Inauguration Quartet: "Air and Simple Gifts"

January 23, 2009

The Inauguration Quartet: Yo-Yo Ma (cello), Itzhak Perlman (violin), Gabriela Montero (piano) and Anthony McGill (clarinet) decided on Monday it was going to be too cold to risk playing live. They did play their instruments but that sound was not amplified to the crowd. Instead, their pre-recorded track of "Air and Simple Gifts" written by John Williams for the inauguration was. So they played but what they played wasn't what we heard on TV. Perfectly fine. If they did it an Orchestra Hall - unconscionable.

ITZHAK PERLMAN:

It would have been a disaster if we had done it any other way. This occasion's got to be perfect. You can't have any slip-ups.

Aretha Franklin was accompanied by taped music and voices.

The Marine Band, the youth choruses and the Navy Band Sea Chanters performed live.

Luciano Pavarotti had to lip-sync at the 2006 Torino Olympics because it was too cold and the video shown on TV was not even him live. Didn't matter. It was him and his voice and his homeland.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQzZEK7jVaE]

smsfreeforall

VIDEO

Video of the day: Ave Maria (Schubert) Andrea Bocelli & Luciano Pavarotti

By mattie14

December 25, 2008

Andrea Bocelli sings Ave Maria

(Schubert version)

Andreailtenore

courtesy of scorchwork1

or if you prefer Luciano Pavarotti

courtesy of sintoniasistergermain

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Britain’s Got Talent Susan Boyle: “I Dreamed a Dream“
Judges (not Simon) apologize to Ms Boyle on The Early Show
Susan Boyle: “Cry Me a River” (First recording - charity CD)
Andrea Bocelli: “Ave Maria” (Shubert version)
Paul Potts “Nessun Dorma” (Britain’s Got Talent)
Josh Groban & Andrea Bocelli: “The Prayer” (Grammys)

Paul Potts

Paul Potts: “Nessun Dorma”

By mattie14

November 27, 2008
Time to offset some of the hate. Britain’s Got Talent (3-17-07) audition by Paul Potts - the unlikeliest of opera singers. Take note of the reactions before he sings and then after. He sang the full aria Nessun Dorma from Puccini’s opera Turandot but it was edited down for the video clip.

Compare Potts’ version with Luciano Pavarotti’s lip-synced version at the 2006 Torino Olympics. I prefer Potts’.

Video courtesy of myredroom

He ended up winning. (Video in playlist - click on video to go to You Tube)

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Britain’s Got Talent Susan Boyle: “I Dreamed a Dream“
Judges (not Simon) apologize to Ms Boyle on The Early Show
Susan Boyle: “Cry Me a River” (First recording - charity CD)
Andrea Bocelli: “Ave Maria” (Shubert version)
Paul Potts “Nessun Dorma” (Britain’s Got Talent)
Josh Groban & Andrea Bocelli: “The Prayer” (Grammys)