Speak Low

Speak Low is a musical song that Kurt Weill wrote to a text by Ogden Nash and published in 1943. The song, which was written for the Broadway musical One Touch of Venus, 1944 was a hit and has subsequently established as a jazz standard.

Function and characteristics of the song

The song is in the musical declaration of love Venus to the male hero, Rodney. The title line of the song ( " Speak Low, When You speak love" ) takes a classic aphorism from Shakespeare to Much Ado About Nothing, which is spoken by Don Pedro ( " Speak Low, if You speak love" ). Later, the song is taken up again in the musical, as the return of Venus is certain to Olympus, but once again they intend in a nostalgic review of their love with Rodney.

The 56 -bar song is " held, and the B section encompasses only 8 bars. " In G major and the song form AA'BA In bars 33 and 37, the motif of the B section is first heard only in the company and is. only half a beat later canonically taken up by the singing voice of "The conclusion of the song is a " quasi- Parlando ":" At the last words ( of low to me, speak love to me, and soon ' ) is the melody of only a repeated nine times d. " so that the song ends on the major sixth place on the root. " This conclusion seems strange floating and thus emphasizes the mysterious atmosphere of the musical. "

Reception of the song

In One Touch of Venus, which premiered on October 7, 1943 the song by Mary Martin is interpreted. In the same year made ​​his first recordings of the song by Mary Martin and Kenny Baker, who were released on the original album One Touch of Venus, 1943. In a cover version by Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians with singer Billy Leach Song came in 1944 in the American charts, where it peaked at number 8. In 1948 the musical was as Venus makes infidelities film starring Ava Gardner as Venus and Robert Walker as Rodney Hatch. Speak Low was sung for Gardner by Eileen Wilson; the song is interpreted in the film as a special highlight of Dick Haymes.

Speak Low was also part of the Off-Broadway revue Berlin to Broadway with Kurt Weill (1972 ) and also from Love Music, a "bio musical", which deals with the love story of Weill Lotte Lenya. Lotte Lenya recorded the song himself on several occasions. 1954 Les Baxter interpreted the song. Barbra Streisand took him into an arrangement by David Foster for her album Back to Broadway. The Young Gods, who had already Weill's September Song repertoire previously played Speak Low 2008 for her album Knock on Wood.

The way to Jazz Standard

Carmen McRae took 1952 Speak Low, followed by Nat King Cole and The Hi- Lo's (1955 ) before the song even Billie Holiday 1956 interpreted. In 1960, Anita O'Day in an arrangement by Bill Holman ( Incomparable! ). Even before other singers like Ella Fitzgerald recorded the song in their repertoire (especially in a duo of Joe Pass 1983), he was also accepted as an instrumental piece. Laurindo Almeida and Bud Shank underlying Latin rhythms; Barney Kessel and Bob Cooper conquered the piece in 1954 as the West Coast jazz like Chet Baker and Gerry Mulligan. 1956 was followed by Bill Evans, Sonny Clark in 1957 with John Coltrane, Hank Mobley 1958 with Lee Morgan before 1959 Stan Kenton showed that the piece ( in an arrangement by Johnny Richards ) and big band was ready. Some musicians like Bobby Jaspar (1958 ) or Grant Green (1965 ) were able to avoid pushing all the subtleties of the song and replaced the seemingly floating circuit caused by a suppression.