THE ELEMENTS OF MUSIC You are embarking on an adventure through musical time, and this journey will be more pleasurable if you first become familiar with some basic musical concepts. Keep in mind that most new experiences require some initial adjustment and insight.
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There's Hydrogen and helium
And Lithium, Beryllium
Boron, Carbon everywhere
Nitrogen all through the air
With Oxygen so you can breathe
Anf Fluorine for your pretty teeth
Neon to light up the signs
Sodium for salty times
And Lithium, Beryllium
Boron, Carbon everywhere
Nitrogen all through the air
With Oxygen so you can breathe
Anf Fluorine for your pretty teeth
Neon to light up the signs
Sodium for salty times
Magnesium
Aluminium, Silicon
Phosphorus then Sulfur, Chlorine and Argon
Potassium
And Calcium so you'll grow strong
Scandium, Titanium, Vanadium and Chromium and Manganese
Aluminium, Silicon
Phosphorus then Sulfur, Chlorine and Argon
Potassium
And Calcium so you'll grow strong
Scandium, Titanium, Vanadium and Chromium and Manganese
Related
This is the PERIODIC TABLE
Noble gas is stable
Halogens and Alkali react aggressively
Each period we'll see new outer shells
While electrons are added moving to the right
Noble gas is stable
Halogens and Alkali react aggressively
Each period we'll see new outer shells
While electrons are added moving to the right
Iron is the 26th
Then Cobalt, Nickel coins you get
Copper, Zinc and Gallium
Germanium and Arsenic
Selenium and Bromine film
While Krypton helps light up your room
Rubidium and Strontium
Then Yttrium, Zirconium
Then Cobalt, Nickel coins you get
Copper, Zinc and Gallium
Germanium and Arsenic
Selenium and Bromine film
While Krypton helps light up your room
Rubidium and Strontium
Then Yttrium, Zirconium
Check Out
Niobium
Molybdenum, Technetium
Ruthenium
Rhodium, Palladium
Silver-ware
Then Cadmium and Indium
Tin cans, Antimony and Tellurium then
Iodine and Xenon and then Caesium and...
Molybdenum, Technetium
Ruthenium
Rhodium, Palladium
Silver-ware
Then Cadmium and Indium
Tin cans, Antimony and Tellurium then
Iodine and Xenon and then Caesium and...
Barium is the 56th and this is where the table splits
Where lanthanides have just begun
Lanthanum, Cerium and Praseodymium
Neodymium's next to
Promethium then 62's
Samarium, Europium
Gadolinium and Terbium
Dysprosium, Holmium, Erbium, Thulium
Ytterbium, Lutetium
Where lanthanides have just begun
Lanthanum, Cerium and Praseodymium
Neodymium's next to
Promethium then 62's
Samarium, Europium
Gadolinium and Terbium
Dysprosium, Holmium, Erbium, Thulium
Ytterbium, Lutetium
Hafnium
Tantalum, Tungsten and we're on to
Rhenium
Osmium and Iridium
Platinum, Gold to make you rich when you grow old
Mercury to tell you when it's really cold
Tantalum, Tungsten and we're on to
Rhenium
Osmium and Iridium
Platinum, Gold to make you rich when you grow old
Mercury to tell you when it's really cold
Thallium
And Lead then Bismuth for your tummy
Polonium, Astatine would not be yummy
Radon, Francium will last a little time
Radium then actinides at 89
And Lead then Bismuth for your tummy
Polonium, Astatine would not be yummy
Radon, Francium will last a little time
Radium then actinides at 89
This is the PERIODIC TABLE
Noble gas is stable
Halogens and Alkali react aggressively
Each period we'll see new outer shells
While electrons are to the right
Noble gas is stable
Halogens and Alkali react aggressively
Each period we'll see new outer shells
While electrons are to the right
Actinium
Thorium, Protactinium
Uranium
Neptunium, Plutonium
Americium, Curium, Berkelium
Californium, Einsteinium, Fermium
Mendelevium, Nobelium, Lawrencium
Rutherfordium, Dubnium, Seaborgium
Bohrium, Hassium
Then Meitnerium
Darmstadtium, Roentgenium
Copernicium
Thorium, Protactinium
Uranium
Neptunium, Plutonium
Americium, Curium, Berkelium
Californium, Einsteinium, Fermium
Mendelevium, Nobelium, Lawrencium
Rutherfordium, Dubnium, Seaborgium
Bohrium, Hassium
Then Meitnerium
Darmstadtium, Roentgenium
Copernicium
Nihonium, Flerovium
Moscovium, Livermorium
Tennessine and Oganesson
And then we're done
Moscovium, Livermorium
Tennessine and Oganesson
And then we're done
The periodic table of the chemical elements
'The Elements' is a song by musical humorist and lecturer Tom Lehrer, which recites the names of all the chemical elements known at the time of writing, up to number 102, nobelium. It was written in 1959 and can be found on his albums Tom Lehrer in Concert, More of Tom Lehrer and An Evening Wasted with Tom Lehrer. The song is sung to the tune of the 'Major-General's Song' from The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan.[1]
The song is also included in the musical revueTom Foolery, along with many of Lehrer's other songs.
Description of the song[edit]
The ordering of elements in the lyrics fits the meter of the song, and includes much alliteration, and thus has little or no relation to the ordering in the periodic table. This can be seen for example in the opening and closing lines:
There's antimony, arsenic, aluminum, selenium,
And hydrogen and oxygen and nitrogen and rhenium,
...
And argon, krypton, neon, radon, xenon, zinc, and rhodium,
And chlorine, carbon, cobalt, copper, tungsten, tin, and sodium.
These are the only ones of which the news has come to Harvard,
And there may be many others, but they haven't been discovered.
And hydrogen and oxygen and nitrogen and rhenium,
...
And argon, krypton, neon, radon, xenon, zinc, and rhodium,
And chlorine, carbon, cobalt, copper, tungsten, tin, and sodium.
These are the only ones of which the news has come to Harvard,
And there may be many others, but they haven't been discovered.
Lehrer was a Harvard Mathematics lecturer, and the final rhyme of 'Harvard' and 'discovered' is delivered in a parody of a Boston accent—a non-rhotic manner—so that the two words rhyme. Lehrer did not normally speak with that accent. Lehrer accompanied himself on the piano while singing the song.
Background[edit]
Lehrer drew the inspiration for 'The Elements' from the song 'Tchaikovsky and Other Russians', written by Ira Gershwin, which listed fifty Russian composers in a similar manner.[2]
'The Elements' differs from the 'Major-General's Song' in that:
- On some of the live recordings, Lehrer pauses in the middle for spoken interludes, in which he talks to the audience (e.g., 'I hope you're all taking notes, because there's going to be a short quiz next period!') while vamping on the piano.
- The verse structure is altered, omitting the third verse of the original as well as all of the choral 'responses', and adding an extra two lines at the end of the last verse.
- The song ends with a piano coda ('Shave and a Haircut').
- 'The Elements' is in the key of C, while the 'Major-General's Song' is in E-flat.
- In some live versions, after the song is finished, Lehrer told the audience of an earlier version, from Aristotle's time, that consists of Air, Fire, Water and Earth, explaining that it was a much simpler time.
In popular culture[edit]
'The Elements' has been featured in popular culture many times. In the episode 'Ex-File' of NCIS, Timothy McGee and Abby Sciuto hum the song, which forms a key clue in their case. In The Big Bang Theory episode 'The Pants Alternative', a drunk Sheldon Cooper starts to sing the song during his acceptance of an award from his university. In the 2006 episode of Gilmore Girls called 'The Real Paul Anka', Luke Danes's daughter April and her classmates sing the song on the bus.[3]Daniel Radcliffe sang 'The Elements' on The Graham Norton Show in 2010.[4] The Jewish parody group Shlock Rock acknowledges Lehrer and 'The Elements' as inspiration for 'The Shabbat Song'.[5]David Costabile, as Gale, sang along to the song in 'Something Beautiful', a season 4 episode of Better Call Saul (2018).[6]
Cover recordings include Jesse Dangerously on his album How to Express Your Dissenting Political Viewpoint Through Origami, where the song is titled 'Tom Lehrer's The Elements'.[7]
Footnotes[edit]
- ^Shepherd, Marc. 'Tom Lehrer's 'The Elements' and 'Clementine' (1959)', The Gilbert and Sullivan Discography, 5 October 2008, accessed December 15, 2017
- ^'A Conversation With Tom Lehrer', BBC Interview, 1999.
- ^'IMDb Trivia: 'Gilmore Girls' The Real Paul Anka (TV episode 2006)'.
- ^'Daniel Radcliffe sings The Elements Song on The Graham Norton Show' on YouTube, broadcast November 12, 2010
- ^Liner notes for the CD 'Woodshlock', ShlockRock.com
- ^Snierson, Dan. 'Breaking Bad alum on his surprise Better Call Saul appearance – and whether he'll sing again', Entertainment Weekly, August 21, 2018
- ^'Tom Lehrer's The Elements' at Discogs.com
Further reading[edit]
- Too Many Songs by Tom Lehrer, 1981, has sheet music for many of Lehrer's songs, including The Elements.
External links[edit]
- Animation of the song on YouTube
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