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"Funiculì, Funiculà"
"Funiculì, Funiculà"
Song
Language	Neapolitan
Written	1880
Published	1880
Genre	Canzone Napoletana
Composer(s)	Luigi Denza
Lyricist(s)	Peppino Turco

"Funiculì, Funiculà" (IPA: [funikuˈli (f)funikuˈla]) is a Neapolitan song composed in 1880 by Luigi Denza to lyrics by Peppino Turco. It was written to commemorate the opening of the first funicular railway on Mount Vesuvius. It was presented by Turco and Denza at the Piedigrotta festival the same year. The sheet music was published by Ricordi and sold over a million copies within a year. Since its publication, it has been widely adapted and recorded.

History

"Funiculì, Funiculà" was composed in 1880 by Luigi Denza in his hometown of Castellammare di Stabia with lyrics contributed by journalist Peppino Turco.^[1] It was Turco who prompted Denza to compose it, perhaps as a joke,^[1] to commemorate the opening of the first funicular on Mount Vesuvius in that year.^[2]^[a] The song was sung for the first time in the Quisisana Hotel^[b] in Castellammare di Stabia. It was presented by Turco and Denza at the Piedigrotta festival during the same year and became immensely popular in Italy and abroad.^[5] Published by Casa Ricordi, the sheet music sold over a million copies in a year.^[1]

Over the years the song has been performed by many artists including Joseph Schmidt, Erna Sack, Anna German, Mario Lanza, Beniamino Gigli, The Mills Brothers, Connie Francis, Haruomi Hosono (with lyrics translated into Japanese), Fischer-Chöre (with lyrics translated into German), the Grateful Dead,^[6] Luciano Pavarotti, Andrea Bocelli, Rodney Dangerfield, Alvin and the Chipmunks, The Wiggles, Larry Groce, VeggieTales, and Il Volo. In 1960, Robert B. and Richard M. Sherman wrote a new set of English lyrics to the melody of "Funiculì, Funiculà" with the title "Dream Boy".^[7]^[8]^[9] Annette Funicello included the song on her album of Italian songs titled Italiannette and also released it as a single that became a minor hit.^[10]

Adaptations and unintentional copyright infringement

Music publishers Spear & Dehnhoff of New York City published sheet music for a song titled "Tra-la-la-lee" in 1884, subtitled "A popular dancing song, adapted and arranged by W. T. Harris." It contains English lyrics set to Denza's "Funiculì, Funiculà" melody, and contains no attribution to Denza.^[11]

German composer Richard Strauss heard the song while on a tour of Italy six years after it was written. He thought that it was a traditional Neapolitan folk song and incorporated it into his Aus Italien tone poem. Denza filed a lawsuit against him and won, and Strauss was forced to pay him a royalty fee.^[12] Russian composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov also mistook "Funiculì, Funiculà" for a traditional folk song and used it in his 1907 "Neapolitanskaya pesenka" (Neapolitan Song).^[13]

Cornettist Herman Bellstedt used it as the basis for a theme and variations titled Napoli; a transcription for euphonium is also popular among many performers.^{[dubious – discuss]} Modernist composer Arnold Schoenberg arranged a version for the ensemble in 1921.^[14]

Lyrics

"Funiculì, Funiculà"

Sung by tenor Francesco Daddi with piano accompaniment, 1906

MIDI rendition

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Original Neapolitan lyrics

In Turco's original lyrics, a young man compares his sweetheart to a volcano, and invites her to join him in a romantic trip to the summit.

Neapolitan lyrics
Aissera, oje Nanniné, me ne sagliette,
tu saje addó, tu saje addó
Addó 'stu core 'ngrato cchiù dispietto
farme nun pò! Farme nun pò!
Addó lu fuoco coce, ma se fuje
te lassa sta! Te lassa sta!
E nun te corre appriesso, nun te struje
sulo a guardà, sulo a guardà.

(Coro)
Jamme, jamme 'ncoppa, jamme jà,
Jamme, jamme 'ncoppa, jamme jà,
funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà,
'ncoppa, jamme jà, funiculì, funiculà!

Né, jamme da la terra a la montagna!
Nu passo nc'è! Nu passo nc'è!
Se vede Francia, Proceta e la Spagna...
Io veco a tte! Io veco a tte!
Tirato co la fune, ditto 'nfatto,
'ncielo se va, 'ncielo se va.
Se va comm' 'a lu viento a l'intrasatto,
guè, saglie, sà! Guè, saglie, sà!

(Coro)

Se n'è sagliuta, oje né, se n'è sagliuta,
la capa già! La capa già!
È gghiuta, po' è turnata, po' è venuta,
sta sempe ccà! Sta sempe ccà!
La capa vota, vota, attuorno, attuorno,
attuorno a tte! Attuorno a tte!
Stu core canta sempe nu taluorno:
Sposamme, oje né! Sposamme, oje né!

(Coro)^[15]

English translation
I climbed up high yesterday evening, oh, Nannina,
Do you know where? Do you know where?
Where this ungrateful heart
No longer pains me! No longer pains me!
Where fire burns, but if you run away,
It lets you be, it lets you be!
It doesn't follow after or torment you
Just with a look, just with a look.

(Chorus)
Let's go, let's go! To the top we'll go!
Let's go, let's go! To the top we'll go!
Funicular up, funicular down, funicular up, funicular down!
To the top we'll go, funicular up, funicular down!

Let's go from here below up to the mountain,
A step away! A step away!
You can see France, Procida, and Spain,
And I see you! And I see you!
You rise, pulled by a cable, quick as a wink,
Into the sky! Into the sky!
We'll rise up like a whirlwind all of a sudden
Knows how to do! Knows how to do!

(Chorus)

The car has climbed up high, see, climbed up high now,
Right to the top! Right to the top!
It went, and turned around, and came back down,
And now it's stopped! And now it's stopped!
The top is turning round, and round, and round,
Around yourself! Around yourself!
My heart is singing the same refrain:
We should be wed! We should be wed!

(Chorus)^[15]

Traditional English lyrics

"Funiculi, Funicula (A Merry Life)" (1921)

A 1921 recording of the English version of Funiculì, Funiculà (A Merry Life) by Richard Bonelli for Brunswick Records.

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Edward Oxenford, a lyricist and translator of librettos,^[16] wrote lyrics, with scant relationship to those of the original version, that became traditional in English-speaking countries.^[6] His version of the song often appears with the title "A Merry Life".

Some think the world is made for fun and frolic,
And so do I! And so do I!
Some think it well to be all melancholic,
To pine and sigh; to pine and sigh;
But I, I love to spend my time in singing,
Some joyous song, some joyous song,
To set the air with music bravely ringing
Is far from wrong! Is far from wrong!
Listen, listen, echoes sound afar!
Listen, listen, echoes sound afar!
Funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà!
Echoes sound afar, funiculì, funiculà!

Some sing the world is set for freedom dancing,
But not so I! And not so I!
Some sing our eyes could keep from finally glancing,
Upon the sly! But not so I!
But all we're so amazing and so charming!
Divinely sweet! Divinely sweet!
And shortly, there's no time for pace and harming,
In nimble feet! In nimble feet!
Listen, listen, echoes sound afar!
Listen, listen, echoes sound afar!
Funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà!
Echoes sound afar, funiculì, funiculà!

Ah me! 'tis strange that some should take to sighing,
And like it well! And like it well!
For me, I have not thought it's worth the trying,
So cannot tell! So cannot tell!
With laugh, with dance and song the day soon passes
Full soon is gone, full soon is gone,
For mirth was made for joyous lads and lassies
To call their own! To call their own!
Listen, listen, echoes sound afar!
Listen, listen, echoes sound afar!
Funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà!
Echoes sound afar, funiculì, funiculà!

In popular culture

In 1933, Arthur Fields and Fred Hall published a parody of "Funiculì, funiculà" titled "My High Silk Hat".^[17] This parody has been republished several times, including in the 1957 Gilwell Camp Fire Book.^[18]
In 1966, comedian Christine Nelson wrote and recorded a parody of the song with lyrics inspired by the English version, titled "Marvin". Nelson portrays the aggrieved mother of a constantly misbehaving son. It was produced by Lou Busch and released on Nelson's Reprise Records album, Did'ja Come To Play Cards Or To Talk?^[19]
Between 1977 and 1989, the song was performed more than 20 times by the Grateful Dead during tunings.^[20] A brief recording opens their live album Dick's Picks Volume 3.

References

Informational notes

^ The funicular was later destroyed by the eruption of Vesuvius in 1944.^[3]
^ According to one source, Denza was the son of the proprietor of the Quisisana Hotel.^[4]