Shy Boy and his Friend Shock the Audience with The Prayer - Unbelievable

http://www.godvine.com/Shy-Boy-and-his-Friend-Shock-the-Audience-with-The-Prayer-Unbelievable-1318.html ^

[keypro]

http://www.godvine.com/Shy-Boy-and-his-Friend-Shock-the-Audience-with-The-Prayer-Unbelievable-1318.html

[Publius]

The Royal Academy handles everything.

There was a lieder school at Aldeburgh run by Benjemin Britten and Peter Pears, but now that they're gone, I don't think the school still exists.

[HamiltonJay]

I agree, his voice is so massive, that I think any soprano is going to have trouble being drowned out by it, and as others have pointed out, knowing where your voice is without hearing it, when accompany someone else, especially someone with such raw power would be difficult

I’d like to hear her solo, to see how she does, I think she’s getting dinged a bit unfairly.

I do agree, that that issue may hold him back in the contest, vs him being solo, but based on what was said in the interviews, without her there, I think he’d never have walked on that stage.

[Dr. Thorne]

The UK equivalent of Julliard is called the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. They have very good people who would know what to do with this kind of voice. They wouldn't push him into deep water too early.

That said, good teachers only keep students from making mistakes. I've seen many singers who studied with great teachers and, yet, never had much of a career. Great talent beats great teaching everytime.

My first serious voice teacher told me, "The student makes the teacher, not the other way around".

[Dr. Thorne]

There are plenty of recital CDs by great heldentenors, but few will include duets. Wagner wrote very few duets for ANY voices. It was all solo.

Among the great tenors of yesteryear, the heldentenor to beat them all was Lauritz Melchior, also called the Great Dane. The quality of the recordings are not up to today's standards, but the voice! What a voice! And his singing was always effortless. He sang at the Metropolitan Opera into his 70s!

For a real dark voice like Jonathan's try Ramon Vinay. The Canadian Jon Vickers is another of my faves along with American Jess Thomas. These were great singers of the 1940s, 50s, 60s and 70s.

Nowadays there are few great ones. Two of my favorites are South African Johan Botha and German Jonas Kaufmann. Neither has a voice as dark as Jonathan's, but their techniques and range of color and dynamics are superb!

[CT Hillbilly]

And it was so wonderful to see that whole roomful of people blessed at the same time to hear a voice from Heaven. I like to think of them as mini-miracles; to see and feel all of those people go from disbelief that someone who *looks* like *that* could have anything to offer,to absolute amazement and joy was incredible.

God is so great!

The Mrs

[CT Hillbilly]

I used to have people in choir who either would kill to stand next to me if they were singing my part (alto-I’m a mezzo) or speak to the choir director in private to be moved as far away from me as possible.

It’s hard to blend when you have an operatic type of voice and you’re singing with regular singers. I’d have to work hard not to stick out, but sometimes the director would beg me to because no one else knew the part!

I never took it personally-never had any attitude. People always expect you to, but they have to have as much fun singing as I do, so if they want to move, I don’t mind.

[CT Hillbilly]

Too bad my husband doesn’t sing; he’s mastered the tuning out thing! ;)

I used to sing duets with a tenor who had tremendous power in his voice-I could feel my ears and body vibrating when he would sing his high notes A and up.

I directed the music for Guys and Dolls for a local theatre group-one of my fav shows!!

The Mrs

[PapaBear3625]

Her part was to get him on stage. She played her part magnificently. Good on her.

Musically, he might not need her. Emotionally and spiritually, he does need her.

[EternalVigilance]

God gives everyone gifts. But it is always amazing to see how certain gifts can move hearts, when engaged. The young man has an amazing voice.

[Ramius]

Her part was to get him on stage.

That's what I was thinking too. He needed to have her by his side to give him the confidence to go on stage. Poor guy was just terrified. He was just shaking the whole time. With some more training and exposure I'm sure his self-confidence will grow. She's being a good friend.

[AnAmericanMother]

Melchior and Flagstad - the Tristan & Isolde duet. It’s on YouTube and the sound quality’s not bad at all.

[fullchroma]

Hey, did you awake this morning with “Time to Say Goodbye” playing in your head? :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a2C2eUi8xnY (More Jonathan Antoine.)

[fullchroma]

Thanks, Bocelli’s wonderful.

[fullchroma]

Thanks for your (invaluable) 2-cents, AAM! I already love Mozart but haven’t paid any heed to his opera.

[fullchroma]

Thanks for the great recommendations. I think I’ll first try to find a Melchior LP or two. (Have become obsessed with the qualities of record-player sound since getting one for Christmas.)

[steve86]

I think you must be much more musically sophisticated than me because I can’t comment on it other than to say there’s something sublime about it (no idea what).

[AnAmericanMother]

Give a listen here.

This is the "love duet" from Tristan und Isolde.

Flagstad's magnificent dramatic soprano is perfectly capable in harness with the great Melchior.

The opera is available in a modern reissue on Amazon here.

[steve86]

I like to think of them as mini-miracles; to see and feel all of those people go from disbelief that someone who *looks* like *that* could have anything to offer,to absolute amazement and joy was incredible.

But it disturbs me to think that if he lost his voice, it's back to the gutter for him, as far as they are concerned.

[AnAmericanMother]

You are most welcome!

I think that Magic Flute is a perfect opera for people who don't particularly care for opera. Mozart's music is completely accessible to just about everybody, and it has something for everyone: the romantic/lyric tenor Tamino, the lovely lyric soprano Pamina, comic baritone Papageno and his elusive wife Papagena, and more comic sparring among the Three Ladies. On opposite ends, you have the deepest bass you will hear this side of Russian in Sarastro, wandering down around low F, and the incredible coloratura fireworks of the Queen of the Night who is up in the clouds with a couple of F6s in "Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen".

Even though the Ingmar Bergman film has severe cuts in the music and changes some minor plot points around, it's worth owning simply because nobody else has come close to filming this opera the way it deserves to be filmed. I'm amazed that he found such high quality singers to sing it in Swedish - the Queen of the Night, Birgit Nordin, will stand comparison with the greats like Serra and Damrau, and I love the Papageno, who is simply perfect.

I haven't seen the recent Kenneth Branagh version, so I can't say much about it. The clips I've seen look interesting, though the habit some directors have of putting classic operas into modern dress leaves me cold. There's a French version rolling around that puts everybody back into the ancient Egyptian dress that Mozart intended. The whole thing is vaguely Masonic, but I've never let that bother me. :-)

[Tunehead54]

Great post! There are so many things I might miss without my FRiends helping out. ;-)

Jonny - maybe something for the Idol ping list? I admit I miss Simon ...