Bernstein has composed the scores for around 80 films, including "The Man With the Golden Arm," "The Magnificent Seven," and "The Ten Commandments. He's done the scores for 2 new films -- "The Field" and "The Grifters." He joins Fresh Air to talk about how he works with directors to write his music.
He just won a Golden Globe for his score for the film, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King and the score has also been nominated for an Academy Award. Shore has over 60 film scores to his credit, including The Fly, Dead Ringers, Naked Lunch, The Silence of the Lambs, Ed Wood and Philadelphia. Shore was also one of the original creators of Saturday Night Live, serving as musical director from 1975 to 1980. His chamber music is featured on the CD Reel Life — The Private Music of Film Composers Vol. 1.
Broadway composer John Kander of the songwriting team Kander & Ebb. They wrote the music for "Cabaret" and such songs as "New York, New York," and "And the World Goes 'Round."
Part one of the Fresh Air interview. Elfman is a rock musician who fronts the band Oingo Boingo. When Tim Burton hired him to write score for Pee-Wee's Big Adventure, Elfman had to teach himself to read music -- a skill he never needed in the past.
Adler has a new memoir about his career in musical theater. He wrote songs with Jerry Ross for The Pajama Game and Damn Yankees. Ross died early in their partnership in 1955.
Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews a new release of works by 20th century composer Leon Kirchner. Lloyd say Kirchner has managed to fuse the two major influences of 20th-century classical music, Schoenberg and Stravinsky. (the album's on the Elektra/Nonesuch label).
Classical music critic Lloyd Schwartz reviews three reissues of music by composer Erich Wolfgang Korngold. Korngold was a success at both serious composition and writing music for the movies...among his film scores are the classics "The Sea Hawk," and "The Adventures of Robin Hood."
In his 30-year career, musician Fred Hersch has performed in solo, duo, trio and quintet settings. In 2003 he received the prestigious Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship, which he used to work on his latest project, Leaves of Grass. For it, Hersch leads a 10-piece ensemble, which includes vocalists singing the words of Walt Whitman set to compositions by Hersch. He is touring the ensemble this month.
Broadway Composer Charles Srouse. His hits include, "Bye Bye Birdie," "Applause," and "Annie." He's also written the film scores for "Bonnie and Clyde," and "The Night They Raided Minskys," and others. Strouse newest production is the sequel to "Annie," -- "Annie Warbucks." It's his second stab at an "Annie" sequel, and it comes after a string of flops. When asked if he'd ever just wanted to quit he said, "Never. . .
Cage died yesterday at the age of 79. The New York Times wrote that Cage "started a revolution by proposing that composers could jettison the musical language that had evolved over the last seven centuries, and in doing so he opened the door to Minimalism, performance art and virtually every other branch of the musical avant-garde." His compositions include spoken texts, radios, toys and the sounds of vegetables being chopped. In honor of his passing, we present highlights of his 1982 interview with Terry Gross.
Grammy-winning Delbert McClinton is considered a legend among Texas roots music aficionados. He's been making music since the 1950s in a style that seamlessly blends country, blues, soul, and rock and roll. Before he became known as a singer, he was a harmonica player with the Straightjackets, backing blues legends such as Howlin' Wolf, Jimmy Reed and Sonny Boy Williamson. On tour in England in 1962, McClinton gave harmonica lessons to a young John Lennon.
Horn pulls together her sundry influences — including jazz, pop, gospel and vintage Broadway — on her second album. The resulting tunes are so good, other singers are sure to try them on.
Musician Marty Ehrlich doesn't play much on his new album; instead, he conducts an ensemble that performs his compositions. He tells Fresh Air about his first album devoted to his orchestral music.
Waart specializes in 20th century classical music, and leads the Minnesota Orchestra. He first established himself in the Netherlands before moving to the United States. Wart joins Fresh Air to discuss the differences between American and European orchestra management, and the need for more adventurous programming.
In addition to writing music, Ned Rorem publishes his diaries, in which he muses on the creative process, his views on art, and his personal relationships. His newest collection is called Setting the Tone.
EMI has just reissued a broad spectrum of German conductor Otto Klemperer's recordings, including a box set of one of the composers he's most associated with: Gustav Mahler.
Trumpeter and composer Dave Douglas doesn't like to categorize music. He's currently fronting seven ensembles, of varying compositional, improvisational and instrumental styles, including the Dave Douglas String Group, the Tiny Bell Trio, and the Sextet. He's been a sideman with Don Byron, Myra Melford and Uri Caine. Douglas has many compositions and recordings to his credit. His latest recordings are "Songs for Wandering Souls" (Winter & Winter) by the Tiny Bell Trio, and "Convergence" (Soul Note) by the Dave Douglas String Group.
Lane died yesterday at the age of 84. His wife says he suffered a stroke. He's written the scores for several Broadway shows, including "Finian's Rainbow" and "On a Clear Day You Can See Forever." Lane collaborated with Michael Feinstein on the album, "Michael Feinstein Sings the Burton Lane Songbook", which features many of Lane's classic songs, such as "Old Devil Moon" and "How About You." This interview originally aired 11/5/90.
