Frank Wildhorn

From Wind Repertory Project
Frank Wildhorn

Biography

Frank Wildhorn (b. 29 November 1959, Harlem, N.Y.) is an American composer known for both his musicals and popular songs.

Wildhorn spent his childhood in Queens before moving to Hollywood, Fla., at age 14. Soon after he taught himself how to play the piano, Wildhorn realized he wanted to compose music. During high school, he played in and wrote for various bands, ranging from rock and roll to rhythm and blues to jazz. He attended Miami-Dade College for two years before transferring to the University of Southern California, where he studied history and philosophy. He started writing Jekyll & Hyde with Steve Cuden, who was working at USC when Frank was a student.

In 1999, Wildhorn became the first American composer in 22 years to have three shows running concurrently on Broadway: Jekyll and Hyde, The Scarlet Pimpernell, and The Civil War. He has also worked with a number of popular artists, including Natalie Cole, Kenny Rogers, Sammy Davis, Jr., and Patti LaBelle, among others. His song Where Do Broken Hearts Go was an international number one hit for Whitney Houston in the late 1980s.

Currently, Wildhorn is Creative Director of Atlantic Theater, a division of Atlantic Records which specializes in developing new American musical works and their potential stars while strengthening the relationship between commercial theater and the music industry.


Works for Winds


Resources