Schoenberg, Claude

Claude Michel Schonberg (1944)

Claude-Michel Schonberg was born in 1944 into a Jewish family emigrated from Hungary. Childhood he spent in a provincial French town. The family loved music, and little Claude-Michel from the early years was engaged in playing the piano. Even then, he dreamed of writing an opera. Over time, Claude-Michel realized that the golden age of opera and was the only chance "to tell stories through song - is to write musicals.

His musical career began Schonberg, playing rock and roll band. At that time, he studied at university, preparing to get a degree in mathematics and was in need of money. Rock-n-roll, which in those years rattling around the world, gave an opportunity to earn. Furthermore, in those years, Claude-Michel listened with pleasure the legendary "Beatles", "diluting" their classical music.

. Pretty soon he began performing songs of his own, where he belonged not only music, but also words.

. In 1967, Schonberg met with librettist Alain Bublilem, and this meeting is later determined his career as a composer
. In 1973 came the first fruit of their collaboration - a rock opera "The French Revolution". Schonberg came to fame as a double album with the record "French Revolution" went double gold and sold over 350 000 copies. Claude-Michel participated in the formulation, performing the role of King Louis XVI.

In 1974, the composer recorded a solo album, "Le premier pas", the title song which took the first line of the French hit parade. I must say that the pop songs of Schonberg still does not feel epic style, which he became famous throughout the world in his later works. Songs c album "Le premier pas" are very close in sound to the classic French popular music.

In 1978, Schonberg and Bublil began work on a musical version of Victor Hugo's novel "Les Miserables" ( "Les Miserables"). At work on the musical took two years, and 17 September 1980 he was presented to the public at the Sports Palace (Palais des Sports) in Paris. This formulation has visited more than half a million visitors. The album, following the formulation, also became a double gold.

However, the most important event in the career Schonberg was the meeting with the British theatrical producer Cameron Mackintosh. That he saw great potential in "Les Miserables", the authors turned to musicals, proposed improving the performance and put it on the London stage. "Les Miserables" have undergone many changes, . in particular the original text has been thoroughly rewritten, . some songs were just written anew, the author of the English version of the libretto was Herbert Kretzmer, . recognized journalist and songwriter,
. Work on the new version of the musical was carried out in close cooperation between Schonberg, Bublilem, Kretzmer and Macintosh. Schonberg still remembers with a shudder, as Mackintosh insisted on the introduction of the performance of the final numbers for the first act - this, which would be singing all the characters, but each of his subject. Through the long agony composer has created almost operatic number "One Day More".

"Les Miserables" were delivered in London in 1985, the album went gold. The Broadway premiere took place in 1987, the record won a Grammy, and the performance brought Schonberg two Tony Award - for music and for the scenario. Despite the fact that the right to stage a musical production company is now owned by Cameron Mackintosh, composer left for the right to participate in the selection of actors for musical performances throughout the world, which soon followed.

. In 1989 in London, was put a new musical Schonberg and Bublilya - "Miss Saigon" - the tale of tragic love Vietnamese girl and an American military modernized paraphrase of the famous opera plot J
. Puccini's "Madama Butterfly", dating back to the novel by Frenchman Pierre Loti's Madame Chrysanthemum ". As a producer again made Mac and, as in the case of "Les Miserables", "Miss Saigon" was soon settled on Broadway, and then began to conquer the world.

The London premiere of "Les Miserables" was held in 1985. Album recording of the original composition rather quickly went gold, and followed the 1987 Broadway production brought Bublilyu two Tony Awards - for the texts and the script. Record the American version of "Les Miserables" won the Grammy.

. After a long break, . in 1996 in London the next product of the creative duo Schonberg-Bublil (supported by Mac): "Martin Guerre" ( "Martin Guerre"), . which was the subject of a famous French folk tale,
. This work differs from previous ones, according to the most Schonberg she was more "intimate" and no longer able to claim the success of previous musicals. Even had to rewrite the musical and put an updated version in 1998. This was followed and the American premiere, but before the Broadway show has not reached. Nevertheless, "Martin Guerre" is alive: is currently preparing his statement in Madrid (Spain), for which a musical composition was once again a few reworked.

Schonberg now lives in Paris with his wife and two children. He recently held a series of master classes in England and in France for young people who want sochitnyat musicals. But this does not mean that Schonberg away from creativity. New work of the composer - the ballet on the novel by Emily Bronte "Wuthering Heights". Schonberg acknowledged that he was not a big fan of ballet, but the proposal Derek Dean, the former artistic director of English National Ballet, interested him. Derek Dean himself, dreaming of establishing a modern ballet on the theme of the famous love story Bronte, immediately thought of two composers to whom he could apply with an idea - Andrew Lloyd Webber and Schonberg. As a result, Schonberg composed nearly two-hour ballet, which will be delivered in London in 2002. In addition, the composer, along with his regular co-Bublilem working on a new project. How? While this is kept secret.