Liberal Arts Blog —Man of La Mancha” (1965, 1972) — “The Impossible Dream”
Liberal Arts Blog — Thursday is the Joy of Music Day
Today’s Topic: “Man of La Mancha” (1965, 1972) — “The Impossible Dream”
“The Impossible Dream” is a “standard” and has been sung by the likes of Aretha Franklin, Frank Sinatra,
Elvis Presley, Jacques Brel, Jose Carreras, Jackie Evancho, Jim Nabors. And the list goes on and on and on. It was the favorite song of Robert F. Kennedy and was song at his brother Ted’s funeral.
The first link below is Luther Vandross’s version. Do you have a favorite? How about Gomer Pyle’s rendition? (second link)
The music was by Mitch Leigh and the lyrics by Joe Darion. The 1965 Broadway musical won five
Tony Awards. The 1972 film adaptation, starring Peter O’Toole and Sophia Loren was generally panned. The classic by Miguel Cervantes, written in 1605, is considered by many to be both the first and greatest novel of all time. William Faulkner (1956): “I read it every year as some do the Bible.”
For those new to the blog, posts hop around from country to country and genre to genre. From Guatemalan icon Richardo Arjona to Ed Sheeran, from Mozart and Haydn to Tracey Chapman and Luke Combs. From Vietnam’s “Butterfly Son” and Thailand’s “Elephant Song to Rwanda’s “Rwanda Nziza.” Not to mention Neapolitan folk songs fearing Luciano Pavarotti.
The general theme is that the wider the musical net you cast, the greater the opportunity for shared joy with anyone you meet.
Experts — please chime in. Correct, elaborate, elucidate.
“TO DREAM THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM, TO FIGHT THE UNBEATABLE FOE”
1. “To dream the impossible dream, to fight the unbeatable foe.”
2. “To bear with unbearable sorrow, and to run where the brave dare not go”
3. “To right the unrightable wrong, and to love pure and chaste from afar”
NB: To try when your arms are too weary, to reach the unreachable star.”
“THIS IS MY QUEST, TO FOLLOW THAT STAR”
1. “This is my quest, to follow that star”
2. “No matter how hopeless, no matter how far.”
3. “To fight for the rigfht, without question or pause.
NB “To be willing to march, march into Hell, For that heavenly cause”
“AND I KNOW THAT IF I’LL ONLY BE TRUE, TO THIS GLORIOUS QUEST”
1. “And I know if I’ll only be true to this glorious quest”
2. “That my heart will lie peaceful and calm, when I’l laid to my rest
3. “And the world will be better for this, that one man, scorned and covered with scars, still strove with his last ounce of courage
NB: “To reach the unreachable, the unreachable star. And I’ll always dream the impossible dream. Yes, and I’ll reach the unreachable star.”
The Impossible Dream (from Always and Forever: An Evening of Songs at The Royal Albert …
Gomer Pyle, USMC — The Impossible Dream
The Impossible Dream (The Quest) — Wikipedia
Man of La Mancha (film) — Wikipedia
Dulcinea del Toboso — Wikipedia
Miguel de Cervantes — Wikipedia
Liberal Arts Blog: Don Quijote — first and best novel of all time?
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C. — Wikipedia
QUOTE OF THE MONTH
“Make your own Bible. Select and collect all the words and sentences that in all your readings have been to you like the blast of a trumpet.”
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
My spin — then periodically review, re-rank, and exchange your list with. those you love. I call this the “Orion Exchange” because seven is about as many as any human can digest at a time. Game?
LAST FOUR YEARS OF POSTS ORGANIZED THEMATICALLY
Updating PDFs: 2023 — Google Drive
ATTACHMENTS BELOW:
#1 A graphic guide to justice (9 metaphors on one page).
#2 “39 Songs, Prayers, and Poems: the Keys to the Hearts of Seven Billion People” — Adams House Senior Common Room Presentation, (11/17/20)
YOUR TURN
Time to share the coolest thing you learned in the last week related to music.
Or the coolest thing you learned in your life related to music.
Say your favorite song or songs. Or your favorite tips for breathing, posture, or relaxation. Or some insight into the history of music….Or just something random about music… like a joke about drummers. jazz, rock….or share an episode or chapter in your musical autobiography.
This is your chance to make someone else’s day. And perhaps to cement in your memory something important you would otherwise forget. Or to think more deeply than you otherwise would about something that matters to you.
