Saturday, December 28, 2013

The Fortune of the Night

I'm beginning to suspect my Chinese fortune was plagiarized.
"Open up your mind. Let your fantasies unwind."

The relevant lyrics are at about 2:21 in this video recording of "The Music of the Night:"
"The Music of the Night"
from "The Phantom of the Opera" (1986)
Michael Crawford as the Phantom
Sarah Brightman as Christine Daaé
Andrew Lloyd Webber, music
Charles Hart, lyrics (with Richard Stilgoe?)


Speaking of allegations of plagiarism, the estate of Giacomo Puccini once accused Lloyd Webber of lifting a musical passage from the opera "La Fanciulla del West" ("The Girl of the Golden West"). The suit was settled out of court. Listen from 0:40 and see what you think.
"Quello che tacete"
from "La Fanciulla del West" (1910)
Daniele Barioni, tenor, as Dick Johnson
Giacomo Puccini, music
Guelfo Civinini and Carlo Zangarini, libretto


Note:  It seems much of the world's accumulated wisdom can be gleaned from fortune cookies. See my collected musings after Chinese banquets here.

More posts about the Broadway stage may be seen here.

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