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Great American Music: Broadway Musicals
Give my regards to Broadway... . Is it possible to read those lyrics, let alone hear them, without mentally filling in: Remember me to Herald Square? Have you begun to hum or sing it to yourself, with the words and notes carrying you back in time to the Broadway of George M. Cohan and the heyday of Tin Pan Alley?
For most people who've grown up with and shared America's musical heritage, such a phrase opens the floodgates to a wealth of memories and feelings because, after all, that's what great songs do.
What a delight, then, to be able to promise you the same experience in an entire course. For in Professor Bill Messenger's Great American Music: Broadway Musicals, you get the story and the music, as well—and not only in the examples expertly played by Professor Messenger at the piano to illustrate insights, techniques, or subtleties of composition.
You'll also hear rare recordings of groundbreaking artists such as Nora Bayes, the singer selected by Cohan to record his unofficial World War I anthem, "Over There,"and Fanny Brice, the great star immortalized in Funny Girl. And you'll hear contemporary recreations that reconstruct the sound of early musical theater, as well. You'll listen in on recorded interviews that take you behind the scenes of some of Broadway's biggest hits and most memorable moments.
Beyond Nostalgia: A Complete Learning Experience
But Great American Music: Broadway Musicals is far more than just an immersion in musical nostalgia. Professor Messenger ranges across the entire culture of which music is a part, teaching you some of the intricacies of musical composition and song construction—and how they were used to create specific effects—as well as the social and historical backdrop against which musical theater needs to be considered.
You'll learn, for example, how Jerome Kern dealt with what was perhaps Broadway's first attempt to use music's technical subtleties as a way to suggest time and place when he was writing Show Boat, deliberately incorporating into his music for "Ol' Man River" a five-note pentatonic scale often used in Negro spirituals.
Professor Messenger tells how "You're a Grand Old Flag," today one of Cohan's most memorable songs, was greeted with dismay and anger when Cohan introduced it in his 1906 musical, George Washington, Jr., with its original and affectionate title and lyric, "You're a Grand Old Rag." Though Cohan quickly rewrote the song in the form we know today, sheet music for the original version—at a time when sheet music was immensely popular—had already reached stores all over New York City. Visiting one store after another, Cohan managed to retrieve almost every copy, burning them and replacing them with the new version. Today, there are only a half-dozen very valuable copies of the original in existence.
A Stage that Is Never Far from the Real World
But the harsh reception given the original version of Cohan's song is far from the only reminder this course offers that the Broadway stage, as wondrous an escape as it might be, is still an illusion, with only the flimsiest of curtains separating it from the real-world passions—and even life-and-death conflicts—from which it draws.
Consider just one moment in the life of Jerome Kern, a moment marked by the clanging of an alarm clock he did not hear.
After his heart had been broken by a flashy showgirl and vowing never again to be taken advantage of, Kern had met and married a timid 19-year-old English girl 10 years his junior and brought her back to America, an overwhelming experience for her. On the morning he was to sail to England with his producer, Charles Frohman, Kern overslept. By the time his still-timid wife had decided to awaken him, Kern had missed his voyage. The ship was the ill-fated Lusitania, and Frohman was one of 1,198 who perished on it. Kern survived to complete a fruitful career that would include, 11 years later, his remarkable score for Show Boat, with melodies, like its haunting "Ol' Man River," that are still enjoyed today.
In today's era of songs written and produced specifically for compact discs, it's easy to forget that an overwhelming number of standards that have both delighted and helped mend the broken hearts of Americans for decades—and will undoubtedly still be doing so a century from now—were, like "Ol' Man River," originally written for the stage.
"My Funny Valentine," for example, came from Rodgers and Hart's Babes in Arms; "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" from Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!; "Someone to Watch Over Me" from George and Ira Gershwin's Oh, Kay!; "Begin the Beguine" from Cole Porter's Jubilee; and "Almost Like Being in Love" from Lerner and Loewe's Brigadoon.
We've heard these songs—and hundreds more like them—for as long as we can remember. In many ways, they're the soundtrack of America. For millions of us the music makes up the soundtrack of our own lives, as well; if you were somehow able to remove ...
For most people who've grown up with and shared America's musical heritage, such a phrase opens the floodgates to a wealth of memories and feelings because, after all, that's what great songs do.
What a delight, then, to be able to promise you the same experience in an entire course. For in Professor Bill Messenger's Great American Music: Broadway Musicals, you get the story and the music, as well—and not only in the examples expertly played by Professor Messenger at the piano to illustrate insights, techniques, or subtleties of composition.
You'll also hear rare recordings of groundbreaking artists such as Nora Bayes, the singer selected by Cohan to record his unofficial World War I anthem, "Over There,"and Fanny Brice, the great star immortalized in Funny Girl. And you'll hear contemporary recreations that reconstruct the sound of early musical theater, as well. You'll listen in on recorded interviews that take you behind the scenes of some of Broadway's biggest hits and most memorable moments.
Beyond Nostalgia: A Complete Learning Experience
But Great American Music: Broadway Musicals is far more than just an immersion in musical nostalgia. Professor Messenger ranges across the entire culture of which music is a part, teaching you some of the intricacies of musical composition and song construction—and how they were used to create specific effects—as well as the social and historical backdrop against which musical theater needs to be considered.
You'll learn, for example, how Jerome Kern dealt with what was perhaps Broadway's first attempt to use music's technical subtleties as a way to suggest time and place when he was writing Show Boat, deliberately incorporating into his music for "Ol' Man River" a five-note pentatonic scale often used in Negro spirituals.
Professor Messenger tells how "You're a Grand Old Flag," today one of Cohan's most memorable songs, was greeted with dismay and anger when Cohan introduced it in his 1906 musical, George Washington, Jr., with its original and affectionate title and lyric, "You're a Grand Old Rag." Though Cohan quickly rewrote the song in the form we know today, sheet music for the original version—at a time when sheet music was immensely popular—had already reached stores all over New York City. Visiting one store after another, Cohan managed to retrieve almost every copy, burning them and replacing them with the new version. Today, there are only a half-dozen very valuable copies of the original in existence.
A Stage that Is Never Far from the Real World
But the harsh reception given the original version of Cohan's song is far from the only reminder this course offers that the Broadway stage, as wondrous an escape as it might be, is still an illusion, with only the flimsiest of curtains separating it from the real-world passions—and even life-and-death conflicts—from which it draws.
Consider just one moment in the life of Jerome Kern, a moment marked by the clanging of an alarm clock he did not hear.
After his heart had been broken by a flashy showgirl and vowing never again to be taken advantage of, Kern had met and married a timid 19-year-old English girl 10 years his junior and brought her back to America, an overwhelming experience for her. On the morning he was to sail to England with his producer, Charles Frohman, Kern overslept. By the time his still-timid wife had decided to awaken him, Kern had missed his voyage. The ship was the ill-fated Lusitania, and Frohman was one of 1,198 who perished on it. Kern survived to complete a fruitful career that would include, 11 years later, his remarkable score for Show Boat, with melodies, like its haunting "Ol' Man River," that are still enjoyed today.
In today's era of songs written and produced specifically for compact discs, it's easy to forget that an overwhelming number of standards that have both delighted and helped mend the broken hearts of Americans for decades—and will undoubtedly still be doing so a century from now—were, like "Ol' Man River," originally written for the stage.
"My Funny Valentine," for example, came from Rodgers and Hart's Babes in Arms; "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" from Rodgers and Hammerstein's Oklahoma!; "Someone to Watch Over Me" from George and Ira Gershwin's Oh, Kay!; "Begin the Beguine" from Cole Porter's Jubilee; and "Almost Like Being in Love" from Lerner and Loewe's Brigadoon.
We've heard these songs—and hundreds more like them—for as long as we can remember. In many ways, they're the soundtrack of America. For millions of us the music makes up the soundtrack of our own lives, as well; if you were somehow able to remove ...
12 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2006
4 people are currently reading
79 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews
October 2, 2014
Parts of this were awesome, and parts were just ok. I got some really interesting tidbits about early American musicals in the form of minstrel shows, vaudeville, and burlesque. There was a really cool interview at the end with Stephen Schwartz, who explains the evolution of the song that began as "Making Good" and ended up as "The Wizard and I." And the parts spanning the Jazz Age through the Golden Age of musicals was riveting. I came away with even more respect for the talents of the immortal George Gershwin, and fell unexpectedly in love with Irving Berlin. (The man. Already loved the music.)
This lecture series was perfectly poised to be all of my favorite things. Nerdgasm ahoy. But what kept me from loving it really kept me from loving it. First, Bill Messenger, the lecturer, consistently says "thee-ay-ter." It won't bother everyone, but it absolutely drove me up the wall. Second, it's the way Bill Messenger sings. He plays piano to great effect, but when he takes the opportunity to sing portions of a song - very useful in understanding the progression of musicals - he does it in this weird style. He recites the lyrics in a loud, rushed way, and talks rather than sings, kind of like Rex Harrison. Rex Harrison if he were leading a sing-along. We get the music in the background, then the lyrics in this declarative style, almost like he's saying "this is where a singer would sing these lyrics." I'd rather have had him singing, even badly, or a professional singer than the perfunctory recitation of lyrics over music.
As information goes, though, I'd still recommend it. I'm no musical theater expert, even after sixteen discs of lectures, but I do feel like I have a greater contextual understanding of songs, shows, and theater trends. All in all, a win.
This lecture series was perfectly poised to be all of my favorite things. Nerdgasm ahoy. But what kept me from loving it really kept me from loving it. First, Bill Messenger, the lecturer, consistently says "thee-ay-ter." It won't bother everyone, but it absolutely drove me up the wall. Second, it's the way Bill Messenger sings. He plays piano to great effect, but when he takes the opportunity to sing portions of a song - very useful in understanding the progression of musicals - he does it in this weird style. He recites the lyrics in a loud, rushed way, and talks rather than sings, kind of like Rex Harrison. Rex Harrison if he were leading a sing-along. We get the music in the background, then the lyrics in this declarative style, almost like he's saying "this is where a singer would sing these lyrics." I'd rather have had him singing, even badly, or a professional singer than the perfunctory recitation of lyrics over music.
As information goes, though, I'd still recommend it. I'm no musical theater expert, even after sixteen discs of lectures, but I do feel like I have a greater contextual understanding of songs, shows, and theater trends. All in all, a win.
January 12, 2018
Audiobook. No matter how good a book is, I rarely wish it were longer, but I wished this delightful series of lectures on American musical theater had included a few more hours so the lecturer could spend more time on more recent shows. The lectures cover the history of Broadway musicals from early minstrel shows, ragtime, vaudeville and Tin Pan Alley up to the modern day and also discuss topics like song structure. Lots of musical examples, both instrumental and voice, are included. I’d enjoy listening to it again.
February 14, 2018
This was a very interesting course. It's really well done and I learned a lot. He spends a lot of time establishing the background and building up to where broadway is today or was 15-20 years ago. I would have liked to learned more about 1940s to current productions. We didn't really get to the 1940s until lecture 12 or 13 out of 16 and he did get into more current productions but not in great detail. I learned a lot and I'd like to learn more. I'd be very interested to hear his opinion on Hamilton and Book of Mormon.
November 3, 2017
Loving this Great Courses history of Musical Theater in the US.
The professor is knowledgeable and plays piano along with some of the songs he discusses. It's a lot of info if you don't have context- I'm not a big musical fan but I do have a few favorites. After hearing more about the history and context of these productions, it makes me want to go back and see more.
Definitely an enjoyable listen!
The professor is knowledgeable and plays piano along with some of the songs he discusses. It's a lot of info if you don't have context- I'm not a big musical fan but I do have a few favorites. After hearing more about the history and context of these productions, it makes me want to go back and see more.
Definitely an enjoyable listen!
December 17, 2024
This was removed from my Audible account before I finished it, but it was promising
***
Audible made this available once more, so I was able to finish it. I enjoyed it greatly, although I was a little disappointed that it spent relatively little time on the "book musicals" that first come to mind when discussing Broadway musicals. Rather, the first half or so of the course covered 18th, 19th, and early 20th century "musicals", such as minstrel shows, vaudeville, and revues.
***
Audible made this available once more, so I was able to finish it. I enjoyed it greatly, although I was a little disappointed that it spent relatively little time on the "book musicals" that first come to mind when discussing Broadway musicals. Rather, the first half or so of the course covered 18th, 19th, and early 20th century "musicals", such as minstrel shows, vaudeville, and revues.
October 7, 2023
Listened. Opinionated. Excellent.
July 16, 2018
while i really enjoyed learning about the minstrel and ragtime histories of broadway, this collection of lectures failed to give adequate attention to musicals from the 1960s on. of course, broadway was more influential at the turn of the century than it is now, but condensing so many decades into 2 lectures was a shame, especially since those are the musicals with which most people are familiar. my favorite lectures were the ones focused on specific composers (irving berlin, gershwin, rodgers & hammerstein), though i was surprised sondheim didn't get his own. also disappointing: no discussion whatsoever of rent (a ridiculous and kind of uncomfortable oversight), a dismissive attitude toward idina menzel's voice (messenger is now dead to me), and a general lack of organization or a thesis in the latter lectures (maybe theme rather than chronology would've been a better organizing principle?); they got rather list-y, though i enjoyed the concluding focus on the evolution of a single song in wicked.
given that messenger talks a lot about how post-1950s broadway music is no longer synonymous with popular music, that it often exists in its own separate bubble, i'd be so interested to hear what he would make of hamilton. the cast recording topped the billboard rap charts!
given that messenger talks a lot about how post-1950s broadway music is no longer synonymous with popular music, that it often exists in its own separate bubble, i'd be so interested to hear what he would make of hamilton. the cast recording topped the billboard rap charts!
February 8, 2020
Messenger is a great piano player, but a pretty terrible singer, so some of the parts of these lectures where he sing-talks through old standards are pretty cringe worthy. Some great stuff about minstrel shows, vaudeville and burlesque. However I knew we were going to be in trouble when we were 7 hours into a 12 hour lecture series and he'd barely gotten to Irving Berlin. He gives shortshrift to many important musicals from the 1950s onward. He also omits things I find important. For example, he spends around 10 minutes talking about the success of Hello Dolly! for Jerry Herman and never mentions Carol Channing, who was instrumental in its success (yet somehow mentions Barbra Streisand in the subpar film version.) A lot of time is spent on forgettable early musicals at the expense of really important later ones. At least he never really discusses Cats!
June 3, 2025
I reluctantly listened to this course to fill in my knowledge gaps of an art form I frankly loathe.
Yet to my utter surprise, this was the most fact packed and intriguing lecture series I’ve listened to about American history. Filled in tremendous gaps that I had about quite a lot of things… starting with minstrel shows, which I realized just *how little I knew* about them, their influence, and the extremely complex racial history of those shows.
And I actually found an appreciation for a few more musicals. I’m still unlikely to watch most of them, but they are far less annoying and much more interesting now. Though I still can’t understand why soliloquies are such a popular thing — terrible writing more often than not.
Highly recommend to anyone remotely interested in theater and American history.
Yet to my utter surprise, this was the most fact packed and intriguing lecture series I’ve listened to about American history. Filled in tremendous gaps that I had about quite a lot of things… starting with minstrel shows, which I realized just *how little I knew* about them, their influence, and the extremely complex racial history of those shows.
And I actually found an appreciation for a few more musicals. I’m still unlikely to watch most of them, but they are far less annoying and much more interesting now. Though I still can’t understand why soliloquies are such a popular thing — terrible writing more often than not.
Highly recommend to anyone remotely interested in theater and American history.
March 7, 2017
I give this a 7/10. Messenger is an excellent lecturer and he goes from way back in time in 1828 and pretty much stays pre-1920 for 12 of the 16 lectures. His lecture on Tin Pan Alley was epic as were the lectures on Irving Berlin, Jerome Kern, and Gershwin.
I'll be honest, I would have preferred that all 16 lectures started at 1920, but it makes a lot of sense to cover it like he did because musical theater was SO much more influential at the turn of the century and in the early 20th century than it is now. There are stories of musical selling 10 million copies of sheet music to people who would go home and sing and play them around the piano.
Even though I'm only interested in the musicals in the last half of the twentieth century, this is the tail end of real musical theater.
I'll be honest, I would have preferred that all 16 lectures started at 1920, but it makes a lot of sense to cover it like he did because musical theater was SO much more influential at the turn of the century and in the early 20th century than it is now. There are stories of musical selling 10 million copies of sheet music to people who would go home and sing and play them around the piano.
Even though I'm only interested in the musicals in the last half of the twentieth century, this is the tail end of real musical theater.
November 14, 2018
DVD course of 12 hours on the history of Broadway musicals. The instructor focused on time periods before 1940 because the music and photos are not so readily available as videos of musicals from the 1940s and forward. Learning about the history that led to the more famous and more recent musicals was very interesting. I am glad the instructor chose to structure the course that way but some people may be disappointed by the small amount of time spent on musicals from the last fifty years. Please note that this course was created in 2006 so there are many new musicals that became famous after this publication.
September 11, 2019
Lots of music and if you like old show tunes, lots of fun. There is good historical information when he talks about the history/origins of show tunes and music. Some of the lectures require one to know about musical chords, but even without that knowledge, it is a good lecture.
Bill Messenger is bright and cheery. He is also a good piano player, but not a good singer. He knows, this so he talks his way through songs rather than singing them. There are original recording where available, or Bill plays the tune on the piano, or he assembled a group to sing the song when a real singer is needed.
I'd listen to these lectures again.
Bill Messenger is bright and cheery. He is also a good piano player, but not a good singer. He knows, this so he talks his way through songs rather than singing them. There are original recording where available, or Bill plays the tune on the piano, or he assembled a group to sing the song when a real singer is needed.
I'd listen to these lectures again.
March 10, 2022
The 2006 Teaching Company course “Great American Music: Broadway Musicals” by Professor Bill Messinger is among the top five courses in my collection. This 16 lecture course covers the history of American musicals from the early days of the 1828-1901 Minstrel era, to The Ragtime, Vaudeville, and Ten Pan Alley days of the early 20th Century. He concludes the lectures with discussions of musical forms in the Jazz, Rock and Roll, and 1970’s. Messenger has a unique way of augmenting his lectures by playing and chanting these musical forms on a studio piano. The 161 page course guide book is exceptional. (P)
June 27, 2025
So-so survey of musical theater from the 19th century into the 21st. Bill Messenger is certainly enthusiastic in his delivery (and a great pianist) , but the content is a mixed-bag and I seldom found myself enthused. For me, Lecture 1: The Essence of the Musical and Lecture 3: Evolution of the Verse/Chorus Song were the best...they contained actual lessons. As for the rest, there were interesting tidbits here and there, but too many anecdotes that I didn't find particularly useful, apt, or engaging. And the lectures from the 1950's into the 2000's were mostly a tedious presentation of the plots of various well-known book and concept musicals.
Overall disappointing.
Overall disappointing.
October 16, 2025
This excellent course of sixteen 45 minutes lectures is available from Hoopla and Audible. My library has a downloadable copy. (Inexplicably The Great Courses no longer makes this available. I assume it is part of the company's move away from excellent, content dense material to content-free fluff.)
Messenger is both a professional jazz pianist and a historian of jazz and American popular music. The course is focused on the early history of popular American theater. The 20th century (George Gershwin) doesn't appear until the 12th lecture and Roger and Hammerstein in the 13th.
Messenger is both a professional jazz pianist and a historian of jazz and American popular music. The course is focused on the early history of popular American theater. The 20th century (George Gershwin) doesn't appear until the 12th lecture and Roger and Hammerstein in the 13th.
November 30, 2017
Loved the course. I was happily surprised at how many of the old songs I knew and could sing along with. It will be sad to lose those old songs. I hope they are taught in school music classes. We are so fortunate to have so many old recordings of these old classics. It was interesting to hear about some of the origins and influences on the old and newer popular Broadway music. I enjoyed Bill Messenger's presentation.
October 5, 2020
This is a 16 part course on the history of the Broadway Musical, with deep emphasis on the origins - from the minstrel show to burlesque and vaudeville, showing how the Broadway musicals we know today grew out of popular culture of the previous centuries. There is very little focus on the past 50 years, but this is important knowledge for anybody who love musicals and should understand how they came to be.
August 25, 2023
I really enjoyed this one. The Professor is very knowledgeable and funny, he tells stories that I'd never heard before (and I specialized in musical comedy in college) and, best of all, there is music! Messenger plays some of the older songs himself, he adds interviews to people who knew the legends and has Stephen Schwartz playing and singing his originals compositions for Wicked, that were later transformed into The Wizard and I. This is a treat for Broadway lovers.
March 16, 2020
Had to dash this back to the library. I never have as much time to watch these things on DVD as I to do listen to them in the car.
Really enjoy Bill Messenger's teaching / examples. I love it that he can play the piano so well, and can demonstrate everything he talks about on the piano. This is a good series, but I need to revisit it when I can watch it all!
Really enjoy Bill Messenger's teaching / examples. I love it that he can play the piano so well, and can demonstrate everything he talks about on the piano. This is a good series, but I need to revisit it when I can watch it all!
August 17, 2018
Not a book at all, but a series of very entertaining and informative lectures from a fantastic teacher who incorporates music clips, news and interview excerpts, as well as his own piano playing and singing. Thoroughly enjoyed it!
July 24, 2019
I listened to this version which was great as it included sound clips. For a musical geek like me, it was great!!
November 27, 2019
A series of lectures on the history of musical theater in the United States. The audio lectures are greatly enhanced through the use of recordings and piano recitations.
February 25, 2020
Entertaining and informative. I wish Messenger had spent more time in the history of the 20th century shows and Jess time on the musical progressions. It is an audible that I’ll play again.
Read
December 11, 2021Listened on and off; won't star review.
Each story was good; my goal was trivia knowledge gain, and I'm not sure if did gain that.
Each story was good; my goal was trivia knowledge gain, and I'm not sure if did gain that.
April 11, 2022
Very good history of the beginning of Broadway, where Broadway came from and it’s overall history.
June 26, 2022
Not good. Rambling, disconnected stories with little musical theory or real content.
September 4, 2024
A fun, informative course that digs into the early years of Broadway.
October 2, 2016
This was a perfectly acceptable set of Great Courses lectures. My girlfriend who is a musical theater nerd thought that the lectures didn't have enough detail and focused too much on the earlier history at the expense of spending time on more modern broadway shows (1970 to present are covered in a single lecture). Personally I thought it was a pretty good overview in the same style as most Great Courses sets.
March 11, 2013
This was an outstanding course and listen. Even though I minored in Theater in college and grew up in NY along with the Golden Age of Broadway, I learned a ton about history, song writers, producers, choreographers and how Musical Theater evolved. The author/teacher was wonderful. He has an engaging voice, is super knowledgeable and made the course so enjoyable. I couldn't wait to get into my car and listen every day. The music was great and I loved hearing the history of songs that have become standards from the turn of the century and understand their context in the theatre world. Bravo! Encore!
February 3, 2017
This training course of Great American Music: Broadway Musicals covering the mid-1800s to the present. The lecturer was very weak during the first 100 years. The lecturer was strong from the 1930s to the 1950s seemed to have the lecturer's most interest. Otherwise, he seemed to rush through the rest of the musicals and seemed to not to like the music very well, except the 1930s to 1950s. I was hoping for more. Maybe the lecturer should have stayed with his interests.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 41 reviews