Nov 5, 2009

Christmas Music



I'm looking around for a song to perform for my studio's Christmas recital. Often I listen to youtubes of my favorite singers performing the songs I'm considering, to decide which I like best and which might suit my own voice best if I tried it. I came across this.

I think this might be what angels sound like... to me, it's definitely the essence of what Christmas sounds like. It's my favorite Christmas carol, for sure, and you can't get a better, more lyric and expressive soprano... and to have the Motab as backup. Wow. I wish I had been at this concert. Once-in-a-lifetime.

4 comments:

Emily said...

One of my all time favorite carols, beautiful version.

Putz said...

oh you better watch out you better not cry...i'm telling you why, santa clus is coming to town....he knows when youve been naughty , he knows when you've been bad...he knows if you been good or not, so be good for good ness sake.....chrishmas is coming goose is getting fat, please put a penny in the old mans hat, if you haven't got a penny a h penny will do, if you haven't a ha penny then god bless tyou....there is 2 of them

David L said...

Would you ever forgive me if I said that I have never been found of Renee Fleming?

I know... unforgivable.

I have never really appreciated that particular style of singing, which is one of the reasons I vastly prefer the movie cast for Phantom of the Opera over the London cast.

But it is a lovely Christmas song.

Unknown said...

Not offended. Honestly, Opera is an acquired taste, I think, and the tendency to like it has to be there in the beginning, too. When I was growing up Dad would play Handel's Messiah. Those soprano soloists have much less vibrato and a much clearer sort of "boy soprano" kind of sound, and I thought that was the most beatiful thing I'd ever heard. Later, when I was studying music at ricks, I really got into Kathleen battle. Her voice is lovely, clear, vibrato doesn't seem to take over the tone too much,but still she's operatic... I thought that was the most beautiful thing I'd ever heard. Then I started listening to all sorts of sopranos and found Renee Fleming and I can't go back... that full-throated sound, the lovely smooth vibrato and legato phrases... I can't even compare her in my head to Kathleen Battle, though I still like KB:) So now Renee Fleming is, I think, the most beautiful I've ever heard.

I've ALWAYS been a fan of placido. Male voices are different from Female, in that placement and "voices" are produced differently, and there is a somehow warmer sound... I think a lot more people like Male opera voices than Female. But now, I can't imagine anything more lovely than a female, full-throated soprano.

And I can't imagine anything more delicious than a caterpillar roll, and i think three years ago I would have thought it the most disgusting thing I ever put in my mouth.

Chuckle.