Robert Russell Bennett (June 15, 1894 – August 18, 1981) was an American composer and conductor, widely recognized as the foremost Broadway orchestrator of the 20th century. Over a career spanning five decades, he shaped the distinct sonic landscape of the American musical theater. He scored roughly 300 Broadway productions from the 1920s to the 1970s, translating the piano melodies of legendary theater composers into full orchestral masterpieces.
Though his commercial success lay on Broadway, Bennett was a classically trained artist who studied composition in Paris under the legendary Nadia Boulanger. He maintained a lifelong passion for writing serious concert music, producing seven symphonies, an opera, concertos, and chamber music. Today, his original wind band compositions, such as the Suite of Old American Dances (1949) and Symphonic Songs for Band (1957), remain staple masterpieces in the wind literature repertoire.
You can hear Foley Schuler's musical selections—and stories behind the music—every weekday afternoon on Blue Lake Public Radio.
