The Broadway musical, one of America's most distinctive contributions to Western music, has been much analyzed, but never until now has its essential element--that glorious music--been examined directly in any significant detail. In this unique book, Joseph P. Swain offers a survey of the most important or representative musical plays, one that shows how the great Broadway composers have used the traditional tools of composition to become powerful dramatists in their own right. Illustrated with over 150 musical excerpts, ...
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The Broadway musical, one of America's most distinctive contributions to Western music, has been much analyzed, but never until now has its essential element--that glorious music--been examined directly in any significant detail. In this unique book, Joseph P. Swain offers a survey of the most important or representative musical plays, one that shows how the great Broadway composers have used the traditional tools of composition to become powerful dramatists in their own right. Illustrated with over 150 musical excerpts, the book shows how particular musical solutions to dramatic problems gave Showboat and Oklahoma! the power to change the course of the Broadway tradition, brought Carousel and West Side Story worldwide attention, and lent a light popular genre the complexity and range to encompass a tremendous diversity of styles and materials, from Shakespearean drama ( Kiss Me, Kate and West Side Story ) to European opera ( Porgy and Bess ), and from age-old myth ( My Fair Lady and Camelot ) to still-current ethnic conflict ( Fiddler on the Roof ). In addition, Swain demonstrates how the evolution of the musical--as seen in shows such as Godspell, A Chorus Line, Evita , and Sweeney Todd --may well determine its future course.
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