Songs
Notes on Methodology
Year
For completed shows or projects, the year listed is when the work was produced. For abandoned or unproduced projects, the year is when the project stopped moving forward. Unused and miscellaneous songs are listed as the year they were written (to the best as is known).
Medium
The medium is the intended type of production for which the song was written. For any type of medium, the project could be a musical, a work with songs, scoring, or an isolated song contribution. Note that songs written for movie adaptations of stage shows are categorized under "Movie".
Role
Central: Sondheim was a major part of the creative team for the project as a whole
Contributor: commissioned to write music and/or lyrics for a project without being brought on as a central player in the project itself
Project Status
Abandoned: development stopped after one or more songs were written but before a full draft of the work was completed
Unproduced: sufficient progress was made to constitute a full version, but the work did not proceed to production for whatever reason
Produced: completed, whether or not the songs written for them were included
Song Status
Standard: written for the original production of a stage musical for which Sondheim was a Central figure
Addition -> Standard: added to a stage musical after the original production, and which have since become standard in the show
Addition -> Removed: added to a specific production of a show but were not incorporated into the show on an ongoing basis
Cut: written for a project but removed before the work was either completed or abandoned
Used: written as a Contributor and utilized in the project, or written as a Central figure and used in a non-theatrical project
Unused: written as a Contributor for a project or performer but ultimately not chosen to be used
Unproduced: written for a project that was either Abandoned or Unproduced, but was not cut prior to the end of working on the project
Included: written for a School Theatre show and included in the final version, whether produced or not
Other: written as a stand-alone song that is not part of a larger work
Recordings (Non-Standard)
For the songs that might be less well-known to many, up to three sources of where to listen to a song are provided. Standard and Addition -> Standard songs are readily available on cast and concert recordings, and therefore do not have recordings listed here. Songs marked "n/a" do not have any known recordings that are available for public consumption.