Kenneth Ascher


Kenneth Lee Ascher is an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger who is active in jazz, rock, classical, and musical theater genres — in live venues, recording studios, and cinema production. With Paul Williams, he wrote the song "Rainbow Connection" for The Muppet Movie. Both Williams and Ascher received Oscar nominations for the 1979 Academy Awards for Best Original Song and Best Original Score. The song was also nominated for the Golden Globes for "Best Original Song" that same year. Ascher and Williams also wrote "You and Me Against the World", a top-10 hit for Helen Reddy in 1974.

His work

In 1966, Ascher joined the Woody Herman Orchestra as arranger and pianist. Herman hired Ascher — on the advice of Frank Foster — to replace the departing Nat Pierce. Ascher has been a member of ASCAP since 1968.
He played piano on "Baby Now That I've Found You" recorded by Dan Schafer on Tortoise International Records, an RCA Records subsidiary released in 1977.
Ascher's work through the years has included keyboard parts and string arrangements on John Lennon's albums Mind Games, Walls and Bridges and Rock 'n' Roll and Yoko Ono's A Story, music for several songs from Barbra Streisand's remake of A Star Is Born, and arrangements for portions of Meat Loaf's Bat Out of Hell. Ascher's own rendition of "Rainbow Connection" was featured in the closing credits of The Break-Up. Ascher is the pianist with the Birdland Big Band, which performs Fridays from 5:15 to 7 at Birdland in New York City. The Birdland Big Band performs "Rainbow Connection", arranged by Lew Anderson.

Selected compositions

  • "Three for the Show", m & arr. Ascher
  • "The White Rabbit", music & arr. Ascher
  • "Scotch Mist", music & arr. by Ascher
  • "Theme for Ken's Men", m & arr. Ascher
  • "Retrospect", words & arr. Ascher
  • "Typically April: A Revolutionary Musical", lyrics and music by Ascher
  • "Stars and Sand"
  • "Nightling"
  • "April's in my Lady's Face"
  • "Colors"
  • "Dressed Up For a Dream"
  • "These blues were made for cookin' "
  • "Who can hear the nightingale?"
  • "It seems different to me now"
  • "Lullaby"
  • "Last night's rain"
  • "Laughin' Place"
  • "Miss Fitz"
  • "Maybe another spring"
  • "Funny little girl"
  • "Concerto for Trombone and Orchestra"
  • "1968 Baltimore Colts Highlights"
  • "Music for Orchestra"
  • "Bittersweet wild child", words by Donna Lee, music by Ascher
  • "Cavettina"
  • "Silent Partners", words Donna Lee, music Ascher
  • "So I told it to the rain", words Donna Lee Levitt, music by Ascher
  • "You can't make this child cry", words Donna Lee Levitt, music by Ascher
  • "Here I Go Again", words Donna Lee, music by Ascher
  • "My memory bank's been robbed", words Donna Lee, music by Ascher
  • "Leaf in the Wind", words and music by Lon Ritchie & Ascher
  • "Omnibus", words & music by Ascher, Donna Lee & Joe Renzetti
  • "One for Jim"
  • "Another Kind of Blues"
  • "Mosaics : a piece for guitar, string quartet and woodwind quartet with accompanying aesthetic commentary and description"
  • "Inspiration", by Paul Williams, Ascher
  • "Bugaloo and Such"
  • "Play, piper, play", words Donna Lee Levitt, music Ascher
  • "Little Bit of Love", words & music by Paul Williams & Ascher
  • "Lone Star", words & music by Paul Williams & Ascher
  • "Loneliness", words & music Paul Williams & Ascher
  • "Nilsson sings Newman", by Paul Williams, Ascher
  • "Sad Song", words & music Paul Williams & Ascher
  • "Sunday", words & music Paul Williams & Ascher
  • "You Know Me", by Paul Williams, Ascher
  • "She Sings for Free", words & music by Paul Williams & Ascher
  • "You and Me Against the World", Paul Williams, Ascher
  • "Makin' the same mistakes"
  • "Isn't It Odd?"
  • "Candlelight Dreamer"
  • "Bein' a Movie Star"
  • "Coming Undone"
  • "With You", words Carole Bayer Sager, music Ascher
  • "Don't you worry child", words Carole Bayer Sager, music Ascher
  • From the 1976 film, A Star is Born
  • # "Watch Closely Now", Paul Williams, Ascher
  • # "Hellacious Acres", Paul Williams, Ascher
  • # "The Woman in the Moon", Paul Williams, Ascher
  • # "Finale: With One More Look at You/Watch Closely Now", Paul Williams, AscherRun for life, vocal music by Ascher, lyrics by Albert Lerman
  • From the 1979 film, The Muppet Movie
  • # "Rainbow Connection", words & music by Ascher and Paul Williams
  • # "Movin' Right Along", Paul Williams & Ascher
  • # "Never Before, Never Again!", - Miss Piggy, Paul Williams & Ascher
  • # "Never Before, Never Again!", - Instrumental, Paul Williams & Ascher
  • # "I Hope That Somethin' Better Comes Along!", - Kermit and Rowlf, Paul Williams & Ascher
  • # "Can You Picture That?", Paul Williams & Ascher
  • # "I Hope That Somethin' Better Comes Along!", - Instrumental
  • # "For Goodness Sake", Paul Williams, Ascher
  • # "Finale, the magic store", Paul Williams, Ascher For the Life of Me, Paul Williams, Ascher Making Friends, Waring & LaRosa; arr. Ascher Gift, Paul Williams, Ascher Little more like you, Paul Williams, Ascher Save me a dream, Paul Williams, Ascher Go AwaySong for children of all ages, words and music by AscherKenny's ballad, music by Ascher Perfect Crime, music & lyrics by Ascher & John Barranco

Selected discography

As leader
As arranger
As sideman or band member, on keyboards

Awards & award nominations

Awards
Nominations

Critically acclaimed live performances

  • Feb 1973 — Ascher played piano with Marvin Stamm at Sam's Jazz Upstairs : Bob Dougherty and Ronnie Zito on drums. Stamm said, "In 21 years of playing music, this is the best group of musicians I've ever been with." Reflecting on that statement, John Stuart Wilson, longtime jazz critic for The New York Times, said, "That might have sounded like a fatuous statement leaders often make in introducing their musicians to a jazz club audience. In this case, however, it was completely believable because Mr. Stamm's quartet is the most exciting group that has turned-up in New York for a long time."
  • May 1973 — Kenny Ascher Trio, Sundays, Jimmy Weston's, 131 E 54th St., New York City
  • Jan 13, 2009 — Mike Berkowitz and The New Gene Krupa Orchestra, Iridium
  • Dec 2000 — Michael Feinstein with a small swing band led by Kenny Ascher, the Regency, New York City
  • July 2001 — Jay Leonhart with Kenny Ascher and Michael Leonhart, July 13–21, Oak Room of the Algonquin Hotel

Jingle writing

Ascher has composed jingles for:
  1. Applause
  2. Gotcha
  3. Larry
  4. Mr. Calm
  1. The Beer
  2. Combined
  1. Brilliant Idea/ GE Brings Good Things to Life
  2. Cooking
  1. Never Underestimate
  2. Canned Chef
  3. Hockey
  4. Makes Itself
  5. Red Dress
  6. Snowman
  7. Stay Young
  8. Storm Radio - Winter
  9. Superhero
  10. Superman
  11. Tennis Anyone?
  12. Wild Ride
  1. Herman Joseph - Polo, revised arr by Kenny Ascher
  2. Herman Joseph - Tennis, comp. & arr. by Kenny Ascher
  3. Sailboat music and arr. by Kenneth Ascher
  4. Billiards, music and arr. by Kenneth Ascher
Many of Ascher's jingle compositions were produced by Sunday Productions, published by Ahoskie Music, Inc., and licensed by ASCAP.

Academic education

Ascher holds three diplomas from Columbia University:
While at Columbia, Ascher studied composition with Otto Luening, Jack Beeson, and Vladimir Ussachevsky and piano with William Albert Beller. Ascher graduated from William F. Dykes High School in Atlanta, as valedictorian, and entered Columbia College, Columbia University on a math scholarship. In 1966, while in college, the Kenny Ascher Quintet performed live in WKCR's Stone Soup at midnight.