Tag: 2000s

Josh Groban | L’Ultima Notte

“L’Ultima Notte,” written by Marco Marinangeli, is featured on Josh Groban’s 2006 album Awake, which was the third top-selling classical album of the 2000s. The lyrics reflect the singer’s anguish about spending the last night with his lover: I remain alone with the memories; tomorrow everything will end; but now stay here; here with me because it will be the last night with you

The song has many modulations throughout. After alternating between G# minor for the first two verses and C minor for the choruses, a common-tone shift to B minor occurs at 2:40. This is followed by a brief transitory passage at 2:57, which sets up the final key change up to C# minor at 3:13.

Destiny’s Child | Do You Hear What I Hear

*This is the fifth and final installment of our weeklong series on “Do You Hear What I Hear”

American R&B group Destiny’s Child released their only Christmas album, 8 Days of Christmas, in 2001. The album peaked at 34 on the Billboard 200, and was certified platinum in 2020. “Do You Hear What I Hear” is the sixth track, and modulates from Bb to B at 0:57.

LeAnn Rimes | Can’t Fight the Moonlight

Written by Dianne Warren and recorded by LeAnn Rimes, “Can’t Fight The Moonight” was originally featured in the 2000 film Coyote Ugly, and subsequently appeared on Rimes’s 2002 compilation album I Need You as well as various greatest hits/best-of releases. The track cracked the top 10 in 19 European countries, and hit the #11 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US. Billboard’s review called the song “[Rimes’s] most compelling pop offering yet–and one of the more intriguing compositions of late from songwriter superwoman Diane Warren.”

Warren herself claimed she had never written a song with so many key changes, and it does indeed bounce around. Following an intro that deceptively appears to set up C minor, the first two verses are instead set in B minor, and alternate with the C-minor chorus at 0:52. A bridge-like interlude begins at 2:25 that passes through both keys before modulating to C# minor for the final chorus at 2:25.

See What I Wanna See (from “See What I Wanna See”)

“See What I Wanna See” is the title song from the 2005 Off-Broadway musical by composer Michael John LaChiusa. Based on three short stories by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, the show has had an extensive life in university and regional productions, and a second NYC production was mounted in 2013. Idina Menzel performs the track featured here, which modulates up a half step from A to Bb at 2:04.

Will Young | Evergreen

Will Young was the first winner, in 2002, of the British music competition television series Pop Idol. “Evergreen” was one of two tracks slated to be released by the winner, and Young’s cover of the tune (originally recorded by the Irish boy band Westlife) went on to become the fastest-selling debut single in the UK. The song modulates from C to D at 2:53.

Josh Groban | Per Te

Featured on Groban’s 2003 album Closer, “Per Te” was written by Walter Afanasieff and Groban with lyrics by Marco Marinangeli, and was recorded in Italian. The album was the top selling classical record of the 2000s and reached the #1 spot on the Billboard Top 200 chart.

There are modulations scattered throughout the song: The first two verses are set in C minor, alternating with choruses that modulate down to B minor at 1:46 and 2:10. A dramatic common tone modulation to Bb minor occurs at 2:52, followed by shift to C# minor at 3:16, which is maintained until the end.

Boyz II Men | The Color of Love

“The Color of Love” was the lead single released from the 2002 Boyz II Men album Full Circle. For the music video, each band member filmed their segment in a different country to capture the color and spirit of different people. “Boyz II Men have always maintained a certain mood with their music,” said Antonio “L.A.” Reid, the president of Arista Records which produced the album. “And that couldn’t be better reflected than with the theme of this clip–unity and brotherhood, a multi-cultural celebration in these difficult times. There is no better group to pull it off than these four guys.”

The track has a traditional half-step modulation from D to Eb at 2:45.

Marcela Mangabeira | Para Ti

Born in the Brazilian city of Recife in 1981, Marcela Mangabeira “participated in the first European tour of the group Bossacucanova in 2001, passing through Spain, Denmark, Germany, France, England, and Wales,” the Brazilian website Som13.com reports. “She moved to Rio de Janeiro in 2003 … Her first album, Simples, was released in 2005 in Japan, where it had a great reception.” According to her own website, Mangabeira has released two other albums: Colors of Rio (2011) and Closer Project (2017); her music is also part of 40 compilations worldwide.

“Para Ti” (For You) was released on Simples. Its breezy contemporary sound rolls along beautifully as the Mangabeira finishes the first section. A wordless vocals section from the backup singers begins at 1:33; a half-step modulation catches us by surprise at 1:36, right in the middle of a phrase. At 2:42, an amorphous outro floats onward until the tune’s end.

Laura Osnes, Meghann Fahy | My Heart Is Split

“My Heart Is Split” is from the experimental 2007 musical The Freshmen Experiment by Kait Kerrigan and Bree Lowdermilk. Envisioned as a story based on the lives of two young bloggers who are sharing the story of their first year at college, the show was not ultimately produced, but the songs that were written continue to be performed. The song modulates from F to G at 3:18.