" theme and variation"?   Anything you say. Look it's patently absurd that we're still badgering this incredibly specious line of reasoning. Sorry, the Chopin has exactly nothing to do with the Manilow, except that for some reason Manilow appears to have wanted to give his piece of pop fluff some hoped-for gravity by starting his creation with the Chopin.

I've played enough Bach, Mozart etc.--and listened to enough music-- to recognize a theme and variation.   And as a musical Lloyd Bentsen might say: "I know theme and variation.   Theme and variation is a friend of mine. And, Mr. Manilow, what you have created here is no theme and variation."


Now can we return to the actual topic?