Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music

The Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music is an annual award presented by the Drama Desk, a committee comprising New York City theatre critics, writers, and editors. It honors the composers of musicals produced on Broadway, off-Broadway, off-off-Broadway, and for legitimate not-for-profit theaters.

It initially was called the Drama Desk Award for Best Composer and was presented for the first time in 1968 to Al Carmines for In Circles and Galt MacDermot for Hair.^[1] The following year it was presented as the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music, but since its inception it also has been called the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Score of a Musical, and for two seasons (1975–76 and 1976–77) the awards for music and lyrics were combined.

As of 1971, only one award is presented each year, unless there is a tie vote.

Additional winners

1960s

• 1969: Al Carmines – Peace and Burt Bacharach – Promises, Promises
  • No nominees

1970s

1970: Stephen Sondheim – Company and Kurt Weill – Mahagonny No nominees 1971: Stephen Sondheim – Follies No nominees 1972: Galt MacDermot – Two Gentlemen of Verona No nominees 1973: Stephen Sondheim – A Little Night Music No nominees 1974: Al Carmines – The Faggot No nominees 1975: Charlie Smalls – The Wiz Gene Curty, Nitra Scharfman and Chuck Strand – The Lieutenant Jerry Herman – Mack and Mabel Fred Silver – In Gay Company

1976: Edward Kleban and Marvin Hamlisch – A Chorus Line Leonard Bernstein – 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Bill Heyer and Hank Beebe – Tuscaloosa's Calling Me Stephen Sondheim – Pacific Overtures 1977: Cy Coleman – I Love My Wife Charles Strouse – Annie Elizabeth Swados – Nightclub Cantata Robert Waldman – The Robber Bridegroom 1978: Cy Coleman – On the Twentieth Century and Carol Hall – The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas Elizabeth Swados – Runaways 1979: Stephen Sondheim – Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street Nancy Ford – I'm Getting My Act Together and Taking It on the Road Marvin Hamlisch and Neil Simon – They're Playing Our Song Jerome Kass – Ballroom Michel Legrand – The Umbrellas of Cherbourg

1980s

1980: Andrew Lloyd Webber – Evita Cy Coleman – Barnum Elizabeth Swados – Runaways 1982: Maury Yeston – Nine Stephen Sondheim – Merrily We Roll Along Jim Wann – Pump Boys and Dinettes 1983: Andrew Lloyd Webber – Cats Larry Grossman – A Doll's Life Gerald Jay Markee – Charlotte Sweet Des McAnuff – Death of Von Richthofen Alan Menken – Little Shop of Horrors 1984: Jerry Herman – La Cage aux Folles Galt MacDermot – The Human Comedy David Shire – Baby Stephen Sondheim – Sunday in the Park with George

1985: Larry Grossman – Grind Roger Miller – Big River Michael Rupert – 3 Guys Naked from the Waist Down 1986: Rupert Holmes – The Mystery of Edwin Drood Polly Pen – Goblin Market Charles Strouse – Mayor Andrew Lloyd Webber – Song and Dance 1987: Stephen Fry, Noel Gay, Mike Ockrent, and Douglas Furber – Me and My Girl and Claude-Michel Schonberg – Les Misérables Nick Bicat – The Knife Charles Strouse – Rags Andrew Lloyd Webber – Starlight Express 1988: Andrew Lloyd Webber – Phantom of the Opera Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus – Chess David Evans – Birds of Paradise Hugh Masekela and Mbongeni Ngema – Sarafina! Stephen Sondheim – Into the Woods

1990s

1990: Cy Coleman – City of Angels George Forrest, Maury Yeston and Robert Wright – Grand Hotel Ástor Piazzolla – Dangerous Games David Shire – Closer Than Ever Andrew Lloyd Webber – Aspects of Love 1991: Cy Coleman – The Will Rogers Follies David Bucknam – The Waves William Finn – Falsettoland Lucy Simon – The Secret Garden Stephen Sondheim – Assassins 1992: Erik Frandsen, Michael Garin, Paul Lockheart, and Robert Hipkins – Song of Singapore No nominees 1993: Marvin Hamlisch – The Goodbye Girl John Kander – Kiss of the Spider Woman Jeffrey Lunden – Wings

1994: Stephen Sondheim – Passion Alan Menken – Beauty and the Beast Michael John LaChiusa – Hello Again Tom Waits – The Black Rider Polly Pen – Christina Alberta's Father 1997: Cy Coleman – The Life John Kander – Steel Pier Jeanine Tesori – Violet 1998: Stephen Flaherty – Ragtime Paul Simon – The Capeman Stephen Trask – Hedwig and the Angry Inch Frank Wildhorn – The Scarlet Pimpernel

2000s

2000: Andrew Lippa – The Wild Party Shaun Davey – James Joyce's The Dead Stephen Sondheim – Saturday Night 2001: David Yazbek – The Full Monty Kirsten Childs – The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin Stephen Flaherty – Seussical Mark Hollmann – Urinetown Ed Kleban – A Class Act Laurence O'Keefe – Bat Boy: The Musical 2003: Marc Shaiman – Hairspray Tim Acito – Zanna, Don't! Stephen Flaherty – A Man of No Importance Michel Legrand – Amour Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx – Avenue Q Keb' Mo', Anderson Edwards and Keith Glover – Thunder Knocking on the Door 2004: Jeanine Tesori – Caroline, or Change RaRa Avis and Andrew Yeater – Ramayana 2K3 Boy George – Taboo Eric Rockwell – The Musical of Musicals (The Musical!) Stephen Schwartz – Wicked Martin Silvestri and Joel Higgins – Johnny Guitar 2005: Adam Guettel – The Light in the Piazza Gary Adler and Michael Patrick Walker – Altar Boyz Terry Davies – Play Without Words William Finn – The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee Stephen Flaherty – Dessa Rose David Yazbek – Dirty Rotten Scoundrels

2006: Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison – The Drowsy Chaperone Stephen Dolginoff – Thrill Me Scott Frankel – Grey Gardens Michael John LaChiusa – See What I Wanna See Peter Mills – The Pursuit of Persephone Matthew Sklar – The Wedding Singer 2007: Duncan Sheik – Spring Awakening John Kander – Curtains Paul Leschen and Gila Sand – Twist: Please, Sir, May I Have Some More? Peter Rodgers Melnick – Adrift in Macao Lin-Manuel Miranda – In the Heights Laurence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin – Legally Blonde 2008: Stew and Heidi Rodewald – Passing Strange John Bucchino – A Catered Affair Stephen Flaherty – The Glorious Ones Tom Kitt – Next to Normal Mark Mulcahy – The Slug Bearers of Kayrol Island Joshua Schmidt – Adding Machine 2009: Elton John – Billy Elliot the Musical Neil Bartram – The Story of My Life Zina Goldrich – Dear Edwina Dolly Parton – 9 to 5 Stephen Sondheim – Road Show Jeanine Tesori – Shrek the Musical

2010s

• 2010: David Bryan – Memphis
  • Michael Friedman – Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson
  • Joe Iconis – Bloodsong of Love
  • John Kander and Fred Ebb – The Scottsboro Boys
  • Andrew Lippa – The Addams Family
  • Joseph Zellnik – Yank!

• 2011: Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone – The Book of Mormon
  • Brad Alexander – See Rock City & Other Destinations
  • Alan Menken – Sister Act
  • Marc Shaiman – Catch Me if You Can
  • Mike Stoller and Artie Butler – The People in the Picture
  • David Yazbek – Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown

Multiple Wins

5 wins Cy Coleman Stephen Sondheim 3 wins Andrew Lloyd Webber

2 wins Al Carmines Marvin Hamlisch

Multiple Nominations

12 nominations Stephen Sondheim 6 nominations Cy Coleman Andrew Lloyd Webber 5 nominations Stephen Flaherty 4 nominations John Kander 3 nominations Marvin Hamlisch Alan Menken Charles Strouse Elizabeth Swados Jeanine Tesori David Yazbek

2 nominations Al Carmines William Finn Larry Grossman Jerry Herman Michael John LaChiusa Michel Legrand Andrew Lippa Robert Lopez Galt MacDermot Laurence O'Keefe Polly Pen Marc Shaiman David Shire Maury Yeston

References

1. ^ Drama Desk archives

External links

• Drama Desk Awards official website