Stephen Sondheim was a great American lyricist. A lyricist is someone who writes the words for the music.
Stephen Joshua Sondheim was born on March 22, 1930, in New York City. His parents, Herbert and Janet Sondheim, worked in New York's garment industry; his father was a dress manufacturer and his mother was a designer. |
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In 1942, Stephen Sondheim moved to Pennsylvania, where he had a very famous neighbor by the name of Oscar Hammerstein. Hammerstein’s son and Sondheim became good friends, and Stephen would often ask the famous lyricist for advice. The two families became very close and Oscar Hammerstein became a father figure to Sondheim.
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In his teens, Stephen wrote a musical about his school entitled “By George!” He took it to Hammerstein to see what he thought. Stephen just knew Hammerstein would fall instantly in love with it! He was not prepared for all the criticism he was given. He later admitted that Hammerstein’s criticism taught him much more than he recognized at the time.
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Today’s listening example is “Worst Pies in London” from Sondheim’s hit musical “Sweeney Todd” about a barber who cuts more than his clients’ hair. It is kind of a scary, or horror, type musical that was later made into a movie by Tim Burton, who is well known for his dark films.
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After the success of “A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum”, Sondheim continued to write both lyrics and music for his own musicals. He wrote a musical based on one of our paintings of the week. “Sunday at the Park with George” was first performed in 1984, and was inspired by this painting. Can you remember the name of this painting by Georges Seurat?
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Stephen Sondheim’s work is still performed around the world today, on various stages from high schools to Broadway. He even has his own theatre.
Sondheim has won many awards, including Tony Awards, for his musicals, and Grammy Awards, for his soundtracks. He shared the Pulitzer Prize for drama with his friend James Lapine, in 1985. In November of 2015, Sondheim was awarded the Presidential Medal of Honor by President Barack Obama. |
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