The Lost Chord - (4). And Jimmy (Schnozzle) Durante.

            The Postcard

A postally unused postcard published by Bamforth and Co. The card was printed in England.

The Lost Chord

'The Lost Chord' is a song composed by Arthur Sullivan in 1877 at the bedside of his brother Fred during Fred's last illness. The manuscript is dated the 13th. January 1877; Fred Sullivan died five days later. 

The lyric was written as a poem by Adelaide Anne Procter called 'A Lost Chord', published in 1858 in The English Woman's Journal.

The song was immediately successful, and became particularly associated with American contralto Antoinette Sterling, with Sullivan's close friend and mistress, Fanny Ronalds, and with British contralto Clara Butt. 

Sullivan was proud of the song and later noted: 

"I have composed much music 
since then, but have never written 
a second Lost Chord."

Many singers have recorded the song, including Enrico Caruso, who sang it at the Metropolitan Opera House on the 29th. April 1912 at a benefit concert for families of victims of the Titanic disaster. 

The piece has endured as one of Sullivan's best-known songs, and is still performed today.

The full text is as follows:

'Seated one day at the organ,
I was weary and ill at ease,
And my fingers wandered idly
Over the noisy keys.

I know not what I was playing,
Or what I was dreaming then;
But I struck one chord of music,
Like the sound of a great Amen.

It flooded the crimson twilight,
Like the close of an angel's psalm,
And it lay on my fevered spirit
With a touch of infinite calm.

It quieted pain and sorrow,
Like love overcoming strife;
It seemed the harmonious echo
From our discordant life.

It linked all perplexèd meanings
Into one perfect peace,
And trembled away into silence
As if it were loth to cease.

I have sought, but I seek it vainly,
That one lost chord divine,
Which came from the soul of the organ,
And entered into mine.

It may be that death's bright angel
Will speak in that chord again,
It may be that only in Heav'n
I shall hear that grand Amen'.

'I'm the Guy Who Found the Lost Chord'

Jimmy (Schnozzle) Durante did a spoof version of The Lost Chord. Here it is:

'I was sitting at my piano, the other day
But my mind was ill at ease
They were coming to take it away that afternoon
I was all by myself in a mellow mood
Improvising symphonies
My right hand was playing Mozart's minuet
And at the same time my left hand was playing; have a banana; from Carmen
And at the same time my mouth was whistling a sextet from Luicini
And at the same time What do you think my foot was doing? 
While keeping time it was cracking walnuts; see I had to eat too.
Then in the midst of all soliloquy 
I found it, I found it
The Lost Chord, The Lost Chord!
So let's celebrate I'm feeling great 
I'm the guy that found the Lost chord
I'll have my name in the hall of fame; cos I went and found that lost chord

Everyone knows Tchaikovsky wasn't recognised for 300 years
Brahms wasn't recognised for 400 years
Beethoven wasn't recognised for 500 years
But I can't wait that long I've only got two changes of clothes!

People said I was mad. but that didn't trouble me
They said Mozart was mad
They said Puccini was mad
They said Louis was mad
Who's Louis? My uncle, he was mad!

So let's celebrate I'm feeling great 
I'm the guy that found the Lost chord

You know it wasn't easy finding that Lost chord
Working in my attic I didn't sleep for days and days
I'd be in terrible shape if I hadn't slept nights!
First I put an A flat with a B minor
Then I put a B minor with and F major
Then I put and F minor with a B major
Then I tried an A and a B and a B and a C 
And a C and a D and a D and E and an E and a F
And a F and a G; What a piano no apostrophe's !

And this is what I came up with (plays wrong chord)

What's happened that isn't the chord (plays wrong chord)
Neither is that (plays wrong chord)
Neither is that (plays wrong chord)
And neither is that! I lost the chord a catastrophe
I'm gonna sit down on the keyboard of this piano until the chord is returned

(sits down on bum plays the right chord)

That's it the Lost chord! I found it, I found by sitting on the piano keyboard
Strange I usually play by ear!

So let's celebrate I'm feeling great 
I'm the guy that found the Lost chord'.
   

Taken on: December 30, 2022

Tags:

postcard

old

nostalgia

nostalgic

Bamforth

printed

England

Lost

Chord

Arthur

Sullivan

1877

Adelaide

Anne

Procter

1858

English

Woman's

Journal

Antoinette

Sterling

Fanny

Ronalds

Clara

Butt

Enrico

Caruso

1912

29TLC45

lectern

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Sets appears in: • Illustrated Songs and Poems

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