BROADWAY
MUSIC
by Donna Marie Bayer
The music of Broadway
has a distinct spice and a
subtle thrill. It is in a
classification all its own,
and no other form of music can
touch it. It is a genre to
tally unto itself and has an
identity that is completely
sacrosanct.
There are many charac
teristics that separate the
music of Broadway (and some
times of Hollywood, although
the music of movies deserves
an article totally to itself,
so I shall not trifle with it
in this article) from any other
form of music in the world.
The first of these and the most
important is the inexorable
connection between the song
and the show for which it was
written. Without the show the
song loses some of its meaning
and the same applies with the
meaning of the song to the
show, especially with the "new"
form of Broadway music which in
volves a good deal more than a
chorus and dancers breaking up
a scene that needed a little
more "spice." Stephen Sondheim,
along with many others, has lent
his unique talents to perfect
ing this particular form of
Broadway music that is "married"
to the show for which it was
written. For example, I can
think of no popular songs that
have emerged from Sondheimos
three greatest hits in the past
years: Follies, Company, and
A Little Night Music, his cur
rent hit.
There are, however, two
exceptions to this rule: the
immortal team of Rodgers and
Hammerstein, and the team of
Bacharach and David (which,
unfortunately, is no longer
a happy marriage as both have
gone their separate ways) whose
songs have fit their shows to
perfection but have also gone
on to become simply "popular
music." A well-known example
of this is "I'll Never Fall in
Love Again" from the show Prom
ises, Promises. Of course, prac
tically anything by Rodgers
and Hammerstein also falls into
this category.
Broadway music has a spe-
cial and totally unique "mood"
about it. Because every song
is a part of an entire show,
there is a story behind every
song. The character is feel
ing something as he or she sings
and the mood permeates the song.
The song is the result of a
series of events and is some
times even used as a device to
reveal past events in the life
of a particular character. In
"The Butterfly," a touching and
yet strangely chilling song from
Zorba the Greek Nikos is try-
ing to explain his reasons for
hesitation and caution in all
he does, because he, as he tells
in the song, once forced a but
terfly to emerge from its cocoon
before its ordained time. "I
was stronger than nature," he
sings, "And I made it be born!
But the wonder of life...has a
definite plan...so he died in
my hand...." Nikos' entire
personality is revealed through
this song much more effect
tively and emotionally than
could have been accomplished
through the use of dialogue.
The song id a definite, part
of the show and can never be
completely separated from it,
although it is one of the most
hauntingly beautiful and touch
ing numbers that I have ever
heard. It will probably never
appear on the Top Forty charts,
which I, personally, feel is a
great loss to the world of music.
But to appreciate the song ful
ly one must first appreciate
the show for which it was writ
ten, the situation in which
it is sung, and the charac
ter who sings it.
Highacres Collegian, May 7, 1974-Page Five
Broadway music is deep
and thought-provoking. Broad
way is no longer merely an es
cape to the glitter and gla
mour of the theatre. It ex
plores real problems and real
dilemmas of our life and so
ciety. And the songs in Broad ,
way musicals, especially those
in the category about which I
spoke earlier, the "new" Broad.
way music, are an intrinsic
part of this exploration. The
music in Two Gentlemen of Ver-
ona berated and poked fun at
things which not have been
heard in a theatre some years
ago. It criticizes our gov
ernment and our leaders. Air
plause looked into the "dirt"
and nastiness that goes on
within the walls of a theatre.
Company presented a contro
versial picture of marriage.
There are many others, too
numerous to mention here.
And there is one other nice
thing about Broadway music,
perhaps even the nicest: one
need not go to New York to
see the show to appreciate
the music. The "new" Broad
way music is so explicit in its
meanings and its relations to
the plot of the show that one
need not even see the show to
understand it. All one must
do is hear the album, for the
meaning is there within the
songs.
I am afraid I have merely
scratched the surface of the
meaning and understanding of
Broadway music. I hope that I
have managed to give some peo
ple some smal] measure of in'-
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