The Song of Roland - Modern Adaptations

Modern Adaptations

The English progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator recorded a song, "Roncevaux", that tells the famous story. Norwegian folk metal band Glittertind and Norwegian polyphonic vocal group Trio Mediæval both recorded versions of "Rolandskvadet," based on part of "The Song of Roland." The Norwegian singer Erik Bye has also made a musical interpretation called "Rolandskvadet". The French black metal band Peste Noire used a fragment of the Song of Roland as lyrics for their song 'La Fin del Secle'. The Warren Zevon song "Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner" includes parallels with "The Song of Roland." In Zevon's song, the eponymous Roland has his head blown off by one of his fellow mercanaries, named Van Owen (a name resembling the trisyllable pronunciation of Ganelon). In addition, both Van Owen and Ganelon meet bloody reprisals for their deeds. Van Owen's body is blown from "here to Johannesburg" by a decapitated Roland while Ganelon is torn in pieces for being a traitor to Charlemagne's army.

The Italian composer Luigi Dallapiccola set "Rencesvals: Trois Fragments de la Chanson de Roland" for mezzo-soprano and piano in 1946. It was dedicated "à mes amis Pierre Bernac et Francis Poulenc," the leading performers of French art song at the time, and is typical of Dallapiccola's usage of the 12-tone style of composition.

The Chanson de Roland has an important place in the background of Graham Greene's The Confidential Agent. The book's protagonist had been a Medieval scholar specialising in this work, until the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War forced him to become a soldier and secret agent. Throughout the book, he repeatedly compares himself and other characters with the characters of "Roland". Particularly, the book includes a full two pages of specific commentary, which is relevant to its 20th Century plotline: "Oliver, when he saw the Saracens coming, urged Roland to blow his horn and fetch back Charlemagne - but Roland wouldn't blow. A big brave fool. In war one always chooses the wrong hero. Oliver should have been the hero of that song, instead of being given second place with the blood-thirsty Bishop Turpin.(...) In the Oxford version Oliver is reconciled in the end, he gives Roland his death-blow by accident, his eyes blinded by wounds. the story had been tidied up. In truth, Oliver strikes his friend down in full knowledge - because of what he has done to his men, all the wasted lives. Oliver dies hating the man he loves - the big boasting courageous fool who was more concerned with his own glory than with the victory of his faith. This makes the story tragedy, not just heroics".