Randy Waldman

Randy Waldman (born September 8, 1955) is an American pianist, arranger, composer, and conductor. He has frequently collaborated with Barbra Streisand, serving as her pianist and conductor since 1984. Waldman has worked with notable artists including Frank Sinatra, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston, Beyoncé, Ray Charles, and Stevie Wonder. His 2018 album Superheroes garnered the award for Best Arrangement at the 61st Annual Grammy Awards.

Waldman is also a helicopter and airplane instructor, holding a 2003 flight speed record in a Bell OH-58 helicopter.

Early life Waldman was born in Chicago, Illinois on September 8, 1955. He was hired to demonstrate pianos at a local piano store at age 12. While in high school, he performed with the Northwestern University Jazz band.

Career At the age of 21, Waldman was hired to go on tour as the pianist for Frank Sinatra. He was then hired by The Lettermen to go on tour from Chicago to Los Angeles. After the tour, Waldman relocated to Los Angeles and, within a year, he toured with Minnie Riperton, Lou Rawls, Paul Anka, and George Benson, the last of whom kept Waldman around as his pianist, musical director, and arranger for the following seven years.

Eventually, Waldman began a session career in Los Angeles that would go on to span 40 years. He has performed on hundreds of albums, motion picture soundtracks, television shows, and jingles.

Waldman was nominated for a Grammy for Best Vocal Arrangement for "Code of Ethics" from The Manhattan Transfer 1983 album Bodies and Souls. Two years later, Waldman's co-arrangement of the West Side Story song "Somewhere", recorded by Barbra Streisand for The Broadway Album, won a Grammy. Waldman has contributed to many Streisand albums, films, and live concerts.

In the 1990s, Waldman worked on the soundtracks for numerous films including Forrest Gump, The Bodyguard, Mission: Impossible, and Titanic. John Travolta, Kenny G,

Randy Waldman has also left a significant mark on the Japanese music scene with artists such as Tetsuya Komuro, Namie Amuro, and Tomomi Kahara through his string arrangements for various prominent Japanese artists, cementing his legacy as a key figure in enriching Japan’s pop and orchestral soundscape over two decades.

Waldman released Wigged Out, his first solo album, on his own WhirlyBird Records in 1998. Featuring bassist John Pattitucci and drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, the album consisted of a collection of classical songs reworked with jazz arrangements. His second album, UnReel, was released in 2001 and featured a variety of soundtrack and theme music from many different films and television shows. He was also Barbra Streisand's pianist, music director, and conductor for her Barbra: The Music, The Mem'ries, The Magic tour. A filmed version of one of the shows was released on Netflix in November 2017. In September 2018, he released the studio album, Superheroes, with Vinnie Colaiuta on drums and Carlitos Del Puerto on bass. The album also featured guest appearances from artists like Chick Corea, Wynton Marsalis, George Benson, Take 6, Chris Potter, and several others. Waldman's arrangement of the album's "Spiderman Theme" would go on to win the Grammy Award for Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals at the 61st Grammy Awards in 2019. His arrangement of the "Batman Theme" was also nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella.

Selected discography Studio albums + List of studio albums with selected album details Title Details Wigged Out Released: 1998 (US) Label: WhirlyBird/Concord Jazz Formats: CD, Vinyl UnReel Released: 2001 (US) Label: WhirlyBird/Concord Jazz Formats: CD, Vinyl Timing is Everything Released: 2003 (US) Label: WhirlyBird/Concord Jazz Formats: CD, Vinyl Superheroes Released: September 28, 2018 (US) Label: BFM Jazz Formats: CD, Vinyl

Songwriting, instrumental, and production

Nominations and awards Year Award Category Nominee(s) Result Ref. 1984 Grammy Award Best Vocal Arrangement Arrangement of The Manhattan Transfer's "Code of Ethics" 2019 Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella Arrangement of "Batman Theme" from Waldman's Superheroes Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals Arrangement of "Spiderman Theme" from Waldman's Superheroes