Harvey Schmidt

Background

Schmidt was born in Dallas, Texas.

Education

He attended the University of Texas to study art, but when he met Tom Jones at the University he started to accompany the drama student on the piano.

Career

He is best known for composing the music for the longest running musical in history, The Fantasticks, which ran off-Broadway for 42 years from 1960 - 2002. They soon started writing musicals together, the first being a revue. However, after serving in the Army, Schmidt moved to New York and worked as a graphic artist for National Broadcasting Company Television and later as an illustrator for Life, Harper"s Bazaar, Sports Illustrated, and Fortune.

All of Schmidt"s major musicals were written with lyricist Tom Jones.

The work the duo is known for is the musical The Fantasticks which ran off-Broadway from 1960 - 2002 for a total of 17,162 performances. He also collaborated on the 1995 feature film adaptation. followed in 1966, which brought Mary Martin and Robert Preston to the Broadway stage in a 2-person musical and ran for 560 performances.

They both appeared in a revue of their songs, The Show Goes On, at the York Company in 1997. The run was extended several times and the show was recorded on the DRG label.

Schmidt was inducted into the American Hall of Fame.

His recording, Harvey Schmidt plays Jones and Schmidt was released in 2005. Schmidt and Jones wrote a musical of Thornton Wilder"s Our Town and it took them thirteen years to write, only to have the rights pulled by Wilder"s nephew. Schmidt and Jones were both inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in July 2012.

Achievements

• In 1992 he received the Tony Award, Tony Honor for "The Fantasticks," then in its 33rd year. The team followed with the Broadway musical 110 in the Shade in 1963, which ran for 330 performances on Broadway and earned a Tony Award nomination for Best Composer and Lyricist for Schmidt and Jones. Jones and Schmidt were nominated for the Tony Award for Best Composer and Lyricist and Best Musical.

Works

More photos

• book

  • The Fantasticks Vocal Selections

    (THE FANTASTICKS Vocal Selections Publisher: CHAPPELL Cond...)

  • Fantasticks: (Vocal Score)

    (The Fantasticks Original Vocal Score Harvey Schmidt/Tom J...)

  • Soon It's Gonna Rain ~ From the Musical "The Fantasticks" (Words/Piano/Chords)

    (Vocal edition with complete piano score and chord symbols...)

  • The Fantasticks

    (Book and lyrics not the music for the long-long-long-long...)

  • "The Fantasticks" Vocal Selection

    (songbook with The Fantasticks songs; 7 selections;)

  • The Fantasticks. Vocal Selection. Words

    (Vocal Selections from The Fantasticks)

  • The Fantasticks

    ((Applause Libretto Library). "Richly illustrated, it is i...)

  • The Fantasticks
  • (The Fantasticks (Complete Vocal Score): Piano/Vocal) Author: Harvey Schmidt published on (June, 2010)
  • (The Fantasticks ) Author: Harvey Schmidt Jan-2011
  • (The Fantasticks & Celebration: Double Bill Series) Author: Harvey Schmidt published on (November, 2003)
  • (The "Fantasticks" ) Author: Harvey Schmidt Feb-2000
  • VOCAL SELECTIONS FROM THE FANTASTICKS. LORE NOTO PRESENTS: THE FANTASTICKS