--- title: "5 Forward Quotes By Alan Menken" description: "5 Forward quotes by Alan Menken. Plus more from Alan Menken and more Forward sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a85/alan-menken-8351_always_it-s-writing-songs-within-the-structure_897333.jpg" --- > [It's writing songs within the structure of telling a story, so it becomes a platform for diverse songwriting, for a writing process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/it-s-writing-songs-within-the-structure-of-telling-a-story-so-it/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a85/alan-menken-8351_always_it-s-writing-songs-within-the-structure_897333.jpg) > [I've been very fortunate as a composer to be involved with projects that have really propelled my scores forward. I'm very proud…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/i-ve-been-very-fortunate-as-a-composer-to-be-involved-with-projects/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/953/alan-menken-8351_been_i-ve-been-very-fortunate-as-a-composer-t_918562.jpg) > [I've always juggled a lot of projects because at least half the projects you do get shelved. So you have to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/i-ve-always-juggled-a-lot-of-projects-because-at-least-half-the/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/39f/alan-menken-8351_always_i-ve-always-juggled-a-lot-of-projects-be_1115504.jpg) > [You're creating a score that has to have an emotional and story logic to it. You want a dramatic arc. You want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/you-re-creating-a-score-that-has-to-have-an-emotional-and-story-logic/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1cf/alan-menken-8351_dramatic_you-re-creating-a-score-that-has-to-have_1499759.jpg) > [There's plenty of examples of films where they're greenlit to move forward, and they want to get X actor. And they don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/there-s-plenty-of-examples-of-films-where-they-re-greenlit-to-move/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c15/alan-menken-8351_actor_there-s-plenty-of-examples-of-films-wher_1718514.jpg) ## Other authors on Forward ## More by Alan Menken > [I'm not interested in being the producer of somebody else's song.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/i-m-not-interested-in-being-the-producer-of-somebody-else-s-song/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [Every time I play 'Part of Your World,' a whole part of my life comes back to me. It's just inescapable - it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/every-time-i-play-part-of-your-world-a-whole-part-of-my-life-comes/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [My first success was 'Little Shop of Horrors,' and I had been working for years on jingles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/my-first-success-was-little-shop-of-horrors-and-i-had-been-working/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [Part of the job is knowing how to use this medium in the most effective way for the story you're telling, so for me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/part-of-the-job-is-knowing-how-to-use-this-medium-in-the-most/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [I'll always work with my collaborator in the room so I have a reaction on a note-by-note basis. I know in my gut when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/i-ll-always-work-with-my-collaborator-in-the-room-so-i-have-a/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [I think the thing that strikes you when you come back to 'The Little Mermaid' after all of these years is the simplicity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/i-think-the-thing-that-strikes-you-when-you-come-back-to-the-little/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [Music is a gestalt. Songs are a life force and they have specific vocabulary to them. You hear a few notes, and they take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/music-is-a-gestalt-songs-are-a-life-force-and-they-have-specific/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [I see my songs and shows almost like a mosaic - part of a bigger picture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/i-see-my-songs-and-shows-almost-like-a-mosaic-part-of-a-bigger-picture/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [I have an awards cabinet in my studio where I keep my eight Oscars, my 11 Grammys, my seven Golden Globes, and my Tony Award.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/i-have-an-awards-cabinet-in-my-studio-where-i-keep-my-eight-oscars-my/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [My favorite thing is a brand-new project from scratch because you really never know how they're going to come to life. Going back for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/my-favorite-thing-is-a-brand-new-project-from-scratch-because-you/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [Truth be told, of course, what I enjoy most is reinventing myself and doing new projects where I work in new genres, or I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/truth-be-told-of-course-what-i-enjoy-most-is-reinventing-myself-and/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [I love 'The Gospel Truth,' the song that opened up 'Hercules.' I thought that song was a lot of fun, and I really enjoyed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/i-love-the-gospel-truth-the-song-that-opened-up-hercules-i-thought/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [Collaboration is all about rewriting and rewriting and rewriting and helping each other to constantly improve a piece. And, it's also about spurring each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/collaboration-is-all-about-rewriting-and-rewriting-and-rewriting-and/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [I have the ability to clear the decks and focus on what's happening in the moment. And I get to spend my life doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/i-have-the-ability-to-clear-the-decks-and-focus-on-what-s-happening/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) > [Movies, there are moments when you're writing a song or demoing, a moment in the recording studio. Musicals much more just eat up your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-menken/movies-there-are-moments-when-you-re-writing-a-song-or-demoing-a/) [Alan Menken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-menken/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forward/alan-menken/#itemlist", "name": "5 Forward Quotes By Alan Menken", "numberOfItems": 5, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's writing songs within the structure of telling a story, so it becomes a platform for diverse songwriting, for a writing process that's broader than just figuring out a song. 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