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Post by nathangeorge99 on Oct 28, 2020 10:42:36 GMT
I am currently writing and developing the book for a musical that I have created, and want to find a lyricist and composer to do the music. My idea is for the genres of the songs to be eclectic, including ballads, soft rock, mow-town, and a hip hop piece which includes London slang phrases. However, I wondered whether having lots of different genres for the songs would be off putting for the composer and the audience, and whether I should stick to one defined genre for the music throughout the show?
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Post by danb on Oct 28, 2020 12:46:35 GMT
I think it sounds like quite an inorganic way of going about things (not necessarily a bad thing). Find the people. Tell them about your idea and see what they think. In terms of music ALW has always peppered his shows with different musical styles, to the point of it being a blueprint at times...the reggae one, the plinky plonky jokey one, the rock one so there’s no reason that you couldn’t do the same with more modern styles.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2020 10:39:55 GMT
A good composer would be versatile writing in different styles. That said a lot of the stylistic approach for Musical Theatre songs can come from the Orchestrator who often fleshes out the framework of a song by the composer (see ALW who nowadays often just hums out a melody or chords leaving it to the Orchestrator/MD to write the rest).
Musical Theatre is a versatile art form but fickle too and it can all go wrong if you just throw lots of elements at it for the sake of having them or citing influence. Fundamentally, I believe if your doing something it needs a reason, so if a song breaks the style of the rest of piece there needs to be a reason for it. Is it character driven? To signify an event? Part of the subtext? Sondheim is a master at this.
To stick with ALW as an example, even with Phantom you could say that whilst the bulk of the piece is operatic and classic in it's style, the main theme juxtaposes the rest of the music as a way of creating tension. As the Chandelier rises with a jolt of electricity, big electronic organs fill the auditorium, the overture develops and the orchestra is introduced bringing about a change musically (echoing the visual change) swelling to a righteous orchestral conclusion in the Opera House.
There's alot more I could write about this, if your interested.
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