A Song for Today: St. Matthew Passion, BWV 244; No. 65 Aria (Bass) "Mache Dich, Mein Herze Rein"

"The Talented Mr. Ripley" is one of my favorite films that I viewed it again last night. The 1999 movie stars Matt Damon as the title character. IMDB summarizes the film: "The 1950s. Manhattan lavatory attendant, Tom Ripley, borrows a Princeton jacket to play piano at a garden party. When the wealthy father of a recent Princeton grad chats Tom up, Tom pretends to know the son and is soon offered $1,000 to go to Italy to convince Dickie Greenleaf to return home. In Italy, Tom attaches himself to Dickie and to Marge, Dickie's cultured fiancee, pretending to love jazz and harboring homoerotic hopes as he soaks in luxury. Besides lying, Tom's talents include impressions and forgery, so when the handsome and confident Dickie tires of Tom, dismissing him as a bore, Tom goes to extreme lengths to make Greenleaf's privileges his own."

In a very early scene Tom is seen walking up a metal staircase from his basement apartment. From this below-stairs existence, he is chauffeured in a limousine to the cruise liner that will whisk him off to Europe in first class. In the background is melancholy melody which I thought all these years was an operatic aria. It feels mournful for his past he is leaving behind but is hopeful in a gentle way about what is about to come. In the video below, the music starts at about 6:33.

After nearly seventeen years, I finally took the time to find the music credit by pausing the ending credits of the film. Only about a minute is played in the movie so I wanted to find the full-lenth of the song.

After a search on iTunes I found the exact recording. It comes from Johann Sebastian Bach's St. Matthew Passion and titled BMW 244. No 65 Aria (Bass) "Mache Dich, Mein Herze, Rein" and written in 1727. Wikipedia indicates the full Passion composition is widely regarded as one of the masterpieces of classical sacred music.

The recording is conducted by Karl Richter and the vocal is by Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (1925-2012), a German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music.

It's a song I'll add to my "Music to Travel By Collection".  For some reason at a particular moment especially when I travel, I often imagine a soundtrack of what music would be playing at a moment. Somehow this captures a feeling of awakening or discovery maybe on a quiet early morning in some a city away from home.

The film is an excellent thriller with outstanding performances by the three leads and supporting cast. But most of all you'll love the Italian locations where most of the movie was filmed.

This portion of the Passion runs seven minutes and repeats a short lyric in German:

Mache dich, mein Herze, rein,
Ich will Jesum selbst begraben.
Denn er soll nunmehr in mir
Für und für
Seine süße Ruhe haben.
Welt, geh aus, laß Jesum ein!

This is translated as:

Make yourself pure, my heart,
I want to bury Jesus myself.
For from now on He shall have in me,
forever and ever,
His sweet rest.
World, get out, let Jesus in!

The video below includes the full seven-minute version.

Pont Alexandre III: Bridge to the Eiffel Tower Experience at the Paris Las Vegas Hotel

The replica of the Pont Alexandre III bridge crosses over the
casino floor of the Paris Las Vegas.

Walking on the replica bridge.
(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)

The real Pont Alexandre III in Paris, France.
(photo: weblettres.net)

The real Pont Alexandre III in daylight.
(photo: helenzeiler)

Call the Paris Las Vegas Hotel kitschy but there's no denying the detail that craftsmen put into capturing the French city in the middle of this dessert town. This includes the recreation of the Pont Alexandre III arch bridge which is probably missed by most visitors as they make their way through the casino.

Anyone who purchased a ticket to the hotel's Eiffel Tower Experience must use this bridge  to access the tower elevators. It also serves as a way to hold the line of people above the casino floor when the attraction is busy.

The real bridge in Paris crosses the Seine river and is regarded as one of the most ornately constructed bridges in the city. Built between 1896 and 1900, it is named after Tsar Alexander III who was instrumental in a military alliance between Russia and France. The bridge is noted for its Art Nouveau lamps, cherubs and nymphs. The bridge has made key appearances in the final scene of the Woody Allen's film "Midnight In Paris" (a YouTube clip is included at the bottom of this post) and singer Adele's music video for her song "Someone Like You."

The Pont Alexandre III at the Paris Las Vegas is quite a sight to see. Walking along its polished floor under the dim lights of the false blue sky still gives a feeling of the romantic even if there's a crowd of gamblers down below. The view from the bridge gives the visitor a look at how large a space an 85,000 square foot casino covers.

For security and safety only ticket holders for the Eiffel Tower Experience are allowed to access the bridge. When the attraction is closed, the bridge is off-limits. But everyone can gaze at the expanse and admire the architectural detail from the casino. Just remember to look up if you're ever in the Paris Las Vegas casino.

View of casino from the Pont Alexandre III at the Paris Las Vegas.

Opposite view from bridge.
(above photos: TheHopefulTraveler)

Movies To Travel By: "Midnight In Paris"

Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams at Giverny.
(production photos: Sony Pictures Classics)

We all likely have a romantic vision of Paris. Woody Allen captures that feeling in the first ten minutes of his 2011 film "Midnight in Paris" offering postcard view after view of the "city of light." It's almost worth the admission just to admire these picture perfect images of Paris even after the story begins and characters begin inhabiting the foreground.

"Midnight in Paris" is a romantic comedy fantasy and to reveal its story is likely to reveal its surprises. In his four-star review of the film, Roger Ebert indicates in his first sentence that the review contains spoilers and that he can't imagine a way to review the film without discussing the delightful fantasy at the heart of Allen's new film.

Without giving much away, here's an excerpt from Ebert's review: "The film is sort of a daydream for American lit majors. It opens with a couple on holiday in Paris with her parents. Gil (Owen Wilson) and Inez (Rachel McAdams) are officially in love, but maybe what Gil really loves is Paris in the springtime. He's a hack screenwriter from Hollywood who still harbors the dream of someday writing a good novel and joining the pantheon of American writers whose ghosts seem to linger in the very air he breathes...He'd like to live in Paris. Inez would like to live in an upper-class American suburb...One night, he wanders off by himself, gets lost, sits on some church steps, and as a bell rings midnight, a big old Peugot pulls up filled with revelers."

The story then takes a turn that is one of the most magical and whimsical in recent moviemaking years. It is one of the best films of 2011 and among the best of Woody Allen's career.

Rachel McAdams and Owen Wilson at the Palace at Versailles.

Owen Wilson perusing the street markets of Paris.

Film locations, beautifully photographed by cinematographer Darius Khondji, include the Palace at Versailles, Sacre-Coeur, Ile de la Cite, Giverny, John XXIII Square near Notre Dame, and the streets near the Pantheon. Even the Hotel le Bristol where Gil and Inez stay contains images of luxurious accommodations that we can only dream about. Quaint street makets and fine restaurants complete the wonderful locales in the film. The first scene with Gil and Inez includes images of a Monet painting come to life. Visit movie-locations.com for more details of the film's various location.

"Midnight in Paris" is Woody Allen's highest grossing film domestically and internationally. Its global box office stands at over $151 million. The film was nominated for four Academy Awards including best picture winning the Oscar for best original screenplay.

Woody Allen took care in casting all the roles. Besides Wilson and McAdams, Kurt Fuller and Mimi Kennedy play the parents of Inez. Great supporting work is provided by Michael Sheen, Alison Pill, Tom Hiddleston, Kathy Bates, Marion Cotillard, Adrien Brody and Lea Seydoux. Even Carla Bruni, who was the First Lady of France at the time of filming, is excellent in her few scenes as a tour guide at the Rodin Museum.

Two actors who should expect more roles to come their way are Corey Stoll (spoiler warning: he plays Ernest Hemingway) and Nina Arianda as Carol, a friend of Gil and Inez, both of whom make great impressions onscreen in their few scenes. But it is Wilson who carries the film with his quiet charm.

"Midnight in Paris" is available on DVD and Blu-ray and songs featured in the film is available on CD. On iTunes, click HERE to download the film or HERE to download the music.

Michael Sheen, Nina Arianda, Rachel McAdams and Owen Wilson
at Versailles.

Owen Wilson and Lea Seydoux on the Point Alexander III.

Left to right: Owen Wilson, Marion Cotillard, Corey Stoll and Daniel Lundh.

Marion Cotillard and Owen Wilson strolling the streets of Paris.

Owen Wilson and Rachel McAdams at the Hotel le Bristol

Carla Bruni and Owen Wilson at the Rodin Museum.

On the set with Marion Cotillard, Owen Wilson and writer/director
Woody Allen.

Alison Pill and Tom Hiddleston evoking a style of Paris in the past.

Owen Wilson taking a stroll along the Seine.

Owen Wilson sitting on the steps of the Church of St. Etienne du Mont.