First Advisor
Singleton, Kenneth
Second Advisor
Reddick, Carissa
Document Type
Dissertation
Date Created
3-11-2016
Abstract
Jason Robert Brown is emerging as one of Broadway’s top musical theater composers. The majority of musical theater scholarship focuses on extra-musical elements; the only composer who has been examined by the music academy is Stephen Sondheim. Brown has been described as a “disciple” of Sondheim, and is on his way to equaling his predecessor’s longevity and fame. This study examines the compositional style of Brown, and explores his ability to use musical elements to enhance the drama of the musical through his first four productions: Songs For A New World, Parade, The Last Five Years, and 13. Brown’s treatment of song forms and types, rhythmic tendencies, and allusions to various styles are included. Throughout this research, comparisons are made to composers from the Golden Age of musical theater, as well as contemporary composers such as Stephen Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Keywords
Jason Robert Brown, The Last Five Years, Theory
Extent
267 pages
Local Identifiers
Voelker_unco_0161D_10464.pdf
Rights Statement
Copyright is held by the author.
Recommended Citation
Voelker, Kathryn Laura, "The Musical Theater Style of Jason Robert Brown" (2016). Dissertations. 314.
https://digscholarship.unco.edu/dissertations/314