Milton Rosenstock (June 9, 1917,

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

- April 24, 1992,

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

) was an American conductor,

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

, and

arranger In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

Career

Trained at the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most el ...

, he was highly active as a musical director for

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film and television, a genre of film and television that incorporates into the narr ...

s from 1942 through 1980; serving in that capacity for 29 productions, including the original productions of '' Gentlemen Prefer Blondes'' (1949), '' Can-Can'' (1953), '' Bells Are Ringing'' (1956), ''

Stop the World – I Want to Get Off ''Stop the World – I Want to Get Off'' is a 1961 musical with a book, music, and lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley. According to Oscar Levant, the play's title was derived from graffiti. Plot The show, set against a circus backdr ...

'' (1962), ''

Oliver! ''Oliver!'' is a coming-of-age stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel '' Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens. It premiered at the Wimbledon Theatre, southwest London in 1960 before op ...

'' (1963), '' Funny Girl'' (1964), and ''

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum ''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum'' is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Burt Shevelove and Larry Gelbart. Inspired by the farces of the ancient Roman playwright Plautus (254–184 BC), specifica ...

'' (1972). He also composed the music for the 1973 revue ''Nash at Nine'' and worked as musical supervisor for the 1989 production of ''

Meet Me in St. Louis ''Meet Me in St. Louis'' is a 1944 American Christmas film, Christmas musical film made by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Divided into a series of seasonal vignettes, starting with Summer 1903, it relates the story of a year in the life of the Smith famil ...

''; the latter of which was his last project on Broadway. He served as the music director of the Lyric Chamber Theater during the 1960s and was the music director of the

American Ballet Theatre American Ballet Theatre (ABT) is a classical ballet company based in New York City. Founded in 1939 by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant, it is recognized as one of the world's leading classical ballet companies. Through 2019, it had an annual ei ...

during the late 1960s. From 1981 until his death eleven years later of heart disease he was principal conductor of the

Dance Theatre of Harlem Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) is an American professional ballet company and school based in Harlem, New York City. It was founded in 1969 under the directorship of Arthur Mitchell and later partnered with Karel Shook. Milton Rosenstock served a ...

Awards

In 1948 he won the

Tony Award for Best Conductor and Musical Director The Tony Award for Best Conductor and Musical Director was awarded to acknowledge the contributions of conductors and musical directors in both musicals and operas. The award was first presented in 1948, and later discontinued after 1964. Winners ...

for ''

Finian's Rainbow ''Finian's Rainbow'' is a musical with a book by E. Y. Harburg and Fred Saidy, lyrics by Harburg, and music by Burton Lane, produced by Lee Sabinson. The original 1947 Broadway production ran for 725 performances, while a film version was re ...

''. He was nominated twice more for that award: for ''

The Vamp ''The Vamp'' is a musical comedy with music by James Mundy; lyrics by John La Touche; and a musical book by La Touche and Sam Locke which is based on a story by La Touche. The musical opened on Broadway on November 10, 1955 at the Winter Garde ...

'' (1956) and the original Broadway production of ''

Gypsy The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...

'' (1960).

Broadway credits

*''

This Is The Army ''This Is the Army'' is a 1943 American wartime musical comedy film produced by Hal B. Wallis and Jack L. Warner, and directed by Michael Curtiz, adapted from a wartime stage musical with the same name, designed to boost morale in the U.S. duri ...

'' (1942, Musical Director) *''

'' (1947, Musical Director) *''

Barefoot Boy With Cheek Barefoot is the state of not wearing any footwear. There are health benefits and some risks associated with going barefoot. Shoes, while they offer protection, can limit the flexibility, strength, and mobility of the foot and can lead to ...

'' (1947, Musical Director) *''

High Button Shoes ''High Button Shoes'' is a 1947 musical with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Sammy Cahn and book by George Abbott and Stephen Longstreet. It was based on the semi-autobiographical 1946 novel ''The Sisters Liked Them Handsome'' by Stephen Longstre ...

'' (1947, Musical Director) *'' Gentlemen Prefer Blondes'' (1949, Musical Director) *'' Make a Wish'' (1951, Musical Director) *'' Two's Company'' (1952, Musical Director) *'' Can-Can'' (1953, Musical Director) *''

'' (1955, Musical Director) *'' Bells Are Ringing'' (1956, Musical Director) *''

'' (1959, Musical Director) *'' Show Girl'' (1961, Musical Director) *''

Subways Are for Sleeping ''Subways Are for Sleeping'' is a musical produced by David Merrick with book and lyrics by Betty Comden and Adolph Green and music by Jule Styne. The original Broadway production played in 1961–62. The musical was inspired by an article about ...

'' (1961, Musical Director) *''

'' (1962, Musical Director) *''

'' (1963, Musical Director) *'' Hot Spot'' (1963, Musical Director) *'' Funny Girl'' (1964, Musical Director) *''

Come Summer ''Come Summer'' is a Broadway musical with a book and lyrics by Will Holt and music by David Baker, based on '' Rainbow on the Road'' by Esther Forbes and vocal arrangements by Trude Rittmann. The original Broadway production opened on March 18, ...

'' (1969, Musical Director) *'' Jimmy'' (1969, Musical Director) *''

Look to the Lilies ''Look to the Lilies'' was a short-lived Broadway musical with a book by Leonard Spigelgass, lyrics by Sammy Cahn, and music by Jule Styne. Based on both the 1962 novel and film versions of '' Lilies of the Field'', it tells the story of a group ...

'' (1970, Musical Director) *'' On the Town'' (1971, Musical Director) *''

'' (1972, Musical Director) *'' Nash at Nine'' (1972, composer, Original Score) *''

Lorelei The Lorelei ( ; ), spelled Loreley in German, is a , steep slate rock on the right bank of the River Rhine in the Rhine Gorge (or Middle Rhine) at Sankt Goarshausen in Germany, part of the Upper Middle Rhine Valley UNESCO World Heritage Site. Th ...

'' (1974, Musical Director) *''

Fiddler on the Roof ''Fiddler on the Roof'' is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in or around 1905. It is based on ''Tevye and his Daughters'' (or ''Tevye the ...

'' (1976, Musical Director) *''

The King and I ''The King and I'' is the fifth musical by the team of Rodgers and Hammerstein. It is based on Margaret Landon's novel '' Anna and the King of Siam'' (1944), which is in turn derived from the memoirs of Anna Leonowens, governess to the childre ...

'' (1977, Musical Director) *''

The Music Man ''The Music Man'' is a musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and leader and sells band instruments and ...

'' (1980, Musical Director) *''

'' (1989, Musical Supervisor)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rosenstock, Milton 1917 births 1992 deaths 20th-century American composers 20th-century American conductors (music) 20th-century American male musicians American male composers American male conductors (music) Dance Theatre of Harlem Juilliard School alumni Musicians from New Haven, Connecticut Tony Award winners