Tchaikovsky's "Marche Slave Op. 31" = Disney's Aladdin?

Cafe Society
#1

This thread about Disney songs reminded me of something that has plagued me for days. DAYS, I tells ya.

While at Border’s a week or so ago, I bought a CD of Tchaikovsky’s work to study to. Listening through the CD, I came across the Marche Slave which is beautiful and really tells a story. That said, my oh my did it sound familiar.

Amazon has a clip of the part I’m talking about. Isn’t that the same song used in Disney’s Aladdin?

Did Disney rip off Tchaikovsky or do they admit to sampling? Or is this just a coincidence?

Wiki says that Tchaikovsky himself borrowed the melody for Serbian folk songs, so perhaps that is where Disney also borrowed from?

Anyone know?

#2

I was already familiar with Marche Slave at the time I saw Aladdin, and quite fond of it. I’d think I would have recognized it if I’d heard it in the movie, but I didn’t. Could you be a bit more specific what song in the movie you think sounds like it?

#3

I agree that it does sound a lot like Aladdin. However: I think it’s just the style. It also sounds vaguely like pieces of the Prince of Egypt soundtrack (which I coincidentally just started a thread on) and a number of Jewish songs. I think (anyone feel free to correct me-- I haven’t bothered to actually check) that it’s the harmonic minor scale, which is sort of the stereotypically Semitic scale, just as the pentatonic is typically associated in our culture with the Far East.

#4

Actually, forget that last post. I’m sort of half taking out of my ass and rather ill-informed, and I hate it when people do that.

#5

I’m guessing if they did borrow from Tchaikovsky, they would have noted so. After all, in Disney’s Sleeping Beauty, almost all of the songs came from Tchaikovsky’s ballet.

#6

I haven’t watched the movie in a while, so I’ll try when I get home to verify.

Looking at Aladdin’s Amazon page, the closest sounding is Arabian Nights, but I could have sworn there was something a bit more similar.

It sounds a bit like the song Prince Ali (the reprise where it’s darker). I just remember it was a “scary” part of the movie, so Jafar was probably doing something not very nice ;).

I’m totally not being helpful at all in this thread, am I? All I know is, I heard Marche Slave and thought, “Whoa- ALADDIN!” and everyone that I’ve made listen agrees.

Perhaps it is just a very similar style.

#7

There is a general similarity. They’re both simple themes, but since simple themes tend to resemble one another, I wouldn’t call it a rip-off.

They’re in the same key, as it happens (C minor?) - excerpt of “Prince Ali” here for comparison.

That theme from “Marche Slav” resembles the “Prince A-LI”, starting on the “-LI”. The next note in “Prince Ali” is a full step down, while in the other it’s a half step.

They’re both descending phrases - “Marche Slav” is straightforward, and “Prince Ali” inserts a couple of quick ascending turns.

The first phrase of the “Marche Slav” theme ends on the tonic note (?) (C?), while “Prince Ali” continues to the dominant below (?) (G?).