#TOP 25 MOST PAUSED MOVIE MOMENTS HOW TO#

In this fiery trio, Frederic (the romantic tenor hero), the Pirate King, and Ruth (Frederic’s one time nurse and now part of the pirate band) react to the revelation of the Major-General’s ‘traitorous’ deception – to avoid being killed, he pretended to be an orphan, the Pirates of Penzance being renowned for their mercy to such unfortunates. Having just invented the game of roulette, the Prince with Mephistophelean relish extols its merits to those heavily in debt, as Sullivan’s skipping music suggests both the character’s exuberance and the dance of the ball on the spinning roulette.Ģ0 The Pirates of Penzance (1879): ‘Away, away, my heart’s on fire!’ The flashy and extravagant Prince of Monte Carlo, though, is quite unlike the usual run of G&S anti-heroes, his belated first appearance in Act II scarcely prepared for by any of the preceding action. Here is a gem of a song from Gilbert and Sullivan’s final show, much overlooked since The Grand Duke is overall one of the most convoluted, bewildering and least engaging of Gilbert’s plots.

#TOP 25 MOST PAUSED MOVIE MOMENTS HOW TO#

In the 1920s, music professor Percy Buck evidently felt this: ‘The writing of a learned eight-part fugue is within the power of any musician who cares to waste his time in learning how to do it but if he tries to reset the words, “The sun whose rays are all ablaze” and then compares his music to Sullivan’s, he will have no doubts as to which is the more serious task.’Ģ1 The Grand Duke (1896): ‘Take my advice’ While her very un-English – and, indeed, hardly typically Japanese – lack of modesty would have appeared comical to Gilbert and Sullivan’s audience (indeed, the English continued to find this quality amusing in Agatha Christie’s Poirot, for instance), Sullivan responds with a melody which is both artful yet – to those who respond to it – guilelessly lovely. Yet, as Yum-Yum’s preamble makes clear, it’s a song by a young lady who quite unashamedly glories in her own beauty. Here is a very fine example of a double chorus, in which the women’s chorus – beguiling, swooning and yearning all at once – is contrasted with the swaggering ‘gentlemen’ singing ‘When thoroughly tired of being admired’, their affected urbanity giving way in their final beguiling line: ‘your slaves for the moment are we’.Ģ4 The Mikado (1885): ‘The sun whose rays are all ablaze’įor many G&S fans, Yum-Yum’s big solo number is the lyrical highlight of The Mikado, the creative duo’s most popular show for some listeners, though, it is just too sickly and sentimental. They are ‘bucks and blades’ (as described in the libretto) from the city visiting the village of Rederring to have a bit of pleasure with its fresh-faced local beauties. Written following the success of The Mikado and first staged in 1887 as Ruddygore (the spelling subsequently changed to appease Victorian sensitivities), in this show we see a good deal of the (intentionally) irritating bridal chorus before, a good half hour into the show, the gentlemen of the chorus finally make their appearance. Which are the best Gilbert and Sullivan songs ever? 25 Ruddigore (1887): ‘Welcome gentry’ So, here in ascending order is a list of (at least many of) the very best moments in Gilbert and Sullivan, whether they are ‘songs’ or otherwise… What are the lyrics to the song 'Modern Major General'?.Why did Gilbert and Sullivan quarrel over a carpet?.

Why don't people take Gilbert and Sullivan seriously?.

Why are Gilbert and Sullivan operettas so popular?.

Then again, the lead characters, as well as singing songs, often sing duets – sometimes intimate and touching, but often lively and mischievous and then there are those sometimes quite intricate ensembles, involving three or more characters, which range from fiery to reflective. Why not? First, limiting the number to 25 forces one to really consider which are arguably the very best to make the cut (believe me, a lot of personal favourites fell by the wayside with such a stringent limitation).Īnd then, quite simply, it’s impossible to do justice to Gilbert and Sullivan and the shows without including some of the most glorious moments involving the chorus: they may be singing an anthem (‘For he is an Englishman’ from HMS Pinafore is just one of the most famous – check our list for some more), or one of Sullivan’s cunningly crafted double choruses (in which two apparently distinct choruses are then performed simultaneously to glorious effect).

Yes we're talking the best Gilbert and Sullivan songs, moments and highlights - not just solo numbers – and you won’t even find them all here.

Top 25 most paused movie moments