Spring 1967: So Which Comes First, the Words or the Music?
Sheldon Harnick

Ever since I was invited to contribute an article on “the relation between the lyric writer and librettist” to this Quarterly, I have been casting around in my mind for some point of departure, some reason for writing anything at all. Finally, I decided that I would aim this article at those playwrights who have yet to write the libretto for a musical. Possibly a comment or two may have value for them. All experienced librettists, lyricists, and composers can stop reading at this point for they will learn nothing new.

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Monochromatic photograph of a white man with thin, curly, white hair looking directly at the camera through dark framed glasses. He wears a black turtleneck and blazer.
Sheldon Harnick

(1924-2023) was a lyricist and composer probably best known for his collaborations with composer Jerry Bock on musicals including Fiddler on the Roof (Tony Award), Fiorello! (Tony Award, Pulitzer Prize), and She Loves Me (Grammy Award). His career began in the 1950s with songs in revues such as “The Boston Beguine” and “The Merry Little Minuet.” Some of his other musicals with Jerry Bock include Tenderloin, The Apple Tree, and The Rothchilds. Other collaborations include Rex (with Richard Rodgers), A Christmas Carol (with Michel Legrand), A Wonderful Life (with Joe Raposo), The Phantom Tollbooth (with Arnold Black and Norton Juster), and The Audition (with Marvin Hamlisch). He wrote three musicals himself: Dragons, A Doctor in Spite of Himself, and Malpractice Makes Perfect. He also contributed songs to the films The Heartbreak Kid, Blame It on Rio (with Cy Coleman), and Aaron’s Magic Village (with Michel Legrand). In the world of opera, he provided librettos for Jack Beeson’s Cyrano, Dr. Heidegger’s Fountain of Youth, and Captain Jinks of the Horse Marines; Henry Mollicone’s Coyote Tales, Lady Bird: First Lady of the Land; and Thomas Z. Shepard’s Love in Two Countries. Sheldon was the recipient of two Tony Awards, two Grammy Awards, three gold records, and a platinum record. He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Dramatists Guild in 2010, of which he was a member for more than 60 years, serving on Council for over 50 of those years. Additionally, he served as President of the Dramatists Guild Foundation from 1992-2005. He died June 23, 2023, at the age of 99.