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Richard Rodgers

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Richard Rodgers was an American composer who wrote mainly for the musical theatre. He was born on 28 June 1902 in Queens, New York, and died on 30 December 1979. He began playing the piano at the age of six and from 1921 studied composition at the Institute of Musical Art, later the Juilliard School. He wrote 43 Broadway musicals and more than nine hundred songs and was one of the best-known American composers of the twentieth century.

Music and breakthrough

He first worked with the lyricist Lorenz Hart, in the 1920s and 1930s, on, among others, A Connecticut Yankee, On Your Toes, Babes in Arms and Pal Joey. Then, with Oscar Hammerstein II in the 1940s and 1950s, he wrote Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I, Cinderella, Flower Drum Song and The Sound of Music. It is above all the collaboration with Hammerstein that is praised for bringing the Broadway musical to maturity, with stories that revolve around characters and drama rather than light entertainment. Rodgers also wrote the music for the television series Victory at Sea.

Influence

He was the first to win an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar and a Tony, the later EGOT, and a Pulitzer Prize as well. In 1978 he was among the first group of winners of the Kennedy Center Honors. His songs were played not only in the theatre but also by pop singers and jazz musicians, and so influenced popular music.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to a song from Oklahoma! or The Sound of Music and notice how the melody reflects the character's mood. Which words and which notes belong together?

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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Mentioned in other articles

Categories: Artists