Songs From Ragtime: The Musical [Original Cast Recording - RCA]

by Lynn Ahrens, Stephen Flaherty

Overview

Composer Stephen Flaherty, lyricist Lynn Ahrens, and librettist Terrence McNally's stage musical adaptation of E.L. Doctorow's novel Ragtime took a long time to get to Broadway, with full-scale productions in Toronto and Los Angeles dating back more than a year before the New York opening, and they used that time well. One need only compare the 1998 original Broadway cast album to the 1996 studio cast album (called Songs From Ragtime the Musical) to see the differences, as the later version is much refined and improved. A major difference, of course, is sheer length -- the Broadway version, on two CDs running more than two hours, is twice as long -- but that's an important distinction for a show as ambitious and broadly based as Ragtime. Doctorow's plot embraces both several dramatic stories and a group of historical figures for an extensive examination of social life in the U.S. at the turn of the 19th century, and the earlier disc seemed scattered, while the full-length version brings all the strains together. Flaherty's music, relying heavily on ragtime itself and other early 20th century popular styles, unifies the stories, and Ahrens' lyrics bring out the similarities of theme among them. The result is a tapestry that fulfills Doctorow's intentions admirably and competes successfully with the large-scale musicals of the 1980s that always seemed to come over from Europe. Brian Stokes Mitchell remains a standout in the cast but, among the improvements, the creators have found more for Audra McDonald to do (a neat trick, since her character is killed off at the end of Act I), and she too is impressive. ~ William Ruhlmann

Product Details

Release Date:	04/01/2022
Label:	Masterworks
UPC:	0194398751511
Rank:	69778

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Lynn Ahrens   Primary Artist
Stephen Flaherty   Primary Artist
Monica Patton   Primary Artist
Lea Michele   Primary Artist
Brian Mitchell   Primary Artist
Marin Mazzie   Primary Artist
Brian Stokes Mitchell   Primary Artist
Ensemble   Primary Artist
Camille Saviola   Primary Artist
Rod Campbell   Primary Artist
David Mucci   Primary Artist,Ensemble
Audra McDonald   Primary Artist
Judy Kaye   Primary Artist
Larry Daggett   Primary Artist
Peter Friedman   Primary Artist
Gordon Stanley   Primary Artist,Ensemble
Bruce Winant   Primary Artist,Ensemble
Jim Corti   Primary Artist
Alex Strange   Primary Artist
Nick Rose   Primary Artist
Lynnette Perry   Primary Artist
Mark Jacoby   Primary Artist
Leon Williams   Primary Artist,Ensemble
Steven Sutcliffe   Primary Artist
Bob Leonard   Flute,Clarinet,Sax (Soprano),Clarinet (Bass)
John Mauceri   Conductor
Steve Hunter   Synthesizer
Falconer Abraham   Ensemble
Shaun Amyot   Ensemble
Terry Holowach   Violin
Olivia Koppell   Viola
Igor Portnoi   Ensemble
Anne L. Nathan   Ensemble
Maya DeForest   Violin
Robert Bonfiglio   Harmonica
Brian Leonard   Percussion
Jesse Levy   Celli
Jeff Kievit   Trumpet,Piccolo Trumpet
Steve McDade   Flugelhorn,Trumpet
Marty Morell   Drums,Percussion
Sharon Prater   Cello
Barry Finclair   Violin
Matthew Raimondi   Violin
Charles Gordon   Trombone
Christopher Cardona   Violin
Ted Sperling   Director,Conductor
David Loud   Piano,Soloist,Conductor,Musical Direction
Bill Meredith   Oboe,Horn (English)
Earl McIntyre   Tuba,Horn (Baritone)
Rebecca Spencer   Ensemble
Heather Headley   Ensemble
Les Allt   Flute,Piccolo
Karen Andrew   Ensemble
Christian Jaudes   Trumpet
William Michals   Ensemble
Maria Calabrese   Ensemble
Al Brown & His Tunetoppers   Viola
Marilyn Caskey   Ensemble
Bernard Dotson   Ensemble
Owen Kotler   Clarinet,E Flat Clarinet
Paula Newsome   Ensemble
Orgena Rose   Ensemble
Robert Pilon   Ensemble
James C. Moore   Synthesizer
Winona Zelenka   Cello
Wendy Rose   Violin
Cecilia Hobbs Gardner   Violin
Lance Elbeck   Violin
Vivian Israel   Celli
Alastair Kay   Trombone
Panchali Null   Ensemble
Stephen Lee Anderson   Ensemble
John Pintavalle   Violin
Susan Follari   Viola
Paul Riggio   French Horn
Sheila Reinhold   Violin
Keith Lamelle Thomas   Ensemble
Artur Jansons   Viola
Kevin Bogue   Ensemble
David McFadden   Violin
Richard Clark   Viola
Tony Posk   Violin
Jim Pirie   Guitar,Mandolin
Lisa Pike   French Horn
Dean Plank   Trombone (Bass)
Patty Goble   Ensemble
Johnny Fanning   Ensemble
Alec Catherwood   Violin
Corey Gemmell   Violin
Rodrick Dixon   Ensemble
Angela Teek   Ensemble
Steve Marzullo   Piano,Synthesizer
Alec Chiasson   French Horn
Nicole Zarry   Violin
Blair Lawhead   Violin
James Wallenberg   Violin
Lovena Fox   Ensemble
Margaret Magill   Violin
Sandy Barter   Trumpet,Flugelhorn
Pattee Cohen   Harp
Gregory Utzig   Banjo,Guitar,Mandolin
Bruce Doctor   Percussion
Clare Scholtz   Oboe,Horn (English)
Todd Reynolds   Violin
Heinz Boshard   Viola
Lesa Terry   Violin
Brian Miller   Flute,Piccolo

Technical Credits

James P. Nichols   Engineer
Audra McDonald   Cast,Performer
Lynn Ahrens   Composer
Brian Mitchell   Performer
Wayne Wolfe   Publicity
David Mucci   Cast
Marty Bell   Liner Notes,Creative Coordinator
Lea Michele   Cast
Anne L. Nathan   Cast
Karyn Joaquino   Production Coordination
Nick Rose   Performer
Bill Rosenfield   A&R
James Nichols   Engineer
William David Brohn   Orchestration
Michael Cooper   Photography
Moe Koffman   Orchestration
Greg Thompson   Assistant Engineer
Marin Mazzie   Cast,Performer
Stephen Flaherty   Composer,Vocal Arrangement
Brian Stokes Mitchell   Cast
Daniel D. Brambilla   Coordination,Production Coordination
David Krane   Arranger
Rod Campbell   Cast
Scott Albert Johnson   Art Direction
Michelle Ryang   A&R
John Glaudini   Music Assistant
Brett Sommers   Synthesizer Programming
Mike O'Carroll   Cast
Larry Daggett   Cast
Peter Friedman   Cast
Ken Hahn   Mixing,Editing
Susan Follari   Contractor
Terrence McNally   Book
Gordon Stanley   Cast
Regina Elliott   Assistant Producer,Production Coordination
Keith Lamelle Thomas   Cast
Bruce Winant   Cast
Jim Corti   Cast,Performer
Bill Hermans   Assistant Engineer
John Monaco   Music Coordinator
Kevin Bogue   Cast
Jason Groucott   Assistant Engineer
Jill Krementz   Photography
Ken Kahn   Mixing,Editing
Norman Zagier   Project Supervisor,Editorial Supervision
Alex Strange   Cast
Emily King   Preparation
Paul Holderbaum   Copyist
Garth H. Drabinsky   Executive Producer
Holly Carroll   Music Preparation Supervisor
Scott Thornley   Design
Jeffrey Huard   Music Supervisor
Catherine Ashmore   Photography
Lynnette Perry   Cast,Performer
Jay David Saks   Producer
Marie Bryant   Publicity
Mark Jacoby   Cast,Performer
Judy Kaye   Cast
Steven Sutcliffe   Cast