Book Description
The large-scale Broadway musical is one of America's great contributions to world theatre. Bill and Jean Eckart were stage designers and producers at the peak of the musical, and their designs revolutionized Broadway productions. At a time when sets were meant to remain simply backdrops that established time and place but not much else, an Eckart set became part of the performance on stage, equal at times to an actor. Anyone who has seen Phantom of the Opera or Les Miserables has seen the innovations that the Eckarts brought to the large Broadway-style musical production. They were best known for their designs for Damn Yankees (1955); Once Upon a Mattress (1959), in which Carol Burnett made her Broadway debut; and Mame (1966) with Angela Lansbury.
Andrew B. Harris uses production stills and the Eckarts' sketches from every show they worked on to illustrate the magic behind an Eckart design. This lavishly illustrated book, with more than 500 full-color illustrations, is a fitting tribute to both the great American theatre and the couple who helped make it great.
"Chock full of new and valuable information and which in my opinion will be an important book on the history of the American musical. I found it an excellent précis of the theatrical process and one which brilliantly shows the collaborative aspects of design."-Robert Taylor, curator of The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
Customer Reviews:
Get this book!!!!!!!.......2007-03-22
If you are in any way interested in stage design,this is the BEST book I have.Informative,beautifully illustrated,with lots of interssting background on Broadway.I have already bought 2 as gifts and may buy more.
It's a Great book!
A Tribute to Masters of their Art.......2006-06-22
If you're thinking about this book you might want to go to [...], the Internet Broadway Data Base and look up the Eckart's. There's a list of thirty seven plays where they did the set design. They began in 1952 with the play 'Glad Tidings,' and for about twenty years it was a very rare year that they didn't do the sets on at least one major broadway play. It could be argued that they alone changed the basic concept of sets on the Broadway Stage. Before them the curtain went down and stagehands moved the furniture around. After them the sets moved themselves, automatically it seemed, and the set became part of the performance. And then in 1965 there was 'Mame.'
This book is a profusely illustrated tribute to their work showing how their sets changed the look of Broadway forever. It doesn't cover every play, but it begins with their work in college, shows the highlights of their Broadway careers, and takes them to Dallas where they concentrated on being parents, and in teaching.
A Masterful Book.
Introducing the reader to the wonderful background worlds of Hollywood and New York's Broadway.......2006-04-05
The Performing Set: The Broadway Designs Of William And Jean Eckart by Andrew B. Harris (formerly Chair of the Theatre Departments of Columbia University, Texas Christian University, and Southern Methodist University) is an eclectic and intrinsically interesting interpretation and collection of the works and influence of two outstanding visionaries and the mutual understanding the two of them shared. Introducing the reader to the wonderful background worlds of Hollywood and New York's Broadway, The Performing Set creates an interesting and informative format for all readers. The Performing Set is most especially recommended to film and theatre students, as well as to those who appreciate behind the scenes perspectives of the big screen, and aspire to creating theatrical sets of their own.
Book Description
"The research is voluminous, as is the artistry and perceptiveness. Swayne has lived richly within the world of Sondheim's music."
---Richard Crawford, author of America's Musical Life: A History
"Sondheim's career and music have never been so skillfully dissected, examined, and put in context. With its focus on his work as composer, this book is surprising and welcome."
---Theodore S. Chapin, President and Executive Director, The Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization
"What a fascinating book, full of insights large and small. An impressive analysis and summary of Sondheim's many sources of inspiration. All fans of the composer and lovers of Broadway in general will treasure and frequently refer to Swayne's work."
---Tom Riis, Joseph Negler Professor of Musicology and Director of the American Music Research Center, University of Colorado
Stephen Sondheim has made it clear that he considers himself a "playwright in song." How he arrived at this unique appellation is the subject of How Sondheim Found His Sound---an absorbing study of the multitudinous influences on Sondheim's work.
Taking Sondheim's own comments and music as a starting point, author Steve Swayne offers a biography of the artist's style, pulling aside the curtain on Sondheim's creative universe to reveal the many influences---from classical music to theater to film---that have established Sondheim as one of the greatest dramatic composers of the twentieth century.
Sondheim has spoken often and freely about the music, theater, and films he likes, and on occasion has made explicit references to how past works crop up in his own work. He has also freely acknowledged his eclecticism, seeing in it neither a curse nor a blessing but a fact of his creative life.
Among the many forces influencing his work, Sondheim has readily pointed to a wide field: classical music from 1850 to 1950; the songs of Tin Pan Alley, Broadway, and Hollywood; the theatrical innovations of Oscar Hammerstein II and his collaborators; the cinematic elements found in certain film schools; and the melodramatic style of particular plays and films. Ultimately, Sondheim found his sound by amalgamating these seemingly disparate components into his unique patois.
How Sondheim Found His Sound is the first book to provide an overview of his style and one of only a few to account for these various components, how they appear in Sondheim's work, and how they affect his musical and dramatic choices.
Customer Reviews:
Good but not Great.......2007-01-17
This book got off to a good start, analyzing Sondheim's favorite classical composers and how they show up in his own musical language. The next chapter is devoted to Sondheim's broadway influences, and gives a good examination of these as well.
The second half of the book is devoted to Sondheim's theatrical and cinematic influences. It is here that Swayne goes off track. Though he makes some interesting connections between film technique and musical composition, it seems to me that this is where his thesis falls short, and could have been developed much more cogently. Also, one would think that Swayne would devote more attention to actual film scores.
My main complaint is that in a book called "How Sondheim Found His Sound", one would expect to find at least a mention of the orchestration in Sondheim's shows. Perhaps this is just my own personal bent, as I have always wondered just how Sondheim works with his orchestrators and to what extent he thinks in orchestral terms.
In terms of the writing, this book (especially in the later chapters) all too often reads like an undergraduate music paper. All this being said, there's enough in here to warrant purchase by real Sondheim junkies.
A severely flawed look at pieces of the craft........2006-12-30
To the writer: For whom was this book written? Who was the intended audience? What's with the "thesaurus" words peppering the text? Why all the conjecture? Why not just ask the composer? This is a treatise I'd hand back to the student for major rewriting.
Worth Reading.......2006-11-10
"How Sondheim Found his Sound" is a book full of very interesting information, although my reasoning for allocating only 4-stars is because I feel that more musical examples could have been used.
That having been said, it is a very thouroughly researched book, and I would recommend it to Sondheim fans, myself included.
One last note would be that having the vocal scores in question along side this book would allow a person to garner more of an understanding of the analyses (due to the general lack of musical examples).
Great primer on Sondheim.......2005-10-09
This is a great book on how Sondheim "found his sound." I thoroughly enjoyed reading about Sondheim's card system and it gave me greater insight into a person who knew Leonard Bernstein.
Fascinating Look at the Creative Process.......2005-08-22
Sir Isaac Newton once said: 'If I have accomplished anything, it is because I stood on the shoulders of giants.' Stephen Sondheim would probably say something similar.
He has acknowledged being influenced by classical music, Broadway, Tin Pan Alley, Hollywood and many more. In the end though, Sondheim's work has taken these together and produced something uniquely his own. The results speak for themselves: West Side Story, Gypsy, Sunday in the Park with George, Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods, Do I Hear a Waltz and the list goes on and on. In 2004 alone there was the first Broadway production of Assassins, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (London), The Frogs (Lincoln Center), Passion, Pacific Overtures.
This book though, is not a description of what he has done, it's an in depth analysis of the way his music came about. The author teaches music at Dartmouth. His analysis, aided by Sondheim himself talks not only about the origins of music, but the way Sondheim goes about developing a song. It's a fascinating look at the creative process.
Book Description
The remarkable career of composer-orchestrator Robert Russell Bennett (1894-1981) encompassed a wide variety of both "legitimate" and popular music-making in Hollywood, on Broadway, and for television. Bennett is principally responsible for what is known worldwide as the "Broadway sound" and for greatly elevating the status of the theater orchestrator. He worked alongside Jerome Kern, Cole Porter, George Gershwin, Irving Berlin, Richard Rodgers, and Frederick Loewe on much of the Broadway canon, eventually providing orchestrations for all or part of more than 300 musicals between 1920 and 1975. This work is the first publication of Bennett's autobiography, which was written in the late 1970s. It also includes eight of his most important essays on the art of orchestration. George J. Ferencz is professor of music at the University of Wisconsin at Whitewater.
Book Description
The first ever comprehensive guide to musical theater recordings, this book covers the entire history of musical theater. From Jerome Kern and the Gershwins to Bernstein and Sondheim, here are capsule reviews and ratings of more than 1,000 theater recordings of the past 60 years. Organized alphabetically, each listing contains background information on the show, cast information, record label, catalog number, whether the recording is currently in print, and an overall rating of one to five stars.
Customer Reviews:
'NEARLY' INDESPENSABLE AND A LOT OF FUN . . . . . . .......2007-04-13
Temptation arises to call this volume "indispensable," but in reality "The Theatermania Guide to Musical Theater Recordings" is no more indispensable than the near-500 show recordings in my library. Do I really "need" any of them? No, but I sure as heck get a lot of enjoyment from them.
As I do from the book. No, it's not complete. In addition to recordings mentioned in another review, other omissions include such rarities as AMEN CORNER (1983); ANGEL (1979); ARABIAN NIGHTS (1964); Oscar Strauss' THE CHOCOLATE SOLDIER (1958 Studio Recording); DESERT SONG (1950-something Columbia recording with Nelson Eddy & Dorretta Morrow); Julius Monk's 1960 revue DRESSED TO THE NINES; EARL OF RUSTIN (1971); Rodgers & Hart's EVER GREEN (1998 Studio Cast); Al Carmine's THE FAGGOT (1973); THE FIG LEAVES ARE FALLING (1960); GONE WITH THE WIND or SCARLETT (1972); THE GOOD COMPANIONS (1974); THE GOOD OLD, BAD OLD DAYS (1972); HEARTBEATS (1994 Pasadena Playhouse); I LOVE YOU, MADAM PRESIDENT (1994 Studio); IN CIRCLES (1959 - Al Carmines' music/Gertrude Stein's poetry); IT AIN'T NOTHING BUT THE BLUES (1999); JOY (1970); and A JOYFUL NOISE (1966).
Then there are two recordings of THE MERRY WIDOW (1964 Lincoln Center) & (1962 Studio Cast/Columbia); MOLL FLANDERS (1993); PEACE (another Al Carmines work/1968); PICKWICK (1963); PROM QUEENS UNCHAINED (1991); Marc Blitzstein's REGINA (1949), SCRAMBLED FEET (1979); SHERLOCK HOLMES (1989); THIRTEEN DAUGHTERS (1961 Honolulu Cast); A THURBER CARNIVAL (1960); TO BROADWAY WITH LOVE (1964); TOMFOOLERY (1980); TOM JONES (1964); VALMOUTH (1958); VANITY FAIR (2001); VERY WARM FOR MAY (1939); and - get this - THE YEARLING (1965).
Reasons? Some of these shows never played in New York and some of the recordings are quite rare and probably not available to the reviewers.
At any rate, the book is "nearly" indispensable to me for several reasons: (1) It has turned me on to some excellent recordings like HONK! (available from the Music Theater of Wichita's web site); Cole Porter's NYMPH ERRANT; AVENUE Q, the New York production of STARTING HERE, STARTING NOW, & the Pearl Bailey/Cab Calloway HELLO, DOLLY! (available from Archiv Music's web site - as are the long-deleted original Broadway cast recordings of SILK STOCKINGS and WILDCAT); and a few more I've put on my wish list. (2) Often a review supports my opinion, such as my minority review of the 1974 CANDIDE revival. (3) Sometimes a review is in contradiction to my impression of the recording, and it's interesting to see where and why we differ. (4) It's good reading. COCO: "Hepburn's singing makes Lauren Bacall sound like Joan Sutherland; she ends up in a statistical dead heat for the title of least vocally qualified star in Broadway musical history." (David Barbour) OH! CALCUTTA!: "Given that numerous scores by Cole Porter, Rodgers and Hart, and Jerome Kern remain unrecorded, the existence of this album - and its reissue on CD - is outrageous. . . . Only one of the selections, 'I Like the Look,' sounds like a theater song; I mention this because it's the last track on the disc, so you'll probably never hear it." (David Wolf)
There have been a lot of shows since 2004 when this volume was published. It would be great to have "TGTMTR, Vol. 2." I'd like to know what Gerard Allesandri thinks about the Carnegie Hall SOUTH PACIFIC. I'm definitely in the minority on that one.
Highly recommended for all of the fanatics out there! We rule!!!
An indispensible resource for any musical theatre lover.......2005-08-27
"The TheaterMania Guide to Musical Theater Recordings" is a truly comprehensive compilation of Broadway cast recordings and movie soundtracks, from the well-known to the super-obscure (many of the listings are as yet unavailable on CD). The reviews come from a wide variety of well-known sources (including Peter Filichia, Matthew Murray, and "Forbidden Broadway" creator Gerard Alessandrini) and yet all manage to be informative and frequently quite witty. The face that so many people were involved with the book does lead to some head-scratchers, though, particularly with regard to recent recordings ("Phantom of the Opera" and "Les Miserables" are given low marks, while Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" and "The Lion King" are heavily praised--opinions, I know, but unusual ones) and the star ratings that sometimes don't seem to match up with the reviews themselves (why do some reviews identify nothing overtly wrong with a recording, yet only give it 2 stars?). Still, whether you're searching for the best recording of "Show Boat" from the myriad available or an album of that obscure flop show from 1953, this "Guide" is a must-have.
A Big Letdown.......2005-02-09
Let's face it: any book about Musical Theater recordings is going to be purchased by a Musical Theater fanatic- you and me.
This book isn't for people who just picked up the double-CD of RENT because the national touring company just played in their hometown. If we're looking for the Ultimate Guide to Musical Theater Recordings...sorry folks, this ain't it.
What's surprising is that this book is comprised of mini-reviews by many different experts in the field: Peter Filichia, Ken Bloom, Gerard Allesandrini, etc. This perhaps explains the disjointed feeling one gets perusing thru it.
On the "+" side, the book DOES cover musicals available in both LP and CD format- sadly, there's way too many shows currently not available as CD's, so it's great that this book informs the reader as to the availility of the item. But this "+" also creates the biggest "-"...this book is thoroughly incomplete.
Example: JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR has had many recordings. But while the editor gives us a review of Paul Nicholas in the 20th Anniversary London production, he fails to give us one for the ORIGINAL London production starring Nicholas(either CD or LP)- surely the 1st stage version in England, one of its longest running hits, deserves a review of its own.
Similarly, on ANOTHER Andrew Lloyd Webber show SONG AND DANCE, there's no mention of the 2nd recording of the London cast, starring Webber's-then wife, Sarah Brightman(which served as a soundtrack to a televised production). Neither mentioned is a 2-LP cast album from Germany. And as for the Broadway recording starring Tony-winner Bernadette Peters...her last note in "Unexpected Song" is SOOOO hideous, I wince every time I hear it- several of the reviews make similar comments about singers in other shows, yet this one will haunt my dreams forever... how'd they miss it? Let alone her bizarre "British" accent...
It's a given that a review is subjective to the person doing the writing. However, the 16 contributors here each seem to have different agendas- some focus on the show itself, instead of the recording it received. Some pick one or two of the recordings of the show, but fail to mention the dozen other recordings of it(like SUPERSTAR, ANNIE warrants a review of a British studio recording, but NOT the original London cast album). CHESS warrants a review of a Danish tour, but the Swedish cast and Gottenburg concert cast aren't mentioned.
Not all reviews are credited to their authors...I found it amusing that several of them echoed sentiments in some of the spoofs created by Gerald Allesandrini for his long-running and constantly updated FORBIDDEN BROADWAY reviews(the many CDs of which have critiques here), who is one of the reviewers.
But also disturbing is some of the negative reviews for shows hailed by the public. Shows like ALW's PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and LES MISERABLES are panned, yet their recordings are amongst the biggest sellers internaionally, and each has spawned dozens of international cast recordings. The ground-breaking rock musical HAIR warrants only star each for both it's off-and-on Broadway recordings("those productions were deplorable in that they featured lots of substandard singing..."), yet the reviewer raves about the "bomb" film soundtrack...HUH?
Collecting Musical Theater recordings is a unique and specific hobby, and with the advent of eBay and other on-line auctioning services, have opened doors for those of us hunting for the unique and rare preservation of a beloved musical. Stores like Footlight Records in New York and Dress Circle in London have provided the devoted Musical Lover gems of long out-of-print recordings. If only THIS guide had: a). Provided WAY-more reviews of OTHER recordings of the specific shows covered, and b). Provided a guideline to the reviewers on what grounds should be covered in these critiques. The all-too-often trashing of popular musicals can be very irritating to the reader- we fanatics are definately snobs in our likes and dislikes, but degrading a generally well-loved musical for the sake of contraversy does not endear one to this book.
Unfortunately, two books that provided some great reviews are long out-of-date: Kurt Ganzl's THE BLACKWELL GUIDE TO THE MUSICAL THEATER ON RECORD is the best of the bunch- while I don't care for Mr. Ganzl's obsessions with Operettas and musicals pre-dating the 30's, he's extremely thorough, covering almost ALL recordings of a particular show, with campy and witty remarks about each- as this was published back in 1990, I wish the author would come out with a new edition. Also good is Editor Mark Walker's GRAMOPHONE: MUSICALS GOOD CD GUIDE(2nd Edition)...not nearly as complete with the amount of recordings available, but provides things like cast members, running times and catalogue numbers. Both are listed on Amazon.com. Also, check eBay for issues of Max O. Preeo's sadly-lamented SHOW MUSIC- this publication ran for many years as a privately funded magazine which was picked up the Goodspeed Opera Company in CT, and then dropped a couple of years ago. During its tenure, it provided comprehensive international coverage of Musical Theater Recordings, as well as interviews and features- it's a shame Mr. Preeo doesn't come out with a book on the subject.
If you're not discriminating, this generic guide might satisify... but we'll have to wait longer for a truely GOOD guide on the subject.
Definitely the book I was looking for!.......2005-01-12
As a person who loves Broadway musicals, yet lives on the West Coast, oftimes the soundtracks to certain shows are my only option. I've also discovered that I tend to be more lenient when listening to a show I've seen than to one I have not.
I wouldn't qualify as a aficionado, but I have seen my share of shows, and own a few dozen CD's.
This book is exactly what I wanted: a guide of theater (and theater-based) recordings, that separates wheat from chaff.
Alphabetical by title, each show's iteration is given a review. Recordings by various casts (Broadway, London, etc.) are synopsized and critiqued.
The reviewers know their audience: the book is written for us, not for them, if you catch my meaning.
The reviews themselves are short, concise...I almost wanted a little more, but I'm going to make that a compliment and not a criticism; they cover a LOT of ground here. It looks like they got everything up to 2001.
One of the more valuable functions this book performs, is comparing the innumerable variations on certain shows (like "Oklahoma!" or "My Fair Lady"), enabling a fan to pick the one best suited for their interests.
More importantly, the subsequent film versions of Broadway shows (and occasionally the antecedent film version) are also covered. It's interesting to see how certain shows improve upon themselves, while others clearly lose that "something" that characterizes the singular Broadway experience.
Even more valuable is the curiosity factor: I've found easily a dozen discs I now need to have. The writing is engaging enough that you'll want to seek out either completely different versions of your favorite shows (including some you did not know that were newly remastered or expanded) or simply new shows you've always wanted to hear, but never got around to them.
Soundtracks to films without accompanying Broadway musicals are not covered, nor should they be in this book; it's title is the "guide to musical theater recordings", not "film soundtracks".
There are a few idiosyncrasies. Some shows that I'm pretty sure have film versions (like "On The Town") do not mention the film soundtrack. Perhaps it's unavailable. The movie soundtrack for "Fame" is not reviewed, but the musical is.
The soundtrack for "Footloose" is covered, though, as are both "Beauty and the Beast" and "Lion King", both non-musical film predecessors.
This is a micro-quibble, at best.
The bottom line is that this is a well-written, comprehensive, entertaining book of reviews about a specific genre. I honestly don't think they could have done it any better.
Book Description
This special matching folio to the 1998 Broadway revival of this beloved classic includes: Climb Ev'ry Mountain * Do-Re-Mi * Edelweiss * The Lonely Goatherd * Maria * My Favorite Things * Sixteen Going on Seventeen * So Long, Farewell * and The Sound of Music, plus two songs from the movie version (I Have Confidence * Something Good). Also features beautiful color photos from the revival production, and background information on the show.
Customer Reviews:
Wonderful vocal selections.......2006-12-08
As someone who is not involved in performing in musical theater, but has a great appreciation for it, this book was wonderful! It has all the big hits from the show and is a wonderful book with great arrangements of the songs! I HIGHLY recommend this wonderful book!
Complete vocal score to the theatrical version.......2006-05-11
This is the complete vocal score to Rodgers and Hammerstein's "Sound of Music." It contains all the vocal lines and underscoring from the theatrical-not the movie-version of the show. It's not ALL that different, but there are a few songs that were cut from the movie which are included here. Conversely, there are a few songs from the movie version which were not in the original stage version that are not included here. Other minor discrepancies between the two productions include the ordering of the songs "Climb Every Mountain," "Do-Re-Mi," and "My Favorite Things."
That being said, the actual score is the typical piano-reduction score as used by most musical productions. A complete list of characters is provided, though there is no discussion of their vocal ranges. A breakdown of the original orchestrations by Robert Russell Bennett is also included, as is a synopsis of scenes and a complete index of musical numbers. Instrumental cues are included throughout the score.
This book has it all!.......1999-05-23
As a musical theatre performer, I found this score to be complete and a wonderful tool for auditions (especially the not-so-well-known songs that didn't appear in the movie version).
nice.......1998-09-29
I'm not a great fan of the music, but it is fun to play. It is a nice combination of music.
Book Description
Documents the influence of Jewish music on American popular song.
Customer Reviews:
SO FUNNY :-).......2005-07-10
This book is a must read - it was so entertaining and funny, I had pop comming out of my nose laughing! And my friends and I had a great time sitting around the piano playing and singing the composed musice enclosed! We even added a few lyrics of our own to the already hilarious lyrics ;-)
Have Fun!
Learning, laughing and loving Gottlieb's book.......2005-07-05
If you share my growing concern at the musical cross-over tendencies in synagogue songs and how "un-Jewish" much of today's Jewish music sounds, you'll find a charming antidote in Dr. Jack Gottlieb's new and original coffee table book: Funny, It Doesn't Sound Jewish. Gottlieb's earnest musical detective comparisons and analyses invite us into joyfully playing the "sounds like" game. After we chuckle in consternation, at the Yiddish or liturgical roots of a pop song's pedigree, we marvel at the truism that there seems to be "nothing new under the sun"; especially under the show biz music lights.
Gottlieb loves to make puns and burst bubbles. This effervescently entertaining study is filled with anecdotes, song sheet covers, musical illustrations, photos of composers and performers, and even an accompanying Audio CD to bring home his astute assertions.
Some of my favorites include: Did you realize that -
George Gershwin's It Ain't Necessarity So is kin to the Torah blessing Barachu Et Adoshem Ham'vorach?
The Torah cantillation for Merchaw R'via inspired both Bach's Oh Sacred Head Now Wounded and Paul Simon's American Tune?
Rozhinkes Mit Mandlin prompted Irving Berlin's Blue Skies.... and my all time favorite
I Am A Gay Caballero, I'm back again from Janeiro is both Y'hei sh'mei rabah m'vorach from the Kaddish and Ashrei yoshvei veitecha od y'hall'lucha selah
Are you curious to follow Gottlieb's unearthing of more of these amusing affinities? There are dozens of other examples, some more apparent than others, but all will cause you to "aha!" pause, smile, and, most importantly, think about what we consider immutable Jewish traditional melodies.
Dr. Gottlieb is an engaging author and lecturer (this book began as a touring presentation with him at the piano). He is a published composer of both secular and synagogue music who most recently was honored by The Milken Archive of American Jewish Music when it distributed a CD of his works on the Naxos label. He is also a meticulous researcher, program notes writer, and former assistant to Leonard Bernstein. In all these endeavors it is quite obvious that he is also a passionate lover of all thing musical and Jewish.
We offer kudos to Dr. Gottlieb for this wonderfully endearing study of Jewish melodic ties to mid 20th century pop music and enthusiastically recommend it as both an urbane entertainment and a carefully documented study. Buy it and enjoy!
You Don't Have to be Jewish ..........2004-12-09
Over 30 years ago there was a famous ad campaign for a brand of "Jewish rye bread," showing an American Indian eating a deli sandwich, and the caption read, "You Don't have to be Jewish to Like Levy's Rye Bread."
With regard to this book, this was never so true. Anyone who love the "Great American Song Book" spanning the first half of the last century cannot afford to miss this book.
Especially remarkable is that it IS a scholarly book, complete with footnotes and bibliography, but the tone is also so jocular.
The accompanying CD of musical examples alone is worth the cost of the book.
Do yourself a favor - Order this book, but pass on the Most book offered by Amazon.com in tandem. It is hardly as comprehensive and definitely pales by comparison.
The Definitive Book on Jewish Music.......2004-12-05
Don't be mislead by the title of this book. It isn't glib or lightweight--in fact, it's a brilliant analysis of the subconscious effect synagogue music and Yiddish song have had on our most beloved popular music. When I picked it up (out of curiosity) I found myself mesmerized and couldn't stop reading.
The book is peppered with musical examples that continually evoke "I never realized that song was related to that"! Gottlieb must have spent decades researching this and it seems unbelievably thorough. He doesn't stop at musical analysis; he also includes a good examination of the history behind everything, particularly focusing on the heavy periods of emigration, when most of the (now) well-known Jewish composers came to America. The book made me look at some of the best known popular songs in a new light, yielding a deeper understanding of what went into their creation.
It may seem a little expensive, but you also get a CD packed with great rare recordings that have never been released before (try Bernstein performing Blitzstein's classic "Zipperfly" or Jolson singing "Khazn oyf Shabes" in Yiddish).
Gottlieb decides to pay limited attention to some of the living composers who focus on Jewish themes (for example, Jason Robert Brown and Osvaldo Golijov are only mentioned casually) but I suspect he could write another book on them. Let's hope he does--I would line up to get a copy.
Product Description
Music notes book with notes for over 70 Broadway hits. Each entry has notes for the song, copyright information, what song the notes are take from, Regi-Sound Program number, Rhythm of the song (ballad, foxtrot, waltz, swing, march, polka etc), names of the person who wrote the words, and the person who put together the music. The Contents include 'All the Things You are', 'As Long as He Needs Me' 'Bewitched', 'Camelot', 'Dont Cry for Me Argentina' etc. Spiral-bound soft cover.
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The Broadway Design Roster: Designers and Their Credits
Bobbi Owen
Manufacturer: Greenwood Press
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ASIN: 0313319154 |
Book Description
As long as plays have been presented, choices have been made about the environment in which they occur, the garments the performers wear, and how to focus the audience's attention. Designers, then, have been instrumental in shaping the history of theater. But before designers were routinely listed in playbills, they could only be identified through other sources, including press releases, reviews, news articles, contracts, and personal papers. This reference provides alphabetically arranged entries for the more than 2,300 scenery, costume, and lighting designers who worked on Broadway in the 20th century. It begins with the 1899-1900 season and ends with the 2000-2001 season. Each entry includes a brief biography and a list of the designer's credits. The emphasis is on individuals rather than companies, but some small businesses formed by designers have been retained as examples. Appendices list the winners of major design awards, and the volume includes a selected bibliography. The extensive index cites the more than 10,000 plays produced on Broadway in the 20th century. While not a narrative history, this reference is nonetheless a comprehensive chronicle of theatrical design on Broadway.
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Broadway Musical
Gordon W. Hodgins
Manufacturer: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
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Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0810813432 |
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Broadway Musicals
Manufacturer: Easton Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Leather Bound
ASIN: B000FW1K98 |
Books:
- The Promise of Sleep: A Pioneer in Sleep Medicine Explores the Vital Connection Between Health, Happiness, and a Good Night's Sleep
- This Jazz Man
- This Jazz Man
- Three Great Orchestral Works in Full Score: Prelude A L'Apres-Midi D'Un Faune, Nocturnes, La Mer (Dover Orchestral Scores)
- Understanding Toscanini: A Social History of American Concert Life
- UP: Influence, Power and the U Perspective- The Art of Getting What You Want
- WACK!: Art and the Feminist Revolution
- War Made New: Technology, Warfare, and the Course of History: 1500 to Today
- We Are All Suspects Now: Untold Stories from Immigrant America After 9/11
- When Somebody Loves You Back
Books Index
Books Home
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- Limnology: Lake and River Ecosystems
- Network Analysis, Architecture and Design, Second Edition
- Carnivorous Nights: On the Trail of the Tasmanian Tiger
- Disertaciones, Tomo III
- The Forbes Book of Business Quotations: 14,173 Thoughts on the Business of Life
Second Act Trouble: Behind the Scenes at Broadway's Big Musical Bombs
Grey Gardens - A New Musical Based On The Film "Grey Gardens"
Before the Parade Passes By: Gower Champion and the Glorious American Musical
George Tsypin Opera Factory: Building in the Black Void
Model Making For The Stage
