Carl Orff's O Fortuna in popular culture

In 1935–36 O Fortuna was set to music by the German composer Carl Orff for his twenty-four-movement cantata Carmina Burana. The composition appears in numerous films and television commercials and has become a staple in popular culture, setting the mood for dramatic or cataclysmic situations. For instance, it is used to portray the torment of Jim Morrison's drug addiction in the film The Doors.

In popular culture

• Played during pre-game for every Cleveland Cavaliers home game at Quicken Loans Arena.
• It is recurrent in the 1981 film entitled Excalibur - when King Arthur and his Knights ride into battle.
• James Burke's 1978 BBC series Connections used the piece as background music in several episodes.
• It was used to underscore jet-car racing in the 1984 IMAX film Speed.
• It was used numerous times in Season 1, Episode 7 of the Fox TV show Glee in scenes between Will Schuester and Sue Sylvester.
• Sung every year at the matriculation ceremony at the University of Oslo.
• Used in Michael Jackson's teaser "Brace Yourself" at the beginning of the Dangerous World Tour [not shown on the DVD Live in Bucharest: The Dangerous Tour but shown on the TV version] and on Dangerous - The Short Films and Video Greatest Hits – HIStory.
• Used in the summer of 2008 as the Milwaukee Brewers came up to bat at Miller Park.
• Featured in commercials for Gatorade and Old Spice, the latter later parodied in a commercial for Carling Black Label.
• Featured in a Carlton Draught beer ad called Carlton Draught: Big Ad.
• Played at New England Patriots home games prior to the team exiting the tunnel. It is accompanied by team highlights and more recently a scene from the film 300.
• Played at University of Connecticut home football games as team exits the tunnel through smoke.
• It was used as part of the ring entrance for The Undertaker (more precisely during the entrance of the druids) at Wrestlemania 14 in his match against his kayfabe half brother Kane. It was also used in many video packages for the WWE during their pay-per-views.
• It is used as bumper music on The Sean Hannity Show on talk radio.
• Often used on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with Conan O'Brien when a video or picture of former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney is shown.
• Played as background music when the Evil Puppy is introduced on Late Night with Conan O'Brien.
• Used in the soundtracks of the films The Hunt for Red October, The General's Daughter, and Capitalism: A Love Story.
• Played at The University of Notre Dame during football games when the president of the college walks on the field to declare the opposing team's players in need of exorcism.
• It is used in a trailer for the film Paul Blart: Mall Cop.
• It is used in a trailer for the film The Nutty Professor with Eddie Murphy.
• It is used in a trailer for the film Waterworld with Kevin Costner.
• It is used in a trailer for the film South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut.
• A rendition performed by the Boston Pops Orchestra and conducted by John Williams appeared on the Summon the Heroes album.
• A version of "O Fortuna" was used in a trailer for the anime film The End of Evangelion.
• It is performed by a convent of nuns in the episode "Gone Maggie Gone" and in a commercial in the episode "Bart Gets a 'Z'" of The Simpsons.
• It is played in the beginning and end of Jackass: The Movie.
• It is played in the film Cheaper by the Dozen at the end of Dylan's party scene.
• A version is played at the beginning of a Pakistani documentary End of Times, The Hidden Truth.
• Irish boxer and WBA World Super Bantamweight Champion Bernard Dunne enters the ring to a mix of O Fortuna and the Irish song The Irish Rover.
• It is the entrance music of UFC Fighter Nate "The Great" Marquart when he enters the Octagon.
• The song was played vocally as an entrance music for wrestler Alex Wright when he was in WCW.
• It is played in the British sitcom Only Fools and Horses, whenever Rodney sees his young nephew Damien.
• It is played during a video on the Jumbotron before every home Pittsburgh Pirates home game. It is uncertain when this practice began, but it was not done in the year of 2008, resuming in 2009.
• It is used as the entrace theme for the judges onThe X Factor.
• Performed by a chorus during the Qlimax 2008.
• It is used in the "mugging" scene in Detroit Rock City.
• It is featured in the episode of the T.V show "Friends", when Chandler and Joey play foosball.
• A similar sounding piece of music, written by James Horner and sung by the Boys Choir of Harlem, was used in the Assault on Fort Wagner Scene in the film Glory. However, the song was played for the trailer to Glory.
• Rachel Maddow on MSNBC showing "O Fortuna" in a parody of commercials from the Republican Party attacking the Democratic Party.
• The Howard Stern Show has used a parody of the song in its endless series of fan-submitted Baba Booey songs whenever show producer, Gary Dell'Abate, enters the studio.
• Used as the intro to Vital Remains's album Dechristianize.
• The Final Fantasy VII song and theme for Safer Sephiroth (later became Sephiroth's main theme) One Winged Angel was derived from and inspired by O Fortuna.
• The song appears as a ringtone of Ian Maxtone-Jones' (Dave Matthews) cell phone in the movie Just Go With It (2011).
• Shortened and used as the background music for Code Lyoko's fourth season's trailer.
• Was used as background music during an episode of Survivor while Benjamin "Coach" Wade was stretching in the water, marking the first time Survivor used a nonoriginal piece of music for the show.
• It was played at Purdue Engineering graduation for class of 2007.
• Was used in an advertisement of Ufone, a Pakistani GSM cellular service provider.
• Is played when the players of Southampton Football Club walk out onto the pitch.
• It is played before West Bromwich Albion F.C. matches at The Hawthorns.
• It is played over the Public Address speakers in the Detroit Red Wings' Joe Louis Arena just before crucial faceoffs or shootout attempts
• It is played at every Charlotte Bobcats home game prior to Bobcat starting line-up introductions.
• The episode "All I Wanted Was a Slushie" of the animated series Megas XLR featured a parody played whenever the R.E.G.I.S. Mark V robot was onscreen.
• It was used in the trailer for Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island.
• It was performed by Rhydian and Only Men Aloud! at the Classical Brit Awards#2010.
• Spelbound, the winners of Britain's Got Talent 2010, used the music as their audition piece and in the final.
• It was used in The Black Eyed Peas's The E.N.D. World Tour when Will.I.Am came out to do his DJ set.
• It was used in TV spots and other things, including the opening ceremony for the Twilight Zone: Tower of Terror.
• It was played in the American Dad episode "A Smith in the Hand" when Francine drives home after forgetting her underwear, only to almost catch Stan masturbating.
• The Milwaukee Bucks played it before games during the 2004-2005 season.
• It is used in the final scene of Slava's Snowshow, the Snow Storm.
• It was remixed from DJ Outblast and DJ Korsakoff for Masters of Hardcore in the anthem "Masters' Symphony" in 2001.
• The piece 'Massacre/Canoes' by Trevor Jones in the film Last of the Mohicans draws from it directly.
• The song was played in a scene where a man fell in a pen of gorillas at a zoo in The Far Side animated special.
• Snoop Dogg used it in his introduction at Glastonbury 2010.
• Enigma used it for their songs "Gravity of Love" and "Modern Crusaders" in the album The Screen Behind the Mirror.
• A version of "O Fortuna" was used as "walk on" music in the North American shows by Ozzy Osbourne's "Blizzard of Ozz" circa 1981-82. A verifiable exhibit exists on the 1987 Randy Rhoads "Tribute" recording. The piece was used a segue into the band's set opener, "I Don't Know". Ozzy still uses this piece as an 'intro' at his concerts and it can also be heard on his concert album "Live At Budokan".
• Used by Miami sports-talk radio host Dan LeBatard as the background music of his opening monologue after The Decision (LeBron James) and the 2010 opening week loss by the New York Jets.
• It was played on I'm on Setanta Sports by Sven-Goran Eriksson to announce the arrival of "The Boy Rooney" (Wayne Rooney).
• It was used in the beginning of BBC's [BBC] Top 50 Most Shocking World Cup Moments.
• It is used and parodies numerous times in The Sims Medieval, including a quest of the name and a book entitled, "O, For Tuna!"
• On the opening ceremony of the 50th Anniversary of the Struga Poetry Evenings 2011, on August the 25th 2011, it was performed by a chamber orchestra.
• The Arizona State Sun Devil Marching Band plays the opening every time the team gets a 3rd down
• In the short film Shrek the Halls, the song is played as Shrek makes his way to the bookstore
• The song played in the scene G-Force when the hamsters in the balls race against the car through the fireworks.

Bands and artists that have covered/sampled the work

• Aion
• Apoptygma Berzerk
• Apotheosis
• Botch
• Bullet for My Valentine
• Clan of Xymox
• The Diplomats (Used in the Single "Get em Daddy" by Camron & The Diplomats)
• The Disco Biscuits
• DJ Irene
• DJ Paul (Used in his 2009 single featuring Lord Infamous "You Don't Want It")
• Enigma
• Epica
• Era
• Estampie
• Face
• Gregorian
• Highland
• KMFDM (sample)
• Lord Infamous (Used in the song "Ball Off" in his 2009 Album "After Sics" and is featured in DJ Paul's single "You Don't Want It")
• Massacra
• Ministry
• On Mystery Science Theatre 3000, it was used as the basis for Tom Servo's personal theme song.
• Rapper Nas uses it as the background music to his song "Hate Me Now"
• Nightwish
• Onslaught
• Overkill
• Ozzy Osbourne
• Rhydian Roberts
• Sepultura
• DJ Nick Skitz
• Tristania
• Therion
• Trans-Siberian Orchestra
• Turetsky Choir Art Group
• Van Helsing's Curse (used at the end of the song "Let Me Prey")
• Vital Remains
• John Williams, on the album, Summon the Heroes

Lawsuit

In 1991, when the Belgian group named Apotheosis produced a heavily re-sampled version of "O Fortuna", the estate of Carl Orff (who died in 1982) successfully sued to stop the distribution of the record on the grounds of copyright infringement. The verdict also reflected to Fortuna's version which in the week of the verdict just reached the #1-position in the Dutch charts "Mega Top 100", while Apotheosis was at #4. The week after, the two songs slipped down that chart in an unprecedented way.

See also

• Ave Satani, theme song of The Omen movie