Essay on The Success of Andrew Lloyd Webber

Over the course of history, the arts have played an important role in aspects of people’s lives. More specifically, music is something that has been around for centuries and will continue to play a part in shaping people into who they are. There have been numerous talented composers in America, but some worth mentioning are Duke Ellington, George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin.

Only one man could claim the title as probably the greatest composer in American history for writing so many unforgettable works: Aaron Copland. He lived a life inspired by many things as well as inspiring people all across the nation, and it really led to the opposite of being drawn into himself, as he described in the quote above. He was born in Brooklyn, New York on November 14 in 1900. He was the youngest of five children to Sarah and Harris Copland. A musical spark came out in Copland already at the age of 11 as he began piano lessons with his sister. His musical talents

Lin-Manuel Miranda, a person who has won countless awards for his music, creating the Broadway hits In The Heights and Hamilton The Musical

Stephen Schwartz is a famous American composer, producer, and creator of music and film. With a degree in drama, Schwartz was first hired as a producer in his early years. Schwartz was interested in musical Theater since the early 1970’s when he was famous for three popular shows on Broadway; Godspell, Pippin, and The Magic Show (The Songwriters Hall of Fame). Stephen Schwartz accomplishments include winning the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics, obtaining three Grammy Awards, three Academy Awards and also being nominated for six Tony Awards. (circletheatre.org). Stephen Schwartz has made an impact on American Musical Theater by influencing Americans by composing famous musicals and earning many awards from which American’s remember him by.

Stephen Schwartz is a famous American composer, producer, and creator of music and film. Stephen Schwartz has been appointed as having one of the most significant careers in American musical theater for over four decades (Laird, 2014). With a degree in drama, Schwartz was first hired as a producer in his early years. Schwartz was interested in musical Theater since the early 1970’s when he was famous for three popular shows on Broadway; Godspell, Pippin, and The Magic Show (The Songwriters Hall of Fame). Stephen Schwartz accomplishments include winning the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lyrics, obtaining three Grammy Awards, three Academy Awards and also being nominated for six Tony Awards. (circletheatre.org). Stephen Schwartz has made an impact on American Musical Theater by influencing people from composing famous musicals and earning many awards from which American’s remember him by.

Leonard Bernstein is not only one of the greatest composers in America, but also one of the greatest conductors in the world. Bernstein conducted great music, composed great music, and also performed music as a pianist. According to the New York Times, he was “one of the most prodigiously talented and successful musicians in American history.” Born and educated in the United States, Bernstein was the first American to obtain a worldwide acclaim. He is perhaps most known for his film score in the West Side Story production.

Musical theater has been filled with countless talented composers. The amount of talent in the theater world is endless, but only few composers gain iconic status. The Gershwins, Rogers & Hammerstein, and Stephen Sondheim come to mind when thinking of the pinnacle of composing. One other man who deserves his permanent place with these others would be Cole Porter. Porter’s extensive library of songs has become classics along with a series of hit musicals that are still done in high mass today. Porter had his share of incredibly tough times, and it simply only makes his rise to the top even more impressive. Cole Porter is without a doubt one of the best composers to ever write for the stage in history.

“I remained too much inside my head and ended up losing my mind”-Edgar Allan Poe

Two great writers of American musical theatre, Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, had one idea in common. They wanted to present to the American public a new and revolutionary musical that would stand out above the rest. They wanted to make an impact on the societies of the era. They wanted to be creative and do something that was considered rebellious. When they finally combined their ideas together they created an American masterpiece in musical theatre: Oklahoma!. It was the first Rodgers and Hammerstein collaboration, starting the most successful creative partnership in the history of American musical theatre.

Composers rely heavily on ritornello form. More freedom in the form although a sinfonia proper is later developed.

‘The Pianist’ is a cinematic masterpiece by the Polish director Roman Polanski. One of the key ideas that appear throughout much of the film is that of ‘hope being instrumental in our survival’. This idea is portrayed through Wladyslaw Szpilman, a Polish pianist, as he struggles for survival in Warsaw as everybody that he once knew and everything that he once had is lost. The idea of ‘hope being instrumental in our survival’ is worth learning about as it allows the audience to realise the importance of hope in todays society – and to understand how Polanski uses music to symbolise ‘hope’ for Szpilman in the film. Polanski effectively utilises an array of visual and oral text features such as music, dialogue, and lighting to build further

Ever since I was a young kid, I was extremely fond of music. Music was all around me: on the television, in school, at the store, and especially in the car. Not only did I love to listen to music, but I loved to play it as well. I am not saying I was any good at playing music, because I was not. But to a young child, hitting their hand on anything could be music, and to me it definitely was.

Start Something that Matters is an event that took place on October 16, 2015 to inspire students to make a difference. The book by TOMS Shoe Founder Blake Mycoskie inspired the event.

Henrik Ibsen’s play A Doll’s House depicts the concept of entrapment. Nora Helmer, the protagonist of the play, is confined in her domestic life by the restricted views of her domineering husband Torvald Helmer. The detailed stage set symbolically represents an idealized world, a doll’s house where Nora lives oblivious to the fact that this confinement is hindering her from further development in life.

In 1965 Robert Wise presented the world with his smashing box office hit film, The Sound of Music. Over time it has become known as one of the most loved and well-known musicals of all time. Shortly after its release it won many Academy awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Sound, Best Adapted Score, Best Film Editing, Best Film-Musical, Best Color Cinematography, and Best Costume design (Freiden par3). The movie is based upon the true story of the VonTrapp family and allows its audience to relive their family experience as well as their flight from Nazism just before the outbreak of World War Two.