How the F did ONCE win best orchestrations over NICE WORK?

[morosco]

Bill Elliott's charts for NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT are delicious!

[Wynbish]

It just did. And we'll be okay.

[After Eight]

Critics' darlings and voters' darlings win many undeserved awards.

[My Oh My]

Orchestration? What's that?

[hyperbole_and_a_half]

All ****iness aside, I agree with you based on pure aesthetics, but I think those awards sometimes go to orchestrators that do more with less, or face greater restriction. The real shame in this particular scenario is that in a show like Once, the orchestrator doesn't really do all that much beyond lead sheets for all but the strings; it's typically the players who come up with figuration and coloration, and there's no award for them, or even an award for Best Contractor.

The real winner last season should've been John McD, because that man took Wildhorn's terrible score and...well, he couldn't quite make it less "terrible", but he definitely made it less "Wildhorn", and that's pretty astonishingly herculean when you think about it.

[HeyMrMusic]

I love Martin Lowe's work in Once. I also love Bill Elliott's work in Nice Work If You Can Get It. Comparing their work is like comparing apples and oranges, but what award doesn't have voters comparing apples and oranges? Martin Lowe certainly did more than create lead sheets. He created a sound for the show that was authentic to the original music while being appropriate for the theatre (not unlike Bill Elliott's job). If his orchestrations were not successful, Once would have fallen flat. Martin was also the music supervisor/director, so voters could have been awarding him as the music representative of their favorite musical (which happened to be ineligible for Best Score). There are many factors that go into this.

[After Eight]

"There are many factors that go into this."

Yes, indeed. That's the problem. There should be just one factor: merit.

[WayTooBroadway]

Tell us what you know about merit...

[After Eight]

^

I know it's not to be found in Once.

[leefowler]

I'm an arranger, and I would have voted for Once over Nice Work.

Nice Work is extremely good, but it doesn't sound any better or different than any other 20s/30s show...one could argue that the orchestrations aren't even as good as "Crazy For You", and "My One And Only", the two other Gershwin Broadway musicals.

Once, on the other hand, had to create a world of sound that had never been heard on Broadway before, and do so with musicians who were also actors in the show. I wasn't around for this process, but I'm sure it involved more than handing out lead sheets and yelling, "go!"

I agree that it's silly to compare the two...the techniques involved are completely different.

[PalJoey]

Once had a fresh and unique sound unlike any previous Broadway show. Nice Work sounded like every other Gershwin show: no better, no worse, or perhaps not as good.

But if awards are not for successful innovation, what are they for?

[morosco]

You guys make good points and make me think about the award in a different way. I thank you for that.

[Mr Roxy]

How was it nominated for Best Musical over Bonnie & Clyde?

[JohnyBroadway]

I was hoping the tony would go to Danny troob.

[leefowler]

Agreed, Danny Troob is brilliant, and that would have been an excellent choice.

[JohnyBroadway]

I thought his orchestrations for Newsies were very fresh and beautiful. A much different take than the original film's.