Top 20 Hardest Broadway Songs to Sing

everyone give it up for america's favorite fighting sprints [Applause] welcome to ms mojo and today we're counting down our picks for the top 20 hardest broadway songs [Applause] i'm not well so i'm not getting married you've been swell but i'm not getting married thank you all but i'm not getting married clear the halls i'm not getting married [Music] for this list we'll be looking at all of those musical theater classics that make our jaws drop when someone sings them right if we missed any of your favorite tunes let us know in the comments below number 20 climb every mountain the sound of music climb every mountain search high and alone what's the one thing every musical needs an inspirational tune to get you through the hard times and for extra points make it incredibly difficult to sing in rogers and hammerstein's the sound of music maria who is training to be a nun falls in love with captain von trapp the father of the children she serves as a governess for afraid of her feelings she seeks advice from the mother abbess the mother abbas sings climb every mountain a first act closer filled with numerous successive high sustained notes that can't be easy to sing beautifully so it makes sense that the song is usually sung by a classically trained soprano it's an inspiration to maria but also immensely impressive [Music] number 19 she used to be mine waitress it's not simple to say and most days i don't recognize me this one is full of high highs and low lows talk about the importance of range in the waitress musical based on the 2007 film of the same name the main character jenna sings this song as a meditation on the ways her life has gone wrong and how she's lost herself in the process not only is that a lot of emotional range to cover but also the actual vocal range of this song is no easy feat sara bareilles who wrote the music and lyrics for the show sings a version of this song herself with a vocal range stretching from f3 to d5 take that already difficult span and add in the emotional weight of performing on broadway and you've got yourself a difficult song to perform [Music] [Applause] number 18 made of stone the hunchback of notre dame what do you know of all the things i feel you're only made of stone everyone knows it can be hard to hit the high notes but have you ever tried it while maintaining the physicality demanded to convincingly portray the bell ringer probably not quasimodo the titular hunchback of notre dame sings this killer song that contemplates the impending fate of his lost love esmeralda the song requires the actor to be completely raw in their emotions which is something that actors should expect and be able to do take all the dreams you've sown take all your lies and leave me however sometimes the actor playing quasimodo also has to affect a certain hunched physicality that makes it all the harder to really nail those high notes especially in the last chorus [Music] number 17 rainbow high evita there again then simply get the message through i haven't started let's get this show on the road it takes some serious lungs to pull this one off in andrew lloyd webber's musical evita eva peron sings this incredible song as she prepares to tour europe it may not be quite as memorable as the show's other signature tunes such as don't cry for me argentina or a new argentina [Music] [Applause] but it is the most difficult in the show and it takes a truly great singer to push it over the edge [Music] the range of the number is fairly large the lead has to sing strange intervals and the style changes throughout add in those key changes and you've got yourself one heck of a song especially when it's sung by one of the greats patty lupone [Applause] [Music] number 16 confrontation jekyll and hyde it's over now i know inside no one will ever know the sorry tale of edward hyde it can be hard enough to pull off a really difficult solo it can be even harder to pull off a really good duet with another person but have you ever tried to sing a duet with yourself well as you can probably imagine it's no easy feat after tonight i shall end this demon's dream this is not a dream my friend and it will never end after dr jekyll's evil alter ego mr hyde kills his love lucy jekyll decides to confront hyde about it so he confronts himself and sings a duet with himself we'll forgive you if you're confused because it takes a really talented actor to pull off this musical [Applause] [Music] number actor is required to switch on a dime changing their voice physicality motives and everything else and the actual singing ability required pretty hard to god damn you hide take [Music] number 15 rose's turn gypsy here she is boys here she is world here's a rose stephen sondheim does nothing if not give his actors incredible material to work with and this stellar 11 o'clock number from gypsy is no exception rose sings the song towards the end of act two when she finally admits she's been pushing her daughters towards fame to live vicariously through them scrapbooks full of me in the background it's not as melodic as other songs in gypsy but what pushes rose's turn over the edge isn't necessarily the musical quality but the emotional work that needs to go into the performance now someone tell me when is it my turn don't i get a dream for myself starting now is gonna be my turn gangway world get off of my runway the audience has been wondering about the motivations of this character for the whole show and here she finally admits what they are when done right it can be terrifying filled with ambition sadness anger all of it number 14 pity the child chess when i was when you think of broadway you think of big brassy show tunes well chess definitely isn't the quintessential broadway musical with music written by abbas bjorn olvius and benny anderson and lyrics by ovius and tim rice but that almost makes it harder to pull off the song starts off slow just a man singing over a piano reminiscing about his horrible childhood and how it affected his life but then the drums hit and the song becomes more of a powerful rock anthem where the notes get higher and higher as the song goes on [Music] it requires a heavy amount of power and range as well as the ability to pull off the arena rock sound that gives the song its edge [Music] just in case he said number 13 so much better legally blonde all of this time i planned i'd be patient and you would love me again if you love broadway then you love a good belt and especially a good belty sustained note at the end of a big number what like it's hard at the end of act one in the musical version of legally blonde elwoods finds out she landed an internship with professor callahan even though no one expected her she breaks out into this rousing song which includes a heck of a lot of movement dancing and running around the stage this is a far cry from the only number in the show that requires an incredibly in-shape performer whipped into shape is a physical feat in and of itself that we could only dream of attempting [Music] but that final long joyous note and so much better gets us every time number 12 your fault into the woods but if this is my fault i was given those things you persuaded me to trade away my cow for beans and without those beans that have been no stock to get up to the giants in the first place when have you ever known sondheim to make things easy on his actors never and especially not in into the woods there are plenty of extremely difficult wordy songs to sing on the steps of the palace comes to mind but then how can you know who you are till you know what you want which i don't so then which do you pick but the pacing challenge that is your fault is without a doubt the toughest song in the show the number is fast and filled with so many words even some of the best singers can't wrap their mouths around them but they're worthless beings when they oversold or tell us who persuaded you to steal that goal see it's your fault no so it's your fault no yes it is it's not it's true wait a minute but i only stood the goal to get my cow back from you not only that but it's also got multiple singers involved so you've got a bunch of other people to worry about too did we mention it's fast and wordy it's just really hard props to anyone who can pull it off [Music] number 11 i'm here the color purple [Music] if the end of cynthia arrivo's tony performance doesn't give you chills then what will i'm here serves as the culmination of celie's journey throughout the show and it's an emotional powerhouse showcase for the actress lucky enough to play the part [Music] vocally the song is all over the place requiring the actress to use her belt and her mix at varying intervals before exploding into that final section that if done correctly leaves the audience weeping but in addition to its vocal challenges it's all about learning to love yourself first and foremost it's part of an actor's job to bring all that emotion to the forefront but when you're able to do that while executing those notes perfectly that's truly something number 10 i am the very model of a modern major general the pirates of penzance i am the very model of a modern major general life information vegetable animal and mineral they know the kings of england and they quote the fight's historical from marathon to waterloo not a categorical now widely known by theater kids everywhere as warm-up exercise the tongue-twisting vocal challenges of major general song cannot be overstated probably the most famous of the patter songs written by the duo gilbert in sullivan the song is sung by major general stanley as he introduces himself to the other characters and the audience i can tell undoubted raphael some jared delson's often these i know the protein cards from the frogs of aristophanes and i can hum a few of which i've heard the music's dinner for dinner it's an extremely comedic satirical song which can get lost in the mix if you don't sing and perform the lyrics perfectly and with so many words to get through and so much alliteration in the mix it's a challenge for any actor worth their salty military knowledge place and adventuring is only being put down to the beginning of the century but still imagine that animal and minerals number nine memory cats [Music] we're going to focus on another andrew lloyd webber original but don't worry it won't be the last memory is without a doubt the most famous song from cats maybe the most famous song from a musical period but also one of the hardest songs to sing in the show upon first listen memory may sound a bit repetitive but that's exactly what makes it so difficult those high slow repetitive belty notes can be difficult to sustain [Applause] [Music] to convey the emotional intensity of the song through those repetitive melodies the actor has to stay on top of their game plus if an actor can make us care about a disgraced cat we think they're doing a good job [Music] has number eight guns and ships hamilton everyone give it up for america's [Applause] favorite hamilton an american musical is chock full of incredibly tough and rewarding songs for actors you've got angelica's amazing showcase and satisfied and of course the show stopping the room where it happens but for this entry nothing gets us more hyped than guns and ships the running gag for lafayette at the beginning of the show is that he hasn't quite mastered the english language yet so by the time guns and ships rolls around and lafayette busts out in one of the fastest verses we've ever heard the audience is rightly amazed at his mastery of words and rhythm we hope all of the amazing lafayettes out there have rapping with a french accent right at the top of their resume number seven bring him home les [Music] miserables folks songs can be deceiving they might sound slow and repetitive but those very things can make it incredibly difficult to perform well so is the case with bring him home a gorgeous song from the 1980s musical les miserables this may not be the most high-energy song in the show but when the right actor performs it boy does it leave an impact the song has a steady measured melody that builds and builds both vocally and emotionally it gets pretty high for the male voice and requires a ton of control props to every valjean who has nailed it live [Music] number six and i am telling you i'm not going dream girls [Music] there are some songs that are so difficult they're really only meant to be sung by a handful of people and this is one of them when jennifer holliday originated the role of effie in dream girls on broadway she did so to thunderous acclaim and her most memorable moment from the show came in the form of its first act closer [Music] and i am telling you is written as a plea to effie's lover curtis asking him not to leave her but the way holliday sings it it's more of a demand she sings with such power and force almost every single performance that's come since of course barring the great jennifer hudson feels subpar you're gonna number five gethsemane i only want to say jesus christ superstar i only want to say if there is a way jesus christ please save us from all the terrible renditions of this song for real if you're going to attempt this you better be a tenor worth your salt this powerful song comes at about the middle of act 2 of jesus christ superstar as jesus becomes more and more doubtful of the task he must complete namely dying [Applause] on a pure acting level it takes a lot of acting chops to humanize the literal lord jesus which this song requires the actor to do but more than that the notes the actor has to hit are absolutely ridiculous seriously it's akin to an act of god in and of itself that anyone can hit those [Music] babies [Music] number four defying gravity wicked something has changed within me something is not the same defying gravity try defying expectations with how incredibly difficult this song is when elphaba and glinda go to meet the wizard they find out he's not as nice as they initially believed him to be defying gravity serves as the moment elphaba decides to renounce the wizard and all his cronies and it's an incredibly tough act to land elphaba has plenty of big belty moments in the show no good deed is definitely a doozy [Music] but what's really astounding about this performance are the physical demands behind the song as originally staged the actress playing elphaba has to sing all those ridiculously high notes while literally suspended in midair talk about flying high [Applause] number three getting married today company is everybody here because if everybody's here i want to thank you all for coming to the wedding i appreciate you going even more i mean you must have lots of better things to do not a word of it to paul remember paul you're not the man i'm gonna marry but i'm not because i wouldn't ruin anyone as wonderful as he is thank you all for the gifts and the flowers sondheim is nothing if not known for his words a 1970s company has a plethora of tough wordy songs there's no time to take it there's no time we almost went with another hundred people another hundred people just got off of the train and came up through the ground wild another hundred people just got off of the bus and are looking around at but getting married today takes the cake amy sings this song as an anthem to cold feet everywhere in the moments before her wedding through the song amy completely self-distracts becoming more and more anxious and singing more and more quickly until she comes to an end i'm not well so i'm not getting married you've been swell but i'm not getting married thank you all but i'm not getting married clear the halls i'm not getting married and don't tell paul but i'm not getting married today not only is the song extremely fast paced and wordy but it's a tough comedic line to walk the audience has to be able to laugh at amy while simultaneously feeling bad for her as they watch her fall apart on stage but when it's done right it's hilarious and impressive to boot not getting married [Applause] number two the phantom of the opera the phantom of the opera sing my angel of music sing for me and make it as high as humanly possible this one is a doozy folks the titular song in andrew lloyd webber's the phantom of the opera comes when christine first follows the phantom down into his lair and the end of the song is absolutely [Music] [Music] killer [Music] the phantom begins to magically draw notes out of christine each one higher than the last by the time she finally gets to the end of the tune she lets out an e6 the highest note in the song and in the show the phantom gets his own moment to shine later with the very difficult the music of the night but in e6 there's nothing more impressive than that poor christine [Applause] before we get to our top pick here are some honorable mentions dead girl walking heather's the musical if jd doesn't kill you that final note will [Music] octet the light in the piazza and you thought a duet was hard he's mine you're not in charge of me why because kiss me sweeney todd the demon barber of fleet street a duet tougher than meat pies i knew i'd be with you one day even not knowing who you were of course i am what i am the casual fall sometimes being yourself is the hardest thing i am what i am i don't want grace i don't want kitty [Music] raise a little hell bonnie and clyde raising hell's never been harder [Music] before we continue be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get notified about our latest videos you have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them if you're on your phone make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications number one glitter and be gay condeed dangle a shiny object in front of a soprano and you can bet they'll try to sing it my song you go but to sound good on glitter and be gay you've got to have some serious chops first of all the comedic chops needed to really sell this performance are no joke it's an extremely physical song which can be a challenge when you're consistently hitting high e flats three to be exact in addition to those ridiculous notes there are so many long languid passages that require extreme fluidity and control if you've got the guts to even attempt this one well we salute you [Music] glitter and be gay my friend do you agree with our picks check out this other recent clip from mizmojo and be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos you

Channel: MsMojo

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Keywords: hardest songs to sing, hardest musical songs, hardest show tunes, hardest broadway musical songs, hardest musical roles, candide, the phantom of the opera, company, wicked, jesus christ superstar, dreamgirls, les miserables, hamilton, cats, the pirates of penzance, hardest broadway songs, Musicals, Broadway, Theatre, watchmojo, watch mojo, top 10, list, mojo, msmojo

Id: mTOqfed5CDg

Length: 31min 10sec (1870 seconds)

Published: Sun Mar 07 2021