William David Brohn obit

Tony Award-winning orchestrator and MSU alumnus William David Brohn dies

 

He was not on the list.

William David Brohn, 1955 Michigan State University  alumnus and Tony Award-winning orchestrator, died May 11. He was 84.

Brohn, born in Flint, Michigan, and educated at MSU and the New England Conservatory of Music, displayed his musical talents on many stages during his long and successful career. As a top orchestrator, he arranged scores for some of the most popular shows on Broadway including “Wicked,” “Miss Saigon,” “Mary Poppins” and “Ragtime,” for which he won a Tony Award for Best Orchestrations in 1988.

Brohn, who treasured his Michigan roots, served for the last 12 years as a member of the MSU College of Music National Leadership Council. He gave his time and financial support to the college and returned to campus often as a visiting professor.

“Bill Brohn was a lion of the Broadway stage as one of the world’s foremost orchestrators,” said James Forger, dean of the College of Music. “He was also committed to the next generation of musicians and returned to campus regularly where he worked with and mentored a wide range of students in the MSU College of Music. His searing intellect, great ear, and kind, caring nature made him one of the most popular and effective visiting professors on campus.”

He was recognized by the university with an honorary doctorate in fine arts in 1996 and was chosen grand marshal of the homecoming parade in 2015.  He was honored that year with a half-time program in Spartan Stadium that featured the hits he orchestrated for Broadway.

His first Broadway project was the 1975 revue “Rodgers & Hart” and his last “The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess”in 2012. Brohn collaborated with many of the top names in musical productions during his career. In the 1980s, he began working with award-winning producer, Cameron Mackintosh. The two worked on shows such as “Carousel,” “Oklahoma!,” “Mary Poppins,” "Barnum" and “Half a Sixpence.”

“Bill Brohn blew into my life 30 years ago when I was preparing 'Miss Saigon' and we immediately became close friends and musical collaborators on many of my productions,” said Mackintosh. “His spirit was as extraordinary as his prodigious musical talents and his ability to use individual instruments as characters in a score elevated his orchestrations to the highest level of musical art. He was also one of the kindest and most humble human beings I've ever known. His pen may have finally been put to rest, but his glorious orchestrations remain timeless and, like his memory, will lift our spirits forever.”

 

Stage work

 

2016 - Half a Sixpence

2013 - Barnum

2012 - The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess

2011 - Betty Blue Eyes

2010 - Marguerite (Ostrava, Czech Republic)

2009 - First You Dream: The Music of Kander and Ebb

2009 - Oliver!

2008 - Gone With The Wind

2007 - Curtains

2006 - Mary Poppins

2004 - Show Boat

2003 - Wicked

2002 - Sweet Smell of Success: The Musical

2002 - A Man of No Importance

2001 - My Fair Lady

2001 - South Pacific

2000 - The Witches of Eastwick

1998 - O! Freedom (Co-Arranger)

1998 - Hey, Mr. Producer (Co-Orchestrator)

1998 - High Society

1998 - Oklahoma! (Additional Orchestrations)

1996 - Ragtime (1998 Tony Award for Best Orchestrations, New York Drama Desk Award)

1995 - Martin Guerre

1995 - Oliver!

1994 - Busker Alley (by the Sherman Brothers)

1993 -The Red Shoes

1992 - Crazy for You (New York Drama Desk Award nomination)

1992 - The Secret Garden (New York Drama Desk Award winner)

1992 - Carousel

1992 - 110 in the Shade (Additional orchestrations)

1989 - Jerome Robbins’ Broadway

1989 - Miss Saigon (New York Drama Desk Award winner)

1986 - The Boys in Autumn (Incidental music for the Broadway play)

1985 - Wind in the Willows

1984 - The Three Musketeers (Revival/additional orchestrations)

1984 - Gotta Getaway

1983 - Marilyn

1980 - Brigadoon (Revival)

1978 - King of Hearts

1978 - Timbuktu!

1976 - Rockabye Hamlet (Additional orchestrations)

1975 - Rodgers & Hart (Additional orchestrations)

 

Filmography

Anastasia

Endless Love

Blue Thunder

War Games

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