with Fred Ebb flopped but their two big hits CABARET and CHICAGO live on and encourage fans to explore their lesser shows.

9. CY COLEMAN - Perhaps not among many people's top choices but listen to the scores for SWEET CHARITY, ON THE 20TH CENTURY, and CITY OF ANGELS back to back and you'll hear his remarkable range.

10. STEPHEN SONDHEIM - For years I endured endless complaints about how unmelodious his scores were when I heard fascinating tunes set to dazzling lyrics. He is now revered for what he is: the greatest gift to modern musical theatre.



HONOURABLE MENTIONS:

IRVING BERLIN - Not as musically venturesome as Rodgers or Gershwin, but as a tunesmith he's one of the very best.

COLE PORTER - another tunesmith, but when his melodies take flight there is nothing to compare.

HAROLD ARLEN - Sadly most of his Broadway shows flopped but the flops contain some of his most interesting music: HOUSE OF FLOWERS, ST. LOUIS WOMAN are two that deserve to be better known. Of course THE WIZARD OF OZ score was written for the screen but his contributions to Broadway and Hollywood musicals should not be neglected.

ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER - He has a Rodgers-like gift of melody. Unfortunately wealth gave him the power to appoint himself a producer and here he falls down badly, failing to see that the book and lyric writers he works with are vastly inferior. But judged on his compositional ability he is a master.

CHARLES STROUSE - I hedged on including Strouse as his output is wildly inconsistent but when at his best, he is very good indeed.

Most of the "new" generation of composers (J.R.Brown, LaChuisa, Guettel, Frankel) haven't written enough sores yet to determine but they are talents to watch.


I notice I lean towards composers with either classical training or who wrote 16 or 32-bar tunes in the style of Tin Pan Alley's glory days. I guess I just like symmetry.

[Q]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 8:57am

Frontrow - considering your stated criteria, and what seems to resonate with you, I'm surprised not to see Frederick Loewe on your list.

[jewishboy]

Posted: 1/26/11 at 10:00am

Hard. This is not my favorite, but greatest implies ambition for me, so maybe this is my top ten "wave makers." In order:

1) Stephen Sondheim
2) Leonard Bernstein
3) George Gershwin
4) Richard Rodgers (with Hammerstein)
4) Jerome Kern
5) Cole Porter
6) Irving Berlin
7) Frederick Lowe (with Lerner)
Frank Loesser
9) John Kander (with Ebb)
10) Michael John LaChiusa

too many runners up...