Earlier this month, the Sunday paper contained the news obituaries for two musical giants of the mid-twentieth century, and their passings deserve to be noted.
Lyricist Sheldon Harnick's obituary in the Associated Press covers about 25 column inches and is filled with lists of the awards he's won, the musicals for which he was responsible, and the various songs that he wrote. However, if he did nothing else but collaborated with composer Jerry Bock one particular show in 1964, his passing would be worth noting. That show was "Fddler on the Roof". Need I say more?
The show ran for over 3,000 performances, and won nine Tony Awards, including best Musical. It has been revived at least five times on Broadway. It has been produced and revived professionally all over the world, and the show is licensed to be performed by amateur productions over 500 times every year. If you have never seen it, chances are that you will be able to see it at some high school near you every single Spring. (HERE IS WHAT I HAD TO SAY ABOUT IT when I saw it performed by the Pittsburgh CLO back in 2018).
Of course, as the AP obit tells you, this was far from Mr. Harnick's only accomplishment. What a legacy!
To leave you with a sample of his work, HERE IS THE OPENING NUMBER from that classic show from the most recent Broadway revival, wherein Tevya tells us of the importance of Tradition.
RIP Sheldon Harnick.
Peter Nero
1934-2023
The New York Times obituary for Peter Nero states that he was a "concert pianist who soared to popularity in the 1960's with a swinging hybrid of classics and jazz and kept the beat for nearly six decades with albums, club and television dates, and segues into conducting pops orchestras." Throughout the sixties and seventies, Nero's instrumentals were staples on AM radio music stations, he appeared and accompanied such headliners as Frank Sinatra, Mel Torre, Andy Williams, and Johnny Mathis. He released 72 albums (!!), and served as principal conductor of the Philly Pops Orchestra for thirty-four years.
In THIS CLIP from the Ed Sullivan Show, Nero performs what was perhaps his biggest selling hit record, the "Theme for Summer of '42."
RIP Peter Nero.
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