Music is for lovers.
Written by Romy Journée
What do the composers Tchaikovsky, Brahms, and Verdi all have in common? If you said impressive beards, you wouldn’t be wrong, but another thing that links these musical maestros is their status as Romantic composers. The age of Romantic music is best understood within the broader concept of Romanticism, the stylistic and intellectual movement that began in late 18th century Europe. This movement, aptly named, saw an increased desire to romanticize human emotion; romanticism encouraged self-expression through art, which gave musicians freedom to create music that spoke to them. This period of history taught us that music is personal - it has the power to speak to us, and make us feel a certain way. Come the 21st century, and we can readily access music that speaks to us at the drop of a hat, whether that is a modern bop, or quite literally from the Romantic era!
While the roots of Valentine’s Day can be traced back to the 3rd century, it is no surprise that the modern holiday began to take shape in the Romantic era, with the tradition of exchanging cards and gifts as a token of admiration becoming established. Nowadays, it is easy to get caught up in a commercial whirlwind of flowers, chocolates, and expensive evenings out - while many of us like these nice things, others no doubt resent the cliché of it all. If the idea of finding yourself in the chocolate aisle at the big Tesco’s choosing between a milk tray or Lindt truffles is nightmare material, we don’t blame you ! The essence of Valentine’s Day as a celebration of love is sometimes forgotten when we focus our energy on what we ‘should’ spend our pennies on, rather than what represents love to us personally.
We all love music, but we might not necessarily view it as a gift in itself - but there are plenty of ways you can give the gift of music in a way that is personal and memorable. Sure, a curated playlist is a nice gesture, but if you’re looking to metaphorically package your musical gift up beautifully, a personalised musical performance is an elevated way to create your own personal Valentine’s Day fairy-tale, tailored to your significant other, friends, or anyone you want to show your love for this February 14th. The location and song choices for your Street Theatre performance are completely up to you, and we are happy to serve as the main present for your evening, or share the spotlight with a stuffed bear and a bouquet of red roses! What’s more, if zoom dates are still the reality for you right now, we can send these same tailored performances straight to your inbox! If you can already see your perfect evening taking shape to the tune of you and your Valentine’s favourite songs, feel free to click off this post and head over to book your performance. If not, may we suggest some songs you could request? Who knows, they might speak to you in a way that rivals Romantic composers!
Check out some of our favourite songs for Valentine’s Day.
For the classic romantics…
Unexpected Song, from ‘Song and Dance’
So In Love, from ‘Kiss Me, Kate!’
I See The Light, from ‘Tangled’
So This is Love, from ‘Cinderella’
For the celebrations of friendship…
For Good, from ‘Wicked’
Some Things Are Meant to Be, from ‘Little Women’
‘I Don’t Need Your Love,’ from ‘Six’
For the anti-Valentine’s crew…
The History of Wrong Guys, from ‘Kinky Boots’
I Won’t Say (I’m In Love), from ‘Hercules’
Get Down, from ‘Six’