Vincent Youmans

Vincent Youmans
Background information
Birth nameVincent Millie Youmans
Born(1898-09-27)September 27, 1898
New York City, U.S.
DiedApril 5, 1946(1946-04-05) (aged 47)
Denver, Colorado, U.S.
Occupation(s)Broadway composer, Broadway producer, song publisher

Vincent Millie Youmans (September 27, 1898 – April 5, 1946) was an American Broadway composer and producer.[1]

A leading Broadway composer of his day, Youmans collaborated with virtually all the greatest lyricists on Broadway: Ira Gershwin, Otto Harbach, Oscar Hammerstein II, Irving Caesar, Anne Caldwell, Leo Robin, Howard Dietz, Clifford Grey, Billy Rose, Edward Eliscu, Edward Heyman, Harold Adamson, Buddy DeSylva and Gus Kahn.[2] Youmans' early songs are remarkable for their economy of melodic material: two-, three- or four-note phrases are constantly repeated and varied by subtle harmonic or rhythmic changes. In later years, however, he turned to longer musical sentences and more rhapsodic melodic lines.[3] Youmans published fewer than 100 songs, but 18 of these were considered standards by ASCAP,[3] a remarkably high percentage.

  1. ^ Slonimsky, Nicolas (1978). "Youmans, Vincent". Baker's Biographical dictionary of musicians (6th ed.). New York: Schirmer Books. pp. 1927–1928. ISBN 0028702409.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference SHF1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Grove was invoked but never defined (see the help page).