On December 5, Tony-nominated composer Keith Herrmann passed away. Born March 4, 1952, in Brooklyn, Herrmann graduated from Westfield H.S. in New Jersey, where he was active in the music program. Below is a recording of Herrmann singing the carol “Sleep, Holy Babe” in one of his school’s choir concerts, which accompanist Eric Van Leuven transfered into digital audio from the vinyl LP Art Masterpieces 1969.
Herrmann began his professional career as a pianist and music director, working on the national tour of Godspell (1974) and New York run of The Magic Show (1975). In 1979, he earned his first Broadway credit on the revival of Whoopee! and his first New York writing credit (with collaborators Charlotte Anker and Irene Rosenberg) on the Off-Off-Broadway run of Unescorted Women. Retitled Onward Victoria, the show transferred to Broadway in 1980 but closed on opening night. Below is Emma Benson singing “Where Is the Vision” from the 2017 Shenandoah Conservatory staged reading.
After serving as music supervisor on the short-lived Censored Scenes from King Kong (1980), Herrmann found steadier work creating revues for St. Regis Hotel’s cabaret. Then in 1982, he was hired to music direct and play for Cats. He performed on the Grammy-winning cast album and on its star Betty Buckley’s self-titled 1984 album. He ended the decade on Broadway with Romance/Romance (1988), for which he and Barry Harman received the Outer Critics Circle Award and a Tony nomination for best score. Below are Scott Bakula, Alison Fraser, and the cast at the 1988 Tony Awards.
During the 1980s, Herrmann also wrote jingles (including “Yugo Is All You Need” in 1986 with Larry Goodsight) and film scores (including Taking a Stand in 1989 with Betty Buckley). He began the 1990s by working with Stephen Witkin and Larry Goodsight on Prom Queens Unchained (1991), which ran Off-Broadway at the Village Gate. Below is Betty Buckley singing “Corsage.” In 1993, Herrmann reteamed with Barry Harman for The Haunted Hotel, adapted from the Wilkie Collins novella, which was revised for the 2003 New York Fringe Festival as Suspect! and reworked again as Incredible High.
Herrmann’s later musical work includes the 1998 animated Buster & Chauncey’s Silent Night, the original Shadows of Pompeii (2009) with R.C. Staab, the revue Amazing Sex with Barry Harman, and the children’s musical Homework Machine with Mark Cabaniss, adapted from the Dan Gutman book. Below is video of Herrmann and Cabaniss in rehearsal for the 2014 Boston Children’s Theatre production of their show.
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