What Les Miserables Can Teach Us About Music 

Yup!

Funny story. I was playing Javert in my senior production of Les Mis and I got my words confused opening night and started singing Val Jean's soliloquy, and I couldn't get back on the right lyrics for several lines. I recovered it, and I think most people didn't notice, but that was 100% my most terrifying moment on stage.

@@jacobmohler3677 That would be so terrifying!

Exactly. It’s a litmus test for their world views. Valjean can change and grow, but Javert can not function in a world where he owes someone like Valjean anything.

I was watching a student production of les mis and jevert got the words mixed up, he said "they gave me a number and murdered.. him" poor guy looked like he about to faint. Thankfully I don't think anyone else noticed It really sold the "I am reaching but I fall" part though

you may already know this but if not: Miss Saigon is by the same people and it has very similar styles and also adds a more modern feel to some songs (its set during the Vietnam war) which worked surprisingly well. It's not les mis level chills but there are certain songs that made me cry actual tears of joy from how beautiful they were when I saw it live. You can definitely tell it's written by the same people.

Ria “Bui Doi” was one of Saigon’s pieces that gave me as much chills as Les Mis, particularly Peter Polycarpou’s rendition.

Ria mentioned Miss Saigon, but Hamilton does a similar thing to Les Mis where it’s constantly developing themes across the entire show. I often get chills from snippets.

Me too. My eyes sting every single time I hear the "Do You Hear The People Sing?" chorus in the finale, unfailingly: I almost cried more than once while watching this video.

@@Ria-cf1wp Not sure why but I did not care for Miss Saigon., but Les Miserables I love as I do Phantom. Seen them both many times in different cities.

Both songs invoke the imagery of the Holy Communion.

I think the reason for its inclusion is more technical than thematical: The 1980 original french version did not have the 20 minute prologue, and did not have an overture either, but started directly with At the end of the day. When Cameron Mackintosh and James Fenton adapted the original version for the 1985 London production, they decided a prologue had to be included that explained Valjeans's origins. Schönberg used this oppurtunity to create the overture/medley which the original version had lacked, so he wanted to include all major tunes within it. The bishop's tender and soft moment where he forgives Valjean seems to be the most appropriate placement of the Empty Chairs melody. And I love it :)

Here’s a connection, coincidental or not, but in the book, it’s said that the bishop had lost family due to the revolution… similar to Marius losing his friends.

Three years late to this video, but to me the link between the two moments is guilt and forgiveness. Valjean is redeemed by the Bishop's act of forgiveness. Marius suffers from survivor guilt and begs his fallen friends to forgive him for being alive.

@@horstdieter10I think having the "L'air de la misere" melody introduced by Valjean is better than the way Fantine introduced it in the 1980 show. What's funny is that after having bought the Original French Concept Album in 1990, it's only recently that I've found a recording of the whole show, and had no idea that parts of the show which were present in the English version but absent from the OFCA had existed in the original show.

At first I didn't think Phillip Quast was anything unique because I heard other people do the role. But when I rewatched the 10th anniversary concert, I noticed his subtle acting acting choices. Now, he is the reason I kept coming back to that concert

He's a beast vocally and he also really looks the part. And somehow, this giant of a man manages to look vulnerable in the death scene.

Sorry but they also wrote Martin Guerre

The first musical they wrote was La Révolution Française

PLEASE, that would be a feast!

^^^^^ THIS!

Do you know what me too Derek Llewellyn feel it in side effects from musical show documentary about biography of full story about tour

How interesting!!

I've definitely encountered other situations where, once the core material has been created, late creative decisions and implementations/restructuring can be incredibly effective in similar ways - creativity is such a complex fascinating process, and so different from the Romanticised idea of it all flowing out of your pen in one go

​@@InsidetheScore I enjoyed the video very much. I'm writing a book on the show and having done some research and had help on the music (it's not really my field while other parts of dramatic theory are more so) I know about a few of the things you are saying. 'Tracking the musical parallels and motifs in Les Misérables' by Kelly Dean Hansen is very interesting and available on the net if you search for it. I impressed myself by spotting how the 'I dreamed a dream' / 'On My Own' theme turns up in various ways (which is actually a reused song called La Misère from the original Palais de Sports show which the London team adapted.) The other interesting one is the three note theme used in 'Who Am I' and 'One Day More' that occurs a number of times when Valjean appears on scene (even in another key when he's there to save Fantine from Javert). Many years ago when I was first watching the show multiple times when it opened (I am that old) I scribbled notes to myself about it and have been able to quote them in the chapter where I am talking about this. What I WOULD be interested in are your thoughts on why on earth the theme the Bishop uses when he's handing over the candlesticks turns up sung by Marius as 'Empty Chairs at Empty Tables' and why when Valjean is letting Javert go at the barricade he's singing the tune he sang earlier to Cosette during 'In My Life'. It's a show that has been rewritten (there are six versions of the cart crash) added to, edited and then had a great deal removed (some of which I miss terribly) and which I am having a lot of fun writing about piecing all this together. It gets even more fun when you learn about the 20 odd translations being sung in other languages, how many versions for each language there actually are and how they got round 24601 not working or multi-syllable translations for 'Stars' p.s. Thanks for the Factory Girl / Bamatabois link, I missed that although it was staring me in the face.

@@ruthkenyon1723 I'll be really interested to read your book when it comes out! I've always considered the link between the music for the Bishop and Empty Chairs being the same is the connection to the divine (if that makes sense) - the Bishop's connection to God and Marius literally seeing the ghosts of his friends. I'm not describing that well - but I guess it just feels right to me. There's an interesting discussion about themes being used in the "wrong" place in media, consider Star Wars when (Spoiler alert?) Obi-Wan dies and Leia's theme plays, or at the end of The Hobbit an Unexpected Journey, when the Gondor theme plays when Thorin embraces Bilbo. I believe there' are some similarly "out of place" motifs in Wagner's Ring cycle. I assume you've come across the book "The Musical World of Boublil and Schonberg" by Margaret Vermette? If not, I'm sure it would be a very useful source, it's a great book!

The original album (you can easily find on youtube) and the actual French play (hard to find) are different though. The album was shorter and a bit different from the actual play. And the 1991 French remake is mostly garbage and poorly translated from English. The same melodies were used several times in the original play. Furthermore, some of the French lyrics literally come from Victor Hugo's novels. Gravroche's song was written by Hugo.

I was wondering if anyone would compare this to operas. I have long looked at this as a modern opera for the reasons you mentioned.

Tongue IN cheek. But you're right. It's a rare modern opera. There are a few others worth mentioning... One can consider Hamilton an opera, as the music is pretty much non-stop (see what I did there?) and all dialogue is mostly rapped as a recitative. Burn is gorgeous and very much an aria.

I tried for Vealjean during auditions but got thenardier. And my god his music is so hard. Not only is it high, but it’s just confusing. The sheet music made my head spin off.

@@nolenmccabe5270 - I'm writing a book on the show and would really like to hear your comments on Thenardier. Could you email me @ ruthhkenyon@yahoo.com and if we can have a chat?

@mrplatnik - I'd really love to talk to you about this (writing a book on the show and could do with some input on music as it's not actually my area)

I missed that one although it was on stage for 2 years in my home country (2017-2019)! and I hate myself for it :'(

Oh my god yes this, the finale is INCREDIBLE

I love you for talking about it! Is so underrated that it hurts!

The wedding chorale is a reprise off the bargain and every day is a reprise of a heart of full of love lol

Ilovehotchocolate nah dude, I’m talking about the “every day you walk with stronger step” and “ring out the bells upon this day of days” bits. The reprises you're talking about are contained within the same tracks as these original melodies, but they're still original melodies!

Plus, even if you're arguing that the power of these non-reprise melodies is "weakened" somehow by being in the same song as reprises... that can be ascribed symbolic significance too. Dog Eat Dog (aside from that instrumental reprise of Bring Him Home that thenardier doesn't participate in), does not have that. Marius and Cosette, despite living on, are still haunted by the past... while Thenardier, by having no morals, gets to be unimpeded. Really sounds like a point Victor Hugo would make about society...

Sophia Walsh Long no lol sorry I just made a mistake les mis is my fav sorry lol

Ilovehotchocolate all good, I wasn't mad at you I just used your comment as a jumping off point to post more of my thoughts lol

Chelsea Dee mine too, I love it very much and try to see it every time when it comes to ireland🇮🇪😊

When I saw it in '88 from the second tier, I hated that the sound was coming from a speaker above my head, so it didn't make a big impression. Several years later, I realized I was humming a tune from it, so I got a recording of highlights and played it to death. I do wish the singers wouldn't try to show off so much.

I saw a touring production a few years ago and i didn't expect to come out of it angry. So sped up, sounding so cheap and bland. You know that little twinkling bit at the start of the Epilogue, when did get cut out? It's my absolute favourite moment and was gone. Was such a quiet reflective special moment didn't stand a chance with the production now.

@@ffarff There have been many cuts and changes over the years. I'm writing a book on the show and have been logging them to write about them. The really big cuts came in 2000 (a whole swathe from the original show went then to cut overtime overheads and shorten the show) and then they really attacked the score for the touring production to cut the orchestra by half. It's not the show I knew when I saw it first in London as a student and I prefer watching bootlegs of versions from other countries now. Germany has done some amazing non-replica versions that keep the spirit.

There have been so many cuts and changes dating back to 1995. Anything prior to that is Les Miserables the way it’s mostly intended to be. I would still add some of the cut lines from the Barbican previews to make it the best, complete show. I hate that they edited the show to bring the total running time down, but, then added back in the well scene! I had to go back to London to see the original staging before they closed it down and it was bitter sweet for me. It’s my favorite show of all time and it’s sad that the “new” production has been edited, reorchestrated, restaged, no revolve, the pace has been sped up and every song is treated like an American Idol power ballad. Plus my main pet peeve with the new staging, that no one discusses is that during the At The End Of The Day number there are electric lights hanging above the worker women!! Why didn’t someone do their homework and say... this is wrong! There were no electric lamps in 1823 France!! 😡

@@ffarff Those opening 16 bars of the Epilogue was my FAVORITE musical motif in the entire show. So haunting. It truly helped to bring the audience back to "somber" after the comic relief that is "Beggars at the Feast." The chords change between that beautiful guitar in Dbmajor and then subtly drifts up to Dm. It's brilliant - and I am disappointed in every production that has cut it for "time."

@@ffarff do you know if there are any videos of this anywhere ? You've stoked my curiosity and I'm now desperate to hear it

A'den Stormfall Same here. Talk about coincidence :)

For some reason, I always preferred playing "Come to me" on piano versus "On my own", and decades later when I started playing guitar the same holds true there. Not sure if it's the key, or the intro, or what. On my guitar tuning, the chord voicings work out brilliantly for F major, but that's just pure coincidence. I also find myself thinking that while On My Own is a great show stopper, it's a real pity that Eponine's earlier song, "L'un vers l'autre" disappeared entirely, except for the intro theme which is shared from the attack on Rue Plumet, Eponine's errand-related recitatives, and the intro to "A little fall of rain".

About a year ago I read an essay on the les mis motifs where they discussed all the connections. Im a huge fan, I didn't realise them all. Having a video showing side by side is great isn't it? Makes me appreciate les mis more. Wish there was a whole score length duscussion video out there.

ffarff same! I didn’t actually realise that there are so many links. But it makes so much sense. I only started to get into les mis at the start of last year when I went to see it and I’ve just been attached ever since. It’s so good!

I saw that in London and didn't really quite understand it, but parts of it haunt me. Maybe sorta like younger George's Chromalume.