This is a study of the rich and diverse range of musical responsesto Shakespeare that have taken place from the seventeenth centuryonwards. Written from a literary perspective, the book explores themany genres and contexts in which Shakespeare and his work haveenjoyed a musical afterlife discussing opera, ballet, and classicalsymphony alongside musicals and film soundtracks, as well as folkmusic and hip-hop traditions.Taking as its starting point ideas of creativity andimprovisation stemming from early modern baroque practices and themore recent example of twentieth-century jazz adaptation, thisvolume explores the many ways in which Shakespeares plays and poemshave been re-worked by musical composers. It also places thesecultural productions in their own historical moment andcontext.Adaptation studies is a fast emerging field of scholarship andas a contribution to this field, Shakespeare and Music: Afterlivesand Borrowings:* * develops theories and practices from adaptation studies tothink about musical responses to Shakespeare across thecenturies* * brings together in an exciting intellectual encounter ideas andmethodologies deriving from literary criticism, theatre history,film studies, and musicology* * explores music in its widest context, looking at classicalsymphonies including the work of Berlioz and Elgar and operas byVerdi and Britten as well as Broadway musicals, film scores byShostakovich, Walton, and contemporary performers, and the jazzadaptations of Duke Ellington and others.This is a timely study that will appeal to a wide readershipfrom lovers of Shakespeare and classical music through to studentsof film and historians of the theatre.

Acknowledgements viiiPrelude 11 'All That Jazz': Shakespeare and MusicalAdaptation 112 Classical Shakespeares 293 'Shall we dance?': Shakespeare at the Ballet594 'Shakespeare with a contemporary musical twist'735 Shakespeare in the Opera House 966 Giuseppe Verdi and Benjamin Britten:Case Studies in Shakespearean Opera 1127 Symphonic Film Scores 1358 'You know the movie song':Contemporary and Hybrid Film Scores 1599 Contemporary Music and Popular Culture 182Coda 194Glossary of Musical Terms 198Bibliography 202Discography 214Filmography 219Index 221