Changes: Danny Epstein

Revision as of 16:35, 29 September 2014

Danny Epstein (1925–2010) was the director of music operations for Sesame Street. He had been with the program from the first season in 1969. "At the beginning, I only came for two weeks," he said in 1986, "just to help devise a system and get it started. That was sixteen years ago." He was an associate of Joe Raposo's since 1964. ^[1]

Epstein began his career as a percussionist for Raposo's house band on Sesame Street and The Electric Company. He took the music for the show very seriously: "Music is the binder that holds it all together—wonderful moments of feelings and of the curriculum—and it's been like that since the very beginning. Music was always considered to be the attention-getting tool, the reason that the kids retained what they saw. If somebody were to recite the Gettysburg Address to you, you'd probably forget it. But if they sang it to you, you might remember!"

"The music for Sesame Street is never childish," he says. "The way everyone looks at it is that we're dealing with a very short audience." ^[2]

In 2006, Epstein served as a judge for the International Songwriting Competition. Epstein can also be seen making a cameo as a street musician in Christmas Eve on Sesame Street.

Epstein won four Emmy awards during his lifetime for outstanding musical direction. He retired in 2009 at the age of 83. Epstein passed away on August 4, 2010.

Interviews

The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Foundation interviewed Epstein in 2004 for the Archive of American Television. The hour and a half interview was posted on YouTube in 2008.

Part 1

File:Danny Epstein - Archive Interview Part 1 of 3

Part 2

File:Danny Epstein - Archive Interview Part 2 of 3

Part 3

File:Danny Epstein - Archive Interview Part 3 of 3

Sources

↑ Archive of American Television. Retrieved from YouTube.com on 3/26/08.
↑ Nancy Hughes Clark, "Behind the Scenes: Danny Epstein." Sesame Street Magazine issue 153, April 1986.

External links

Danny Epstein's Obituary in the NY Times

[1] Archive of American Television. Retrieved from YouTube.com on 3/26/08.

[2] Nancy Hughes Clark, "Behind the Scenes: Danny Epstein." Sesame Street Magazine issue 153, April 1986.

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[2]

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 [[Image:Dannyepstein.jpg|thumb|300px]]
-'''Danny Epstein''' is the Director of Music Operations for ''[[Sesame Street]]''; he's been with the program from the first season in [[1969]]. "At the beginning, I only came for two weeks," he said in [[1986]], "just to help devise a system and get it started. That was sixteen years ago." He was an associate of [[Joe Raposo]]'s since 1964.<ref>Archive of American Television. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DM83TMz6O_E on 3/26/08.</ref>
+'''Danny Epstein''' (1925–2010) was the director of music operations for ''[[Sesame Street]]''. He had been with the program from the first season in 1969. "At the beginning, I only came for two weeks," he said in 1986, "just to help devise a system and get it started. That was sixteen years ago." He was an associate of [[Joe Raposo]]'s since 1964. <ref>Archive of American Television. Retrieved from [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DM83TMz6O_E YouTube.com] on 3/26/08.</ref>
-Epstein is a percussionist himself, and has played percussion for the ''Sesame Street'' music. He takes the music for the show very seriously: "Music is the binder that holds it all together—wonderful moments of feelings and of the curriculum—and it's been like that since the very beginning. Music was always considered to be the attention-getting tool, the reason that the kids retained what they saw. If somebody were to recite the Gettysburg Address to you, you'd probably forget it. But if they sang it to you, you might remember!"
+Epstein began his career as a percussionist for Raposo's house band on ''Sesame Street'' and ''[[The Electric Company]]''. He took the music for the show very seriously: "Music is the binder that holds it all together—wonderful moments of feelings and of the curriculum—and it's been like that since the very beginning. Music was always considered to be the attention-getting tool, the reason that the kids retained what they saw. If somebody were to recite the Gettysburg Address to you, you'd probably forget it. But if they sang it to you, you might remember!"
-"The music for ''Sesame Street'' is never childish," he says. "The way everyone looks at it is that we're dealing with a very short audience."<ref>"Behind the Scenes: Danny Epstein" by Nancy Hughes Clark, ''[[Sesame Street Magazine]]'' [[:Image:Ssmag.198604.jpg|issue 153]], April 1986.</ref>
+"The music for ''Sesame Street'' is never childish," he says. "The way everyone looks at it is that we're dealing with a very short audience." <ref>Nancy Hughes Clark, "Behind the Scenes: Danny Epstein." ''[[Sesame Street Magazine]]'' [[:Image:Ssmag.198604.jpg|issue 153]], April 1986.</ref>
-Epstein played the drums in [[Joe Raposo]]'s house band, which was used for ''Sesame Street'' and ''[[The Electric Company]]''. In 2006, he served as a judge for the International Songwriting Competition. Epstein can also be seen making a [[Miscellaneous Cameos|cameo]] as a street musician in ''[[Christmas Eve on Sesame Street]]''.
+In 2006, Epstein served as a judge for the International Songwriting Competition. Epstein can also be seen making a [[Miscellaneous Cameos|cameo]] as a street musician in ''[[Christmas Eve on Sesame Street]]''.
+Epstein won four Emmy awards during his lifetime for outstanding musical direction. He retired in 2009 at the age of 83. Epstein passed away on August 4, 2010.
-==References==
+==Interviews==
+The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Foundation interviewed Epstein in 2004 for the Archive of American Television. The hour and a half interview was posted on YouTube in 2008.
+{| align=center
+|-
+| <center>Part 1</center>[[File:Danny Epstein - Archive Interview Part 1 of 3|215px|center]]
+| <center>Part 2</center>[[File:Danny Epstein - Archive Interview Part 2 of 3|215px|center]]
+| <center>Part 3</center>[[File:Danny Epstein - Archive Interview Part 3 of 3|215px|center]]
+|}
+==Sources==
 <references />
+==External links==
+*[http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/nytimes/obituary.aspx?n=danny-epstein&pid=144534899: Danny Epstein's Obituary in the NY Times]
 [[Category:Composers|Epstein, Danny]]
+[[Category:Musicians|Epstein, Danny]]