Frances Ziffer Explained

Frances Ziffer (June 5, 1917 – November 7, 1996) was an American composer, conductor, and pianist. She attended the Peabody Institute and studied with Carl Friedberg and David Saperton. She was a music director for theater groups and wrote lyrics or composed music for at least six musicals, as well as for numerous songs.^[1] Ziffer married Joseph Burgio but published her works under the name "Ziffer," sometimes collaborating with Hortense Belson.^[2]

Her compositions include:

Musicals

• A Streetcar Named Desire (play by Tennessee Williams; music by Frances Ziffer)^[3]
• Dakota (book by Tom Hill; music and lyrics by Hortense Belson, Hardy Wieder, Frances Ziffer)^[4]
• Dames at Sea^[5]
• Little Brown Jug (book by Tom Hill; lyrics by Hortense Belson; music by Frances Ziffer)^[6]
• Surprise Package (book by Tom Hill; music and lyrics by Hortense Belson, Hardy Wieder and Frances Ziffer)
• Three on a Bed: A Musical Satire (words by Hortense Belson and Thomas Hill; music by Frances Ziffer)^[7]

Songs

Source:^[8]

• "Faith Alone" (with Martin Kalmanoff and Hardy Wieder)
• "He Don't Wanna Love Me" (with Martin Kalmanoff and Hardy Wieder)
• "I Didn't Hear From You" (words by Eugene Cohen; music by Frances Ziffer)
• "If and When it Happens" (words by Eugene Cohen; music by Frances Ziffer)
• "I'll Know Better Next Time"
• "I'm Only Waiting" (words by Hardy Wieder; music by Frances Ziffer)
• "In My Wildest Dreams"
• "Just Passing By"
• "Love is Always New" (words by Hardy Wieder; music by Frances Ziffer)
• "No Ifs, Ands or Buts"
• "One Foot to Sea" (with Martin Kalmanoff and Hardy Wieder)
• "Pretty, Pretty Please" (words by Eugene Cohen; music by Frances Ziffer)^[9]
• "Reward, Reward"
• "Running Through My Mind"
• "Say When" (with Martin Kalmanoff and Hardy Wieder)
• "The Pleasure's All Mine"
• "There's Only One You"
• "Which Way is the Way to Your Heart"

Notes and References

1. Book: Claghorn, Charles Eugene, 1911-2005.. Women composers and songwriters : a concise biographical dictionary. 1996. Scarecrow Press. 0-585-03162-2. Lanham, Md.. 42329817.
2. Web site: Ancestry.com. www.ancestryheritagequest.com. https://web.archive.org/web/20200610203825/https://www.ancestryheritagequest.com/error/HqaAuthPrompt. 2020-06-10. 2020-05-26. dead.
3. Book: The New York Times Theater Reviews. 1972. New York Times & Arno Press. en.
4. Book: Beckhard, Richard. Blueprint for Summer Theatre: 1952 supplement. 1952. John Richard Press. en.
5. Book: Salem, James M.. A Guide to Critical Reviews. 1971. Scarecrow Press. 978-0-8108-1690-9. en.
6. Web site: Performing Arts collection. oac.cdlib.org. 2020-05-26.
7. Web site: Wagner College Search. Wagner College. en-US. 2020-05-26.
8. Book: Office, Library of Congress Copyright. Catalog of Copyright Entries: Third series. 1954. en.
9. Book: Office, Library of Congress Copyright. Catalog of Copyright Entries: Third series. 1956. en.