A Change in Me

"A Change in Me" is a solo song from the Broadway musical Beauty and the Beast, sung by the protagonist, Belle. It was written by Tim Rice and Alan Menken. The song was not included in the original Broadway production. It was introduced during 1998 when R&B singer Toni Braxton joined the Broadway cast; although it was added solely for Braxton only, it has been included in the script ever since. Because of this, the song was never included on the Original Broadway Cast recording; however, Susan Egan, the original Broadway Belle, recorded a version of the song and included it on her album, So far....

Meaning

The original Broadway key is G-flat major, though it is played in the key of A major. The song is about Belle's internal transformation, the kind that each of the main characters, Belle, and the Beast, go through. It describes how she no longer clings to her childhood dreams and has realized that she likes life how it is: "I never thought I'd leave behind/my childhood dreams, but I don't mind/I'm where and who I want to be."

Recordings

The song, "A Change in Me", has been recorded by various artists:

• Susan Egan, So Far. Egan was the first "Belle" in the Broadway version of Beauty and the Beast.
• Ashley Brown, Disney's On the Record. Brown recorded the song when she was cast as "Kirsten" in the national tour of the Disney revue On the Record.
• KC Concepcion, Atlantis Production's show held in the Philippines last 2005.^[1] KC Concepcion^[2] recorded the song with the world-renowned San Miguel Philharmonic Orchestra.
• Chantal Janzen, 2006 Dutch Cast Recording. Chantal Janzen recorded the song in Dutch, titled 'Dat zegt het hart'.
• Arianna, 2009 Italian Cast Recording. Arianna recorded the song in Italian, titled "Tutto è cambiato in me".
• Julia Möller, 2008 Madrid Cast Recording. Möller recorded the song for the first time in Spanish, called "Un cambio en mí". In 2009, coinciding with the arrival of the musical in Barcelona, María Adamuz, Möller's replacement, recorded the song again.
• An instrumental version plays as part of the background music loop in the Enchanted Forest section of Fantasyland at Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom.

The coda of the song was changed in 2005 when Ashley Brown joined the cast as Belle. It was made bigger to be similar to the ending that she sang when she played Kirsten in On the Record. It now ends with belted notes and a grander orchestration.

References