Bette Sussman is an American television composer, singer, songwriter, pianist, and musical director.

Biography

Early life

Sussman was musically inspired by her mother and older sister, Sue. After her mother signed her up for piano lessons at age four, she studied classical music till she graduated from high school, after which she attended the

Oberlin College Conservatory The Oberlin Conservatory of Music is a private music conservatory in Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio. It was founded in 1865 and is the second oldest conservatory and oldest continually operating conservatory in the United States. It is one of t ...

. When she had finished her first year, she moved to New York City, and studied with late jazz musician

Sanford Gold Sanford Gold (June 9, 1911 – May 29, 1984) was an American jazz pianist born in Cleveland, Ohio. Gold played locally in Cleveland and led regional bands before moving to New York City in the 1930s. There he collaborated with Babe Russin ...

, at age eighteen.

Career

When she was nineteen years old, she began her work as a musical director with a touring production of ''

Godspell ''Godspell'' is a musical composed by Stephen Schwartz with book by John-Michael Tebelak. The show is structured as a series of parables, primarily based on the Gospel of Matthew, interspersed with music mostly set to lyrics from traditional hymn ...

''. By chance,

Dick Wagner Richard Allen Wagner (December 14, 1942 – July 30, 2014) was an American rock guitarist, songwriter and author best known for his work with Alice Cooper, Lou Reed, and Kiss. He also fronted his own Michigan-based bands, the Frost and the Bos ...

met her, and introduced her to

Tim Curry Timothy James Curry (born 19 April 1946) is an English actor and singer. He rose to prominence for his portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the film ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' (1975), reprising the role he had originated in the 1973 London ...

. She played on Curry's ''

Fearless Fearless or The Fearless may refer to: Psychology * Lack of fear * Courage or bravery Film, television and audio Film * ''Fearless'' (1978 film), an Italian film directed by Stelvio Massi * ''Fearless'' (1993 film), an American drama directed ...

'' album and also embarked on her first major world tour with him. She would later work as a musical director and a pianist for music artists such as

Cissy Houston Emily "Cissy" Houston ( ''née'' Drinkard; born September 30, 1933) is an American soul and gospel singer. After a successful career singing backup for such artists as Roy Hamilton, Dionne Warwick, Elvis Presley, and Aretha Franklin, Houston embar ...

Sarah Dash Sarah Dash (August 18, 1945 – September 20, 2021) was an American singer and actress. She first appeared on the music scene as a member of Patti LaBelle & The Bluebelles. Dash was later a member of Labelle, and worked as a singer, sess ...

, Esther Marrow and

Patti Austin Patti Austin (born August 10, 1950) is an American R&B, pop, and jazz singer and songwriter. Music career Austin was born in Harlem, New York, to Gordon Austin, a jazz trombonist. She was raised in Bay Shore, New York on Long Island. Quincy ...

, with whom she recorded a live album from the Bottom Line in NYC. Sussman toured with

Whitney Houston Whitney Elizabeth Houston (August 9, 1963 – February 11, 2012) was an American singer and actress. Nicknamed "The Voice", she is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, with sales of over 200 million records worldwide. Houston in ...

, Cissy Houston's daughter, in 1990, and played on Houston's version of the

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

classic "

I Will Always Love You "I Will Always Love You" is a song written and originally recorded in 1973 by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. Written as a farewell to her business partner and mentor Porter Wagoner, expressing Parton's decision to pursue a solo career, ...

" for '' The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album''. Their version was a soundtrack success and sold over 17 million copies. Sussman's friend, award-winning composer and lyricist

Marc Shaiman Marc Shaiman (; born October 22, 1959) is an American composer and lyricist for films, television, and theatre, best known for his collaborations with lyricist and director Scott Wittman. He wrote the music and co-wrote the lyrics for the Broadw ...

, got her in touch with

Bette Midler Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...

later that same year. She and Midler then worked together for several years and embarked on a tour together in 2003. Sussman has also worked with

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

and

Dean Friedman Dean Friedman (born May 23, 1955) is an American singer-songwriter who plays piano, keyboard, guitar and other instruments, including the harmonica. Although considered a one-hit wonder in the US, he has had multiple singles chart in other terr ...

. In television, she performed on the soundtrack for the song "Christmastime for the Jews" in the 2005 ''Jack Black/Neil Young'' episode of

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

. She also worked as a composer on the award winning daytime drama series, ''

One Life to Live ''One Life to Live'' (often abbreviated as ''OLTL'') is an American soap opera broadcast on the ABC television network for more than 43 years, from July 15, 1968, to January 13, 2012, and then on the internet as a web series on Hulu and iTunes ...

'', from 1999 to 2000, and ''

As the World Turns ''As the World Turns'' (often abbreviated as ''ATWT'') is an American television soap opera that aired on CBS for 54 years from April 2, 1956, to September 17, 2010. Irna Phillips created ''As the World Turns'' as a sister show to her other soa ...

'', for which she has garnered two

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York–based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences ...

wins and six nominations.

Personal life

In her spare time, she studies with jazz musician Garry Dial, and plays with the R&B band, the Bev Leslies. She is friends with bassist

Will Lee William Lee (born William Lubovsky; August 6, 1908 – December 7, 1982) was an American actor who appeared in numerous television and film roles, but was best known for playing Mr. Hooper, the original store proprietor of the eponymous Hooper' ...

, by whom she is nicknamed "Skeezer".

Awards and nominations

s: *Nominated, 2000, Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series for: ''

'' *Won, 2000, Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series for: ''

'' *Nominated, 2002, Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series for: ''One Life to Live'' *Nominated, 2002, Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series for: ''As the World Turns'' *Nominated, 2003, Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series for: ''As the World Turns'' *Nominated, 2004, Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series for: ''One Life to Live'' *Won, 2005, Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series for: ''One Life to Live'' *Nominated, 2006, Outstanding Achievement in Music Direction and Composition for a Drama Series for: ''One Life to Live''

References

External links

Bette Sussman
BetteSussman.com *

Bette Sussman
at www.discogs.com

at Artist Direct.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Sussman, Bette Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Oberlin College alumni American women singers 21st-century American composers Songwriters from New Jersey Daytime Emmy Award winners People from Rockaway, New Jersey 21st-century American pianists 21st-century American women pianists 21st-century American women composers