Marvin Makes Music by Marvin Hamlisch
I had the great honor of knowing the late Marvin Hamlisch, the extraordinary composer and conductor, who passed away last August. Marvin, who won every major performance award that exists, composed the score for the Broadway musical A Chorus Line, for which he won both a Tony Award and a Pulitzer Prize, and the score of They’re Playing Our Song. He is also the composer of more than forty motion picture scores and he held the position of principal pops conductor for several prestigious symphony orchestras. Just before his death, Marvin wrote a children’s book called Marvin Makes Music, with illustrations by Jim Madsen. This posthumously released book is heartwarming and encouraging and is based on his own life story of becoming one of the youngest students ever accepted into the Juilliard School of Music at the age of six years of age.
Terre Blair Hamlisch, Marvin’s widow, sent me a copy of this book and I wanted you all to be aware of this timeless classic. Terre has been asking people to buy multiple copies of Marvin Makes Music to donate to children’s hospitals, shelters, low-income schools, and to any organization where children are in need. She believes in the power of this book to give hope to children because it is really about a little boy who discovers he can make his dream come true. Please enjoy these images from the book, courtesy of Penguin Young Readers Group.
1 This is the cover of Marvin Makes Music, a delightful childrens' book!
2 Marvin was born in Manhattan to Viennese-born parents. His father was an accordionist and bandleader.
3 Marvin was tuned into the sounds around him at a very early age. He was always listening.
4 It became apparent that Marvin was a child prodigy, and, by age five, he began mimicking the piano music he heard on the radio.
5 As composer and conductor, Hamlisch was one of only eleven artists who have been awarded an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. Marvin won three Oscars, four Grammys, four Emmys, and a Tony.
6 He was also one of only two people to have won those four prizes and a Pulitzer Prize - the other being Richard Rodgers. Hamlisch also won two Golden Globes. So very impressive!
7 For Broadway he wrote the music for his groundbreaking show, A Chorus Line, which received the Pulitzer Prize, as well as They’re Playing Our Song, The Goodbye Girl, and Sweet Smell of Success.
8 He was the composer of more than forty motion picture scores including his Oscar-winning score and song for The Way We Were and his adaptation of Scott Joplin’s music for The Sting, for which he received a third Oscar.
9 His prolific output of scores for films include original compositions and/or musical adaptations for Sophie’s Choice, Ordinary People, The Swimmer, Three Men and a Baby, Ice Castles, Take the Money and Run, Bananas, Save the Tiger, and his latest effort The Informant!, starring Matt Damon and directed by Steven Soderbergh.
10 Marvin was Musical Director and arranger of Barbra Streisand’s 1994 concert tour of the U.S. and England, as well as of the television special, Barbra Streisand: The Concert, for which he received two of his Emmys.
11 Marvin held the position of principal pops conductor for the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Pasadena Symphony and Pops, Seattle Symphony, San Diego Symphony, The Buffalo Philharmonic and The National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, D.C.
12 At the time of his passing he was working on a film project about Liberace, starring Michael Douglas and Matt Damon and directed by Steven Soderbergh.
13 With all of his accolades, it shouldn't surprise anyone that at six years of age, Marvin became one of the youngest students ever accepted into the Juilliard School of Music.
14 His first job was as a rehearsal pianist for Funny Girl with Barbra Streisand. Shortly after that, he was hired by producer Sam Spiegel to play piano at Spiegel's parties. This connection led to his first film score, The Swimmer.
15 His favorite musicals growing up were My Fair Lady, Gypsy, West Side Story, and Bye Bye Birdie.
16 Quite sadly, Marvin Hamlisch died on August 6, 2012, in Los Angeles, California at age 68, following a short illness.
17 The Associated Press described him as having written "some of the best-loved and most enduring songs and scores in movie history".
18 Barbra Streisand released a statement praising Hamlisch, stating it was "his brilliantly quick mind, his generosity and delicious sense of humor that made him a delight to be around".
19 The head of the Pasadena Symphony and Pops commented that Hamlisch had "left a very specific ... original mark on American music and added to the great American songbook with works he himself composed".
20 On August 8th, at 8PM, the marquee lights of the 40 Broadway theaters were dimmed for one minute in tribute to Hamlisch, a posthumous honor traditionally accorded to those considered to have made significant contributions to the theater arts.
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Martha,
I'll donate some of these books to our childern's hospital. Loved the illistrations you shared! Thanks for sharing this blog.
Posted by: KLBrown | January 14th, 2013 at 12:45 am
I was fortunate to hear Marvin perform, he is so missed. Great great talent.
Posted by: ga447 | January 14th, 2013 at 6:21 am
The body of work by Marvin Hamlisch is astounding. Thank you Martha for introducing us to his lovely children's book "Marvin Makes Music", I'm sure his story of audtioning and becoming a student at Julliard at such a young age will be an inspiration to everyone.
Posted by: Cindy F | January 14th, 2013 at 7:28 am
He was an American treasure. Thanks for sharing!
Posted by: Teresa Touey | January 14th, 2013 at 9:17 am
Good Morning Martha, Thank you so much for your tweets yesterday about Alexis, Jude, and Truman visiting you at your farm! Those grandchildren are so darling and how fun to hear that Jude collected eggs for you and Truman got to pet your beautiful horses!! How fun it would be if they lived in one of your homes at the ranch! Today's blog was absolutely wonderful, also! How great that you knew fantastic Marvin Hamlish the brilliant fellow who won so many great awards over the years! These websites, photos and the video were so wonderful to see! It's so sad that that he is no longer with us and I recall when he passed away and my prayers certainly were with him! Your photos of Marvin's outstanding book are so great to be able to see and I will try to find some to give to my niece's children and others that I know would love to have them! I know Jude and Truman will love them, too! Hope you have another great day! Off to see The Daily Wag about " A Stinky Bug in Our Blog Studio!" Jan
Posted by: Jan Erickson | January 14th, 2013 at 9:24 am
My husband and I, like so many, were shocked at Marvin's passing. We had the pleasure of seeing him in concert loving his musical talent and his humor, too. We laughed our socks off!
Cute book, hopefully encouraging. Not many homes, especially the very poor, have the option of a piano or any musical instrument. But, there's always singing.
Posted by: Sharon Weinmann | January 14th, 2013 at 9:54 am
Hi Martha,
Thanks for introducing this book to us although my virus protector wouldn't let me use your link to get over to Amazon. I found it anyway and looked through the available pages. It's a wonderful, inspiring book for children and one never knows about kids. There could be an avid baseball player out there that really likes music instead - so many kids miss their calling for one reason or another. I was sad when I heard that Mr. Hamlisch had died and the first person I thought about was Barbra Streisand. I knew of the work they had done together and how greatly she admired him. He was too young to die and we're all going to miss him. His music was/is so beautiful and will be loved forever. I will make sure that my niece's grand children get copies of this book and I think we can all do our share to pass the word along on the various social networks we visit. I'll start with the 'ShareThis' option on this page. Thanks again. Trish
Posted by: Trish | January 14th, 2013 at 10:05 am
I was 17 years old when my older and only brother living away at College called and said be ready to go on Saturday afternoon I am taking you to see for your Birthday "A Chorus Line" and dinner at Le Crepe. I remember the tune "A Singular Sensation" as well as repeating it in my head long after the performance. It was my introdution to Broadway by my dear brother and the choice couldn't have been better.
Posted by: Teri | January 14th, 2013 at 11:12 am
He was not only an American treasure, but he is one artist that touched the world. His music has influenced and inspired so many people in this lifetime and perhaps in the many many years to come.
Posted by: Miguel Basco | January 14th, 2013 at 12:04 pm
Books are treasures and thanx for this
Posted by: ann | January 14th, 2013 at 12:23 pm
Dear Martha,
Watching the video of Marvin Hamlisch touched me. I love his music - it fills my soul with richness. Everyone should know it. I have 7 nephews and 4 nieces and will buy Marvin Makes Music for the younger ones who are taking piano lessons. And I will donate a few to shelters for girls in NYC..I am always trying to figure out unique ways to give back and Marvin Makes Music lets me do good for others. Thank you for the wonderful idea.
All my best,
Lisa
Posted by: Lisa Gordon-Miller | January 14th, 2013 at 2:28 pm
Had the pleasure of meeting Marvin a couple of years ago in Dallas at the Mansion. It was a great honor after following him for 20 plus years. We bought several books today! Thank you for sharing the book on your blog.
Posted by: Kim Seacrest | January 14th, 2013 at 7:56 pm
Thank you Martha your kind words about this wonderful book. I knew and worked with Marvin and was always amazed at how he connected with the young people on stage and in the audience. He knew the joy and power of following your dreams and wanted to share that experience. This is a very sweet book and every time I see it, it makes me smile. Thanks for sharing!!
Posted by: J Ernest Green | January 15th, 2013 at 7:36 am
Just bought a copy for my grand daughter. I loved the music of Marvin Hamlisch. His talent was absolutely amazing. He will be missed.
Posted by: ABC | January 16th, 2013 at 10:54 am
Thank you Martha, this is very moving and lovely encouragement for children to enjoy their environment in unexpected ways.
Posted by: Karen | January 20th, 2013 at 5:34 am
For being such an incredible talent he came across as such a nice person with such a great sense of humor. My husband and I saw him in the early 80's at Wolf Trap in Virginia. We had used the song "The Eyes of Love" as our wedding song and I had the sheet music with me which I took to the stage door to see if he would sign it for us. At the end of the evening I went back to find it signed by him thanking us for using his song. I will treasure it always.
Posted by: Kate Kipnis | January 23rd, 2013 at 7:31 pm