God help the outcasts | The Hunchblog of Notre Dame

29Mar 2016

Songs of Hunchback of Notre Dame Musical Review; Part 3

by jess

Ciara Renee as Esmeralda singing God Help the Outcasts, production of Hunchback of Notre Dame

Topsy Turvy Part 2 – And Now Part 2 of Topsy Turvy. This part is the King of Fools segment and Quasimodo’s crowning. It has a few differences from the movie version most notably Esmeralda has a few spoken lines and they there is the tune from Sanctuary in there. I probably should mention that Sanctuary was a song from the German version that occurred right before Out There. In this musical it is more of a Frollo Leitmotif piece than a full song. It’s also heard in Bells of Notre Dame and the next song Into Notre Dame.

As for this song, it’s fine if you like it in the movie you should like it here. I’m not a huge fan of Erik Liberman’s voice on this song but that is a personal preference more than a criticism.

Into Notre Dame – This song is a bit of a Frankenstein song, I mean that nicely as it just a combo of three songs, well really two. The first part of this is Frollo telling Quasimodo that he was right, that people suck and he should stay in his Sanctuary. So for this part we get Out there reprise and the shadows of Sanctuary or as I will just call it Frollo’s Leitmotif.

The second part of this song is Esmeralda entering Notre Dame to the tune of the Bells of Notre Dame. This part is quite lovely. I especially love Ciara’ voice on her line ” The Light of Notre Dame.” I must say so far that is my favorite part so far. Also it’s nice to speak of another aspect of Notre Dame than just the bells.

This song is really just a segue song to get from the festival to Notre Dame so that explains why it doesn’t have its own melody but the pieces of the other song work to move the plot and they make sense with the subject matter.

God Help the Outcasts – For the big songs of Hunchback they are going to perform they near exact to the movie because that one thing the people want, they want to hear their favorite songs along with new songs and no gargoyles and that is pretty much it. So God Help the Outcasts is just that, identical to the movie which is better than Glockner which gave a change that I hated. They made it a duet with Quasimodo which meant Esmeralda didn’t have her own song though Phoebus did. That still bothers me.

All and all aside from some key shifts and singing a bit lower it’s the same song. I do love the chorus on the “bless me part” ironically it sounded very ethereal. Ciara Renee definitely has similar voice quality to the original singer Heidi Mollenhauer whose has very tender warm slightly smoky quality to her voice. It’s a very nice version of the song I just don’t love the song as much other people but again that is a personal thing and not a criticism. I was hoping that this version would sway me into liking more but it didn’t. Not the song fault I’m a hard sell.

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05Nov 2014

Some Recording from La Jolla Playhouse

by jess

La Jolla Hunchback Poster

I have been looking for pictures or videos of the new Hunchback musicals since it began and I have found next to zip till now. While searching for the sets of show I found http://enseeseven.tumblr.com and when I looked back there a few days later I found this http://lajollahunchback.tumblr.com which has some of the recordings of the song from the show. So very briefly I will just go through the recording and give my thoughts.

Rhythm of the Tambourine – I have to assume this is Esmeralda’s introductory song and it’s a new song. I gotta say though, it’s not doing much for me and I’m a little bummed that it not an Esmeralda only song that was a big issue for me with Glockner.

Made of Stone – I have to admit Michael Arden sounds a bit like Colm Wickinson here. I also wish he was angrier sounder, he sounds more sad but it’s a fine version of the song. I’m curious about the Ensemble/Gargoyles roles.

Finale Ultimo, Part 1 – They kept the stabbing angle? Neat! I don’t really like the pep talk with Quasimodo and the ensemble, seems un-necessary with the Made of Stone song. Overall it’s good.

The Tavern Song (Thai Mol Piyas) – Another new song! It’s fun. I’m not sure where this song goes in the play but I like it.
Apparently Thai Mol Piyas might mean “And wine we drink” in Romani.

Sanctuary (Reprise) – OMG, the red door scene! At first I thought it was the jail scene but it’s clearly not. This could have been in the original Glockner because it was in the King’s Academy version although less adult. I’m glad to hear some lines from the book though.

God Help the Outcasts – They play this very straight to the original Disney movie which is fine by me because I hated Quasimodo part of the song as it took Esmeralda’s only solo away. At first I though Ciara Renee was going to be belt-y with this song but she isn’t, it’s nicely done.

The Bells of Notre Dame – This is very different. The example Frollo backstory prior to Quasimodo. Frollo has Jehan back in the version. Frollo and Jehan lived at Notre Dame. Jehan gets Frollo a Gyspy prostitutes for his birthday but they get caught Jehan get kicked out. Frollo then rises to the ranked of Archdeacon. Frollo finds Jehan who dying and his Gyspy wife has died. Jehan asks Frollo to take his baby, i.e Quasi. He doesn’t want to but then does.

I’m not sure how to feel about this version of the song. It’s a good mitigation between the novel and Disney version but it lacks the drama and intensity that the Disney version had. However it could be way better on stage. They also mispronounce Jehan.

Hellfire – Much like God Help the Outcast, they play this one straight to the Disney version.

The got rid of A Guy like you, City under Siege, Out of Love, Dance of the Gypsies, Balancing Act.

What do you think of these songs?

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07Jan 2013

God Help the Outcast in Korean

by jess

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yHoikdDSI0

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26Jun 2012

God Help the Outcast in Japanese

by jess

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8RNMhXr2BE

Sung by Hosaka Chizu who is a musical singer.

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23Apr 2012

Der Glockner Singer singing a song from the Disney version

by jess

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=czhEaWzSnXk
She sounds good.

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26Jan 2012

Hilf den Verstoß’nen and Hoch über der Welt “ Music of Der Glöckner von Notre Dame“ Part 3

by jess

This is the third part of the music review of Der Glöckner von Notre Dame

Hilf den Verstoß’nen

Esmeralda singing Hilf den VerstoÃŸenen in Der Glöckner von Notre Dame picture image

Esmeralda singing Hilf den Verstoß’nen in Der Glöckner von Notre Dame

Hilf den Verstoß’nen (God Help the Outcast) is for the most part the same as the Disney version with one exception, Quasimodo sings in it. This add-on makes the song a touch longer. Another minor difference is that unlike the parishioners in the Disney that sings about wanting wealth, fame, glory together in the stage show the first two lines are sung in solos. A minute difference. Musically the song is identical to the Disney. Seriously, play the songs together and they are the same musically.

It’s a nice version of God Help the Outcast. On the one hand, I rather like the addition of Quasimodo here but on the other it robs Esmeralda of a song to herself. I mean Phoebus gets one but Esmeralda also sings with someone else whereas Quasimodo gets two songs for himself, three is you want to count the Gargoyles as part of his psyche. Considering that I wish they had let Quasimodo out of the song but maybe Menken and Schwartz felt that Esmeralda and Quasimodo should have got one song together but Quasimodo shyness would have prevented him from actively singing with her so him stalking her around Notre Dame and sing along wit her prayer was a logic move to make but still would it have killed them to give her a solo song. Really if they really want to take God Help the Outcast from her they should made Einmal (Once) her solo song but we’ll get to Einmal later.

Watch a Video clip here

Hoch über der Welt

Esmeralda and Quasimodo during Hoch Ã¼ber der Welt in Der Glöckner von Notre Dame picture image

Esmeralda and Quasimodo during Hoch über der Welt in Der Glöckner von Notre Dame

Hoch über der Welt (High above the World) takes place when Esmeralda and Quasimodo are a top of Notre Dame and it is sung by Esmeralda and the gargoyles. Esmeralda thinks that Paris is better when viewed from above and the gargoyles encourage Quasimodo to put the moves on her. His move constitutes asking to sit next to her, which she agrees to and in the gargoyle tradition of jumping to conclusions they start planning the wedding.

This song acts as a bonding song between the two and it’s a good example of what works in a musical version wouldn’t work in a movie. A song like this in the movie would have killed the pacing and would have worked against Esmeralda sweeter less experienced nature.

Musically it employs the tactic that Zuflucht employed which was two melodies that are song together in the third part of the songs. This makes it so the first person(ie Frollo, Esmeralda, Phoebus etc) sing unaware of the gargoyles singing with them. And like Zuflucht the harmonies work well together.

Hoch über der Welt is a nice and sweet on Esmeralda’s end and fun and energetic on the gargoyles’ end. It also works to help establish Quasimodo and Esmeralda’s friendship more than just one the conversation they had in the movie

Watch a a video of being performed Here

Next Time-
Das Licht des Himmels (Heaven’s Light)
Das Feuer der Hölle (Hellfire)

Der Glockner von notre Dame German Musical of Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame

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03Oct 2011

Visuals de Notre Dame de Disney’s Hunchback

by jess

Notre Dame of Paris Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame

I had said in my 1939 Hunchback of Notre Dame review on setting, that movies shouldn’t take too much from Notre Dame’s structure as it’s changed a lot from it’s state from the time the story takes place to when Victor Hugo wrote the book to when Disney created the film.

Frollo and Notre Dame Bells Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame picture image

Frollo stares at Notre Dame during the Bells of Notre Dame FDisney Hunchback of Notre Dame

Satellite Dish during Out There Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame

First Disney makes Notre Dame much taller than it actually is. It’s a flaw but it not something to rage over. It’s just kind of laughable large. Another flaw that can be over looked is the all the exterior sculptures on the Cathedral are shown as plain, natural-colored stone. At the time the story is set, they were polychromatic – painted in colors. Again it can be overlooked because Notre Dame current look is so iconic that it would have looked strange to audience to have colors associated with the exterior. I can also overlook the square in front of Notre Dame also that wouldn’t have been there in 1400 but you can forgive.

The aspects of the depiction that I have a hard time overlooking is the how the sanctuary is depicted. In the scheme of Hunchback cartoons and movies it’s very accurate, there are some terrible representations of Notre Dame but the way it’s set up in the film is problematic. The Sanctuary is show once in the film during “God Help the Outcast”

Quasimodo watching to Esmeralda during God Help the Outcast Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame

Esmeralda singing God Help the Outcast Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame

Looking at Notre Dame’s set up and structure Notre Dame seems both bigger and smaller. Esmeralda strolls though the layout a a very leisurely pace yet the Cathedral seems more expansive than it is. She also isn’t impeded by the structure. At about at the 2:00 minute mark of the song, Esmeralda is seen walking in the side aisles and to her left there are columns. Then in the very next shot, Esmeralda is against a Fresco, with no columns in the shot. Which means Esmeralda needed to veer to another side of the column but she did not. So I guess the columns magically go away for a better shot. Also if her head in level with the fresco how tall is she? Because her height is really inconsistent and she’s bare foot and those Frescos are pretty high off the ground. Then this could be inconsistency. But do make the inside of the Church not in proper proportion.

Check out this website to see what I mean;

http://www.fromparis.com/virtual-tour-notre-dame/ click around to get a visual tour of Notre Dame

Quasimodo during Out There with anachronism Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame

So getting back to what I said at the beginning of this about being careful not to copy Notre Dame in it current state to much is that after Victor Hugo wrote Notre Dame de Paris, the cathedral when though a massive changes. The statues that can be seen in Out There towards the end when Quasimodo talks “Ordinary Men” where add after the novel was written in 1831. Those statues are 12 apostles that adorned the spire. I don’t think I would mind this but Quasimodo motions to the statues as an examples of “ordinary men” The 12 Apostles are ordinary men Disney? Really? The fact the Disney used the statues as more than just Background but a visual aid is where I find fault.

Next Time – Major Differences between Disney and the Book

Quasimodo Hunchback of Notre Dame Disney picture image

Quasimodo's Reveal Hunchback of Notre Dame Disney

Illustration of Quasimodo

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28Sep 2011

Hunchback of Notre Dame Score

by jess

Frollo singing Hellfire Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame

Let’s us now concluded the musical portion of Hunchback with probably the strongest aspect of it; Alan Menken’s Score. The Hunchback of Notre Dame has one of the best score that Disney has ever produced. Menken was inspired by Mozart’s Requiem Mass and there a lot of dark tonalities to the Music which in conclude Latin chanting which add to the gothic nature of tone to the movie. When I say Gothic I referring to the building of Notre Dame and not the genre of the Victor Hugo’s book. The score also has a lot of Leitmotifs (referring to a recurring theme associated with a particular person, place, or idea.)

Quasimodo during Out There Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame

Frollo singing Hellfire Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame

Esmeralda singing God Help the Outcast Disney Hunchback of Notre Dame

Quasimodo = Out There, Frollo =Hellfire, Phoebus has this march that is heard a lot when ever he appears on the screen, and Esmeralda = God Help The Outcasts. Clopin doesn’t seem to get one because he is always singing. You can hear the song tune throughout the movie. Track 4 Humiliation has the tunes of Out There and God help the Outcast.

: Quasimodo declares Sanctuary for Esmeralda

So while the songs are pretty hit and miss, the score is strong. My Favorite track is defiantly Sanctuary!, it over the top and dramatic. Plus I’m a fan of Latin choir, it maybe a cliche but they really do make everything sound much more epic

Next time a slight Rant and Plea to Disney

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22Sep 2011