Who performs the serenade in the original film?

It is performed on-screen by Tony, voiced and sung by George Givot in standard reference credits.

Did Peggy Lee sing it in the movie?

No. She co-wrote the film's songs with Sonny Burke and sings other cues, but this serenade is performed by the restaurant character, giving the scene a public warmth.

Why does the tune feel like it belongs to the setting?

It behaves like restaurant music first and a love theme second, leaving space for comedy beats and stretching into legato when the scene turns tender.

Is it meant to be a waltz?

Many modern song-metric databases describe it with a triple feel, and the scene reads like a slow dance even without formal choreography.

What is the song really doing in the story?

It turns a meal into a rite, framing the night as exceptional so the characters can accept the shift from flirtation to attachment.

Are there major later versions?

A 2001 sequel uses a duet in the end credits, and the 2019 remake credits a new performance as part of its soundtrack.

How big is the cover ecosystem?

SecondHandSongs lists the work as heavily covered, with dozens of recorded versions and compilation appearances.

Why is the Italian phrase so effective?

It acts like a soft-focus filter: even without translation, the sound reads as romance.

Is there chart history to track?

There is little conventional pop-chart history; its endurance is cultural and tied to the scene and later reuse.

Bella Notte (Lady and the Tramp) Lyrics — Disney: 60 Years of Musical Magic

Bella Notte (Lady and the Tramp) Lyrics

Oh this is the night,
it's a beautiful night
And we call it bella notte.

Look at the skies,
they have stars in their eyes
On this lovely bella notte.

Side by side with your loved one,
You'll find enchantment here.
The night will weave its magic spell,
When the one you love is near!

Oh this is the night,
and the heavens are right!
On this lovely bella notte!
Last Update: January, 14th 2026

Song Overview

Bella Notte lyrics by George Givot — George Givot performs 'Bella Notte' lyrics in a widely circulated soundtrack audio upload.

Review and Highlights

Quick summary

Work: Love theme written for Disney's animated feature Lady and the Tramp (1955).
On-screen role: An Italian restaurant serenade that turns a dinner gag into a decisive romance beat.
Who sings it in the film: George Givot (as Tony), with Bill Thompson as part of the restaurant color and vocal mix on many catalog versions.
Writers: Sonny Burke (music) and Peggy Lee (lyrics), a duo that gave the film its jazzy, street-smart flavor.
Later versions: A sequel end-credits duet (2001) and a remake performance (2019) kept the tune in circulation.

Scene from Bella Notte in the soundtrack upload — 'Bella Notte' in a soundtrack audio presentation.

Lady and the Tramp (1955) - animated feature - diegetic. Candlelight, accordion color, and a cramped little table that suddenly feels like the center of the universe. The number is staged as restaurant atmosphere, but it is really a director's sleight of hand: a streetwise love story made believable in under three minutes, right as two dogs discover they are not joking anymore.

The trick is how gently it sells the moment. The melody leans into an Italian pop postcard style, but the pacing is pure film scoring: it waits for the visual punchlines, then stretches into legato just as the scene turns tender. This is why the spaghetti sequence works even for viewers who pretend they are too old for it. The song does not beg. It serenades, then steps aside.

Here is a small historian's aside: Peggy Lee did not sing this one in the film, and that matters. She sings other cues herself, but this tune is handed to Tony, which gives the romance a public witness. Love is not private here; it is performed for the room, and that makes the couple's shyness feel sharper.

Creation History

The composition comes from Sonny Burke with lyric work by Peggy Lee, as documented in Disney's own reference entry and in the AFI Catalog credits for the film. Lee's involvement in the production was deep, and she later recorded material connected to the picture in her own discography ecosystem during 1955, a parallel life that helped the songs travel beyond the cinema. According to The Second Disc, the spaghetti serenade is one of the signature Burke and Lee pieces, even though Lee is not the on-screen voice for it.

Song Meaning and Annotations

Bella Notte performance still — Video moments that illuminate the song's courtship-by-serenade design.

Plot

At this point in the film, Lady is out of her comfort zone and Tramp is pretending he is not taking any of it seriously. Tony and Joe arrange the dinner like a ritual: candle, pasta, and a song that makes the restaurant feel softer at the edges. The scene starts as comedy and ends as commitment, and the tune is the hinge. It gives the characters permission to pause, look, and accept what is happening.

Song Meaning

The meaning is almost embarrassingly simple, which is exactly why it lasts. It says: this night is special, and you should let it change you. The lyric frames romance as a shared environment - stars, sky, and a room that agrees with the couple. That is the fantasy, and it is also the craft: the song turns setting into feeling. I have always thought of it as a cinematic love letter to ambiance itself.

Annotations

"This is the night, it's a beautiful night"

A direct invitation, no ornament. The line works because it is sung like a toast, not a confession. Performers who over-act it lose the charm; the best delivery sounds like the singer is smiling at his own good taste.

"Look at the skies, they have stars in their eyes"

Classic personification that doubles as staging instruction. The camera can cut to the night sky, the characters can glance upward, and the lyric still feels like it belongs to the moment rather than to a separate musical world.

"On this lovely bella notte"

The Italian phrase functions like perfume in the air. It is not about literal translation so much as texture: a romance varnish applied to a simple melody so the scene feels timeless.

Style, rhythm, and the scene's emotional arc

The rhythm carries a waltz-like sway, and the melody is written to be sung by a character who is not a virtuoso. That matters: it keeps the number inside the restaurant, not on a stage. The arc moves from atmosphere to focus, and the arrangement follows suit, letting the scene's famous quiet moment land without musical clutter. According to Time magazine, the song sits among the best-known Disney pieces precisely because the scene hinges on making the romance believable.

Production and performance notes

In the 2019 remake, the tune returns with new performers, credited in the official press kit, and it becomes a conscious act of homage rather than a surprise. That shift is instructive: the original plays like something the world simply offers the couple, while the remake is more aware of its own legacy. Different eras, same hook.

Bella Notte soundtrack image — A brief moment from the soundtrack presentation.

Technical Information

Artist: George Givot
Featured: Bill Thompson; Disney Studio Chorus (common catalog credits vary by release)
Composer: Sonny Burke
Producer: Film-era music production credited within Disney soundtrack and release documentation (varies by edition)
Release Date: June 23, 1955 (major openings and premiere window for the film); July 1955 (general release month in AFI Catalog)
Genre: Soundtrack; Italian-style pop serenade
Instruments: Lead vocal; orchestral backing with prominent accordion color in the scene's musical identity
Label: Disney catalog label family (varies by edition)
Mood: Romantic; lightly comic; candlelit
Length: About 2:40 on common digital catalog listings
Track #: Varies by release
Language: English with Italian phrasework
Album (if any): Disney compilation releases and film soundtrack editions
Music style: Waltz-leaning serenade with film-scene timing
Poetic meter: Stress-driven ballad phrasing designed for clear storytelling

Questions and Answers

Who performs the serenade in the original film?: It is performed on-screen by Tony, voiced and sung by George Givot in standard reference credits.
Did Peggy Lee sing it in the movie?: No. She co-wrote the film's songs with Sonny Burke and sings other cues, but this serenade is handed to the restaurant character, which gives the scene a public, theatrical warmth.
Why does the tune feel like it belongs to the setting?: Because it behaves like restaurant music first and a love theme second. The melody leaves space for comedy beats, then lengthens into sustained lines when the couple softens.
Is it meant to be a waltz?: Most modern song-metric databases describe it with a triple feel, and the scene reads like a slow dance even when no one formally waltzes.
What is the song really doing in the story?: It turns a meal into a rite. The lyric paints the night as exceptional so the characters can accept the shift from flirtation to attachment.
Are there major later versions?: Yes: the 2001 sequel uses a pop-leaning duet in the end credits, and the 2019 remake credits a new performance as part of its soundtrack plan.
How big is the cover ecosystem?: SecondHandSongs lists the work as heavily covered, with dozens of recorded versions and uses in compilation contexts.
Why is the Italian phrase so effective?: It acts like a soft-focus filter. Even listeners who do not translate it still read the sound as romance, which is all the scene needs.
Is there chart history to track?: Not much in the conventional pop-chart sense. Its staying power is cultural, tied to the scene's reputation and the song's reuse in later films and compilations.

Awards and Chart Positions

The song's legacy is less about weekly peaks and more about institutional memory. In 2023, the film that introduced it was added to the National Film Registry, a preservation honor listed by the Library of Congress. That selection does not single out one cue, but it is hard to imagine the film's reputation without the restaurant sequence carrying this serenade.

In the culture-critic lane, the number keeps popping up in ranked lists. According to Time magazine, it places among the top tier of Disney songs, praised for how it makes the love story land. Time Out's editors also include it in their best-of Disney song lists, framing it as the soundtrack to one of cinema's most famous dates.

List or honor	Work	Result	Notes
National Film Registry	Lady and the Tramp (1955)	Selected (2023 class)	Preservation listing by the Library of Congress.
Critical ranking	Song list by Time magazine	Ranked in the top 50 Disney songs	Highlights the spaghetti scene's impact.
Critical ranking	Time Out best Disney songs	Included	Emphasizes the scene's iconic romance-comedy blend.

How to Sing Bella Notte

This is a character number disguised as a love song. Many databases put it in C major around 88 BPM, and the same ecosystem often describes a triple feel. A vocal-range database entry places the line between G4 and G5, which is a reminder that the famous scene is not built for baritone thunder - it is built for bright, clear lyric delivery.

Tempo: Set a metronome near 88 BPM and count in three. Keep the pulse gentle, like a slow sway rather than a marching waltz.
Diction: Treat the English as conversational and the Italian phrase as texture. Make vowels round, keep consonants clean, and avoid hard attacks.
Breathing: Breathe before the long, descriptive lines. The melody wants uninterrupted legato when the scene turns tender.
Flow and rhythm: Place phrases slightly behind the beat to mimic serenade ease. If you rush, it sounds like a jingle.
Accents: Let the lyric paint pictures. Stress the nouns and images, not the downbeats.
Ensemble color: If you have accordion or guitar, keep it light and supportive. The lead should feel like it floats over a small room.
Mic technique: Sing close for intimacy and pull back on higher sustained notes so they bloom without strain.
Pitfalls: Over-vibrato, forced opera, and treating the song as pure comedy. The best performance keeps a smile in the tone while still believing the romance.

Additional Info

The tune has a strange kind of durability: it can be played straight, parodied, or covered as lounge pop and it still reads as romance. SecondHandSongs tracks an unusually large number of cover recordings tied to the work, and that catalog breadth helps explain why it keeps resurfacing in compilation albums and holiday-adjacent releases in different markets.

The sequel version is worth noting because it flips the logic. In Lady and the Tramp II, the serenade is no longer background music performed by restaurant staff; it becomes an end-credits performance, a pop-styled curtain call. Apple Music artist notes for Carlos Ponce document that he recorded the tune for the sequel soundtrack, and the duet pairing with Joy Enriquez is one of the most remembered modern rewrites of the number.

Then there is the remake. Official production paperwork for the 2019 film credits a new performance by F. Murray Abraham and Arturo Castro, turning the song into a deliberate bridge between eras. If you want a compact lesson in how Disney treats legacy, you could do worse than comparing these versions back to back.

Key Contributors

Entity	Type	Statement (S-V-O)
Sonny Burke	Person	Sonny Burke composed the music for the song used in Lady and the Tramp.
Peggy Lee	Person	Peggy Lee wrote the lyric and co-wrote the film's original songs with Sonny Burke.
George Givot	Person	George Givot performed the serenade in the film as the character Tony.
Bill Thompson	Person	Bill Thompson is credited on many catalog versions associated with the restaurant performance context.
Library of Congress	Organization	The Library of Congress added Lady and the Tramp to the National Film Registry in 2023.
F. Murray Abraham	Person	F. Murray Abraham performed the song in the 2019 remake as Tony.
Arturo Castro	Person	Arturo Castro performed the song in the 2019 remake as Joe.
Carlos Ponce	Person	Carlos Ponce recorded a sequel soundtrack performance of the tune in 2001.
Joy Enriquez	Person	Joy Enriquez recorded the sequel soundtrack duet with Carlos Ponce.

Sources: D23 A to Z entry for Bella Notte, AFI Catalog for Lady and the Tramp, Library of Congress National Film Registry listing, Library of Congress blog post on the 2023 registry class, The Walt Disney Company announcement on the registry, Time magazine Disney songs ranking, Time Out Disney songs list, TuneBat, Singing Carrots, SecondHandSongs, PeggyLee.com discography notes, The Second Disc, Disney 2019 film press kit, Apple Music artist notes

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