Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?
Caught in a landslide, no escape from reality
Open your eyes, look up to the skies and see...
So begins one of the most legendary rock songs of all time: "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen. This song proved to be an infinitely rich source of inspiration to us as composers, interpreters, and filmmakers. The lyrics powerfully depict the tensions between reality and imagination, as well as the universal desire for escape and revelation—concepts that resonate with us artistically and personally—and the song's brilliant juxtaposition of pathos and parody informed our approach to our two-piano cover and our cinematic reimagining. We also wanted to celebrate the spirit of Queen frontman Freddie Mercury himself, one of the most iconic singers and performers in history; we aimed to infuse our cover and video with over-the-top theatricality in homage to his incendiary rebelliousness, cheekiness, and bravura.
Furthermore, the influence of opera permeates both our cover and music video (after all, the original song is featured on an album entitled A Night at the Opera). Freddie Mercury was highly influenced by classical music and especially passionate about opera, even successfully collaborating with the Spanish prima donna Montserrat Caballé in 1992. This scene from the 2018 Bohemian Rhapsody film further underscores his affection for opera:
(It should be noted that we composed and recorded our cover version of the song long before the film came out, so we were delighted to discover that this scene validated our operatic treatment!) In creating our two-piano arrangement, we wanted to reclaim the classical roots of the song and honor its operatic spirit by appropriating the styles of Wagner, Liszt, and 18th-century opera buffa. Throughout the music video, we take the operatic narrative literally, incorporating postmodern versions of Siegfried and Brunhilde alongside Mozartean aristocrats (playfully garbed in neon wigs). As classical pianists, composers, and filmmakers, we found it satisfying to delve into the song's classical origins and send the love back to Freddie. In turn, we also wanted the chance to rock out ... which we definitely get to do, as you'll see in the video!
Freddie Mercury once said of Queen, "We break a lot of rules. It's unheard of to combine opera with a rock theme, my dear." We intensely relate to this statement—we find ourselves breaking rules and defying the status quo in the name of creative freedom. Our artistic instincts often lead us to mix genres and cross boundaries which may be why we identify so strongly with this song and Queen as a whole. His statement during the movie scene above hits the bullseye, as it applies not only to his band but to artists like us who resist the limits of labels: "No one knows what Queen means because it doesn’t mean one thing.” Word.
Last but not least, we thought it would be super fun to riff on the symbolism of "Queen" throughout this video. Royal or drag, regal or fierce, a figurehead or diva, with or without an actual crown: this music video is a call to us all to embrace the powerful queens within ourselves! 👑
So without further ado, we proudly present our latest music video extravaganza: BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY.