Clopin
Morning in paris, the city awakes
To the bells of notre dame
The fisherman fishes, the bakerman bakes
To the bells of notre dame
To the big bells as loud as the thunder
To the little bells soft as a psalm
And some say the soul of the city‘s
The toll of the bells
The bells of notre dame
Listen, they‘re beautiful, no?
So many colors of sound, so many changing moods
Because you know, they don‘t ring all by themselves
- they don‘t? -
No, silly boy.
Up there, high, high in the dark bell tower
Lives the mysterious bell ringer.
Who is this creature - who? -
What is he? - what? -
How did he come to be there - how? -
Hush, and clopin will tell you
It is a tale, a tale of a man and a monster.
Dark was the night when our tale was begun
On the docks near notre dame
Man shup it up, will you!
Man we‘ll be spotted!
Gypsy
Hush, little one.
Clopin
Four frightened gypsies slid silently under
The docks near notre dame
Man four guilders for safe passage into paris
Clopin
But a trap had been laid for the gypsies
And they gazed up in fear and alarm
At a figure whose clutches
Were iron as much as the bells
Man judge claude frollo
Clopin
The bells of notre dame
Chorus
Kyrie eleison (lord have mercy)
Clopin
Judge claude frollo longed
To purge the world
Of vice and sin
Chorus
Kyrie eleison (lord have mercy)
Clopin
And he saw corruption
Ev‘rywhere
Except within
Frollo
Bring these gypsy vermin to the palace of justice
Guard
You there, what are you hiding?
Frollo
Stolen goods, no doubt. take them from her
Clopin
She ran
Chorus
Dies irae, dies illa (day of wrath, that day)
Solvet saeclum in favilla (shall consume the world in ashes)
Teste david cum sibylla (as prophesied by david and the sibyl)
Quantus tremor est futurus (what trembling is to be)
Quando judex est venturus (when the judge is come)
Gypsy
Sanctuary, please give us sanctuary
Frollo
A baby? a monster!
Archdeacon
Stop!
Clopin
Cried the archdeacon
Frollo
This is an unholy deamon.
I‘m sending it back to hell, where it belongs.
Archdeacon
See there the innocent blood you have spilt
On the steps of notre dame
Frollo
I am guiltless. she ran, i pursued.
Archdeacon
Now you would add this child‘s blood to your guilt
On the steps of notre dame
Frollo
My conscience is clear
Archdeacon
You can lie to yourself and your minions
You can claim that you haven‘t a qualm
But you never can run from
Nor hide what you‘ve done from the eyes
The very eyes of notre dame
Chorus
Kyrie eleison (lord have mercy)
Clopin
And for one time in his live
Of power and control
Chorus
Kyrie eleison (lord have mercy)
Clopin
Frollo felt a twinge of fear
For his immortal soul
Frollo
What must i do?
Archdeacon
Care for the child, and raise it as your own
Frollo
What? i‘d be settled with this misshapen ...?
Very well. let him live with you, in your church.
Archdeacon
Live here? where?
Frollo
Anywhere
Just so he‘s kept locked away
Where no one else can see
The bell tower, perhaps
And who knows, our lord works in mysterious ways
Even this foul creature may
Yet prove one day to be
Of use to me
Clopin
And frollo gave the child a cruel name
A name that means half-formed, quasimodo
Now here is a riddle to guess if you can
Sing the bells of notre dame
Who is the monster and who is the man?
Clopin and chorus
Sing the bells, bells, bells, bells
Bells, bells, bells, bells
Bells of notre dame