The Music of the Night
Gillian Leask
Professor Pilarski
ENC 1101
13 July 2011
The Music of the Night
In operas, either people love them or hate them. Play and song writer Andrew Lloyd Webber portrays a new light on opera in the famous musical The Phantom of the Opera. In scene five of the musical where the Phantom of the Paris Opera House sings a romantic melody entitled “The Music of The Night” to the orphaned ballerina dancer Christine Daae, he is telling her to “Close [her] eyes and surrender to [her]/ darkest dreams!/ Purge [her] thoughts of the life/ [she] knew before!” (12-15). He is basically telling her to live up to her dreams and for her not to let her past hold her back. The Phantom knows that Christine looks up to him as her guide; she calls him “The Angel of Music”. When her father was alive when she was younger he was a famous violinist and he told her repeatedly that a guardian called “The Angel of Music” would look after her if he wasn’t able to (Christine’s Character). Christine’s father fell ill and died when she was only seven years old and she was taken in by a family friend that spent a great time at the Opera House—that is where her career started to begin.
Christine Daae had troubles and tried to forget about them, but the Phantom knew that it isn 't easy to forget someone you once had close to you; and he knew it was affecting her talent. When he sang to her, he reassured her by letting her know that she should “turn [her] thoughts away from cold, unfeeling light” meaning that when she starts to think about heartbreaking and miserable thoughts, she needs to stop (9-10). In the following lines 24-28, he lets her know that she needs to, “Open up [her] mind, Let her fantasies unwind, In this darkness which, [She] knows [she] cannot fight- The darkness of the music of the night…”
Thus, letting her know that even though it is hard to overcome her
Professor Pilarski
ENC 1101
13 July 2011
The Music of the Night
In operas, either people love them or hate them. Play and song writer Andrew Lloyd Webber portrays a new light on opera in the famous musical The Phantom of the Opera. In scene five of the musical where the Phantom of the Paris Opera House sings a romantic melody entitled “The Music of The Night” to the orphaned ballerina dancer Christine Daae, he is telling her to “Close [her] eyes and surrender to [her]/ darkest dreams!/ Purge [her] thoughts of the life/ [she] knew before!” (12-15). He is basically telling her to live up to her dreams and for her not to let her past hold her back. The Phantom knows that Christine looks up to him as her guide; she calls him “The Angel of Music”. When her father was alive when she was younger he was a famous violinist and he told her repeatedly that a guardian called “The Angel of Music” would look after her if he wasn’t able to (Christine’s Character). Christine’s father fell ill and died when she was only seven years old and she was taken in by a family friend that spent a great time at the Opera House—that is where her career started to begin.
Christine Daae had troubles and tried to forget about them, but the Phantom knew that it isn 't easy to forget someone you once had close to you; and he knew it was affecting her talent. When he sang to her, he reassured her by letting her know that she should “turn [her] thoughts away from cold, unfeeling light” meaning that when she starts to think about heartbreaking and miserable thoughts, she needs to stop (9-10). In the following lines 24-28, he lets her know that she needs to, “Open up [her] mind, Let her fantasies unwind, In this darkness which, [She] knows [she] cannot fight- The darkness of the music of the night…”
Thus, letting her know that even though it is hard to overcome her
Cited: "Christine (Character) - Biography." The Internet Movie Database (IMDb). 2004. Web. 13 July 2011. "Garish | Define Garish at Dictionary.com." Dictionary.com | Find the Meanings and Definitions of Words at Dictionary.com. Web. 18 July 2011. Webber, Andrew L. "Musical "Phantom of The Opera" Lyrics, The Music Of The Night Lyrics." SoundTrack Lyrics Source #1. Any Movie, Musical, TV, Cartoon! Web. 13 July 2011.