Ralph Burns
Encyclopedia
Ralph Burns was an American songwriter
, bandleader
, composer
, conductor, arranger
and bebop
pianist
.
where he began playing the piano as a child. In 1938, he attended the New England Conservatory of Music
. He admitted that he learned the most about jazz by transcribing the works of Count Basie
, Benny Goodman
and Duke Ellington
. While a student, Burns lived in Frances Wayne’s home. Wayne was already a well-known big band
singer and her brother Nick Jerret was a bandleader who began working with Burns. He found himself in the company of such famous performers as Nat King Cole
and Art Tatum
.
and the two began working together. In 1944, he joined the Woody Herman
band with members Neal Hefti
, Bill Harris
, Flip Phillips
, Chubby Jackson
and Dave Tough
. Together, the group developed one of the most powerful and distinctive sound. For 15 years, Burns wrote or arranged many of the band's major hits including "Bijou", "Northwest Passage" and "Apple Honey", and on the longer work "Lady McGowan’s Dream" and the three-part Summer Sequence.
Burns worked with numerous other musicians. Stan Getz
was featured as a tenor saxophone soloist in "Early Autumn", a huge hit for the band and the launching platform for Getz’s solo career. Burns also worked in a small band with soloists including Bill Harris and Charlie Ventura
.
The success of the Herman band provided Burns the ability to record under his own name in the 1950s. He collaborated with Billy Strayhorn
, Lee Konitz
and Ben Webster
to create both jazz and classical recordings. He wrote compositions for Tony Bennett
and Johnny Mathis
and later Aretha Franklin
and Natalie Cole
. Burns was responsible for the arrangement and introduction of a string orchestra on two of Ray Charles
’s biggest hits, "Come Rain or Come Shine" and "Georgia on My Mind".
In the 1960s, Burns was freed from touring as a band pianist, and began arranging/orchestrating for Broadway including the major show Chicago
, Funny Girl, No, No, Nanette
, and Sweet Charity
. In 1971, Burns first film assignment was for Woody Allen
’s Bananas
. Burns worked with film-director Bob Fosse
and in 1972 won the Academy Award as music supervisor for Cabaret
. He composed the film scores for Lenny
(1974) and Martin Scorsese
’s jazz-themed New York, New York (1977). Fosse again employed Burns to create the soundtrack for All That Jazz
for which he also won an Academy Award in 1979. He then worked on Urban Cowboy
(1980) and in 1982, Burns received another Academy Award nomination for his work in Annie
.
His work for the stage was also notable. Baryshnikov on Broadway in 1980 earned Burns an Emmy Award for his work. In the 1990’s, Burns arranged music for Mel Tormé
, John Pizzarelli
and Michael Feinstein
. Burns won the Tony Award for Best Orchestrations
in 1999 for Fosse
and posthumously in 2002 for Thoroughly Modern Millie
, which also garnered him the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestrations
. The latter were won with Doug Besterman
. From 1996 until his death, Burns restored many orchestrations for New York City Center's Encores! series -- revivals of both his own shows and shows originally orchestrated by others. Burns was inducted into the New England Jazz Hall of Fame in 2004.
. He was survived by one sister, Nancy Lane (Burns), and three brothers, Leo, Joe, and Gael.
Nominations
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
, bandleader
Bandleader
A bandleader is the leader of a band of musicians. The term is most commonly, though not exclusively, used with a group that plays popular music as a small combo or a big band, such as one which plays jazz, blues, rhythm and blues or rock and roll music....
, composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
, conductor, arranger
Arranger
In investment banking, an arranger is a provider of funds in the syndication of a debt. They are entitled to syndicate the loan or bond issue, and may be referred to as the "lead underwriter". This is because this entity bears the risk of being able to sell the underlying securities/debt or the...
and bebop
Bebop
Bebop differed drastically from the straightforward compositions of the swing era, and was instead characterized by fast tempos, asymmetrical phrasing, intricate melodies, and rhythm sections that expanded on their role as tempo-keepers...
pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
.
Early life
Burns was born in Newton, MassachusettsNewton, Massachusetts
Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States bordered to the east by Boston. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Newton was 85,146, making it the eleventh largest city in the state.-Villages:...
where he began playing the piano as a child. In 1938, he attended the New England Conservatory of Music
New England Conservatory of Music
The New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, is the oldest independent school of music in the United States.The conservatory is home each year to 750 students pursuing undergraduate and graduate studies along with 1400 more in its Preparatory School as well as the School of...
. He admitted that he learned the most about jazz by transcribing the works of Count Basie
Count Basie
William "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. Basie led his jazz orchestra almost continuously for nearly 50 years...
, Benny Goodman
Benny Goodman
Benjamin David “Benny” Goodman was an American jazz and swing musician, clarinetist and bandleader; widely known as the "King of Swing".In the mid-1930s, Benny Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in America...
and Duke Ellington
Duke Ellington
Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington was an American composer, pianist, and big band leader. Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions...
. While a student, Burns lived in Frances Wayne’s home. Wayne was already a well-known big band
Big band
A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately twelve to twenty-five musicians...
singer and her brother Nick Jerret was a bandleader who began working with Burns. He found himself in the company of such famous performers as Nat King Cole
Nat King Cole
Nathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz genres...
and Art Tatum
Art Tatum
Arthur "Art" Tatum, Jr. was an American jazz pianist and virtuoso who played with phenomenal facility despite being nearly blind.Tatum is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time...
.
Career
After Burns moved to New York in the early 1940s, he met Charlie BarnetCharlie Barnet
Charles Daly Barnet was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, and bandleader.His major recordings were "Skyliner", "Cherokee", "The Wrong Idea", "Scotch and Soda", "In a Mizz", and "Southland Shuffle".-Early life:...
and the two began working together. In 1944, he joined the Woody Herman
Woody Herman
Woodrow Charles Herman , known as Woody Herman, was an American jazz clarinetist, alto and soprano saxophonist, singer, and big band leader. Leading various groups called "The Herd," Herman was one of the most popular of the 1930s and '40s bandleaders...
band with members Neal Hefti
Neal Hefti
Neal Hefti was an American jazz trumpeter, composer, tune writer, and arranger. He was perhaps best known for composing the theme music for the Batman television series of the 1960s, and for scoring the 1968 film The Odd Couple and the subsequent TV series of the same name.He began arranging...
, Bill Harris
Bill Harris (musician)
Bill Harris was a jazz trombonist.-Biography:Early in his career, Harris performed with Benny Goodman, Charlie Barnet, and Eddie Condon. He is renowned for his broad, thick tone and quick vibrato that remained for the duration of each tone. He went on to join Woody Herman's First Herd in 1944...
, Flip Phillips
Flip Phillips
Flip Phillips was an American jazz tenor saxophone and clarinet player. He is best remembered for his work with Jazz at the Philharmonic from 1946 to 1957.-Biography:...
, Chubby Jackson
Chubby Jackson
Greig Stewart 'Chubby' Jackson was an American jazz double-bassist and band leader.Born in New York City, Jackson began at the age of seventeen as a clarinetist, but quickly changed to bass....
and Dave Tough
Dave Tough
Dave Tough was an American jazz drummer associated with both Dixieland and swing jazz in the 1930s and 1940s...
. Together, the group developed one of the most powerful and distinctive sound. For 15 years, Burns wrote or arranged many of the band's major hits including "Bijou", "Northwest Passage" and "Apple Honey", and on the longer work "Lady McGowan’s Dream" and the three-part Summer Sequence.
Burns worked with numerous other musicians. Stan Getz
Stan Getz
Stanley Getz was an American jazz saxophone player. Getz was known as "The Sound" because of his warm, lyrical tone, his prime influence being the wispy, mellow timbre of his idol, Lester Young. Coming to prominence in the late 1940s with Woody Herman's big band, Getz is described by critic Scott...
was featured as a tenor saxophone soloist in "Early Autumn", a huge hit for the band and the launching platform for Getz’s solo career. Burns also worked in a small band with soloists including Bill Harris and Charlie Ventura
Charlie Ventura
Charlie Ventura was a tenor saxophonist and bandleader.Ventura was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He had his first successes working with Gene Krupa. In 1945 he won the Down Beat readers' poll in the tenor saxophone division...
.
The success of the Herman band provided Burns the ability to record under his own name in the 1950s. He collaborated with Billy Strayhorn
Billy Strayhorn
William Thomas "Billy" Strayhorn was an American composer, pianist and arranger, best known for his successful collaboration with bandleader and composer Duke Ellington lasting nearly three decades. His compositions include "Chelsea Bridge", "Take the "A" Train" and "Lush Life".-Early...
, Lee Konitz
Lee Konitz
Lee Konitz is an American jazz composer and alto saxophonist born in Chicago, Illinois.Generally considered one of the driving forces of Cool Jazz, Konitz has also performed successfully in bebop and avant-garde settings...
and Ben Webster
Ben Webster
Benjamin Francis Webster , a.k.a. "The Brute" or "Frog," was an influential American jazz tenor saxophonist. Webster, born in Kansas City, Missouri, was considered one of the three most important "swing tenors" along with Coleman Hawkins and Lester Young...
to create both jazz and classical recordings. He wrote compositions for Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett
Tony Bennett is an American singer of popular music, standards, show tunes, and jazz....
and Johnny Mathis
Johnny Mathis
John Royce "Johnny" Mathis is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standards, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum status, and 73 making the Billboard charts...
and later Aretha Franklin
Aretha Franklin
Aretha Louise Franklin is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. Although known for her soul recordings and referred to as The Queen of Soul, Franklin is also adept at jazz, blues, R&B, gospel music, and rock. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All...
and Natalie Cole
Natalie Cole
Natalie Maria Cole , is an American singer, songwriter and performer. The daughter of jazz legend Nat King Cole, Cole rode to musical success in the mid-1970s as an R&B artist with the hits "This Will Be ", "Inseparable" and "Our Love"...
. Burns was responsible for the arrangement and introduction of a string orchestra on two of Ray Charles
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson , known by his shortened stage name Ray Charles, was an American musician. He was a pioneer in the genre of soul music during the 1950s by fusing rhythm and blues, gospel, and blues styles into his early recordings with Atlantic Records...
’s biggest hits, "Come Rain or Come Shine" and "Georgia on My Mind".
In the 1960s, Burns was freed from touring as a band pianist, and began arranging/orchestrating for Broadway including the major show 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"...
, Funny Girl, No, No, Nanette
No, No, Nanette
No, No, Nanette is a musical comedy with lyrics by Irving Caesar and Otto Harbach, music by Vincent Youmans, and a book by Otto Harbach and Frank Mandel, based on Mandel's 1919 Broadway play My Lady Friends...
, and Sweet Charity
Sweet Charity
Sweet Charity is a musical with music by Cy Coleman, lyrics by Dorothy Fields and book by Neil Simon. It was directed and choreographed for Broadway by Bob Fosse starring his wife and muse Gwen Verdon. It is based on Federico Fellini's screenplay for Nights of Cabiria...
. In 1971, Burns first film assignment was for Woody Allen
Woody Allen
Woody Allen is an American screenwriter, director, actor, comedian, jazz musician, author, and playwright. Allen's films draw heavily on literature, sexuality, philosophy, psychology, Jewish identity, and the history of cinema...
’s Bananas
Bananas (film)
Bananas is a 1971 comedy film written by Mickey Rose and Woody Allen, directed by Allen, and starring himself and Louise Lasser. Parts of the plot were based on the book Don Quixote, U.S.A. by Richard P. Powell. It was filmed on location in New York City, Lima , and various locations in Puerto...
. Burns worked with film-director Bob Fosse
Bob Fosse
Robert Louis “Bob” Fosse was an American actor, dancer, musical theater choreographer, director, screenwriter, film editor and film director. He won an unprecedented eight Tony Awards for choreography, as well as one for direction...
and in 1972 won the Academy Award as music supervisor for Cabaret
Cabaret (film)
Cabaret is a 1972 musical film directed by Bob Fosse and starring Liza Minnelli, Michael York and Joel Grey. The film is set in Berlin during the Weimar Republic in 1931, under the ominous presence of the growing National Socialist Party....
. He composed the film scores for Lenny
Lenny (film)
Lenny is a 1974 American biographical film about the comedian Lenny Bruce, starring Dustin Hoffman and directed by Bob Fosse. The screenplay by Julian Barry is based on his play of the same name.-Plot:...
(1974) and Martin Scorsese
Martin Scorsese
Martin Charles Scorsese is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, actor, and film historian. In 1990 he founded The Film Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to film preservation, and in 2007 he founded the World Cinema Foundation...
’s jazz-themed New York, New York (1977). Fosse again employed Burns to create the soundtrack for All That Jazz
All That Jazz
All That Jazz is a 1979 American musical film directed by Bob Fosse. The screenplay by Robert Alan Aurthur and Fosse is a semi-autobiographical fantasy based on aspects of Fosse's life and career as dancer, choreographer and director. The film was inspired by Bob Fosse's manic effort to edit his...
for which he also won an Academy Award in 1979. He then worked on Urban Cowboy
Urban Cowboy
Released as a 2× vinyl record album, re-released on CD in 1995.Side A:#Hello Texas – Jimmy Buffett #All Night Long – Joe Walsh #Times Like These – Dan Fogelberg #Nine Tonight – Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band...
(1980) and in 1982, Burns received another Academy Award nomination for his work in Annie
Annie (film)
Annie is a 1982 American musical film directed by John Huston and choreographed by Arlene Phillips. The film is an adaption of the 1977 stage musical of the same name, which in turn was based on the 1924 Little Orphan Annie comic strip by Harold Gray. The movie features music by Charles Strouse,...
.
His work for the stage was also notable. Baryshnikov on Broadway in 1980 earned Burns an Emmy Award for his work. In the 1990’s, Burns arranged music for Mel Tormé
Mel Tormé
Melvin Howard Tormé , nicknamed The Velvet Fog, was an American musician, known for his jazz singing. He was also a jazz composer and arranger, a drummer, an actor in radio, film, and television, and the author of five books...
, John Pizzarelli
John Pizzarelli
John Paul Pizzarelli, Jr. is an American jazz guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and bandleader. He has had a lengthy career as a recording artist, performing for a variety of labels that include Telarc Records, RCA Records and Chesky Records, among others...
and Michael Feinstein
Michael Feinstein
Michael Jay Feinstein is an American singer, pianist, and music revivalist. He is an interpreter of, and an anthropologist and archivist for, the repertoire known as the Great American Songbook. In 1988 he won a Drama Desk Special Award for celebrating American musical theatre songs...
. Burns won the 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...
in 1999 for Fosse
Fosse
Fosse is a three-act musical revue showcasing the choreography of Bob Fosse. After 21 previews, the original Broadway production, conceived and directed by Richard Maltby, Jr...
and posthumously in 2002 for Thoroughly Modern Millie
Thoroughly Modern Millie (musical)
Thoroughly Modern Millie is a musical with music by Jeanine Tesori, lyrics by Dick Scanlan, and a book by Richard Morris and Scanlan. Based on the 1967 film of the same name, Thoroughly Modern Millie tells the story of a small-town girl, Millie Dillmount, who comes to New York City to marry for...
, which also garnered him the 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...
. The latter were won with Doug Besterman
Doug Besterman
Douglas "Doug" Besterman is an American orchestrator, musical arranger and music producer. He is the recipient of three Tony Awards out of five total nominations and two Drama Desk Awards out of six total nominations, and was a 2009 Grammy Award nominee.- Career :Besterman found work in New York...
. From 1996 until his death, Burns restored many orchestrations for New York City Center's Encores! series -- revivals of both his own shows and shows originally orchestrated by others. Burns was inducted into the New England Jazz Hall of Fame in 2004.
Personal life
Burns carefully hid his homosexuality throughout his life. In 2001, Burns died from complications of a recent stroke and pneumonia in Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. He was survived by one sister, Nancy Lane (Burns), and three brothers, Leo, Joe, and Gael.
Composer
- LennyLennyLenny or Lennie may refer to:People* Lenny Fictional characters:* Lennie Small, a major character in the novel Of Mice and Men* Lenny Leonard, on the television program The Simpsons...
(1974) - Piaf (1974)
- Lucky Lady (1975)
- Movie Movie (1978)
- All That JazzAll That JazzAll That Jazz is a 1979 American musical film directed by Bob Fosse. The screenplay by Robert Alan Aurthur and Fosse is a semi-autobiographical fantasy based on aspects of Fosse's life and career as dancer, choreographer and director. The film was inspired by Bob Fosse's manic effort to edit his...
(1979) - Make Me an Offer (1980) (TV)
- Urban Cowboy (1980)
- Golden Gate (1981) (TV)
- Pennies from Heaven (1981)
- Side Show (1981) (TV)
- Kiss Me Goodbye (1982)
- Lights, Camera, Annie! (1982) (TV)
- My Favorite Year (1982)
- The Phantom of the Opera (1983) (TV)
- Star 80Star 80Star 80 is a 1983 American film about the true story of Playboy Playmate of the Year Dorothy Stratten, who was murdered by her estranged husband Paul Snider in 1980...
(1983) - Vacation (1983)
- Ernie Kovacs: Between the Laughter (1984) (TV)
- The Muppets Take ManhattanThe Muppets Take ManhattanThe Muppets Take Manhattan is the third of a series of live-action musical feature films starring Jim Henson's Muppets, and also the final film before Henson's death. This film was produced by Henson Associates and TriStar Pictures, and was filmed on location in New York City during the summer of...
(1984) - Moving Violations (1985)
- PerfectPerfect (film)The soundtrack to Perfect was initially released in 1985 as a 12" vinyl record, and later re-released on CD.Side A#" Perfect" – 3:50#"I Sweat " – 3:54...
(1985) - The Christmas Star (1986) (TV)
- Penalty Phase (1986) (TV)
- Amazing Stories (2 episodes, 1986&-;1987)
- "Magic Saturday" (1986) TV Episode
- "The 21-Inch Sun" (1987) TV Episode
- After the Promise (1987) (TV)
- In the Mood (1987)
- All Dogs Go to Heaven (1989)
- Sweet Bird of Youth (1989) (TV)
- Bert Rigby, You're a Fool (1989)
Other
- Sweet Charity (1969) (orchestrator)
- Move (1970) (orchestrator)
- Bananas (1971) (orchestrator)
- Cabaret (1972) (conductor) (music arranger) (music supervisor)
- Lenny (1974) (music supervisor)
- Mame (1974) (musical director) (orchestrator)
- New York, New York (1977) (conductor) (music supervisor)
- The World's Greatest Lover (1977) (orchestrator)
- High Anxiety (1977) (orchestrator)
- All That Jazz (1979) (conductor) (music arranger) (music supervisor) (uncredited)
- Baryshnikov on Broadway (1980) (TV) (music arranger)
- Urban Cowboy (1980) (music adaptor)
- First Family (1980) (composer: additional music) (uncredited) (conductor) (music adaptor)
- Bring Back BirdieBring Back BirdieBring Back Birdie is a musical with a book by Michael Stewart, lyrics by Lee Adams, and music by Charles Strouse.A sequel to Bye Bye Birdie, it focuses on a scheme for rock 'n' roller Conrad Birdie, who disappeared after being discharged from the U. S. Army twenty years ago, to make a comeback on a...
(1981) (orchestrator supervisor) - Pippin: His Life and Times (1981) (TV) (music arranger)
- History of the World: Part I (1981) (orchestrator: "The Spanish Inquisition")
- Annie (1982) (conductor) (music arranger)
- Jinxed! (1982) (reunion scene arranger and orchestrator)
- To Be or Not to Be (1983) (orchestrator)
- A Chorus Line (1985) (conductor) (music arranger)
- In the Mood (1987) (conductor) (orchestrator)
- The Josephine Baker Story (1991) (TV)
- Life Stinks (1991) (dance orchestrator)
- The Addams Family (1991) (additional orchestrator)
- Fosse (2001) (TV) (orchestrator)
- Chicago (2002) (special thanks)
Soundtracks
- Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997) (writer: "Early Autumn")
- Star 80 (1983) (music: "Overkill", "Off Ramp", "Improvise", "Funky") (lyrics: "Overkill", "Funky")
Awards and honors
Awards- 1973 Academy Award for Best Music, Scoring Original Song Score and/or Adaptation – Cabaret
- 1980 Academy Award for Best Music, Original Song Score and Its Adaptation or Best Adaptation Score – All That Jazz
- 1980 Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction – Baryshnikov on Broadway
- 1999 Tony Award for Best Orchestrations – Fosse
- 2002 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestrations – Thoroughly Modern Millie
- 2002 Tony Award for Best Orchestrations – Thoroughly Modern Millie
Nominations
- 1983 Best Music, Original Song Score and Its Adaptation or Best Adaptation Score – Annie
- 1986 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Orchestration – Sweet Charity