I hope you are already familiar with the story. I cheating salesman goes from town to town in the Midwest selling things people don't need. So he creates a need. In this town, River City, he is selling them on the need to form a boys' band. His plan is going fine until he starts to fall in love with the librarian in town (Marian).
I've know this musical and its music since the 1962 movie came out (where I got in for free by playing 76 Trombones in front of the theater -- my first professional gig). But it was only recently that I realized some of the clever techniques Merideth Wilson used in the score. My favorite is that there are three pairs of songs that are first heard alone and then later in the show the pair is performed together.
The older movie is fun because of the fine main actors/singers, but it also marked an early appearance in a movie by Ronny (Ron) Howard. And the newer movie features some wonderful singing by Kristen Chenoweth.
A couple points of trivia from the old movie (courtesy of Internet Movie Database, imdb.com):
- The marching bands of the University of California and the University of Southern California were drafted in for the final parade scene.
- All the musical instruments in the film were made specially by the Olds Instrument Company in Fullerton, California. After filming, Olds refurbished them and sold them on.
- Before starring in the musical The Music Man (1962), Robert Preston had not only never appeared in a musical before, he had never sung a note before (listen to him sing this show sometime and see if you can believe that!).
There are also some links below to purchase either movie or the movie and Broadway soundtracks. In the soundtracks, Robert Preston sings the Hill role, but Shirley Jones (Mama Partridge to younger folks, or the lead lady in Oklahoma for older folks) plays Marion, while the Broadway show featured Barbara Cook.
Original Music Man Movie on DVD, featuring Robert Preston, Shirley Jones, Ronny Howard
New Music Man DVD, featuring Matthew Broderick, Kristen Chenoweth
Original Soundtrack (Movie), featuring Robert Preston, Shirley Jones
Original Soundtrack (Broadway), featuring Robert Preston, Barbara Cook