Tony Award / Best Original Music
With the Tony Award for Best Original Music (Tony Award for Best Original Score) are composer and lyricist of musicals honored. The English term score (in the narrower sense of the score , in the broader sense of the word music in general) refers to the purely tonal work as well as to the lyrics.
Only works that have been specially written for music theater can be nominated. Music that was not written for the stage, as well as compilations of pieces of music that were previously used in a different form, are therefore excluded from the nomination.
This category has changed slightly over time. In the years 1947, 1950, 1951 and 1962 only the composer was awarded. In all other years, composer and songwriter were honored together (only in 1971 was a separate award given to the artist).
The Tony Award for the best original music so far went to:
1947-1949
- 1947 Street Scene by Kurt Weill (music)
- 1949 Kiss Me, Kate by Cole Porter (music and lyrics)
1950-1959
- 1950: South Pacific by Richard Rodgers (music)
- 1951: Call Me Madam by Irving Berlin (music)
- 1952: No award given
- 1953: No award was given
- 1954: No award given
- 1955: No award given
- 1956: No award given
- 1957: No award given
- 1958: No award given
- 1959: No award given
1960-1969
- 1960: No award given
- 1961: No award given
- 1962: No Strings by Richard Rodgers (music and lyrics)
- 1963: Oliver! by Lionel Bart (music and lyrics)
- 1964: Hello, Dolly! by Jerry Herman (music and lyrics)
- 1965: Anatevka by Jerry Bock (music) and Sheldon Harnick (lyrics)
- 1966: The Man of La Mancha by Mitch Leigh (music) and Joe Darion (lyrics)
- 1967: Cabaret by John Kander (music) and Fred Ebb (lyrics)
- 1968: Hallelujah, baby! by Jule Styne (music), Betty Comden (lyrics) and Adolph Green (lyrics)
- 1969: No award given
1970-1979
- 1970: No award given
- 1971: Company of Stephen Sondheim (music and lyrics)
- 1972: Follies by Stephen Sondheim (music and lyrics)
- 1973: A Little Night Music by Stephen Sondheim (music and lyrics)
- 1974: Gigi von Frederick Loewe (music) and Alan Jay Lerner (lyrics)
- 1975: The Wiz by Charlie Smalls (music and lyrics)
- 1976: A Chorus Line by Marvin Hamlisch (music) and Edward Kleban (lyrics)
- 1977: Annie by Charles Strouse (music) and Martin Charnin (lyrics)
- 1978: On The Twentieth Century by Cy Coleman (music), Betty Comden (lyrics) and Adolph Green (lyrics)
- 1979: Sweeney Todd by Stephen Sondheim (music and lyrics)
1980-1989
- 1980: Evita by Andrew Lloyd Webber (music) and Tim Rice (lyrics)
- 1981: Woman of the Year by John Kander (music) and Fred Ebb (lyrics)
- 1982: Nine by Maury Yeston (music and lyrics)
- 1983: Cats by Andrew Lloyd Webber (music) and TS Eliot (lyrics)
- 1984: La Cage aux Folles by Jerry Herman (music and lyrics)
- 1985: Big River by Roger Miller (music and lyrics)
- 1986: The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Rupert Holmes (music and lyrics)
- 1987: Les Misérables by Claude-Michel Schönberg (music) and Herbert Kretzmer (lyrics)
- 1988: Into the Woods by Stephen Sondheim (music and lyrics)
- 1989: No award given
1990-1999
- 1990: City of Angels by Cy Coleman (music) and David Zippel (lyrics)
- 1991: The Will Rogers Follies by Cy Coleman (music), Betty Comden (lyrics) and Adolph Green (lyrics)
- 1992: Falsettos by William Finn (music and lyrics)
- 1993: Kiss the Spider Woman by John Kander (music) and Fred Ebb (lyrics) and Tommy by Pete Townshend (music and lyrics)
- 1994: Passion by Stephen Sondheim (music and lyrics)
- 1995: Sunset Boulevard by Andrew Lloyd Webber (music), Don Black (lyrics) and Christopher Hampton (lyrics)
- 1996: Rent by Jonathan Larson (music and lyrics)
- 1997: Titanic by Maury Yeston (music and lyrics)
- 1998: Ragtime by Stephen Flaherty (music) and Lynn Ahrens (lyrics)
- 1999: Parade of Jason Robert Brown (music and lyrics)
Since 2000
- 2000: Aida by Elton John (music) and Tim Rice (lyrics)
- 2001: The Producers of Mel Brooks (music and lyrics)
- 2002: Pinkelstadt by Mark Hollman (music and lyrics) and Greg Kotis (lyrics)
- 2003: Hairspray by Marc Shaiman (music and lyrics) and Scott Wittman (lyrics)
- 2004: Avenue Q by Robert Lopez (music and lyrics) and Jeff Marx (music and lyrics)
- 2005: The Light in the Piazza by Adam Guettel (music and lyrics)
- 2006: The Drowsy Chaperone by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison (music and lyrics)
- 2007: Spring Awaking by Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater (music and lyrics)
- 2008: In The Heights by Lin-Manuel Miranda (music and lyrics)
- 2009: Next to Normal by Tom Kitt (music) and Brian Yorkey (lyrics)
Since 2010
- 2010: Memphis by David Bryan (music and lyrics) and Joe DiPietro (lyrics)
- 2011: The Book of Mormon by Trey Parker , Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone
- 2012: Newsies by Alan Menken (music) and Jack Feldman (lyrics)
- 2013: Kinky Boots by Cyndi Lauper
- 2014: The Bridges of Madison County by Jason Robert Brown
- 2015: Fun Home by Jeanine Tesori (music) and Lisa Kron (lyrics)
- 2016: Hamilton by Lin-Manuel Miranda (music and lyrics)