LaChiusa "esoteric?"

Ado Annie D'Ysquith Profile Photo
Ado Annie D'Ysquith
#1LaChiusa "esoteric?"
Posted: 9/26/16 at 10:56am

Hi all,

I'm currently in the process of writing a musical with a collaborator and she asked me what style of music I had in mind for the score. I said, to the best of my ability, "Maybe LaChiusa."

When I checked Wikipedia, it referred to his body of work as "esoteric." I wanted to know if you guys would describe it as such. If you had to put his style into a genre, what would it be?

Thanks in advance for your help.


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newintown Profile Photo
newintown
#2LaChiusa
Posted: 9/26/16 at 1:08pm

Esoteric: "intended for or likely to be understood by only a small number of people with a specialized knowledge or interest."

I wouldn't say that applies to LaChiusa's work. His musical palette is completely tonal, and his characters tend to baldly sing exactly what's on their minds (no "In Buddy's Eyes" for him). 

I wouldn't say that he actually has a definable "style;" I'd never listen to a song and say "that sounds like LaChiusa," as I would for Finn and a few others. He tends to alter what style he has to suit the piece.

That said, I feel that he has problem giving his songs a firm structure; to me, they generally tend to meander, and could use more of a sense of clear shape.

Updated On: 9/26/16 at 01:08 PM

Ado Annie D'Ysquith Profile Photo
Ado Annie D'Ysquith
#3LaChiusa
Posted: 9/27/16 at 9:53am

Thanks for your input, newintown. I was also wondering if any of his music is or comes close to being a form of jazz, but I suppose that's another question.


http://puccinischronicles.wordpress.com

GavestonPS Profile Photo
GavestonPS
#4LaChiusa
Posted: 9/27/16 at 6:09pm

I think LaChiusa is "esoteric" compared to Herman, Lloyd Webber, Rodgers and the like. (That lack of consistent and clear structure is partly why.)

This is by no means a criticism. I think he does exactly what he wants to do and does it well.

Mister Matt Profile Photo
Mister Matt
#5LaChiusa
Posted: 9/27/16 at 7:11pm

I think the term I would use is "unconventional' relative to musical theatre.  I don't think it targets a limited group requiring a heightened knowledge of theory or composition.  Nor do I believe his music is inaccessible to the casual listener.  It may sound more sophisticated than conventional musicals, but I don't believe that alone makes it esoteric.


"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian

henrikegerman Profile Photo
henrikegerman
#6LaChiusa
Posted: 9/28/16 at 11:51am

In an almost undeniable sense, most current musical theatre composers might well be considered "esoteric" rather than mainstream.   Not sure what the context was in Wikipedia.  Might it have been a reference to his point of departure subjects (somewhat fringe for musical theatre, e.g., Medea, a jazz age poem, La Ronde, chamber musicals devoted to First Ladies and daughters, etc.) rather than his musical style?

Ado Annie D'Ysquith Profile Photo
Ado Annie D'Ysquith
#7LaChiusa
Posted: 9/28/16 at 12:11pm

That's possible, henrikegerman, that Wiki was referring to his musicals' subject matter...

I'm meeting again with my collaborator tomorrow. Maybe she'll have a clearer picture of what I want our show to sound like than I do! Lol


http://puccinischronicles.wordpress.com

PalJoey Profile Photo
PalJoey
#8LaChiusa
Posted: 9/28/16 at 4:22pm

 

Don't answer that question with the name of a composer. That will only stultify creativity.

Answer with a mood or a color or a tone...or a painter or an art movement or a historical period...or a kind of food or a season of the year or an emotion.

Judy Garland once said, "Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else."

 


binau Profile Photo
binau
#9LaChiusa
Posted: 9/28/16 at 5:18pm

Give me a humm-um-um-um-um-um-um-um-um-um melody.....less avante-garde. 


"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022) "Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009) "Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000