Introduction
Harold Arlen is considered to be one of the best composers of American popular song of the twentieth century. This Jewish American musician created many famous melodies that belong to jazz, blues, Broadway, and Hollywood traditions. Born in Buffalo, New York, as Hyman Arluck, he showed a talent for composing melodies that were both professional and emotional. Arlen became famous after participating in the creation of the film The Wizard of Oz, but this composer had other significant achievements.
Life and work in Buffalo
Since Arlen was brought up in a family of musicians, there was a lot of music around him. Moreover, Arlen's father was a cantor, thus Arlen heard the religious melodies from an early age. He fell in love with different kinds of American entertainment, such as jazz and dance music. Having learned to play the piano, Arlen decided to work as a professional musician. Arlen prepared himself to work in Tin Pan Alley, where very talented and skillful songwriters worked, thus he moved to New York City.
Working and performing in New York City
Having changed his name from Hyman Arluck to Harold Arlen, he started performing and composing. Arlen was one of many Tin Pan Alley songwriters of this period, but there was something special about Arlen – he could combine catchy forms, some blues coloring, and original melodic turns. Arlen's songs sounded very familiar, but there were some elements that could make performances of these melodies interesting for singers and arrangers.
Collaborations with Ted Koehler and Cotton Club
Collaborating with the lyricist Ted Koehler, Arlen created many famous songs for the Cotton Club and other Harlem-oriented shows. These melodies combined the qualities of the club song and the show tune, since Arlen could combine music that was supposed to be played in nightclubs with music that was supposed to be performed on the stage. Songs "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea" (1931), "I've Got the World on a String" (1932), and "Stormy Weather" (1933) proved Arlen's ability to create melodies that could change rather quickly from very self-confident to very sad and melancholic.
Besides, these songs were not created to be performed only on the stage; Arlen's melodies had mood, character, and plot that could survive even after the show disappeared. Thus, Arlen's contribution to popular American songs became even greater. "Get Happy" is one more famous song by this composer that can be successfully performed with various kinds of interpretations.
Arlen's best songs of the early 1930s were created within the framework of the American popular song tradition, but there was rather high musical level that would make them famous not only in their times, but in the following decades as well.
Hollywood and the standard tunes
Nevertheless, Harold Arlen became especially famous after participating in the creation of the film The Wizard of Oz. Together with the lyricist Yip Harburg, he composed "Over the Rainbow". This melody became an integral part of Judy Garland's performance in this movie, so this tune is considered to be one of the best contributions of Harold Arlen to American song tradition. This song received the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1940 and proved Arlen's ability to compose music not only for the stage, but for movies as well.
In the 1940s and 1950s Arlen created many famous melodies, including "Blues in the Night" (1941), "That Old Black Magic" (1942), "One for My Baby (and One More for the Road)" (1943), "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive" (1944), "Come Rain or Come Shine" (1946).
All these melodies have rather various characters – some of them are funny and carefree, some are rather romantic, and some of them have a late-night mood. Arlen succeeded in creating melodies that were suitable for singers who performed different styles, since his melodies were suitable for jazz and pop singers such as Billie Holiday, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and Nat King Cole.
Besides, Arlen continued his creative work in the area of theater and films even after the 1940s. Arlen created the music for the Broadway musical St. Louis Woman in 1946 and collaborated with Ira Gershwin on The Man That Got Away for the film A Star Is Born in 1954.
All Arlen's songs usually have a rather big dramatic scope, which suits vocal performance and orchestral arrangements equally well. Arlen's songs have such a feature that invites interpretation, but does not command it.
Harold Arlen and his songs
Harold Arlen died in 1986, but his works are still very popular nowadays, since his songs became an integral part of American song tradition. Harold Arlen was not only a creator of well-remembered hooks, but he was also the composer who knew how to make an effect with his melodies by means of a combination of melody, harmony, and mood. Harold Arlen's songs can be used in jazz clubs, concert halls, cabarets and even for film soundtracks because of their great adaptability.