How to I delve into lesser-known musical theatre song material?
Get yourself a Cole Porter, Rodgers & Hart, etc songbook (you can often borrow these for free from a library) and see what appeals and suits. Most songbooks will include lesser known work of these famous composers, especially those titled ‘undiscovered’ or ‘unsung’, as they often include material cut from shows. View an example Find a well-known show like Guys and Dolls and research other shows by the same composer. Frank Loesser also wrote The Most Happy Fella for example, which includes a great female ingenue ballad called’Warm all over’. Charles Strousse (famous for Annie) also wrote Nick & Nora, Rodgers & Hammerstein also wrote a little-known piece called Me and Juliet and Bock & Harnick (known for Fiddler on the Roof) also wrote Fiorello. And so the list goes on…Check out off-Broadway cast recordings and have a listen to the’Lost in Boston’ and’Unsung musicals’ CD collections.
