Member Since: 1/29/2006
Band Website: cdbaby.com/cd/michaelroth
Band Members: FOR INFO & CREDITS FOR EACH PIECE OF MUSIC IN THE MUSIC PLAYER,
PLEASE CLICK ON "LYRICS"
MICHAEL ROTH is a Los Angeles based composer, music director, orchestrator, sound designer, and pianist whose work encompasses chamber music, film, dance, opera, music/theatre, and music and sound for theatre, having composed music for over 200 theatre projects and world premieres.
SCREENINGS OF "YOUR NAME HERE" COMING UP SOON AT CINEVEGAS, JUNE 13-15!
CURRENT PROJECTS: Michael composed the score for Matthew Wilder's independent film YOUR NAME HERE with Bill Pullman . He has also been working with Randy Newman as a music director and vocal arranger for his songs for the upcoming Disney animated feature THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG , to be released in 2009. He composed the music for the Stratford Festival production of ROMEO AND JULIET in Canada, Des McAnuff's premiere production as artistic director - performances through November 8, 2008 - and his music and sound were recently heard in the world premiere of Kate Robin's WHAT THEY HAVE at South Coast Repertory in California.
Michael's work, particularly his score for THIRD at the Geffen Theatre in Los Angeles, directed by Maria Mileaf , was the subject of PHIL GALLO'S "SET LIST" COLUMN IN VARIETY . Another recent feature about his work can be found HERE .
RECENT PROJECTS: BROADWAY: BROOKLYN BOY ; OFF-BROADWAY: DINNER WITH FRIENDS (Pulitzer Prize), SIGHT UNSEEN (all premieres by Donald Margulies , all also in LA, the first two directed by Daniel Sullivan ), PEOPLE BE HEARD (music/theatre with Quincy Long at Playwrights Horizons ), TALKING HEADS (also in LA),
SABINA , and his acclaimed (Helen Hayes Award nominee) percussion score for the premiere of Ellen McLaughlin's adaptation of Aeschuylus' THE PERSIANS (National Actors Theatre, NY, Tony Randall's last production, also seen at the Shakespeare Theatre in DC), directed by Ethan McSweeny .
Collaborations with Tom Stoppard include composing the music for the American premieres of INDIAN INK and THE INVENTION OF LOVE at the American Conservatory Theatre in San Francisco, Carey Perloff, director. Collaborations with Anne Bogart include her production of THE WOMEN (he also arranged the score for Warner Shook's production at Seattle's Act Theatre, 2007 ). As an artist in residence/resident composer at La Jolla Playhouse (over 35 productions) and South Coast Repertory (over 45 productions), his work includes the premiere productions of Margaret Edson's WIT (Pulitzer Prize), Noah Haidle's MR. MARMALADE , Beth Henley's ABUNDANCE , and many collaborations with Lee Blessing including the premiere productions of A WALK IN THE WOODS (also on BROADWAY, PBS, Yale Rep, and the USSR), TWO ROOMS, DOWN THE ROAD, FORTINBRAS, GOING TO ST. IVES (also off-Broadway, directed by Maria Mileaf ), his award-winning percussion score for THE SCOTTISH PLAY , and A BODY OF WATER (seen at the Guthrie Theater & the Old Globe ).
His many additional collaborations with Randy Newman as a music director, orchestrator, and editor include orchestrating his FAUST , co-conceiving (with Jerry Patch ) and music directing THE EDUCATION OF RANDY NEWMAN , and editing three definitive Anthology songbooks for Alfred Music Publishing (including the most recent RANDY NEWMAN ANTHOLOGY VOLUME 2 - MUSIC FOR FILM, TELEVISION, & THEATER ).
ADDITIONAL WORK IN FILM: the independent feature HOLY DAYS , Lane Nishikawa's WHEN WE WERE WARRIORS , Des McAnuff's BAD DATES, Pierre LaPointe's TAKEN, Howard Brookner's (RIP) BLOODHOUNDS OF BROADWAY (for which Michael coached Madonna and Jennifer Grey in a duet), and PUT YOUR PENCIL DOWN , a musical collaboration with Joy Gregory for Raw Impressions . Michael's work can also be heard in Peter Miller's and Amy Linton's important award-winning documentary SACCO AND VANZETTI .
MUSIC/THEATRE & OPERA: The CD of Michael's acclaimed experimental chamber opera THEIR THOUGHT AND BACK AGAIN , released independently (1998), is available through iTunes & CDBaby , as well as via PAY PLAY , TRADE BIT , GREAT INDIE MUSIC , and AMAZON .
ADDITIONAL MUSIC/THEATRE: with Culture Clash (and John Glore), THE BIRDS , originally produced by SCR & Berkeley Rep , recently revised for the Getty Villa in LA; with Sarah Ruhl , MELANCHOLY PLAY ; with Erik Ehn , FIREFLOW , with Bottom's Dream ; with Dan Moses Schreier , WHERE'S THE BEER FRITZ and HOPI PROPHECIES; and many collaborations with Mac Wellman , including the Obie-award winning premieres of BAD PENNY , TERMINAL HIP , and BITTER BIERCE (also in LA ), CLEVELAND , originally directed by Anne Bogart , THE LESSER MAGOO , originally produced in LA & NY , recently produced by Defunkt Theatre , directing (with Doug Jacobs) the premiere of ALBANIAN SOFTSHOE, and THE ALLEGORY OF WHITENESS , directed by Lisa Peterson, ( Humana Festival, 2001 ), recently produced by the Warren Wilson College Theatre .
His THEME FOR A FUTURISTIC MOVIE , a very early piano tune, was recorded by his old friend George Winston (BALLADS & BLUES 1972) .
WORKS-IN-PROGRESS: with Alice Ripley , LANDSCAPE THE TAR ROOF TREE, a music/theatre piece composed for singers, percussion, harp, and the Eclipse String Quartet , featuring Sara Parkins . The opening movement, KYRIE-MERCY-ANA M , a 12-minute 8 voiced a capella motet, was premiered at a recent American Composer's Forum/LA Salon , featuring Alice , Emily Kosloski , Melody Butiu , Britt Erickson, Damon Hill, Tom Beyer , Stan Chandler , Raul Staggs, and Danny Gurwin (with support from Kris McNeeley , Rob Helms, and Jacques Smith, among others). An excerpt, called "From MERCY ANA M", can be heard on this page. Another work-in-progress project that will hopefully and eventually come to fruition is his opera and collaboration with the great writer Nell Benjamin.
Michael's music can be heard in three public service announcements for the Oregon Health and Science University Cancer Treatment Center . In addition, he was proud to compose the music and sound for LANDMINES & ERW SAFETY , an interactive DVD produced by the UN and the UCLA Center for International Emergency Medicine :
Additional work for the UCLA Center for International Emergency Medicine includes the score for their new documentary about SEXUAL ASSAULT:
Influences:
B. BRECHT ON AMERICA, 1953 :"One hundred and fifty million intelligent, attentive people, trained in many trades and occupations, find themselves under a regime that scorns their intellligence and scoffs at their love of justice. They know nothing of the glaring injustice. All the large newspapers of the country, the radio networks, movies, and television take part in the conspiracy. Thus the hundred and fifty million hardly know what happens to one of their number. Even if they found out, they could do little."
NEWEST INFLUENCE - THE NORWEGIAN GRAPHIC NOVELIST JASON - especially his I KILLED ADOLF HITLER , A GREAT NEW NOVEL.
MUSICIANS AND COMPOSERS: in addition to Conlon Nancarrow and The Beatles - - Adams, Beethoven, Berlin, Bernstein, William Bolcom (Michael's teacher), Boulez, Cage (see below) , Carter, Costello, Domino, Ellington, Foster, Golden Gate Quartet, Hendrix, Ives - for A GOOD INSIGHT INTO AMERICA NOW (AND A GOOD TIME) LISTEN TO IVES SING "THEY ARE THERE," Paul Jacobs , Joni Mitchell, Mozart, Perotin, Reich, Rodgers (& Hart), Satie, Schoenberg, Stravinsky, Tallis, Andrew Violette , Waits, Weill, Brian Wilson, Stevie Wonder, and many others, especially, gratefully, collaborators including Randy Newman , the great cellist Steve Erdody , master reed guy Berke McKelvey , percussionist Morris Palter , and the great guitarist and composer Peter Sprague .
THEATRE ARTISTS, WRITERS, VISUAL ARTISTS, ET AL: in addition to Brecht (see above), Beckett, Herb Blau (encouraging impossible theatre still), Henry Darger , and Jeff Weiss (a genuine theatrical hero), there's Aeschuylus, Robert Altman, William Burroughs , Chekhov, Merce Cunningham, Tama Janowitz, Rothko, Seinfeld & Larry David, Do-ho Suh , Kayla Williams , Shakespeare too, many others (including many myspace friends).
OTHERS: Gad Romann and the Romann Group; Cindy Sheehan on America ;
and VALERIE PLAME WILSON t:
THE GREAT - - - - - - ESCAPE :
JOHN CAGE seen here on I'VE GOT A SECRET in 1960 with Gary Moore who, in his own way, does his thing quite admirably:
RANDY NEWMAN , an influence, mentor, and friend, with A FEW WORDS IN DEFENSE OF OUR COUNTRY :
MATT WILDER , director of YOUR NAME HERE , directed this one:
Muhammed Ali in the Broadway Musical BUCK WHITE, 1969 - perhaps an influence in some way -
Pete Seeger's famous performance of WAIST DEEP IN THE BIG MUDDY :
A new friend Bei Bei - - quite a performance by a virtuoso.
B TRAVEN - an enormous influence in many ways:
..
Finally, a fascinating performance by a unique, great singer from Turkey - BOYACI SEYIDXHAN, in this film created by the terrific writer, playwright, and friend Kelly Stuart (specifically, he sings a magnificent love song starting around 4:15):
Sounds Like: In addition to the five pieces here and the excerpts in the SNOCAP player, the complete chamber opera THEIR THOUGHT AND BACK AGAIN , for two singers, six dancers, string quartet, and piano, with a libretto derived from William Burroughs style cut-ups, is now available via iTunes .
There'll be more CD's of new music in the next few months.
Sometimes there are attempts to sound as good as ELEANOR RIGBY (and look as good too):
And, during attempts to sound perhaps like Henry Darger . . . .
. . . . have a cup of coffee .
Record Label: Indie
Type of Label: None