Hey, I absolutely love your vids! I’ve always been interested in this movie. One recommendation for a possible future video, could you go into detail about why Disney’s classic villain songs are so good? (Be Prepared, Hellfire, Friends on the Other Side, etc.) I think it would be very interesting. Thanks!
@concildremford1763 Prince of Egypt is easily in my top 3 animated musicals. I'm Jewish, and growing up I'd watch it every year around Passover. Definitely plan to talk about it.
9:09 making Clopin flash with the Deacon was SO BRILLIANT on so many levels. Not only does it remind us that this is a recounting in the past and not an active event happening, but it makes Clopin and _his people_ EQUAL to Arch Deacon and what he represents. They're both saying the same thing, literally in recounting the tale, and morally in confronting Frollo. In the movie, Frollo is the man in the wrong, not the Church (represented by the Arch Deacon) and the Romani (represented by Clopin) are not in opposition with each other, but against Frollo's cruel tyranny.
I totally agree with what you're saying here! The church is not the villian, the villian is Frollo, specifically. Frollo is abusing his power and twisting God's word for his own evil desires. I have a real problem with the way that she tries to fit, "clergy," in as a possible replacement for, "minions." What is the archbishop if not part of the clergy?
@@Yoshirama 10:10 "It's so much more negative than a word like followers or clergy" She doesn't really suggests using "clergy" as a replacement. She is just saying how "clergy" and "follower" have a much softer connotation to them than "minion". But I also don't quite understand your last question. This is the Archbishop speaking about Frollo's "minions". He is a judge, so his subordinates would not be clergy (I'm just gonna stop here, it's late and I might start rambling xD I agree with your main point though
@@Galileo156I think that Yoshi intended Astor’s phrase as other usable words instead of “minions” (which i did too NGL) and said that clergy would be wrong to use and that the Deacon was part of the Clergy
Well, this isn’t the first time Disney has fallen this low. Even when Disney got its first start, WW2 blocking occurred causing Pinocchio, and Fantasia to bomb. After Walt Disney’s death, Disney was focusing more on budgets for their films, as opposed to quality. Accumulating to “The Black Cauldron” bombing so hard in the box office, it was declared the saddest day in Disney history. Then after the Disney renaissance era, direct to DVD occurred, and Disney was more focused on making animated sequels to their films. I get that 2023 was a terrible year for Disney, I hated the films they were pumping out too. But to say, “Oh my gosh! Disney has fallen this low, and there’s no hope!” I find rather disingenuous. Heck, movies like “The Little Mermaid”, “Beauty and the Beast”, and “Hunchback of Norte Dame” were made after a period when people thought Disney was coming to an end. I don’t intend this to be a judgmental reply; but I just think everybody’s just overreacting to what is just a temporary phase that naturally occurs.
@@Diloparker no I agree. Disney has definitely made comebacks. Just look at their more recent renaissance of stuff like Tangled, Frozen, or even Encanto/Coco. It just feels like Disney limits its creativity in the name of safe bets e.g. live action remakes and Wish feeling like it was written to check off as many cash boxes possible in its development. It can definitely make a stunning reversal if they learn from their mistakes
@@Diloparker from what ive noticed disney seems to fall into decade long slumps every other decade for one reason or another. they have always bounced back though, but they need to re-learn some lessons along the way
Me too. I also find it interesting that you can interpret that phrase in two ways. He could mean that you cannot hide your sin from the eyes of the church, literally symbolized by the statues in their niches, but he could also mean "our lady", i.e. the Virgin Mary, whom the church is named for. People would pray to Mary to act as a conduit for God's mercy and forgiveness (that's why the famous prayer begins with "Hail, Mary, full of grace"), which is the area in which Frollo's failure to embody Christian values is most marked. Mary would have forgiven the gypsies even if they had committed a crime; Frollo exacts a violent, disproportionate revenge and even tries to kill a helpless child as well. What a monster.
@@cinnamonnoir2487 I appreciate your clarification on this subject. To view christianity or the Catholic Church as the villian in this movie is missing the forest for the trees. Frollo is a bad guy, a corrupt man in a position of power, abusing and twisting God's word for his own purposes. It is the eyes of Notre Dame that have witnessed his deeds, by extension, it is God who see's what Frollo has done. It is the archbishop, lead by his faith and understanding of God's greatest commandment, to love one's neighbour, that calls Frollo out on wis wickedness. I would like to further clarify though, catholics do not pray to Mary neccesarily to act as a conduit, Mary is not a middle man between us and God. Mary is prayed to for her intercession. Mary, the mother of God, at the wedding of Cana, asked Christ to perform a miracle that He had no interest in performing, a miracle that Christ essentially said he didn't want to perform. She asked Him to do it regardless, and out of respect for His mother, he did it anyway. A prayer to Mary is a prayer asking her to, more or less, put in a good word for our supplication. Also, the prayer begins with, "Hail, Mary, full of grace," because this is how the angel Gabriel addressed Mary at the annunciation.
@@cinnamonnoir2487so Frollo's crime wasn't just killing a mother on the steps of a church. It's killing an innocent mother on the steps of a church dedicated to the mother of god. I literally cannot think of a greater act of sacrilege omg
@@shadowprincess3724 Yes, exactly. The Catholic church puts a great deal of weight on the importance of respecting religious symbols. To commit a mortal sin in any church is a horrendous thing to do, let alone in Notre Dame, which is a basilica and a symbol not only of the Church but of France as a nation. It's like attacking somebody with a burning flag. I really like that detail because Victor Hugo wrote _Notre Dame de Paris_ in the first place because he was upset over how much the church had been allowed to decay and be forgotten over the years. The church is as much a character in that book as Frollo, Quasimodo and Esmeralda are.
A bit of interesting double meaning is that "Notre Dame" roughly translates to "Our Lady" from French, with the real Notre Dame Cathedral having the full name "Our Lady of Paris", referring to the Virgin Mary. It is just as applicable that the line "you never can run nor hide what you've done from the eyes, the very eyes of Notre Dame" just as much refers to Frollo being unable to hide from the eyes of Heaven as much as those of the literal statues and cathedral.
Another thing about the Archdeacon and his part in the song is how he shows that, even within the Church, there is so much disdain for what Frollo does
Another clever thing about the Archdeacon scene is the slight ambiguity as to what they're each referring to as 'Notre Dame'. Notre Dame isn't just the name of a cathedral, it's also French for 'Our Lady', another name for the Virgin Mary. When you know this context, it honestly makes a lot more sense for the Archdeacon to be threatening Frollo with *that*, with the eyes of God and the Saints, rather than with the cathedral itself. He's a religious leader, after all, and Frollo just fucking murdered someone and tried to drown a baby. Frollo is the one who bypasses that interpretation and instead focuses on the eyes of the statues and gargoyles on the walls of the cathedral itself. Because the film is very clear that Frollo is more interested in religion as an institution that can give him power.
Damn that's quite a layered moment for a kids' film. Really goes to show what you can get when you let the talented artists at your studio do their thing rather than making them bend to fit the whims of a boardroom of executives.
Also, note that all of the statues (which are shown from Frollo’s point of view) are glaring directly at him, and that his eyes come to rest on a statue of Mary (Notre Dame herself) holding the young Jesus, both with the same furious expressions as the other statues.
I think the takeaway from the love of Hunchback is that Disney needs to do more adaptations of light horrors stories. Come on baby give me that Disney Frankenstein musical!
While I do agree that Frankenstein would be cool, Hunchback was most definitely not a good thing. It's an adaptation in name only and it undercuts its own seriousness or messaging too much.
@@CanelaAguila Here's an idea. Maybe instead of demanding Disney to do an adaptation of Frankenstein Maybe you and Greayworks7232 should go and get some 2D animators and musicians together to make A 2D Disney adaptation of Frankenstein!! Since I doubt Disney will bother to listen to Greayworks7232 request! Aside from making a shitty woke Live Action Frankenstein film we probably don't need.
7:50 The “Dies Irae” is one of my favorite bits of music trivia. It shows up basically EVERYWHERE when something’s about to go wrong (For example, it’s all over “Making Christmas” in “Nightmare Before Christmas”). I love hearing it in places, and it was good to know it’s here, too.
I was gonna comment something similar to this! I love this detail so much. The Dies Irae really is everywhere, from Star Wars to Lord of the Rings to The Lion King. It even shows up in Home Alone! Also iirc, it's usually used to signify death, which is just really cool
I did a presentation on the Dies Irae a couple of months ago and it's such an interesting topic with basically infinite examples of its usage in film and TV. One of the few projects I've done that hasn't felt like a chore
TINY correction: the chorus when Frollo appears for the first time is not singing in latin, but in greek. Kyrie Eleison is a greek expression meaning "God, have mercy". The rest of the time tho, the chorus sings in latin.
@@tommasoastaldi2513 Well, I appreciate your interest and if you don't mind, I pray that you reason your way to God someday, as I did! Hey, if you want something neat to nerd out on, check out the meaning behind what Christ meant when he said, "Father, why have you forsaken me," when he was dying on the cross. Most Christians don't even realize what he was saying, so you'll blow their minds when you bring it up.
I remember seeing this movie when I was 15 and being absolutely blown away by the power of this intro song. And still, to this day, I get goosebumps when Quasimodo’s mom pleads, “Sanctuary! Please, give us sanctuary!” And then I always want to cheer when the priest cries, “Stop!” This song is a mini movie all on its own. It’s phenomenal.
So theres more than just great lyricism behind the Arch Deacon saying "You can lie to yourself and your minions..." To say that someone had minions in the period that this takes place is a VERY big deal. Minions were little demons that did the bidding of the devil. Not something you would just casually accuse someone of having. Minions and familiars worked for witches and devils to do evil. So to accuse Frollo, a freaking judge (a priest in the book) of having minions is basically saying: "You can lie to yourself and Satan when you have your next friendly brunch together." It shows that the Arch Deacon has Frollos number and is actually pretty brave.
Kinda surprised you didn't point out how the horse's' hoofalls align to the beat of the music during the chase scene 👀 I feel like it really helps keep the tension up Or maybe I just like Frollo's horse too much 🤣
I love the way you analyze music. You don't just focus on one element like so many people, you look at the full picture and how everything works together. This is also one of the first videos on music I've seen that knows how to actually explain why something works or doesn't. You don't say "this is good because I like it" and you don't say "This is good for a reason you will need to know music theory to understand. Here's 20 straight minutes of staring at sheet music from classical songs which most viewers cannot read, alongside musical terms most viewers will not understand." When you use a musical term, you let us hear what it means. You don't show us sheet music without context or good reason. If the beat is important, you show us- beat, beat, beat. FINALLY a video where the viewer does not need extensive musical knowledge or a carefully trained ear to understand why something works or doesn't. Finally a video where the lyrics are not ignored in favor of the instruments, and yet each instrument is still appreciated for what it does. I have legit never seen anyone explain music as well as you do.
Part of the symbolism you miss is the final statue whose eyes look down on him. Our Lady, namesake of the cathedral holding baby Jesus looking down on Frollo and the child he sought to kill. You can lie to yourself, but you shall not lie to Our Mother.
What I find REALLY interesting about the song and the movie itself is how Disney attempted to be respectful of religion by not having the main villain actually be a religious leader, at least to some extent and it informs the audience about Frollo's character. If I recall correctly, Frollo *is* a priest in the original book, but Disney not only changed him into a judge but had Frollo get talked down to by an archdeacon (Which is a kind of priest). It highlights how Frollo's desire for power is the problem and not religion itself. It also highlights how *below* Frollo is in a way as well as his ironic fear of judgment. Like, if Frollo really thought he was so high and mighty, then he doesn't actually have to take the archdeacon's scolding for killing Quasimodo's mother and trying to kill Quasimodo himself. Why would he? In his mind, he's doing the right thing. But the archdeacon's words punctuate both how the religion is actually supposed to function, but also how *low* Frollo has already sunk. In the few minutes of the song, he has at least three random people arrested, kills one person, and tries to kill a second person. He KNOWS that things are not going to go his way when he eventually meets his maker for judgment, so he tries to ignore/downplay his actions by pretending to repent by taking care of Quasimodo. He knows the actual religious leader is right, he just doesn't want to admit it.
Frollo actually is the archdeacon in the novel, but he’s also nowhere near as evil. For starters, he willingly adopts Quasimodo out of genuine compassion, and raises both him and his own younger brother Jehan. He’s not a nice man by any means, and his lust for Esmeralda still ends up destroying him, but he’s much more of a tragic figure.
While I love watching you explain why bad Disney songs are such a mess, hearing you use your musical knowledge to explain why a piece of music is so brilliant is fun as well, especially when it’s from Hunchback. I think I can say that Hunchback of Notre Dame has the most powerful ost of any Disney film (minus the song that shall not be named). Also side note, but your videos have also helped me learn more about lyricism and how I can improve on my own lyrcis so thanks for that 😊
@@frogwhisperer2067 neat. Tbf Guy like you is a bit overhated there are WAY worse Disney songs out there and it did get a few laughs out of me the first time I watched it.
@@frogwhisperer2067 My main problem with A Guy Like You is its placement in the story. Putting such a light hearted song right when Frollo is burning down all of Paris just gives me mood whiplash every single time I watch this movie. If it weren't for that, I'd probably enjoy the song a lot more. (For example, every song I've heard from Wish I've enjoyed a LOT less than ANY song from Hunchback)
Bells of notre dame is my favorite intro song from Disney, yes even counting circle of life, for all the reasons you mentioned in your video. The lyrics as so tightly written, the melody makes my heart skip a beat every time, and it's just such a breath of fresh air to hear internal and slant rhymes actually used well after you-know-what came out last November Bonus goes to that final added line of countermelody in its reprise at the end of the film. "Whatever their PITCH you can feel them beWITCH you the RICH and the RITual knells" is one of my favorite uses of internal rhyme in anything ever. I love this movie man. I'm so glad it's getting more love nowadays.
I like how right after killing a mother with her child, the first thing that scares Frollo was Mary, a statue of a mother also carrying a child. The cathedral was named "Our Lady" in French after her. Even the fact that the baby was crying, but stayed silent throughout the chase after hearing her voice.
You filled the Sideways shaped heart that was missing ever since him taking a break, I really hope you don’t get flack either for your music theory like he did in his heyday >:( I swear Twitter as a platform sucks, keep up the good work!
This is an absolutely brilliant section of the movie, and my second favorite after the "Heaven's Light/Hellfire" scene. I love how cleverly the lyrics take an inverted, carnival-esque look at the world, in which things are superficially one way but the exact opposite in reality. Clopin is a gypsy, an outcast from "polite" society, but in the context of his puppet show he stands above society and criticizes it, just as he does later in the Court of Miracles, where the criminals are the judges and the forces of law and order are on trial. He tells a story of "a man and a monster", at first inviting the listener to think of Quasimodo as the monster and Frollo as the man; but he hints at the fact, which we discover later, that although Quasimodo appears monstrous he has a kind and sensitive heart, while Frollo appears to be an ordinary man but is in fact not only cruel and heartless, but self-serving as well (the opposite of his ostensible dedication to justice). The "Feast of Fools" which occurs a few scenes later is an even more overt metaphor, an actual carnival during which, just like in real Catholic countries, the harshness of a society normally stratified by economic and legal distinctions is softened by having a holiday in which up is down, black is white, and the powerful abandon their power for a short time, while a "king" is elected by the crowd. There's some parallels here with the biblical injunction that "the last shall be first, and the first shall be last" as well; that's one reason why the church didn't try to put a stop to carnival celebrations even though they often went pretty crazy. A lot of people have claimed that _The Hunchback of Notre Dame_ dumbs down and simplifies the story of the original book, but personally I think Victor Hugo would be pleased with it. His most important ideas are preserved here, and Alan Menken's music does so much to bring the ideas to life.
YES YES A MILLION TIMES YES Hunchback’s music is just A+++, and any analysis and love for it is very welcome. My hot take: even though it’s “closer to the book,” the Broadway version of this song pales in comparison to the epic-ness of the film version.
They're also the only part of the Mass ordinary that's in Greek, which is interesting. That suggests that it's the oldest part of the mass, since Greek was the language of the early Church fathers and the original version of the New Testament.
You've given me a new appreciation for this song. I'm french so I haven't grown up with this version, and to be honest I was never a fan of the movie so I didn't care much for the songs, though in recent years I've rediscovered some of them, like Hellfire, God Help the Outcasts and now The Bells of Notre Dame. Having experienced both versions of the song, it's interesting to see what was lost in the translation : some of the meaning (when describing Frollo, the french version says that "Judge Claude Frollo fights against vice and sin/In a corrupted world that must be purified", not specifying that the most sinful and dark place in this world might just be Frollo's own heart), and some of the meter, rythm, internal rhymes... But there's also some added meaning throughout the song, which stems from french being the original language of the story. As you said, Paris towards the start of the song, and Frollo and his guilty deeds towards the end are under the eyes/the watch of Notre Dame, as in the holy place, the cathedral and its statues of saints. But in french, the name of the cathedral isn't foreign. Thus "The very eyes of Notre Dame" has a double meaning : "The eyes of Notre Dame", and "The eyes of Our Lady, the Holy Virgin Mary". If you've got a catholic upbringing, it adds a whole new meaning to this part of the song. Despite most christians presenting God as some kind of all loving sky daddy, even to a christian, he's an ambivalent figure that would drown the whole world in his wrath or give a child cancer because "the lord works in mysterious ways". Mary on the other hand is a figure of all encompassing love and purity. She will not judge or punish you ; if God is Our Father in Heaven, then Mary is Our Mother. If you've grown up french and in a catholic culture, Frollo's terror in this part of the song is not just him fearing for his soul ; it feels like a son seeing the hurt in his mother's eyes on his way to the death row. Not just "oh shit, my actions may have (eternal) consequences", but him considering "I may be wrong, I may have caused suffering", even if for a brief moment. There's might also be somthing interesting in the fact that he kills a mother, is ready to kill her child, and ends up taking up the role of parent to this child in front of (a cathedral dedicated to) the woman venerated for being the mother of god. tl;dr : as a french, the french version isn't as good as the original, but it gives us the added meaning of Frollo commiting his crimes not only in front of Notre Dame the cathedral, but also in front of Our Lady (Notre Dame), Saint Mary, Mother of God.
I used to sing in a choir for several years. This song is one of my favs to sing from Disney because MAAAAANNNN, the choral elements and grand sound really get it. Thx for breaking it down! 😊
At 8:00, the text is the literal original lyrics in the Requiem Mass. A Requiem mass is a mass for the dead, and in this specific piece of text it is a reference to the Apocalypse. It is talking about the Final Judgment, which is mirrored in the visuals and the plot when Frollo is defeated. It is the oldest text set to "modern" notation system, going back to the 12th Century. It's a terrifying thing to have referenced by a full choir in a kid's movie, and a very risky choice considering how the Catholic Church treats death and liturgical texts
At 11:48 he actually hits a D5 the sheet music is meant to be octavated. Still an incredible feat 2 semitones out of standard tenor range and a powerful belt. However D6 is a high soprano note that would be shrill in a male voice (if even possible).
Another thing- during the intro of count frollo the way clopin says clutches and iron in time of the head movement and hoof stomps of the hourse emohasizing power and dread! Most of the other animation in the scene was fairly smooth but the jeeking movement of the horse and frollo adds to the scene so much! Also when the mother dies on the stairs there is a deas ires series of notes and occurs many times leading up to it !
The is definitely one of the most emotive and enthralling opening songs in Disney film history. It makes me quite sad that we’ll probably never get anything like Hunchback again.
Great to see your deconstruction of a genuinely good Disney song as opposed to the butchered disney remake versions, hopefully this is is the start of many more to come. I would love to know your opinion and analysis of the song sequences from Tarzan, most critics, even ones I amire a great deal, seem to step on the way that movie handles it's soundtrack but to me it's absolutely Phenomenal.
The feeling I get (for instance from the youtuber Sideways in his video) is that most people agree that Phil Collins' songs are great, but that having a disembodied voice (Phil) sing them rather than the characters themselves creates a kind of disconnect.
@@dracognia Yeah Sideways video is the one I am hinting at (great video). I agree to an extent, and perhaps it's simply that I grew up watching the film so I built that emotional connection, but I still think the songs work. Kind of as a musical narration. I remember a behind the scenes featurette where Phil goes through each song and who it's coming from narratively, Strangers like me being Tarzan obviously, Son of man being his biological father which is interesting, and Two worlds as a general narrator (?) I can't remember that one. But yeah, the instrumentals, stunning visuals and probably most importantly fast paced forward momentum of these scenes more than justifies the way the soundtrack is given to us, as far as I'm concerned anyway. But I'm glad that regardless of people's opinions on the soundtrack we can all agree these tracks are absolute bangers, and that's enough for me. Thanks for the reply! 👍🏻
@@danielcollin8227 Bangers they are! Cool with the idea of the different songs still being connected to specific characters - I didn't know that. There are also other films and series that do similar things. The webseries "RWBY" for instance, which - love it or hate it - has a phenomenal soundtrack. The songs there are also connected to specific characters (for example, "Red Like Roses: Part II" is a duet between the main character and her departed mother), and will often hint at events that come much later in the series itself.
@@dracognia Found it! ruclips.net/video/IuzzVfJXRrI/видео.htmlsi=ddYDK-j9EFq5yY_G. Sideways makes another good point in his video that the fact Disney had been giving out nothing but musicals for the last decade at that point there was probably pressure to offer a soundtrack in a different way. And one thing I'd definitely think would improve it would be to give Clayton a damn villain song. Even if it's something like an inversion of strangers like me but he's singing from a place of wanting to know so he can exploit rather than learn.
A fun fact about all of the Latin phrases in the music of this film: they all come from Catholic liturgy. Dies Ire is a common phrase in Catholic music. Mea Culpa is part of the ritual of repentance. Etc. Each of these phrases has layers of meaning in their use because of it. There's the religious aspect of setting the tone, displaying the importance of religion to the world and the characters in it, but they also comment on what's happening in the story, and convey something about the character in focus when the phrase is said.
This song is so underrated. I remembered little from the movie from childhood to adulthood, but the Arch Deacons parts were still as clear as, well… the bells of Notre Dame.
I remember as a kid I despised the sing-song moments in kids movies, but Notre Dame always made me appreciate what was happening. I wish we could get more kids’ movies with serious subject matters, to make the less happy youths feel heard, like this and The Incredibles.
I think what gets lost in time that Renaissance musicals were largely based off of the Broadway scene of the seventies and eighties. Does one we got the baby shows like Les mis (you can really hear a lot of them things like the hunchback), Godspell, A chorus line, and S. Todd. All of these shows took a more darker and realistic approach at the woes of life, a really challenged what you could see on Broadway. That experimentation is what eventually led to the modern Broadway sphere in many ways
Ahhh I love this analysis! I have one added little thing. The Dies Irae (day of wrath) is an old leitmotif that has been used to signify death ever since Wagner's use of it in Der Ring Des Nibelungen. So while I agree with you that part of it is a foreshadowing to Esmeralda's burning (which visually really invokes the day of wrath) and Frolo's death, I also think its use in the Bells of Notre Dame is specifically to foreshadow the death of Quasimodo's mother. So basically, anywhere you hear the Dies Irae (especially the first bars), you can expect some kind of death. (I think the Dies Irae also gets used for the death of Mufasa)
I love music breakdowns. I don't really understand music, I mean I like listen to it and all that, but I don't have a deeper understanding of it. So, thank you for doing that, I always loved this intro to The Hunchback of Notre Dame, but now I also understand all the little details.
I watch a lot of RUclips channels that delve into music writing and music theory, usually using examples from popular media. This, however, is one of the only ones that goes more into lyrical composition, and that makes it undeniably useful to songwriters like me, on top of being entertaining. Definitely hoping this channel continues to grow, as I love watching these videos, Also, side note: the Dies Irae chant is often used in scoring to represent death (see also Star Wars, The Lion King, and almost every song in Sweeney Todd), so I took it as being musical foreshadowing to the Gypsy woman's imminent death at the hands of Frollo.
Who else just instantly got chills at that very first big note?? "The very eyes of Notre Dame." Part of what also makes this line so much more chilling and powerful is if you understand it from a historical context. Frollo just killed a woman in cold blood on the steps of a church, literally before the sight of God. BIG major no no at that time period.
Honestly something I really appreciate is that the lyrics aren’t all in English, keeping a native language even as just choir chanting really adds that final cultural touch, especially when it hits harder than any English speaking.
I'd also add that, in a way, this music answers Clopin's question for us: "Who is the monster and who is the man..." At which point we see Quasimodo and get that major key shift... We're told right from the start who the man is.
I had no idea Bells of Notre Dame was originally spoken narration! I first wanted to watch the movie when I found out there was a Disney song called "Hellfire" of all things, but this opening number immediately sold me on the movie itself.
Disney was so amazing in the 90s. I really hope one day we can get past the politics and embarrassing pop music and whatever Scuttlebutt was supposed to be and go back to the quality of the Renaissance. The fact we went from "Part of Your World", "Circle of Life", "Out There/Hellfire", "I won't Say I'm in Love" and "Reflection" to remake songs using auto tune and absolute atrocities like Scuttlebutt is criminal.
This movie and many others of the Disney renaissance have been a fascinating topic for me for a long stretch of my life, so it's amazing to find an analysis that presents something surprisingly new about a piece of work i'm all too familiar with! I'm not too educated on the structure of music and songwriting, yet the way you delivered the whole explanation of your point was clear, direct and easily understandable. Thanks for this great video.
Brilliant analysis! You basically said everything about this opening that I was already thinking and feeling but couldn't quite put into words! Thank you!
There's so much hidden depth in the latin/greek choir throughout the film that does not get enough credit. I highly recommend reading through the translations, especially for Sanctuary and And He Shall Smite the Wicked
I'm loving your Disney analysis! Thanks for bringing attention to this true masterpiece of a song. Just a couple of things, you didn't mention it, but the Dies Irae (the chant during the chase scene) is a tune and lyrics that have been used since Medieval times to signify death. And also, Clopin does NOT hit a D6, the choir does. He clearly sings a D5.
The chant ‘god have mercy’ is actually in Greek, not Latin. Kyrie, eleison is one of the few Greek prayers adopted by the Catholic Church, while nearly everything else is in Latin
Setting "The Bells of Notre Dame"s meter to 3 could also be an (un?)intentional nod to mensural-era European music, where triple meter was considered "perfect", presumably because it's a nod to the Trinity in Christianity.
Just found your channel, and thank you for filling the sideways-shaped hole in my life right now. Keep up the beautiful work, and I hope more will find this wonderful channel, and the amazing you.
It’s a miracle that an animated musical with these themes and dark tone was made, and that it’s a masterpiece(imo). I doubt they’ll ever do something like this again, I wish they would! Seeing this vid immediately after watching some of your critiques of the more recent Disney musical films really highlights how trash they are in every way in comparison lol
There is *such* potential for storytelling in music, lyrically and instrumentally. This is an incredible breakdown, and I can hardly wait for more. If ever you want to branch out from just disney movies, I highly recommend the Hatchetfield trilogy of musicals made by team starkid.
You know, "Someday" is used in the stage of musical of HoND. I think you could do a brilliant video on how the musical decisions in stage musicals of Disney works vs. Original movies work both practically (different spaces and technologies available) and within the story (how different the stage vs. Movie ending of HoND is).
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the stage version of this song. Since it follows the book more closely(as far as I'm aware), the entire number is (narratively) different. But also the instrumentation for the musical is just SO good. The way they use the saint statues as the sort of narrators/Greek chorus was such a smart decision imo. I love the stage musical, possibly more than the movie 🫣 sacrilege I know
i had the opportunity to see an outdoors production of the stage musical adaptation of the disney movie quite some time ago. they set the stage up before the city's biggest church and as the first notes rang out the wind rose up, adding a howl to the music and the choir. this song is already powerful but i havent been so close to fearing god ever since that evening.
So I watched the stage musical version of Hunchback in a cathedral. And the chorus was like 30 people who all filed out doing the "dahhh dahhh dah. Dahhh dah dah!" and christ the CHILLS I got
While Frollo was originally the Archdeacon, qnd Disney also didn't want to be lore controversial than the film was already going to be, i do think it was better to separate the Archdeacon from Frollo. The two faces of the Church: the compassionate and the cruel, the merciful and the merciless, the true worshipper and the wicked hypocrite. True for any church, the two faces are in each of them, too; and even better/worse, the two faces are in each of us. One face looks up to heaven and the other to hell. We have the potential to give others a piece of either one.
I just stumbled onto your channel and I love it. I saw the detailed analysis of the many problem with 'This Wish' and hoped you would have a video about THoND, and you went all the way with this love letter to the song. Every aspect of this movie is a masterpiece and I love watching videos that recognise it. Yours was wonderful, it made me think of new things and I would very much like to see you analise the rest of the soundtrack. Heaven's Light/Hellfire is one of the biggest challenges Disney ever took, Out There is so touching, and those little bits of lyrics interspersed in the soundtrack, e,g, 'He Shall Smite the Wicked', and 'Sanctuary'. You are, of course, welcome to analise anything you want and I'll be sure to watch it; I just subscribed.
It's funny how in years I've been listening to thiis song and watching this movie I never noticed that Quasimodo doesn't actually mean half-formed. Clopin lied lol
I love the original version and the metal version done by Jonathan Young and Caleb Hyles. The screams that they put in add to another layer of desperation and pure rawness to the injustice that has, and will continue to be, committed
Separate comment, ecause it's nothing to do with thw song structure. But I greatly appreciate the use of colors as you pointed out for France and the Romani people. Notre Dame de Paris was more about the acrhitecture of the the Cathedral itself, rather than the characters, and incorporating this kind of character into the buildings themselves, as well as the fictional steps mentioned in in the original text, really shows they did their reading and have a passion of sorts for the book, even if the theming is geared towards the characters moreso than the Cathedral itself.
What an amazing analysis of this excellent segment!!! Gosh, what a masterpiece. I have been obsessed with it forever, and especially the archdeacon's part. The way he says "NEVER" holding onto that note always gets me, for some reason.
I LOVE your breakdowns - you have the vocab, understanding and education to properly express a lot of the stuff musically that I kinda innately understand but can't really articulate properly! it's really educational and enjoyable for me to watch your vids and I always learn a lot 🥰 keep it up!
Even though I grew to dislike this movie after reading the source material, 'bells' is still such an amazing song that I wanted to play for a piano recital when I was a kid.
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The Hunchback of Notre Dame is my second favourite Disney movie next to Mulan
Hey, I absolutely love your vids! I’ve always been interested in this movie. One recommendation for a possible future video, could you go into detail about why Disney’s classic villain songs are so good? (Be Prepared, Hellfire, Friends on the Other Side, etc.) I think it would be very interesting. Thanks!
Once you're done with Notre Dame please, please, please check out
Prince of Egypt by dreamworks. It is criminally underated
@concildremford1763 Prince of Egypt is easily in my top 3 animated musicals. I'm Jewish, and growing up I'd watch it every year around Passover. Definitely plan to talk about it.
@@astorrhymemaster nice!
9:09 making Clopin flash with the Deacon was SO BRILLIANT on so many levels. Not only does it remind us that this is a recounting in the past and not an active event happening, but it makes Clopin and _his people_ EQUAL to Arch Deacon and what he represents. They're both saying the same thing, literally in recounting the tale, and morally in confronting Frollo. In the movie, Frollo is the man in the wrong, not the Church (represented by the Arch Deacon) and the Romani (represented by Clopin) are not in opposition with each other, but against Frollo's cruel tyranny.
I totally agree with what you're saying here! The church is not the villian, the villian is Frollo, specifically. Frollo is abusing his power and twisting God's word for his own evil desires.
I have a real problem with the way that she tries to fit, "clergy," in as a possible replacement for, "minions." What is the archbishop if not part of the clergy?
@@Yoshirama but she doesn't??
@@Yoshirama 10:10 "It's so much more negative than a word like followers or clergy"
She doesn't really suggests using "clergy" as a replacement. She is just saying how "clergy" and "follower" have a much softer connotation to them than "minion".
But I also don't quite understand your last question. This is the Archbishop speaking about Frollo's "minions". He is a judge, so his subordinates would not be clergy
(I'm just gonna stop here, it's late and I might start rambling xD I agree with your main point though
@@Galileo156I think that Yoshi intended Astor’s phrase as other usable words instead of “minions” (which i did too NGL) and said that clergy would be wrong to use and that the Deacon was part of the Clergy
it also helps re-insert the narrator since the line is "Stop, cried the Archdeacon"
To go from the brilliance of this piece to something like “This is the Thanks I Get?” Really shows how far Disney has fallen
Well, this isn’t the first time Disney has fallen this low.
Even when Disney got its first start, WW2 blocking occurred causing Pinocchio, and Fantasia to bomb.
After Walt Disney’s death, Disney was focusing more on budgets for their films, as opposed to quality. Accumulating to “The Black Cauldron” bombing so hard in the box office, it was declared the saddest day in Disney history.
Then after the Disney renaissance era, direct to DVD occurred, and Disney was more focused on making animated sequels to their films.
I get that 2023 was a terrible year for Disney, I hated the films they were pumping out too. But to say, “Oh my gosh! Disney has fallen this low, and there’s no hope!” I find rather disingenuous.
Heck, movies like “The Little Mermaid”, “Beauty and the Beast”, and “Hunchback of Norte Dame” were made after a period when people thought Disney was coming to an end.
I don’t intend this to be a judgmental reply; but I just think everybody’s just overreacting to what is just a temporary phase that naturally occurs.
@@Diloparker no I agree. Disney has definitely made comebacks. Just look at their more recent renaissance of stuff like Tangled, Frozen, or even Encanto/Coco.
It just feels like Disney limits its creativity in the name of safe bets e.g. live action remakes and Wish feeling like it was written to check off as many cash boxes possible in its development. It can definitely make a stunning reversal if they learn from their mistakes
@@taliyahc2452 I agree, I refuse to watch “Wish”. I contributed to Wish’s failure and I don’t care.
@@Diloparker from what ive noticed disney seems to fall into decade long slumps every other decade for one reason or another. they have always bounced back though, but they need to re-learn some lessons along the way
@@vyvisabastard That’s exactly what I was trying to say, but I guess your response was a better/simpler way of putting it.
Also yes I agree.
"The very eyes of Notre Dame"
I get chills every time.
Me too. I also find it interesting that you can interpret that phrase in two ways. He could mean that you cannot hide your sin from the eyes of the church, literally symbolized by the statues in their niches, but he could also mean "our lady", i.e. the Virgin Mary, whom the church is named for. People would pray to Mary to act as a conduit for God's mercy and forgiveness (that's why the famous prayer begins with "Hail, Mary, full of grace"), which is the area in which Frollo's failure to embody Christian values is most marked.
Mary would have forgiven the gypsies even if they had committed a crime; Frollo exacts a violent, disproportionate revenge and even tries to kill a helpless child as well. What a monster.
@@cinnamonnoir2487 I appreciate your clarification on this subject. To view christianity or the Catholic Church as the villian in this movie is missing the forest for the trees. Frollo is a bad guy, a corrupt man in a position of power, abusing and twisting God's word for his own purposes.
It is the eyes of Notre Dame that have witnessed his deeds, by extension, it is God who see's what Frollo has done. It is the archbishop, lead by his faith and understanding of God's greatest commandment, to love one's neighbour, that calls Frollo out on wis wickedness.
I would like to further clarify though, catholics do not pray to Mary neccesarily to act as a conduit, Mary is not a middle man between us and God. Mary is prayed to for her intercession.
Mary, the mother of God, at the wedding of Cana, asked Christ to perform a miracle that He had no interest in performing, a miracle that Christ essentially said he didn't want to perform. She asked Him to do it regardless, and out of respect for His mother, he did it anyway. A prayer to Mary is a prayer asking her to, more or less, put in a good word for our supplication.
Also, the prayer begins with, "Hail, Mary, full of grace," because this is how the angel Gabriel addressed Mary at the annunciation.
@@cinnamonnoir2487so Frollo's crime wasn't just killing a mother on the steps of a church. It's killing an innocent mother on the steps of a church dedicated to the mother of god.
I literally cannot think of a greater act of sacrilege omg
@@shadowprincess3724 Yes, exactly. The Catholic church puts a great deal of weight on the importance of respecting religious symbols. To commit a mortal sin in any church is a horrendous thing to do, let alone in Notre Dame, which is a basilica and a symbol not only of the Church but of France as a nation. It's like attacking somebody with a burning flag.
I really like that detail because Victor Hugo wrote _Notre Dame de Paris_ in the first place because he was upset over how much the church had been allowed to decay and be forgotten over the years. The church is as much a character in that book as Frollo, Quasimodo and Esmeralda are.
That line and the final line of the song. That D6 hits so hard. So many songs from this movie make me tear up
A bit of interesting double meaning is that "Notre Dame" roughly translates to "Our Lady" from French, with the real Notre Dame Cathedral having the full name "Our Lady of Paris", referring to the Virgin Mary. It is just as applicable that the line "you never can run nor hide what you've done from the eyes, the very eyes of Notre Dame" just as much refers to Frollo being unable to hide from the eyes of Heaven as much as those of the literal statues and cathedral.
Isn't he also praying to Mary later in Hellfire?
@@CatalinaLinal7710 Yes, yes he is.
Our Lady staring down at Frollo like “I know what you did and I am PISSED” gives me chills EVERY time.
Another thing about the Archdeacon and his part in the song is how he shows that, even within the Church, there is so much disdain for what Frollo does
Demons like frollo are what divide us
Another clever thing about the Archdeacon scene is the slight ambiguity as to what they're each referring to as 'Notre Dame'. Notre Dame isn't just the name of a cathedral, it's also French for 'Our Lady', another name for the Virgin Mary.
When you know this context, it honestly makes a lot more sense for the Archdeacon to be threatening Frollo with *that*, with the eyes of God and the Saints, rather than with the cathedral itself. He's a religious leader, after all, and Frollo just fucking murdered someone and tried to drown a baby.
Frollo is the one who bypasses that interpretation and instead focuses on the eyes of the statues and gargoyles on the walls of the cathedral itself. Because the film is very clear that Frollo is more interested in religion as an institution that can give him power.
Damn that's quite a layered moment for a kids' film. Really goes to show what you can get when you let the talented artists at your studio do their thing rather than making them bend to fit the whims of a boardroom of executives.
Also, note that all of the statues (which are shown from Frollo’s point of view) are glaring directly at him, and that his eyes come to rest on a statue of Mary (Notre Dame herself) holding the young Jesus, both with the same furious expressions as the other statues.
I think the takeaway from the love of Hunchback is that Disney needs to do more adaptations of light horrors stories. Come on baby give me that Disney Frankenstein musical!
That Disney maybe, not so sure about current Disney...
"You see, it's true, a monster like me...
Can learn to be human too!"
While I do agree that Frankenstein would be cool, Hunchback was most definitely not a good thing. It's an adaptation in name only and it undercuts its own seriousness or messaging too much.
@@CanelaAguila Here's an idea.
Maybe instead of demanding Disney to do an adaptation of Frankenstein
Maybe you and Greayworks7232 should go and get some 2D animators and musicians together to make A 2D Disney adaptation of Frankenstein!!
Since I doubt Disney will bother to listen to Greayworks7232 request!
Aside from making a shitty woke Live Action Frankenstein film we probably don't need.
Don’t be cowardly Disney…give us Jekyll and Hyde as a 2d animated Disney renaissance style film!
7:50 The “Dies Irae” is one of my favorite bits of music trivia. It shows up basically EVERYWHERE when something’s about to go wrong (For example, it’s all over “Making Christmas” in “Nightmare Before Christmas”). I love hearing it in places, and it was good to know it’s here, too.
I was gonna comment something similar to this!
I love this detail so much. The Dies Irae really is everywhere, from Star Wars to Lord of the Rings to The Lion King. It even shows up in Home Alone!
Also iirc, it's usually used to signify death, which is just really cool
I find it cool that the Nightmare Before Christmas also uses it profoundly in Jack's Lament.
For those interested, the channel Film Music Tropes has several videos of examples of Dies Irae appearing in movies
It is all over the score of Sondheim's Sweeney Todd!
I did a presentation on the Dies Irae a couple of months ago and it's such an interesting topic with basically infinite examples of its usage in film and TV. One of the few projects I've done that hasn't felt like a chore
TINY correction: the chorus when Frollo appears for the first time is not singing in latin, but in greek. Kyrie Eleison is a greek expression meaning "God, have mercy". The rest of the time tho, the chorus sings in latin.
I do love the Kyrie Eleison!
Thanks for catching that!
@Yoshirama no problem! I'm an atheist but I just LOVE to nerd on religious stuff haha
The Kyrie is Lord have Mercy. Then Christe Eleison is Christ have Mercy
@BellaSwan18 oops sorry! You're right Kyrie means Lord🫠
@@tommasoastaldi2513 Well, I appreciate your interest and if you don't mind, I pray that you reason your way to God someday, as I did!
Hey, if you want something neat to nerd out on, check out the meaning behind what Christ meant when he said, "Father, why have you forsaken me," when he was dying on the cross. Most Christians don't even realize what he was saying, so you'll blow their minds when you bring it up.
The way the bell starts as the classic Walt Disney logo appears on screen is so good. It always gets me hyped to watch it.
I remember seeing this movie when I was 15 and being absolutely blown away by the power of this intro song. And still, to this day, I get goosebumps when Quasimodo’s mom pleads, “Sanctuary! Please, give us sanctuary!” And then I always want to cheer when the priest cries, “Stop!” This song is a mini movie all on its own. It’s phenomenal.
So theres more than just great lyricism behind the Arch Deacon saying "You can lie to yourself and your minions..."
To say that someone had minions in the period that this takes place is a VERY big deal.
Minions were little demons that did the bidding of the devil. Not something you would just casually accuse someone of having.
Minions and familiars worked for witches and devils to do evil.
So to accuse Frollo, a freaking judge (a priest in the book) of having minions is basically saying:
"You can lie to yourself and Satan when you have your next friendly brunch together."
It shows that the Arch Deacon has Frollos number and is actually pretty brave.
Yes!! This exactly! That’s one detail I wish she had caught because using the word minion is genius here for that reason!!
Kinda surprised you didn't point out how the horse's' hoofalls align to the beat of the music during the chase scene 👀 I feel like it really helps keep the tension up
Or maybe I just like Frollo's horse too much 🤣
On the DVD commentary, the directors revealed that the horse’s name is Snowball. 😅
I love the way you analyze music. You don't just focus on one element like so many people, you look at the full picture and how everything works together. This is also one of the first videos on music I've seen that knows how to actually explain why something works or doesn't. You don't say "this is good because I like it" and you don't say "This is good for a reason you will need to know music theory to understand. Here's 20 straight minutes of staring at sheet music from classical songs which most viewers cannot read, alongside musical terms most viewers will not understand." When you use a musical term, you let us hear what it means. You don't show us sheet music without context or good reason. If the beat is important, you show us- beat, beat, beat. FINALLY a video where the viewer does not need extensive musical knowledge or a carefully trained ear to understand why something works or doesn't. Finally a video where the lyrics are not ignored in favor of the instruments, and yet each instrument is still appreciated for what it does. I have legit never seen anyone explain music as well as you do.
Part of the symbolism you miss is the final statue whose eyes look down on him. Our Lady, namesake of the cathedral holding baby Jesus looking down on Frollo and the child he sought to kill. You can lie to yourself, but you shall not lie to Our Mother.
What I find REALLY interesting about the song and the movie itself is how Disney attempted to be respectful of religion by not having the main villain actually be a religious leader, at least to some extent and it informs the audience about Frollo's character.
If I recall correctly, Frollo *is* a priest in the original book, but Disney not only changed him into a judge but had Frollo get talked down to by an archdeacon (Which is a kind of priest). It highlights how Frollo's desire for power is the problem and not religion itself.
It also highlights how *below* Frollo is in a way as well as his ironic fear of judgment. Like, if Frollo really thought he was so high and mighty, then he doesn't actually have to take the archdeacon's scolding for killing Quasimodo's mother and trying to kill Quasimodo himself. Why would he? In his mind, he's doing the right thing.
But the archdeacon's words punctuate both how the religion is actually supposed to function, but also how *low* Frollo has already sunk. In the few minutes of the song, he has at least three random people arrested, kills one person, and tries to kill a second person. He KNOWS that things are not going to go his way when he eventually meets his maker for judgment, so he tries to ignore/downplay his actions by pretending to repent by taking care of Quasimodo. He knows the actual religious leader is right, he just doesn't want to admit it.
Frollo actually is the archdeacon in the novel, but he’s also nowhere near as evil. For starters, he willingly adopts Quasimodo out of genuine compassion, and raises both him and his own younger brother Jehan. He’s not a nice man by any means, and his lust for Esmeralda still ends up destroying him, but he’s much more of a tragic figure.
While I love watching you explain why bad Disney songs are such a mess, hearing you use your musical knowledge to explain why a piece of music is so brilliant is fun as well, especially when it’s from Hunchback. I think I can say that Hunchback of Notre Dame has the most powerful ost of any Disney film (minus the song that shall not be named).
Also side note, but your videos have also helped me learn more about lyricism and how I can improve on my own lyrcis so thanks for that 😊
Totally agree. It's the movie that has my favorite opening song, favorite "I want" song, and favorite villain song all in one.
A critic that can't say what's good is just a hater after all.
My hot take is that Court of Miracles is way worse than A Guy Like You
@@frogwhisperer2067 neat. Tbf Guy like you is a bit overhated there are WAY worse Disney songs out there and it did get a few laughs out of me the first time I watched it.
@@frogwhisperer2067 My main problem with A Guy Like You is its placement in the story. Putting such a light hearted song right when Frollo is burning down all of Paris just gives me mood whiplash every single time I watch this movie. If it weren't for that, I'd probably enjoy the song a lot more. (For example, every song I've heard from Wish I've enjoyed a LOT less than ANY song from Hunchback)
7:22 and in Sideways fashion, allow me to point out the inclusion of the Dies Irae with the signature change.
Bells of notre dame is my favorite intro song from Disney, yes even counting circle of life, for all the reasons you mentioned in your video. The lyrics as so tightly written, the melody makes my heart skip a beat every time, and it's just such a breath of fresh air to hear internal and slant rhymes actually used well after you-know-what came out last November
Bonus goes to that final added line of countermelody in its reprise at the end of the film. "Whatever their PITCH you can feel them beWITCH you the RICH and the RITual knells" is one of my favorite uses of internal rhyme in anything ever. I love this movie man. I'm so glad it's getting more love nowadays.
I like how right after killing a mother with her child, the first thing that scares Frollo was Mary, a statue of a mother also carrying a child. The cathedral was named "Our Lady" in French after her.
Even the fact that the baby was crying, but stayed silent throughout the chase after hearing her voice.
You filled the Sideways shaped heart that was missing ever since him taking a break, I really hope you don’t get flack either for your music theory like he did in his heyday >:(
I swear Twitter as a platform sucks, keep up the good work!
The ending part of "Bells of Notre Dame" gives me chills every time.
R.I.P. David Ogden Stiers and Tony Jay The Archdeacon and Judge Frollo are now in Heaven 😭😭😭😢
Disney then:
Disney now: tHiS iS tHe ThAnKs I gEt?!1
WatCh oUt woRLD hEre I aRE
Shoutout to Paul Kandel. His performance is so expressive. And that last note…all chest voice…simply rapturous!
This is an absolutely brilliant section of the movie, and my second favorite after the "Heaven's Light/Hellfire" scene. I love how cleverly the lyrics take an inverted, carnival-esque look at the world, in which things are superficially one way but the exact opposite in reality.
Clopin is a gypsy, an outcast from "polite" society, but in the context of his puppet show he stands above society and criticizes it, just as he does later in the Court of Miracles, where the criminals are the judges and the forces of law and order are on trial. He tells a story of "a man and a monster", at first inviting the listener to think of Quasimodo as the monster and Frollo as the man; but he hints at the fact, which we discover later, that although Quasimodo appears monstrous he has a kind and sensitive heart, while Frollo appears to be an ordinary man but is in fact not only cruel and heartless, but self-serving as well (the opposite of his ostensible dedication to justice).
The "Feast of Fools" which occurs a few scenes later is an even more overt metaphor, an actual carnival during which, just like in real Catholic countries, the harshness of a society normally stratified by economic and legal distinctions is softened by having a holiday in which up is down, black is white, and the powerful abandon their power for a short time, while a "king" is elected by the crowd. There's some parallels here with the biblical injunction that "the last shall be first, and the first shall be last" as well; that's one reason why the church didn't try to put a stop to carnival celebrations even though they often went pretty crazy.
A lot of people have claimed that _The Hunchback of Notre Dame_ dumbs down and simplifies the story of the original book, but personally I think Victor Hugo would be pleased with it. His most important ideas are preserved here, and Alan Menken's music does so much to bring the ideas to life.
YES YES A MILLION TIMES YES
Hunchback’s music is just A+++, and any analysis and love for it is very welcome.
My hot take: even though it’s “closer to the book,” the Broadway version of this song pales in comparison to the epic-ness of the film version.
I really want to hear your thoughts on "The Plagues" from Prince of Egypt. I always feel like i learn something new about my favorite songs from you!
Wonderful video! One note, though: the words Kyrie Eleison aren't Latin. They're actually Helenistic Ancient Greek.
They're also the only part of the Mass ordinary that's in Greek, which is interesting. That suggests that it's the oldest part of the mass, since Greek was the language of the early Church fathers and the original version of the New Testament.
Really?!? I always just assumed it was Latin.
You've given me a new appreciation for this song. I'm french so I haven't grown up with this version, and to be honest I was never a fan of the movie so I didn't care much for the songs, though in recent years I've rediscovered some of them, like Hellfire, God Help the Outcasts and now The Bells of Notre Dame.
Having experienced both versions of the song, it's interesting to see what was lost in the translation : some of the meaning (when describing Frollo, the french version says that "Judge Claude Frollo fights against vice and sin/In a corrupted world that must be purified", not specifying that the most sinful and dark place in this world might just be Frollo's own heart), and some of the meter, rythm, internal rhymes... But there's also some added meaning throughout the song, which stems from french being the original language of the story.
As you said, Paris towards the start of the song, and Frollo and his guilty deeds towards the end are under the eyes/the watch of Notre Dame, as in the holy place, the cathedral and its statues of saints. But in french, the name of the cathedral isn't foreign. Thus "The very eyes of Notre Dame" has a double meaning : "The eyes of Notre Dame", and "The eyes of Our Lady, the Holy Virgin Mary".
If you've got a catholic upbringing, it adds a whole new meaning to this part of the song. Despite most christians presenting God as some kind of all loving sky daddy, even to a christian, he's an ambivalent figure that would drown the whole world in his wrath or give a child cancer because "the lord works in mysterious ways". Mary on the other hand is a figure of all encompassing love and purity. She will not judge or punish you ; if God is Our Father in Heaven, then Mary is Our Mother. If you've grown up french and in a catholic culture, Frollo's terror in this part of the song is not just him fearing for his soul ; it feels like a son seeing the hurt in his mother's eyes on his way to the death row. Not just "oh shit, my actions may have (eternal) consequences", but him considering "I may be wrong, I may have caused suffering", even if for a brief moment. There's might also be somthing interesting in the fact that he kills a mother, is ready to kill her child, and ends up taking up the role of parent to this child in front of (a cathedral dedicated to) the woman venerated for being the mother of god.
tl;dr : as a french, the french version isn't as good as the original, but it gives us the added meaning of Frollo commiting his crimes not only in front of Notre Dame the cathedral, but also in front of Our Lady (Notre Dame), Saint Mary, Mother of God.
I used to sing in a choir for several years. This song is one of my favs to sing from Disney because MAAAAANNNN, the choral elements and grand sound really get it.
Thx for breaking it down! 😊
This song deserves so much attention and praise!! Both the film version and the version in the US version of the stage adaptation are incredible!!
I hope we can get a video of "God Help the Outcasts"
Yessss please i hope she reads this comment 😭
The bit that always gets me of this song is when Clopin just NAILS that last note. Insane.
At 8:00, the text is the literal original lyrics in the Requiem Mass. A Requiem mass is a mass for the dead, and in this specific piece of text it is a reference to the Apocalypse. It is talking about the Final Judgment, which is mirrored in the visuals and the plot when Frollo is defeated. It is the oldest text set to "modern" notation system, going back to the 12th Century. It's a terrifying thing to have referenced by a full choir in a kid's movie, and a very risky choice considering how the Catholic Church treats death and liturgical texts
At 11:48 he actually hits a D5 the sheet music is meant to be octavated. Still an incredible feat 2 semitones out of standard tenor range and a powerful belt. However D6 is a high soprano note that would be shrill in a male voice (if even possible).
Was just about to say this. I was going crazy wondering if we've shifted middle C to C5 all of a sudden
With this level of detail I’m excited for you to cover other songs from this “masta-piece” of a movie
Clopin's final high note gets me positively giddy every time! It never fails to give me full-body chills!
Another thing- during the intro of count frollo the way clopin says clutches and iron in time of the head movement and hoof stomps of the hourse emohasizing power and dread! Most of the other animation in the scene was fairly smooth but the jeeking movement of the horse and frollo adds to the scene so much!
Also when the mother dies on the stairs there is a deas ires series of notes and occurs many times leading up to it !
Always loved Bells of Notre Dame but I love hearing why exactly it is so good
The is definitely one of the most emotive and enthralling opening songs in Disney film history. It makes me quite sad that we’ll probably never get anything like Hunchback again.
Great to see your deconstruction of a genuinely good Disney song as opposed to the butchered disney remake versions, hopefully this is is the start of many more to come.
I would love to know your opinion and analysis of the song sequences from Tarzan, most critics, even ones I amire a great deal, seem to step on the way that movie handles it's soundtrack but to me it's absolutely Phenomenal.
The feeling I get (for instance from the youtuber Sideways in his video) is that most people agree that Phil Collins' songs are great, but that having a disembodied voice (Phil) sing them rather than the characters themselves creates a kind of disconnect.
@@dracognia Yeah Sideways video is the one I am hinting at (great video). I agree to an extent, and perhaps it's simply that I grew up watching the film so I built that emotional connection, but I still think the songs work. Kind of as a musical narration.
I remember a behind the scenes featurette where Phil goes through each song and who it's coming from narratively, Strangers like me being Tarzan obviously, Son of man being his biological father which is interesting, and Two worlds as a general narrator (?) I can't remember that one.
But yeah, the instrumentals, stunning visuals and probably most importantly fast paced forward momentum of these scenes more than justifies the way the soundtrack is given to us, as far as I'm concerned anyway.
But I'm glad that regardless of people's opinions on the soundtrack we can all agree these tracks are absolute bangers, and that's enough for me.
Thanks for the reply! 👍🏻
@@danielcollin8227 Bangers they are!
Cool with the idea of the different songs still being connected to specific characters - I didn't know that.
There are also other films and series that do similar things. The webseries "RWBY" for instance, which - love it or hate it - has a phenomenal soundtrack. The songs there are also connected to specific characters (for example, "Red Like Roses: Part II" is a duet between the main character and her departed mother), and will often hint at events that come much later in the series itself.
Sideways is fantastic.
@@dracognia Found it! ruclips.net/video/IuzzVfJXRrI/видео.htmlsi=ddYDK-j9EFq5yY_G.
Sideways makes another good point in his video that the fact Disney had been giving out nothing but musicals for the last decade at that point there was probably pressure to offer a soundtrack in a different way.
And one thing I'd definitely think would improve it would be to give Clayton a damn villain song. Even if it's something like an inversion of strangers like me but he's singing from a place of wanting to know so he can exploit rather than learn.
“A figure whose clutches were iron as much as the bells of Norte Dame” is one of my favorite lines ever written
Religion and Latin are so metal. Those lyrics are raw. 🤘
A fun fact about all of the Latin phrases in the music of this film: they all come from Catholic liturgy. Dies Ire is a common phrase in Catholic music. Mea Culpa is part of the ritual of repentance. Etc.
Each of these phrases has layers of meaning in their use because of it. There's the religious aspect of setting the tone, displaying the importance of religion to the world and the characters in it, but they also comment on what's happening in the story, and convey something about the character in focus when the phrase is said.
This song is so underrated. I remembered little from the movie from childhood to adulthood, but the Arch Deacons parts were still as clear as, well… the bells of Notre Dame.
I remember as a kid I despised the sing-song moments in kids movies, but Notre Dame always made me appreciate what was happening. I wish we could get more kids’ movies with serious subject matters, to make the less happy youths feel heard, like this and The Incredibles.
I think what gets lost in time that Renaissance musicals were largely based off of the Broadway scene of the seventies and eighties.
Does one we got the baby shows like Les mis (you can really hear a lot of them things like the hunchback), Godspell, A chorus line, and S. Todd.
All of these shows took a more darker and realistic approach at the woes of life, a really challenged what you could see on Broadway.
That experimentation is what eventually led to the modern Broadway sphere in many ways
I love how Frollo didn't take the child in out of guilt but fear from retribution.
Ahhh I love this analysis! I have one added little thing. The Dies Irae (day of wrath) is an old leitmotif that has been used to signify death ever since Wagner's use of it in Der Ring Des Nibelungen. So while I agree with you that part of it is a foreshadowing to Esmeralda's burning (which visually really invokes the day of wrath) and Frolo's death, I also think its use in the Bells of Notre Dame is specifically to foreshadow the death of Quasimodo's mother.
So basically, anywhere you hear the Dies Irae (especially the first bars), you can expect some kind of death. (I think the Dies Irae also gets used for the death of Mufasa)
I love Notre Dame’s music!
I love music breakdowns. I don't really understand music, I mean I like listen to it and all that, but I don't have a deeper understanding of it. So, thank you for doing that, I always loved this intro to The Hunchback of Notre Dame, but now I also understand all the little details.
I watch a lot of RUclips channels that delve into music writing and music theory, usually using examples from popular media. This, however, is one of the only ones that goes more into lyrical composition, and that makes it undeniably useful to songwriters like me, on top of being entertaining. Definitely hoping this channel continues to grow, as I love watching these videos,
Also, side note: the Dies Irae chant is often used in scoring to represent death (see also Star Wars, The Lion King, and almost every song in Sweeney Todd), so I took it as being musical foreshadowing to the Gypsy woman's imminent death at the hands of Frollo.
I’d kill for a long video of you breaking down this entire movie. Your critiques are so introspective and reignite my love for this musical 😭
I feel like this song isn't talked about enough. Like that D6 note gets me every fucking time
This is one of my favorite musical opening sequences of all time. This and the animated Beauty and the Beast.
Who else just instantly got chills at that very first big note??
"The very eyes of Notre Dame." Part of what also makes this line so much more chilling and powerful is if you understand it from a historical context. Frollo just killed a woman in cold blood on the steps of a church, literally before the sight of God. BIG major no no at that time period.
Honestly something I really appreciate is that the lyrics aren’t all in English, keeping a native language even as just choir chanting really adds that final cultural touch, especially when it hits harder than any English speaking.
I'd also add that, in a way, this music answers Clopin's question for us: "Who is the monster and who is the man..." At which point we see Quasimodo and get that major key shift... We're told right from the start who the man is.
The Most Biblically Accurate song from Disney , Especially the Chant part
I had no idea Bells of Notre Dame was originally spoken narration! I first wanted to watch the movie when I found out there was a Disney song called "Hellfire" of all things, but this opening number immediately sold me on the movie itself.
Disney was so amazing in the 90s. I really hope one day we can get past the politics and embarrassing pop music and whatever Scuttlebutt was supposed to be and go back to the quality of the Renaissance.
The fact we went from "Part of Your World", "Circle of Life", "Out There/Hellfire", "I won't Say I'm in Love" and "Reflection" to remake songs using auto tune and absolute atrocities like Scuttlebutt is criminal.
That D6 vocal note at the end is award-worthy.
This movie and many others of the Disney renaissance have been a fascinating topic for me for a long stretch of my life, so it's amazing to find an analysis that presents something surprisingly new about a piece of work i'm all too familiar with! I'm not too educated on the structure of music and songwriting, yet the way you delivered the whole explanation of your point was clear, direct and easily understandable. Thanks for this great video.
Brilliant analysis! You basically said everything about this opening that I was already thinking and feeling but couldn't quite put into words! Thank you!
There's so much hidden depth in the latin/greek choir throughout the film that does not get enough credit. I highly recommend reading through the translations, especially for Sanctuary and And He Shall Smite the Wicked
I'm loving your Disney analysis! Thanks for bringing attention to this true masterpiece of a song. Just a couple of things, you didn't mention it, but the Dies Irae (the chant during the chase scene) is a tune and lyrics that have been used since Medieval times to signify death. And also, Clopin does NOT hit a D6, the choir does. He clearly sings a D5.
The chant ‘god have mercy’ is actually in Greek, not Latin. Kyrie, eleison is one of the few Greek prayers adopted by the Catholic Church, while nearly everything else is in Latin
Ond of the very best opening songs to a movie ever, I'm so glad you covered it! I sense a rising star here, keep up the good work
Setting "The Bells of Notre Dame"s meter to 3 could also be an (un?)intentional nod to mensural-era European music, where triple meter was considered "perfect", presumably because it's a nod to the Trinity in Christianity.
Just found your channel, and thank you for filling the sideways-shaped hole in my life right now. Keep up the beautiful work, and I hope more will find this wonderful channel, and the amazing you.
It’s a miracle that an animated musical with these themes and dark tone was made, and that it’s a masterpiece(imo). I doubt they’ll ever do something like this again, I wish they would! Seeing this vid immediately after watching some of your critiques of the more recent Disney musical films really highlights how trash they are in every way in comparison lol
You should've let de D6 play longer because I was clapping. Do not cut off my man, he is singing
There is *such* potential for storytelling in music, lyrically and instrumentally. This is an incredible breakdown, and I can hardly wait for more. If ever you want to branch out from just disney movies, I highly recommend the Hatchetfield trilogy of musicals made by team starkid.
Wonderful video! Hope you will talk about "Hellfire" at some point as well!
You know, "Someday" is used in the stage of musical of HoND. I think you could do a brilliant video on how the musical decisions in stage musicals of Disney works vs. Original movies work both practically (different spaces and technologies available) and within the story (how different the stage vs. Movie ending of HoND is).
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the stage version of this song. Since it follows the book more closely(as far as I'm aware), the entire number is (narratively) different. But also the instrumentation for the musical is just SO good. The way they use the saint statues as the sort of narrators/Greek chorus was such a smart decision imo.
I love the stage musical, possibly more than the movie 🫣 sacrilege I know
i had the opportunity to see an outdoors production of the stage musical adaptation of the disney movie quite some time ago. they set the stage up before the city's biggest church and as the first notes rang out the wind rose up, adding a howl to the music and the choir. this song is already powerful but i havent been so close to fearing god ever since that evening.
Easily disney's best opening song
I love this channel so much. It's genuinely becoming one of my favorite music analysis channel. Keep up the fantastic work!
So I watched the stage musical version of Hunchback in a cathedral.
And the chorus was like 30 people who all filed out doing the "dahhh dahhh dah. Dahhh dah dah!" and christ the CHILLS I got
i've been saving this video to watch for months ahhhhh. just as satisfying as i thought. well done analysis!
While Frollo was originally the Archdeacon, qnd Disney also didn't want to be lore controversial than the film was already going to be, i do think it was better to separate the Archdeacon from Frollo. The two faces of the Church: the compassionate and the cruel, the merciful and the merciless, the true worshipper and the wicked hypocrite. True for any church, the two faces are in each of them, too; and even better/worse, the two faces are in each of us. One face looks up to heaven and the other to hell. We have the potential to give others a piece of either one.
What a wonderful breakdown of this song - it's really made me appreciate it more
I just stumbled onto your channel and I love it. I saw the detailed analysis of the many problem with 'This Wish' and hoped you would have a video about THoND, and you went all the way with this love letter to the song. Every aspect of this movie is a masterpiece and I love watching videos that recognise it. Yours was wonderful, it made me think of new things and I would very much like to see you analise the rest of the soundtrack. Heaven's Light/Hellfire is one of the biggest challenges Disney ever took, Out There is so touching, and those little bits of lyrics interspersed in the soundtrack, e,g, 'He Shall Smite the Wicked', and 'Sanctuary'. You are, of course, welcome to analise anything you want and I'll be sure to watch it; I just subscribed.
Wonder if you seen songs from Hazbeen hotel; so far I seen everyone praise them for smart writing and great execution.
Well now we need a breakdown of Hellfire.
2:38 It'll WHAT in my left ear?!😨🤣
It's funny how in years I've been listening to thiis song and watching this movie I never noticed that Quasimodo doesn't actually mean half-formed. Clopin lied lol
I love the original version and the metal version done by Jonathan Young and Caleb Hyles. The screams that they put in add to another layer of desperation and pure rawness to the injustice that has, and will continue to be, committed
Separate comment, ecause it's nothing to do with thw song structure. But I greatly appreciate the use of colors as you pointed out for France and the Romani people. Notre Dame de Paris was more about the acrhitecture of the the Cathedral itself, rather than the characters, and incorporating this kind of character into the buildings themselves, as well as the fictional steps mentioned in in the original text, really shows they did their reading and have a passion of sorts for the book, even if the theming is geared towards the characters moreso than the Cathedral itself.
What an amazing analysis of this excellent segment!!! Gosh, what a masterpiece. I have been obsessed with it forever, and especially the archdeacon's part. The way he says "NEVER" holding onto that note always gets me, for some reason.
The bells of Notre Dame is one of my favorite songs and I am so happy
I LOVE your breakdowns - you have the vocab, understanding and education to properly express a lot of the stuff musically that I kinda innately understand but can't really articulate properly! it's really educational and enjoyable for me to watch your vids and I always learn a lot 🥰 keep it up!
Even though I grew to dislike this movie after reading the source material, 'bells' is still such an amazing song that I wanted to play for a piano recital when I was a kid.
I will never not be upset that the Hunchback of Notre Dame musical was passed over to go to Broadway for Frozen the Musical. Devastating.
this is that good shit. id LOVE to hear more breakdowns of Hunchbacks songs
I loved this song before, but now I’m in awe. Great video.
the melody for "bells of notre dame" is the classic Dies Irae melody, and "eyes of notre dame" the inversion of the theme