Who can, today, understand this sense of humor??? You've got to be SOOO familiar with the music of Britten... and the VERY special art of singing and timbre of Peter Pears! But if you are, this is irresistible. Thanks for uploading the clip.
You have to remember that in those days Pears sang to the accompaniment of Britten on prime time television, including some performances of Britten's folk song arrangements. People got the parody because they'd seen the real thing on their TV screens.
Although the Beyond the Fringe audience was probably fairly middle class & educated, I think that his comedy could be appreciated on many levels, & that this sketch would be funny without any previous knowledge of the source material being parodied. Equally the brilliant musicianship can be appreciated in it's own right.
It's hard to believe now I agree, but I think at the time Britten's music was quite well known even by people who weren't 'highbrow'. There were only really two TV channels and three radio stations back then so there was more overlap between popular and 'high' culture.
Beyond the Fringe was developed on the back of work at Oxford and Cambridge universites and the participants were all well educated guys. At that time Britten, Brecht and Weill were part of general knowledge, at least among those with an arts degree. But even mass audiences probably had far more of what we might call serious general knowledge in those years. This is evidenced, for example, by the scripts of Galton and Simpson, who wrote for Tony Hancock. The audiences repeatedly laughed at Tony Hancock's blunders when talking about history or the arts. Nowadays such things would not get a laugh from a young audience, I feel certain.
His comedic and musical genius are well documented. But his ability to cover the vocal range of Peter Pears, one of the greatest lyrical tenors we have ever seen, well, frankly, he did that without even trying. Nothing but respect.
A splendid classic but it could not exist without the achievements of Britten and Pears. Like all the best parodies it shows appreciation of what is being parodied and should drive us back with fresh admiration for those originals that actually achieve so much more than the parody - as I am sure Moore, Miller and co. would have appreciated.
James Dickenson, Dudley was a musical and comedic genius & we of at least English heritage appreciate his comedy routines, but his jazz piano was the upper, made me smile at him doing it right.
Pure genius! His grasp of the styles he parodies is deep and brilliant. Somewhere, I read that Britten never spoke to him again! Not sure if this is correct but he certainly does a cruel parody of Peter Pears' voice! The Weill/Brecht parody is also wonderful.
Dear Diatonic, Dudley parodied Britten and Pears so well! That Britten took offence shows no sense of humour ! I had a dear pal (Brian R., self taught piano ( like me)(bless him, he inspired me to try), he did an amazing parody of Britten, absolutely hilarious : like dear Dudley, it caught the style and 'oddness' perfectly : I'll never forget that wonderful , magical day at Iver...... And so grateful for being able to see these 'gems' on You Tube.😁.
I wonder what Lotte Lenya made of the Weill/Brecht parody! Moore manages to cram bits of a half-dozen or more of their best-known songs into his pretty broad parody. But the Britten/Pears parody is in another realm. I'm not surprised that Britten (who was notoriously thin-skinned) didn't appreciate Moore taking such deadly aim at his compositional mannerisms. Pears was presumably secure enough as a performer (which is not quite so precarious a calling as that of a composer) to enjoy Moore's very funny send-up.
Moore was a comic genius. 'Little Miss Britten' is just brilliant. If only he were around today, perhaps we wouldn't have to suffer the plethora of total comedy mediocrity that has taken over the TV. Thanks for posting this.
Apparently Peter Pears, who in most accounts has been described as a nice bloke with a sense of humour, was flattered and amused by this but prickly Britten was furious and never spoke to Moore again.
Brilliant! What a tragedy he became so gravely ill w what would deprive him of just this... long before his untimely, nay, infathomable death. Fondest memories. He could (& did) make Monty Python look like the Muppets! RIP, Sir
MP was really very amateurish - which was part of its charm at the time, but actually truth be told, hasn't worn well with age but relies on nostalgia - Dudley on the other hand is very professional and well crafted despite the spontaneity which is why it makes us laugh without us remembering we're supposed to laugh
According to his biography, Peter Cook could effortlessly do anything he put his hand to, EXCEPT anything musical. He couldn't even sing a note. That's probably why he was so jealous of Dud's talent.
I believe Britten didn't have much of a sense of humour, so I wonder what he might have made of this parody; it's actually rather better than most of Britten in my opinion!
... the irony is that Moore in fact had inherently a better voice than Pears. Notice that here Moore manages the arpeggios etc. much better than Pears could ever manage. Perhaps that was lost on Pears...
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Who can, today, understand this sense of humor??? You've got to be SOOO familiar with the music of Britten... and the VERY special art of singing and timbre of Peter Pears! But if you are, this is irresistible. Thanks for uploading the clip.
I paid a lot of money for the two degrees in music which enable me to get this joke from 60+ yrs ago…and sing in volunteer choirs in 2022.
You have to remember that in those days Pears sang to the accompaniment of Britten on prime time television, including some performances of Britten's folk song arrangements. People got the parody because they'd seen the real thing on their TV screens.
Did he write either of these songs?
the most extraordinary musical parody I ever heard, the man was a genius
Dudley was supremely talented . A great loss to the entertainment world .
The mind, it boggles, at the thought of an audience appreciating parodies of Britten and Weill.
Although the Beyond the Fringe audience was probably fairly middle class & educated, I think that his comedy could be appreciated on many levels, & that this sketch would be funny without any previous knowledge of the source material being parodied. Equally the brilliant musicianship can be appreciated in it's own right.
It's hard to believe now I agree, but I think at the time Britten's music was quite well known even by people who weren't 'highbrow'. There were only really two TV channels and three radio stations back then so there was more overlap between popular and 'high' culture.
Beyond the Fringe was developed on the back of work at Oxford and Cambridge universites and the participants were all well educated guys. At that time Britten, Brecht and Weill were part of general knowledge, at least among those with an arts degree. But even mass audiences probably had far more of what we might call serious general knowledge in those years. This is evidenced, for example, by the scripts of Galton and Simpson, who wrote for Tony Hancock. The audiences repeatedly laughed at Tony Hancock's blunders when talking about history or the arts. Nowadays such things would not get a laugh from a young audience, I feel certain.
There was no audience present. The laughter is canned.
@@casparwintermans9492 I shall rephrase: The mind, it boggles, at the thought of an audience FOR parodies of Britten and Weill.
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His comedic and musical genius are well documented. But his ability to cover the vocal range of Peter Pears, one of the greatest lyrical tenors we have ever seen, well, frankly, he did that without even trying. Nothing but respect.
It sound LIKE Britten!
A splendid classic but it could not exist without the achievements of Britten and Pears. Like all the best parodies it shows appreciation of what is being parodied and should drive us back with fresh admiration for those originals that actually achieve so much more than the parody - as I am sure Moore, Miller and co. would have appreciated.
Devastating - and SO realistic: pure genius!
James Dickenson, Dudley was a musical and comedic genius & we of at least English heritage appreciate his comedy routines, but his jazz piano was the upper, made me smile at him doing it right.
The most brilliant musical parody I've ever heard. It's hard to listen to Britten/Pears with a straight face after this.
Pure genius! His grasp of the styles he parodies is deep and brilliant. Somewhere, I read that Britten never spoke to him again! Not sure if this is correct but he certainly does a cruel
parody of Peter Pears' voice! The Weill/Brecht parody is also wonderful.
Dear Diatonic, Dudley parodied Britten and Pears so well! That Britten took offence shows no sense of humour ! I had a dear pal (Brian R., self taught piano ( like me)(bless him, he inspired me to try), he did an amazing parody of Britten, absolutely hilarious : like dear Dudley, it caught the style and 'oddness' perfectly : I'll never forget that wonderful , magical day at Iver...... And so grateful for being able to see these 'gems' on You Tube.😁.
Pears however, did find it hilarious.
Yes, Alan Bennett describes this in the preface to The Habit of Art (which is what sent me to this video).
It just gets better over the years
Fantastic! So versatile a singer, and the Britten/Pears parody is just amazing!
I wonder what Lotte Lenya made of the Weill/Brecht parody! Moore manages to cram bits of a half-dozen or more of their best-known songs into his pretty broad parody. But the Britten/Pears parody is in another realm. I'm not surprised that Britten (who was notoriously thin-skinned) didn't appreciate Moore taking such deadly aim at his compositional mannerisms. Pears was presumably secure enough as a performer (which is not quite so precarious a calling as that of a composer) to enjoy Moore's very funny send-up.
certain "artistes" can be very precious
Sadly so few can understand how brilliant that Britten parody is. Genius
Such joy! Glorious.
Moore was a comic genius. 'Little Miss Britten' is just brilliant. If only he were around today, perhaps we wouldn't have to suffer the plethora of total comedy mediocrity that has taken over the TV. Thanks for posting this.
Didn't expect to see as ASMR creator here :p
Fantastic parody of Surabaya Johnny, which I performe many times back in the day.
😂 Brilliant 😅
TOTALLY TOTALLY BRILLIANT
Apparently Peter Pears, who in most accounts has been described as a nice bloke with a sense of humour, was flattered and amused by this but prickly Britten was furious and never spoke to Moore again.
I love him
Utterly sublime!
Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant!
Obscene talent. Phenomenal!
Priceless!
Brilliant! What a tragedy he became so gravely ill w what would deprive him of just this... long before his untimely, nay, infathomable death. Fondest memories. He could (& did) make Monty Python look like the Muppets! RIP, Sir
Yes, taken from us far too soon.
No need to rubbish Monty Python. They were good too.
@@anthonyclark4732 I was "rubbishing" the Muppets!
MP was really very amateurish - which was part of its charm at the time, but actually truth be told, hasn't worn well with age but relies on nostalgia - Dudley on the other hand is very professional and well crafted despite the spontaneity which is why it makes us laugh without us remembering we're supposed to laugh
Ohh how I miss your face. Your laugh. Hope to see you on the other side. Sky World ❤️
Brilliant!
The introduction is by Jonathan Miller
Incredible.
he's actually a good singer when he's not taking the piss!
Ain't that something...
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. This is a debt unpaid to Ben and Peter. Amusing parody but not without its antecedents.
@MichaSchlechtriem Agreed
It's okay. Pears thought this was hilarious
His imitation of Pears is hilarious! Not my favorite voice ever. There is always a lot of truth in imitation.
GOETHE.
This was apparently loved by Peter Pears and hated by Ben Britten!
No wonder Cook was so jealous of him.
According to his biography, Peter Cook could effortlessly do anything he put his hand to, EXCEPT anything musical. He couldn't even sing a note. That's probably why he was so jealous of Dud's talent.
All Miller had to do to sound like a posh twit is just be himself. Been doing it ever since.
How old is the maestro?
I didn't realize he was working as an adult in the black and white days
I believe Britten didn't have much of a sense of humour, so I wonder what he might have made of this parody; it's actually rather better than most of Britten in my opinion!
I've heard he was furious.
Then your opinion shows no real musical sense...
Try listening to Spring Symphony or A Midsummer Night's Dream and you may change your mind.
Why Goethe?
Und so was umfragen Volkswagen?
See also the parodies of Faure and Schubert here ruclips.net/video/xsfHQ0rlDB4/видео.html
... the irony is that Moore in fact had inherently a better voice than Pears. Notice that here Moore manages the arpeggios etc. much better than Pears could ever manage. Perhaps that was lost on Pears...