"Song Of Scheherazade" lyrics

[I. Fanfare]

[Instrumental]

[II. The Betrayal]

[Instrumental]

[III. The Sultan]

Sultan king, cruel majesty
Ordered that his women die
A single night, this for all his wives
Takes his pleasure then their lives

And so for many days with the dawn
The sultan had his way, wives were put to death
His name on their dying breath

Then one day as the evening came
Sultan sends for him a wife
"Choose her well, charms I wish to see
Bring her, send her in to me"

Then came Scheherazade to his side
And her beauty shone, like a flower grown
Gentle as he'd ever known

Scheherazade bewitched him with songs of jewelled kings
Princes and of heroes and eastern fantasies
Told him tales of sultans and talismans and rings
A thousand and one nights she sang to entertain her king

She sings
Scheherazade, Scheherazade
Scheherazade, Scheherazade
Scheherazade, Scheherazade

[IV. Love Theme]

[Instrumental]

[V. The Young Prince And Princess As Told By Scheherazade]

And you would cause the sun
To see your light and then be shamed
You cover darkness with a thousand secret flames

With your love, oh my love, oh my love, my love

And I would cause the winds to blow a hundred different days
And bring the perfumes of the gardens of the ways

Of your love, oh my love, oh my love, my love

Crystal and the clay, nights and the days, all on the prince's seal
Eagle of the sky, lion of the earth
This is what the seal is worth, what the seal is worth

Holds all of the dreams of a man
Tapestries, wishes of man
Pictures and visions of man
The spirit of the soul of the man

And he would vow to love her for the rest of all his days

[VI. Festival Preparations]

[Instrumental]

[VII. Fugue For The Sultan]

[Instrumental]

[VIII. The Festival]

Scheherazade, this day is yours
The bearers of your gifts now all around you stand
The finest silk made in the land
Is waiting for your choice, it shimmers at your hand

Scheherazade your life is one
You have today the sultan's love
The people watch you step into the sun

Stalls and bars of every kind
Food piled high on woven leaves for all to eat
Drums and flutes at every turn
The music winding, twisting through the crowded streets

Caravans from far away bring people laughing
People come to see the sultan in Baghdad today

Scheherazade, her name is known
Her tale is told, the sultan let her life be spared
The festival begins this day
To celebrate her fame, the people sing her praise

Stories sung, the crowds are dancing
To the music and the entertainment all the voices sing
The people call to see the king
The sultan smiles, his story just begun
The sultan and Scheherazade are one
Scheherazade, Scheherazade

[IX. Finale]

She told him tales of sultans and talismans and rings
A thousand and one nights she sang to entertain her king

She sings
Scheherazade, Scheherazade
Scheherazade, Scheherazade
Scheherazade, Scheherazade
Scheherazade, Scheherazade
Scheherazade, Scheherazade
Scheherazade