Songs That End Softly

Reading the responses in the very interesting song ending thread, I was thinking that a song needn't have a grand finish to prompt that special "frisson" --- ending softly can equally touch the recesses of one's soul.

I can think of a number of songs that do so, often of a wistful bent. Some that come readily to mind:

A Little Bit in Love, winsomely sung by Edie Adams; Where Shall I Find Him? and When You Want Me (Sail Away); Walking Away Whistling and the reprise of Summertime Love (Greenwillow); Seagull, Starfish, Pebble (La Strada)

Anyone else have favorite songs that end softly?

The ending of Another Winter in a Summer Town is absolutely haunting.

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Even though it ends on the highest note of the song, I love when Amalias don't forcibly project the end of "Will He Like Me?". If they do, it takes away from the parts that are projected and disrupts the arc of that song.

Also, "How Could I Ever Know" ends pretty softly

morosco-How could I forget that! And it's a gorgeous, gorgeous ending after the crescendo just before it.

Memory is another that pops into my head with a quiet ending. (I find it neat after the big 'money notes' there on "Touch me..." how the song ends so quietly-and yet the note is very high for a soft note (it's really difficult to do correctly).)

With You - GHOST

While it has a nice crescendo right before the end, the very end of “Unusual Way” (NINE) is the first thing I thought of.

Not every song deserves a thunderous climax, it is absolutely true. Many songs are all the more effective for their refusal to bend to that moment.

For example, RAGTIME, the score loaded with epic climaxes (many of which are among my favorites), also boasts "Your Daddy's Son" and "Sarah Brown Eyes," two songs that gorgeously resolve without triumph and fanfare, but sorrow and remorse.

"The 'I Love You' Song" from SPELLING BEE ends with it's hauntingly soft rejoinder to the wildly fanciful eruptions of melody towards its end... stunning and gorgeous way to finish that particular fantasy.

"Falling Slowly" from ONCE ends the way it beguilingly began, only now with both its piano and guitar playing in sync (god, the orchestrations for that show are genius.) There are a number of songs in that score ("Gold" and "Sleeping" as well) that have similar structures, but the acoustic style of music there lends itself to softer endings far more easily than your typical Broadway fare.

Another acoustic favorite: "I Chose Right" from BABY.

The title number from THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA ends softly, gorgeously, perfectly.

For all its pomp and parade, "Is Anybody There?" from 1776 ends with a ponderous anxiety, as befits its night-before-the-vote climactic placement.

Respecting the known proclivities of the OP, I will group all of my Sondheim mentions together at once:
"Move On"
"A Bowler Hat"
"No More"
"No One Is Alone"

And, since I'm me, I have to mention "Quiet" from MATILDA here, which folds softly in on itself in its gorgeous second half.

My list is by no means comprehensive, but I'm glad After Eight brought up the other side of this coin.

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Updated On: 9/12/13 at 12:37 PM

Miracle in Matilda tapers very quickly down to nothing.

Finale (everything you ever) in Doctor Horrible ends almost silent, a cappella.

Sunrise Sunset, Anatevka and Sabbath Prayer from Fiddler On The Roof

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Updated On: 9/12/13 at 06:27 PM

I'm a little prejudiced, I am sure, but when I directed PIPPIN years ago, I worked with our amazing Catherine (Lisa Dyson, in case anybody reading this knows her) to sing "I Guess I'll Miss the Man" so surely, with all the little jokes intact, that when she held......the last note....down to a whisper, it stopped the show. I like Mister S's small stuff, and this song is just beautifully constructed.

I'm Not that Girl - WICKED

"Gethsemane" in Jesus Christ Superstar, pre-1996. Most recordings and live productions tend to try to give it a big finish even without the added tag, but I've never cared for that. The 1972 Australian cast recording gives it the nice slow send-off it needs. I believe the Indigo Girls "Resurrection" recording also does so.

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I know the truth:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dw0yt8it134

Loose Ends:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAs2-VF_2bc