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Friday, January 12, 2024
Stephen Sondheim is cool now
NPR: Stephen Sondheim — composer-lyricist for A Little Night Music, Sweeney Todd, and more than a dozen other musicals — is having "a moment" as one of his Into the Woods lyrics might have put it.
5 comments:
Karter LaBarre
said...
When I first saw the title of this article, I was wondering what does this mean?Having now read it makes a lot more sense. Stephen Sondheim is a really cool person, and he deserves lots of recognition, but trust me he does get that. It's really interesting that sometimes people are their most famous after they have already passed away, this has happened with many artists like Vincent van Gogh and countless other people. there really is a way to make an impact even if you are dead. Now that may sound somber, but in reality I think it is something that recognizes the immense Talent of these people. because being famous and recognized and impactful when you are alive is already nearly impossible, doing that while you're dead is incredible. I am not a huge theater buff but I do know who Steven Sondheim is and that's saying a lot. His music and shows are just incredible and I hope to one day see Sweeney Todd on broadway.
Stephen Sondheim is gaining more traction after his death, and I think this shows a greater trend in the art world to revere artists who have passed away. Many, MANY, artists experience renewed fame posthumously, and I think there's a couple reasons for it. I think that part of the reason is that they become a kind of cultural marker for their time, with the artist taking on an iconographic role, simply being a symbol of the time that they created works in. I think that another reason could be a renewed generation of fans who may not have heard of their work, as simply more people come into the world. The renewed generation could be caused in part by the artists now having a fixed body of work to draw from, so it’s typically easier for people who are newer to the scene to connect and be able to understand what people are talking about, which fosters a sense of community. I mean here at CMU we’re doing a Sondheim show!
I was hesitant to click on this article because of the title. I am personally not the biggest fan of Sondheim. When I say that outloud I get a lot of different reactions. Most people disagree with me and this article walked me through why. I do think that since his passing Stephen Sondheim has gained a lot of traction and attention. I cannot even count how many Sondheim productions I have seen recently. And even though I am not the biggest fan of his, I don’t necessarily think that is bad. He was a good writer and has some beautiful works of art. My issue with it is that it is so overdone. I am bored of it and I am a bigger fan of the new works that are coming out. I do recognize that is just my personal opinion though. I just am not a fan of the style he wrote. There is nothing wrong with it and I am happy so many people are getting to know his shows. I know that his music is difficult and impressive when performed and so many people have such a deep love for it.
I really enjoyed the writing of this article. It explained the work of Sondheim beautifully for both those who have never heard of Sondheim and those who know his work quite well. I found the description of Here We Are to be super interesting. The way they are honoring the unfinished work by making part of the plot the disappearing music is quite clever. When first hearing about this musical I was worried that Sondheim’s legacy would end up completely commercialized or it just wouldn’t make sense (left unfinished), but it sounds like the creative team has taken a noble effect. I grew up with Sondheim. While I preferred the more contemporary pop-rock musicals growing up, my mom is a huge Sondheim fan and took me to all the adaptations of his work. I figure this is why the title “Stephen Sondheim is Cool Now” surprised me. Personally, Sondheim has been cool. This being said, I’m glad classic musicals with interesting spins are gaining in popularity. While technically revivals, I find Sondheim and other classic musical reappearances on Broadway to be so refreshing as opposed to the commercially saturated musical movie adaptations.
Personally, growing up I have always loved Sondheim, he truly was a musical genius. I do not think I have seen or listened to a musical by him that I have not enjoyed. As a musician and an avid music enthusiast I especially love the complexities of his scores especially in musicals like Into the Woods and Sweeney Todd. While the musician part of me hates that he wrote Into the Woods mainly in 12/8 just because it is annoying to count, I really do appreciate the complexity of the score as a whole. So working in 12/8 is well worth it. I do think it is interesting that Sondheim seems to have all the sudden gotten super popular but I suppose that is the way the world works. Unfortunately, many artists throughout history have not been recognized as the genesis they are until they have passed on.
5 comments:
When I first saw the title of this article, I was wondering what does this mean?Having now read it makes a lot more sense. Stephen Sondheim is a really cool person, and he deserves lots of recognition, but trust me he does get that. It's really interesting that sometimes people are their most famous after they have already passed away, this has happened with many artists like Vincent van Gogh and countless other people. there really is a way to make an impact even if you are dead. Now that may sound somber, but in reality I think it is something that recognizes the immense Talent of these people. because being famous and recognized and impactful when you are alive is already nearly impossible, doing that while you're dead is incredible. I am not a huge theater buff but I do know who Steven Sondheim is and that's saying a lot. His music and shows are just incredible and I hope to one day see Sweeney Todd on broadway.
Stephen Sondheim is gaining more traction after his death, and I think this shows a greater trend in the art world to revere artists who have passed away. Many, MANY, artists experience renewed fame posthumously, and I think there's a couple reasons for it. I think that part of the reason is that they become a kind of cultural marker for their time, with the artist taking on an iconographic role, simply being a symbol of the time that they created works in. I think that another reason could be a renewed generation of fans who may not have heard of their work, as simply more people come into the world. The renewed generation could be caused in part by the artists now having a fixed body of work to draw from, so it’s typically easier for people who are newer to the scene to connect and be able to understand what people are talking about, which fosters a sense of community. I mean here at CMU we’re doing a Sondheim show!
I was hesitant to click on this article because of the title. I am personally not the biggest fan of Sondheim. When I say that outloud I get a lot of different reactions. Most people disagree with me and this article walked me through why. I do think that since his passing Stephen Sondheim has gained a lot of traction and attention. I cannot even count how many Sondheim productions I have seen recently. And even though I am not the biggest fan of his, I don’t necessarily think that is bad. He was a good writer and has some beautiful works of art. My issue with it is that it is so overdone. I am bored of it and I am a bigger fan of the new works that are coming out. I do recognize that is just my personal opinion though. I just am not a fan of the style he wrote. There is nothing wrong with it and I am happy so many people are getting to know his shows. I know that his music is difficult and impressive when performed and so many people have such a deep love for it.
I really enjoyed the writing of this article. It explained the work of Sondheim beautifully for both those who have never heard of Sondheim and those who know his work quite well. I found the description of Here We Are to be super interesting. The way they are honoring the unfinished work by making part of the plot the disappearing music is quite clever. When first hearing about this musical I was worried that Sondheim’s legacy would end up completely commercialized or it just wouldn’t make sense (left unfinished), but it sounds like the creative team has taken a noble effect. I grew up with Sondheim. While I preferred the more contemporary pop-rock musicals growing up, my mom is a huge Sondheim fan and took me to all the adaptations of his work. I figure this is why the title “Stephen Sondheim is Cool Now” surprised me. Personally, Sondheim has been cool. This being said, I’m glad classic musicals with interesting spins are gaining in popularity. While technically revivals, I find Sondheim and other classic musical reappearances on Broadway to be so refreshing as opposed to the commercially saturated musical movie adaptations.
Personally, growing up I have always loved Sondheim, he truly was a musical genius. I do not think I have seen or listened to a musical by him that I have not enjoyed. As a musician and an avid music enthusiast I especially love the complexities of his scores especially in musicals like Into the Woods and Sweeney Todd. While the musician part of me hates that he wrote Into the Woods mainly in 12/8 just because it is annoying to count, I really do appreciate the complexity of the score as a whole. So working in 12/8 is well worth it. I do think it is interesting that Sondheim seems to have all the sudden gotten super popular but I suppose that is the way the world works. Unfortunately, many artists throughout history have not been recognized as the genesis they are until they have passed on.
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