Tony Award for Best Conductor and Musical Director
Encyclopedia
The Tony Award
for Best Conductor and Musical Director was first presented in 1948, and later discontinued after 1964.
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
for Best Conductor and Musical Director was first presented in 1948, and later discontinued after 1964.
1940s
- 1948: Milton RosenstockMilton RosenstockMilton Rosenstock was an American conductor, composer, and arranger. Trained at the Juilliard School, he was highly active as a musical director for Broadway musicals from 1942 through 1980; serving in that capacity for 29 productions, including the original productions of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes ,...
– Finian's RainbowFinian's RainbowFinian's Rainbow is a musical with a book by E.Y. Harburg and Fred Saidy, lyrics by Harburg, and music by Burton Lane. The 1947 Broadway production ran for 725 performances. Several revivals and a 1968 film version followed. A Broadway revival ran from October 8, 2009 until January 17, 2010... - 1949: Max MethMax MethMax Meth was a Broadway musical director and conductor for over 40 years . He came to the United States from Austria...
– As the Girls GoAs the Girls GoAs the Girls Go is a musical with music by Jimmy McHugh, lyrics by Harold Adamson and a book by William Roos.After an out-of-town tryout at the Opera House in Boston in October 1948, the original Broadway production of As the Girls Go opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on November 13, 1948,...
1950s
- 1950: Maurice AbravanelMaurice AbravanelMaurice Abravanel was aSwiss-American Jewish conductor of classical music. He is remembered as the conductor of the Utah Symphony Orchestra for over 30 years.-Life:...
– ReginaRegina (opera)Regina is an opera by Marc Blitzstein, to his own libretto based on the play The Little Foxes by Lillian Hellman. It was completed in 1948 and premiered the next year. Blitzstein chose this source in order to make a strong statement against capitalism... - 1951: Lehman EngelLehman EngelLehman Engel was an American composer and conductor of Broadway musicals, television and film.-Work in theatre, television and films:...
– The ConsulThe ConsulThe Consul is an opera in three acts with music and libretto by Gian Carlo Menotti, his first full-length opera. Its first performance was on March 1, 1950, at the Shubert Theatre in Philadelphia with Patricia Neway as the lead heroine Magda Sorel, Gloria Lane as the secretary of the consulate,... - 1952: Max MethMax MethMax Meth was a Broadway musical director and conductor for over 40 years . He came to the United States from Austria...
– Pal Joey - 1953: Lehman EngelLehman EngelLehman Engel was an American composer and conductor of Broadway musicals, television and film.-Work in theatre, television and films:...
– Wonderful TownWonderful TownWonderful Town is a musical with a book written by Joseph A. Fields and Jerome Chodorov, lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Leonard Bernstein...
and Gilbert and Sullivan Season - 1955: Thomas SchippersThomas SchippersThomas Schippers was an American conductor. He was highly-regarded for his work in opera.-Biography:...
– The Saint of Bleecker StreetThe Saint of Bleecker StreetThe Saint of Bleecker Street is an opera in three acts by Gian Carlo Menotti to an original English libretto by the composer. It was first performed at The Broadway Theatre in New York City on December 27, 1954. David Poleri and Davis Cunningham alternated in the role of Michele, and Thomas... - 1956: Hal Hastings (winner) – Damn YankeesDamn YankeesDamn Yankees is a musical comedy with a book by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop and music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross. The story is a modern retelling of the Faust legend set during the 1950s in Washington, D.C., during a time when the New York Yankees dominated Major League...
- Salvatore Dell'Isola – Pipe DreamPipe Dream (musical)Pipe Dream is the seventh stage musical by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II; it premiered on Broadway on November 30, 1955. The work is based on John Steinbeck's short novel Sweet Thursday—Steinbeck wrote the novel, a sequel to Cannery Row, in the hope of having it adapted into...
- Milton RosenstockMilton RosenstockMilton Rosenstock was an American conductor, composer, and arranger. Trained at the Juilliard School, he was highly active as a musical director for Broadway musicals from 1942 through 1980; serving in that capacity for 29 productions, including the original productions of Gentlemen Prefer Blondes ,...
– The VampThe VampThe Vamp is a musical comedy with music by James Mundy; lyrics by John La Touche; and a musical book by La Touche and Sam Locke which is based on a story by La Touche. The musical opened on Broadway on November 10, 1955 at the Winter Garden Theatre where it ran for a total of 60 performances until...
- Salvatore Dell'Isola – Pipe Dream
- 1957: Franz AllersFranz AllersFranz Allers was a European-American conductor of ballet, opera, Broadway musicals, film scores, and symphony orchestras...
(winner) – My Fair LadyMy Fair LadyMy Fair Lady is a musical based upon George Bernard Shaw's Pygmalion and with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe...
- Herbert GreeneHerbert GreeneHerbert Jabez Green was a talented English professional musician and virtuoso of the 81 key Wheatstone Duet Concertina and accomplished player of many different concertinas, the accordion and the piano....
– The Most Happy FellaThe Most Happy FellaThe Most Happy Fella is a 1956 musical with a book, music, and lyrics by Frank Loesser. The story, about a romance between an older man and younger woman, is based on the play They Knew What They Wanted by Sidney Howard... - Samuel Krachmalnick – CandideCandideCandide, ou l'Optimisme is a French satire first published in 1759 by Voltaire, a philosopher of the Age of Enlightenment. The novella has been widely translated, with English versions titled Candide: or, All for the Best ; Candide: or, The Optimist ; and Candide: or, Optimism...
- Herbert Greene
- 1958: Herbert GreeneHerbert GreeneHerbert Jabez Green was a talented English professional musician and virtuoso of the 81 key Wheatstone Duet Concertina and accomplished player of many different concertinas, the accordion and the piano....
(winner) – The Music ManThe Music ManThe Music Man is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and uniforms to naive townsfolk before skipping town with...
- Max GobermanMax GobermanMax Goberman was an American conductor. He conducted ballets, Broadway musicals , and the classical repertoire...
– West Side Story
- Max Goberman
- 1959: Salvatore Dell'Isola (winner) – Flower Drum SongFlower Drum SongFlower Drum Song was the eighth stage musical by the team of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II. It was based on the 1957 novel, The Flower Drum Song, by Chinese-American author C. Y. Lee. The piece opened in 1958 on Broadway and was afterwards presented in the West End and on tour...
- Jay Blackston – RedheadRedhead (musical)Redhead is a musical with music composed by Albert Hague and lyrics by Dorothy Fields, who with her brother, Herbert, along with Sidney Sheldon and David Shaw wrote the book/libretto...
- Lehman EngelLehman EngelLehman Engel was an American composer and conductor of Broadway musicals, television and film.-Work in theatre, television and films:...
– Goldilocks - Gershon KingsleyGershon KingsleyGershon Kingsley a contemporary German American composer, is well known as a pioneer of electronic music and the Moog synthesizer and founder of the First Moog Quartet, as a partner in the famous electronic music duo Perrey and Kingsley, and for his rock-inspired compositions for Jewish religious...
– La Plume de Ma TanteLa Plume de Ma Tanteis a musical written, devised, and directed by Robert Dhery, with music by Gérard Calvi, and English lyrics written by Ross Parker. It was nominated for the Best Musical, but lost to Redhead...
- Jay Blackston – Redhead
1960s
- 1960: Frederick Dvonch – The Sound of MusicThe Sound of MusicThe Sound of Music is a musical by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the memoir of Maria von Trapp, The Story of the Trapp Family Singers...
- Abba Bogin – GreenwillowGreenwillowGreenwillow is a musical with a book by Lesser Samuels and Frank Loesser and music and lyrics by Loesser.Based on the novel by B. J. Chute, the fantasy is set in the magical town of Greenwillow, where the eldest in each generation of Briggs men must obey the "call to wander," while the women they...
- Lehman EngelLehman EngelLehman Engel was an American composer and conductor of Broadway musicals, television and film.-Work in theatre, television and films:...
– Take Me AlongTake Me AlongTake Me Along is a musical based on the Eugene O'Neill play Ah, Wilderness, with music and lyrics by Bob Merrill and book by Joseph Stein and Robert Russell.-Background:... - Hal Hastings – Fiorello!Fiorello!Fiorello! is a musical about New York City mayor Fiorello H. LaGuardia, a reform Republican who took on Tammany Hall. The book is by Jerome Weidman and George Abbott, drawn substantially from the 1955 volume Life With Fiorello by Ernest Cuneo, with lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and music by Jerry Bock...
- Milton Rosenstick – GypsyGypsy: A Musical FableGypsy is a musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, and a book by Arthur Laurents. Gypsy is loosely based on the 1957 memoirs of Gypsy Rose Lee, the famous striptease artist, and focuses on her mother, Rose, whose name has become synonymous with "the ultimate show business...
- Abba Bogin – Greenwillow
- 1961: Franz AllersFranz AllersFranz Allers was a European-American conductor of ballet, opera, Broadway musicals, film scores, and symphony orchestras...
(winner) – CamelotCamelot (musical)Camelot is a musical by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe . It is based on the King Arthur legend as adapted from the T. H. White tetralogy novel The Once and Future King....
- Pembrode Davenport – 13 Daughters
- Stanley LebowskyStanley LebowskyStanley Lebowsky was a Hollywood and Broadway composer, lyricist, conductor and music director.-Biography:...
– Irma La DouceIrma la DouceIrma la Douce/Irma la Dolce is a 1963 romantic comedy starring Jack Lemmon and Shirley MacLaine, directed by Billy Wilder.It is based on the 1956 French musical Irma La Douce by Marguerite Monnot and Alexandre Breffort.-Plot:... - Elliot LawrenceElliot LawrenceElliot Lawrence is an American jazz pianist and bandleader.Son of the broadcaster Stan Lee Broza, Lawrence led his first dance band at age 20, but he played swing at the time its heyday was coming to a close. He recorded copiously as a bandleader for Columbia, Decca, King, Fantasy, Vik, and Sesac...
– Bye Bye Birdie
- 1962: Elliot LawrenceElliot LawrenceElliot Lawrence is an American jazz pianist and bandleader.Son of the broadcaster Stan Lee Broza, Lawrence led his first dance band at age 20, but he played swing at the time its heyday was coming to a close. He recorded copiously as a bandleader for Columbia, Decca, King, Fantasy, Vik, and Sesac...
– How to Succeed in Business Without Really TryingHow to Succeed in Business Without Really TryingHow to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying is a musical with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser and book by Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstock, and Willie Gilbert, based on Shepherd Mead's 1952 book of the same name....
- Pembrode Davenport – Kean
- Herbert GreeneHerbert GreeneHerbert Jabez Green was a talented English professional musician and virtuoso of the 81 key Wheatstone Duet Concertina and accomplished player of many different concertinas, the accordion and the piano....
– The Gay LifeThe Gay LifeThe Gay Life is a musical with a book by Fay and Michael Kanin, lyrics by Howard Dietz, and music by Arthur Schwartz.Based on a cycle of seven short plays by Arthur Schnitzler, published in 1893 and first staged in 1910, The Gay Life focuses on womanizing playboy Anatol Von Huber... - Peter MatzPeter MatzPeter Matz was an award winning American musician, composer, arranger and conductor. His musical career in film, theater, television and studio recording spanned fifty years, and he worked with a number of prominent artists, including Marlene Dietrich, Noël Coward and Barbra Streisand...
– No StringsNo StringsNo Strings is a musical drama with a book by Samuel A. Taylor and words and music by Richard Rodgers, his only Broadway score written without a collaborator. The musical opened on Broadway in 1962 and ran for 580 performances...
- 1963: Donald Pippin – 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....
- Jay Blackton – Mr. PresidentMr. President (musical)Mr. President is a musical with a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse and lyrics and music by Irving Berlin.It focuses on U.S. President Stephen Decatur Henderson, who loses his bid for re-election following a disastrous trip to the Soviet Union...
- Anton CoppolaAnton CoppolaMaestro Anton Coppola is an American opera conductor and composer. He is the uncle of film director Francis Ford Coppola and actress Talia Shire, as well as the great-uncle of Nicolas Cage, Sofia Coppola, Gian-Carlo Coppola , Jason Schwartzman and Robert Schwartzman.-Life:Coppola started his...
– Bravo GiovanniBravo GiovanniBravo Giovanni is a musical with a book by A. J. Russell, lyrics by Ronny Graham, and music by Milton Schafer. It is based upon the novel, "The Crime of Giovanni Venturi", by Howard Shaw .... - Julius RudelJulius RudelJulius Rudel is an American opera and orchestra conductor who emigrated to the United States from Austria at the age of 17 and studied conducting at the Mannes College of Music in New York City. He then forged a 35-year career with the New York City Opera, from 1944 to 1979, and was the Music...
– Brigadoon
- Jay Blackton – Mr. President
- 1964: Shepard Coleman – Hello, Dolly!Hello, Dolly! (musical)Hello, Dolly! is a musical with lyrics and music by Jerry Herman and a book by Michael Stewart, based on Thornton Wilder's 1938 farce The Merchant of Yonkers, which Wilder revised and retitled The Matchmaker in 1955....
- Lehman EngelLehman EngelLehman Engel was an American composer and conductor of Broadway musicals, television and film.-Work in theatre, television and films:...
– What Makes Sammy Run?What Makes Sammy Run?What Makes Sammy Run? is a novel by Budd Schulberg. It is a rags to riches story chronicling the rise and fall of Sammy Glick, a Jewish boy born in New York's Lower East Side who very early in his life makes up his mind to escape the ghetto and climb the ladder of success... - Charles JaffeCharles JaffeCharles Jaffé was a Belarusian-American chess master, of virtually Grandmaster strength at his peak in the 1910s, when he was one of the world's top players. Jaffe was also a chess writer....
– West Side Story - Fred Werner – High SpiritsHigh Spirits (musical)High Spirits is a musical with a book, lyrics, and music by Hugh Martin and Timothy Gray, based on the play Blithe Spirit by Noël Coward, about a man's problems caused by the spirit of his dead wife....
- Lehman Engel