Martin Koch (orchestrator)
Encyclopedia
Martin Koch is a British
music supervisor, orchestrator, conductor
, and composer who won the 2009 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestrations
and was a co-winner of the 2009 Tony Award for Best Orchestrations
for Billy Elliot the Musical
, sharing the honor with Michael Starobin and Tom Kitt
of Next to Normal.
Koch studied at the Royal College of Music
. He has served as the musical supervisor for numerous productions, including Cats
, Moby Dick
, Chicago
, Blondel
, Follies
, and Into the Woods
in the West End
; several international tours of Les Misérables
; and the United Kingdom tour of Martin Guerre
.
Koch made his Broadway
debut as the musical director for Shirley Bassey
in 1986. He orchestrated and arranged the music for Mamma Mia!, which garnered him his first Tony nomination, prior to Billy Elliot.
Koch has recorded numerous albums, including Les Misérables: The Complete Symphonic Recording and original cast recordings of Hey, Mr. Producer!, Oliver!
, and Miss Saigon
.
Koch recently orchestrated five operas by Richard Thomas
, a project commissioned by the BBC. He and collaborator Nick Gilpin own and operate a music production company that has been responsible for numerous television programs and several recordings, including Jerry Springer: The Opera
.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
music supervisor, orchestrator, conductor
Conducting
Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
, and composer who won the 2009 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestrations
Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestrations
The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestrations is presented by the Drama Desk, a committee of New York City theatre critics, writers, and editors...
and was a co-winner of the 2009 Tony Award for Best Orchestrations
Tony Award for Best Orchestrations
-1990s:1997*Jonathan Tunick – Titanic**Michael Gibson - Steel Pier**Luther Henderson - Play On!**Don Sebesky and Harold Wheeler - The Life1998*William David Brohn – Ragtime**Robert Elhai, David Metzger and Bruce Fowler - The Lion King...
for Billy Elliot the Musical
Billy Elliot the Musical
Billy Elliot the Musical is a musical based on the 2000 film Billy Elliot. The music is by Sir Elton John, and book and lyrics are by Lee Hall, who wrote the film's screenplay. The plot revolves around motherless Billy, who trades boxing gloves for ballet shoes...
, sharing the honor with Michael Starobin and Tom Kitt
Tom Kitt
Tom Kitt is a former Irish Fianna Fáil politician. He served as a Teachta Dála for the Dublin South constituency from 1987 to 2011. He also served as Government Chief Whip from 2004–08.-Early and private life:...
of Next to Normal.
Koch studied at the Royal College of Music
Royal College of Music
The Royal College of Music is a conservatoire founded by Royal Charter in 1882, located in South Kensington, London, England.-Background:The first director was Sir George Grove and he was followed by Sir Hubert Parry...
. He has served as the musical supervisor for numerous productions, including Cats
Cats (musical)
Cats is a musical composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber, based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot...
, Moby Dick
Moby Dick (musical)
Moby Dick is a musical with a book by Robert Longden, and music and lyrics by Longden and Hereward Kaye.A mixture of high camp, music hall-style smut, and wild anachronism overflowing with double entendres, the show focuses on the anarchic and nubile girls of St...
, Chicago
Chicago (musical)
Chicago is a musical set in Prohibition-era Chicago. The music is by John Kander with lyrics by Fred Ebb and a book by Ebb and Bob Fosse. The story is a satire on corruption in the administration of criminal justice and the concept of the "celebrity criminal"...
, Blondel
Blondel
Blondel de Nesle - either Jean I of Nesle or his son Jean II of Nesle - was a French trouvère....
, Follies
Follies
Follies is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The story concerns a reunion in a crumbling Broadway theatre, scheduled for demolition, of the past performers of the "Weismann's Follies," a musical revue , that played in that theatre between the World Wars...
, and Into the Woods
Into the Woods
Into the Woods is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. It debuted in San Diego at the Old Globe Theatre in 1986, and premiered on Broadway in 1987. Bernadette Peters' performance as the Witch and Joanna Gleason's portrayal of the Baker's Wife brought acclaim...
in the West End
West End theatre
West End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
; several international tours of Les Misérables
Les Misérables (musical)
Les Misérables , colloquially known as Les Mis or Les Miz , is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg, based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo....
; and the United Kingdom tour of Martin Guerre
Martin Guerre
Martin Guerre, a French peasant of the 16th century, was at the center of a famous case of imposture. Several years after the man had left his wife, child, and village, a man claiming to be Guerre arrived. He lived with Guerre's wife and son for three years. The false Martin Guerre was tried,...
.
Koch made his Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
debut as the musical director for Shirley Bassey
Shirley Bassey
Dame Shirley Bassey, DBE , is a Welsh singer. She found fame in the late 1950s and was "one of the most popular female vocalists in Britain during the last half of the 20th century"...
in 1986. He orchestrated and arranged the music for Mamma Mia!, which garnered him his first Tony nomination, prior to Billy Elliot.
Koch has recorded numerous albums, including Les Misérables: The Complete Symphonic Recording and original cast recordings of Hey, Mr. Producer!, Oliver!
Oliver!
Oliver! is a British musical, with script, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the novel Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens....
, and Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon
Miss Saigon is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby, Jr.. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly, and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed romance involving an Asian woman abandoned by her American lover...
.
Koch recently orchestrated five operas by Richard Thomas
Richard Thomas (musician)
Richard Thomas is British a musician, writer, and comedy actor. He is best known for composing and scoring the award-winning Jerry Springer: The Opera with Stewart Lee. Thomas collected the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Musical Score in 2004....
, a project commissioned by the BBC. He and collaborator Nick Gilpin own and operate a music production company that has been responsible for numerous television programs and several recordings, including Jerry Springer: The Opera
Jerry Springer: The Opera
Jerry Springer: The Opera is a British musical written by Richard Thomas and Stewart Lee, based on the television show The Jerry Springer Show. The musical is notable for its profanity, its irreverent treatment of Judeo-Christian themes, and surreal images such as a troupe of tap-dancing Ku Klux...
.