Goldenthal was born on May 2, 1954, the youngest son of a Jewish housepainter father and a Catholic seamstress mother in Brooklyn, New York City, where he was influenced from an early age by music from all cultures and genres. Both pairs of Goldenthal's grandparents emigrated to the United States from Bucharest and Iași, Romania. Goldenthal lived in a multi-cultural part of town, and this is reflected in his works. He attended John Dewey High School in Brooklyn where, at the age of 14, he had his very first ballet Variations on Early Glimpses performed; he continued to display his eclectic musical range, performing with rock bands in the seventies. He then studied music full-time at the prestigious Manhattan School of Music, where he studied with composer John Corigliano (whom he greatly admired), to earn his Bachelor of Music degree (1977) and Master of Music degree (1979) in musical composition.
Goldenthal has written works for concert hall, theater, dance and film. His work includes music for films such as Alien 3, Michael Collins, Batman Forever, Heat and the Academy Award-winning score for Julie Taymor's Frida, a movie in which Goldenthal had a small acting part as a "Newsreel Reporter". Incidentally he also had a small part in the stage show Juan Darièn as a "Circus Barker / Streetsinger".
The Tony-Award-winning Juan Darién: A Carnival Mass (1988/'96) and The Green Bird (1999), based on a story by Carlo Gozzi, are a two of the composer's theatre works. In 2006, Goldenthal completed his original three-act opera with Taymor entitled Grendel an adaptation of the John Gardner novel of the same name which told the story of Beowulf from the monster Grendel's point of view. It had its world premiere in early June 2006 at the Los Angeles Opera, the role of Grendel performed by Eric Owens, with an audience that included John Williams and Emmy Rossum; the opus was added to the Los Angeles Opera's permanent repertoire and earned Goldenthal a nomination in April 2007 for the Pulitzer Prize for Music. In 2008 Goldenthal reunited with Michael Mann to score 1930s gangster movie Public Enemies and in 2009 he scored another Julie Taymor Shakespeare adaptation, The Tempest. He cites Japanese composer Tōru Takemitsu as an influence and someone he styles his own career on; Goldenthal has said that the lines between traditional concert music and orchestral film score have become more blurred which is the way he thinks it should be. He has also collaborated four times with Irish director Neil Jordan, including on his films Interview with the Vampire and In Dreams.
Elliot Goldenthal has been called the "thinking man's composer" by film-music collectors and a generally more cerebral choice for film makers and lovers of film music. He is known for his experimentation, nuances and willingness to try unconventional techniques. He has scored films in almost every genre from horror to action to Shakespeare adaptations. He has not yet scored comedy, but he has composed comedic motifs for several films such as Demolition Man and the Batman series. His eclectic output has gained him a great deal of respect in the music and film communities and with fans. He is widely appreciated for his musical abilities and distinctive style, although some find his work to be too experimental or inaccessible. His action music is brutal and atonal. Sometimes, in underscore, he uses very fast French horn passages with bending tones and whining. Goldenthal has said that he doesn't "hear" atonal and tonal, rather, "I either hear melody or I hear sonority".
The Ball Game
Elliot Goldenthal Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Bein' played each day
Life is a ball game
Everybody can play
Yes you know, Jesus standing at the home plate
He is waiting for you there
You know, the life is a ball game
The first phase is temptation
You know the second phase is sin
The third phase tribulation
If you pass, you can make it in
Old man Solomon is the umpire
And Satan pitchin' a game
He'll do his best, strike you out
He playin' just the same
You know, Daniel's up to bat first
You know, he pray three times a day
Yes Satan pitched him a fast ball
But he hit it anyway
Yes you know, Job is up to bat next
Satan's struck him in every way
But Job hit a home run
And he came on in that day
Yes you know, prayer is a strong bat
To hit at Satan's ball
And when you start to swing it
You got to give it your all and all
Yes you know, the priest gonna be your catcher
And on him you can depend
Oh Jesus standing at the home plate
And He is waiting for you to come in
Yes you know, Moses is on the sidelines
Waiting to be called
You know, the day he parted the Red Sea
Little price all and all
Then John came in the ninth inning
And the game was almost done
Then God gave John a vision
And he knew we'd already won
Yes you know life is a ball game
Being played each day
You know life is a ball game
Each and everybody can play
Yes you know, Jesus is standing at the home plate
He is waiting for you there
Well you know, life is a ball game
But you've got to play it fast
In "The Ball Game," Elliot Goldenthal describes life as a metaphorical ball game, with Jesus as the umpire and players facing temptation, sin, and tribulation. The song encourages listeners to play the game with all their might, relying on prayer as a powerful tool to combat Satan's fast balls. Goldenthal references biblical figures such as Daniel, Job, Moses, and John as players in the game, each facing their own challenges and overcoming them with faith and determination.
The lyrics themselves are deeply symbolic and offer an interpretation of the struggles and triumphs of life through the lens of a baseball game. The first phase of temptation and the second phase of sin are represented as strikes, while tribulation is the third phase the player must endure in order to make it to home base. The role of prayer is highlighted as a strong bat to hit Satan's balls, with Jesus waiting at the home plate to welcome the player home.
Line by Line Meaning
Life is a ball game
Life is like a game played every day
Bein' played each day
Being played every day
Life is a ball game
Life is like a game played every day
Everybody can play
Anyone can participate
Yes you know, Jesus standing at the home plate
Jesus is at the home plate
He is waiting for you there
Waiting for you to join the game
You know, the life is a ball game
Life is like a game played every day
But you've got to play it fast
You have to act quickly
The first phase is temptation
The first challenge is temptation
You know the second phase is sin
The second challenge is sin
The third phase tribulation
The final challenge is tribulation
If you pass, you can make it in
Overcoming these challenges can lead to success
Old man Solomon is the umpire
Solomon is the umpire
And Satan pitchin' a game
Satan is pitching the game
He'll do his best, strike you out
Satan will try his best to defeat you
He playin' just the same
Playing by the rules
You know, Daniel's up to bat first
Daniel is up to bat
You know, he pray three times a day
Daniel prays three times a day
Yes Satan pitched him a fast ball
Satan throws a fast pitch at him
But he hit it anyway
Daniel hits the pitch anyway
Yes you know, Job is up to bat next
Job is up to bat next
Satan's struck him in every way
Satan has tried to defeat Job in every way
But Job hit a home run
Job hits a home run
And he came on in that day
Job scored a point
Yes you know, prayer is a strong bat
Prayer is a powerful tool
To hit at Satan's ball
To strike against Satan's challenges
And when you start to swing it
When you start using it
You got to give it your all and all
You need to put in all your effort
Yes you know, the priest gonna be your catcher
The priest will be the catcher
And on him you can depend
You can rely on him
Oh Jesus standing at the home plate
Jesus is at the home plate
And He is waiting for you to come in
Jesus is waiting for you to succeed
Yes you know, Moses is on the sidelines
Moses is on the sidelines
Waiting to be called
Waiting for his turn
You know, the day he parted the Red Sea
The day he parted the Red Sea
Little price all and all
A small price to pay
Then John came in the ninth inning
John enters the game in the ninth inning
And the game was almost done
The game is almost over
Then God gave John a vision
God gives John a vision
And he knew we'd already won
John knows that they have already won
Yes you know life is a ball game
Life is like a game played every day
Being played each day
Being played every day
You know life is a ball game
Life is like a game played every day
Each and everybody can play
Anyone can participate
Well you know, life is a ball game
Life is like a game played every day
But you've got to play it fast
You have to act quickly
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: WYNONA CARR
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Nohea David
SING IT SISER! GLORY HALLELUJAH! I'LL BE SINGING WITH YOU IN HEAVEN AT THE THRONE OF OUR KING JESUS CHRIST!
Annie R Carney
I want this song played at my funeral. I love baseball and I hope to be a forever ball player. I believe baseball is GOD favourite game on earth.
Christie Love
2020 & still Love this song until Forever. Amen 🙏💞
Rodney Harper
It's that type of music that sustained us during hard times
Tegan Who
Love this ❤️
Chelsea Lewis
Life is a ball game
Bein' played each day
Life is a ball game
Everybody can play
Yes you know, Jesus standing at the home plate
He is waiting for you there
You know, the life is a ball game
But you've got to play it fast
The first phase is temptation
You know the second phase is sin
The third phase tribulation
If you pass, you can make it in
Old man Solomon is the umpire
And Satan pitchin' a game
He'll do his best, strike you out
He playin' just the same
You know, Daniel's up to bat first
You know, he pray three times a day
Yes Satan pitched him a fast ball
But he hit it anyway
Yes you know, Job is up to bat next
Satan's struck him in every way
But Job hit a home run
And he came on in that day
Yes you know, prayer is a strong bat
To hit at Satan's ball
And when you start to swing it
You got to give it your all and all
Yes you know, the priest gonna be your catcher
And on him you can depend
Oh Jesus standing at the home plate
And He is waiting for you to come in
Yes you know, Moses is on the sidelines
Waiting to be called
You know, the day he parted the Red Sea
Little price all and all
Then John came in the ninth inning
And the game was almost done
Then God gave John a vision
And he knew we'd already won
Yes you know life is a ball game
Being played each day
You know life is a ball game
Each and everybody can play
Yes you know, Jesus is standing at the home plate
He is waiting for you there
Well you know, life is a ball game
But you've got to play it fair
Clementine Camberlen
A real truth in this song. Life is a ball game! Song by Wynona Carr !!!
francescaemc2
grazie
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