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 Man I Love
Elliot Goldenthal Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The man I love
And he'll be big and strong
The man I love
And when he comes my way
I'll do my best to make him stay
He'll look at me and smile
Then in a little while
He'll take my hand
And though it seems absurd
I know we both won't say a word
Maybe I shall meet him Sunday
Maybe Monday, maybe not
Still I'm sure to meet him one day
Maybe Tuesday will be my good news day
He'll build a little home
That's meant for two
From which I'll never roam
Who would, would you
And so all else above
I'm dreaming of the man I love
The song "The Man I Love" by Elliot Goldenthal is a ballad that speaks of the singer's dreams of meeting the perfect man for her someday. She envisions him as someone who is big and strong, and she promises to do her best to make him stay once he arrives in her life. When they finally meet, she knows that there will be no need for words between them, as their mutual understanding will be evident in each other's eyes.
The singer also imagines the day when she will meet him, unsure of when that day will be - perhaps on a Sunday, Monday or even Tuesday. When they do meet, he will build a home for them, a place they can call their own and be together forever. The woman is in complete awe of this man and can't help but dream about him all the time, hoping that one day her dream will come true.
Overall, "The Man I Love" is a romantic and hopeful song that speaks to the longing that many people feel for someone special to come into their lives. The lyrics convey a sense of anticipation and excitement, as well as a deep sense of love and devotion that the singer feels towards the man of her dreams.
Line by Line Meaning
Someday he'll come along
The hope that someday a man will come into the singer's life.
The man I love
Emphasis on the specific man the singer loves.
And he'll be big and strong
The ideal physical qualities the singer desires in a partner.
And when he comes my way
Anticipation for when the man enters the artist's life.
I'll do my best to make him stay
Desire to keep the man in the artist's life by being the best partner possible.
He'll look at me and smile
The singer imagines the eyes and facial expression of her ideal man.
I'll understand
That the man's smile conveys his emotions and intentions.
Then in a little while
Anticipation for the physical closeness of the man and speaker.
He'll take my hand
Physical act of intimacy and connection between the man and speaker.
And though it seems absurd
Acknowledgement that the relationship may seem unconventional or implausible.
I know we both won't say a word
Nonverbal communication between the man and speaker is enough to convey meaning and emotion.
Maybe I shall meet him Sunday
Hope that the man will arrive in the artist's life soon.
Maybe Monday, maybe not
Uncertainty on when the man will enter the singer's life.
Still I'm sure to meet him one day
Confident that the man will eventually arrive in the singer's life.
Maybe Tuesday will be my good news day
Further hope that the waiting and searching will soon come to an end.
He'll build a little home
Desire for a stable and permanent home with the man.
That's meant for two
Emphasis on the intimacy and exclusivity of the relationship.
From which I'll never roam
Contentment with staying with the man in the home they have built together.
Who would, would you
Rhetorical question directed at the man, implying that he would also not roam from the relationship.
And so all else above
Emphasis on the importance of the man in the artist's life.
I'm dreaming of the man I love
The entire song is a dream or fantasy about the perfect man the artist loves.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: GEORGE GERSHWIN, IRA GERSHWIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind