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Noon Edition

Highways and Byways Podcast

This week on the Ether Game Weekly Music Quiz Podcast we're hitting the road and exploring music all about transportation! Grab your driving gloves for a show we're calling "Highways and Byways"! Can you name this transportational tune? (The answer is below) Remember to keep your ears out for a portion of Tuesday night's Teaser selection. And don't forget to tune into the full show on Tuesday, September 18th at 8:00pm for a chance to win a prize!

Luigi Denza (1846–1922), "Funiculì, Funiculà "

Luciano Pavarotti, tenor; Orchestra del Teatro Communale di Bologna.

The Greatest Tenor Show On Earth (Decca)



You've probably heard this famous Neapolitan song before-it's used in films and on commercials to represent anything "Italian." But did you know that this song is joyous song is actually about a railway car? "Funiculi, Funicula" was written by journalist Peppino Turco and set to music by Luigi Denza, written for the occasion of the first funicular of Mt. Vesuvius in 1880. A funicular, or an incline railway, combines the technology of an elevator with a railroad to create an efficient way to transport up steep inclines. The Mt. Vesuvius funicular was the first of its kind to go up an active volcano. The song's enthusiastic lyrics say, "Let's go to the funicular" and "we go from the ground to the mountain… Without walking!"  However, the funicular at Mt. Vesuvius no longer "goes from the ground to the mountain" – the lower station was partially buried in a 1944 eruption.

Music Heard On This Episode

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