Bob M
Moderator
Classical Crossover Convert
Posts: 52
|
Post by Bob M on Dec 9, 2011 19:28:39 GMT
Hello everyone and welcome to the new forum! For those who do not know me, my name is Bob. I have been lurking around the classical-crossover.co.uk site for a little more than a year now and have managed to accumulate more than 100 great c-c CDs and DVDs. Not bad for someone living in a c-c starved area of the World: Texas USA. Most of my friends know virtually nothing about the genre but I am doing my best to educate them! My current favourite artists are (in no particular order): The Canadian Tenors, Celtic Woman, Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban, Mario Frangoulis, Micheal Castaldo, Paul Potts, Camilla Kerslake, Cecilia, Elizabeth Marvelly, Grace Bawden, Hayley Griffiths, Hayley Westenra, Jackie Evancho, Mary-Jess Leaverland, Phillipa Lusty, Samantha Link, Sara Kempe, Sarah Brightman, Sissel and Toni Gibson. That is a long list but they are my "go to" people when I want to listen to music. I also have albums by All Angels, G4, Il Divo, Alfie Boe, Jonathan Ansell, Charlotte Church, Faryl Smith, Giorgia Fumanti, Katherine Jenkins, Laura Wright and Siobhan Owen. I like these artists as well, just don't listen to their albums as often. My current wish list includes the scheduled new album releases from The Canadian Tenors and Toni Gibson. Also have other artist suggestions that I need to delve into more deeply. When time permits! ;D I look forward to seeing everyone again in this new forum venue. Read more: classicalcrossover.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=intro&action=display&thread=4#ixzz1g4EeXpn9
|
|
Bob M
Moderator
Classical Crossover Convert
Posts: 52
|
Post by Bob M on Dec 9, 2011 19:54:10 GMT
I posted this two months ago on my first year anniversary as a cc.uk site member. I put a lot of effort into composing this so I did not want to lose it. Bob M wrote in October 2010:
Nicola, both Kim (my wife) and I have been lovers of the classical-crossover music genre since the mid-nineties. We have both enjoyed this style of music for many years, but did not know how to classify it other than, like most of the public, classical or opera. I recently became aware of this site and have been a member for the past week. I would like to express my sincere appreciation for all of the work you have invested in the site's extremely informative and instructional content. I have read all of your blogs and find them to be informative and extremely well researched and written. I have enjoyed learning about the evolution of our favourite music genre but I most enjoy learning about all of the new classical-crossover artists. Your goal of showcasing lesser known new talent is certainly successful as I have been surfing You Tube and other internet video sites to find any available performances by these up-and-comers. In your blog "Classical-Crossover vs Opera" you very appropriately highlighted that the artists are not trying to replace Classical or Opera but apply their talented classical voices to interpret other music genres, be it pop, folk, traditional, celtic, etc.
Although I have been a fan of classical music (especially symphonic instrumental performances), I have not been a particular fan of opera. In the opera performances I have listened to, I have found that, particularly in the case of female sopranos, the voices come off as strained or forced. This is probably due to the performers' training in projecting their voices.
I plan to be participating in this website for a long time, so it may be appropriate to introduce myself.
We are both native Canadians and relocated to Houston, Texas in the late nineties. Our first exposure to the genre occured when the Sarah Brightman and Andrea Bocelli duet "Time to Say Goodbye" hit the air waves. The voices were so inspiring that we wanted to hear more. In the ensuing years, we purchased every CD or DVD that the two artists released.
Our next exposure was attending "Phantom of the Opera" during its 10-year run at the Pantages Theater in Toronto. We in fact attended the performance, with different artists in the lead roles, on two separate occasions. This reinforced our love of the genre. Then came "Celtic Woman" concert performances on PBS (US Public Broadcast Service). Although Celtic Woman are primarily classified as Irish, Celtic or Traditional artists, I truly enjoy the manner in which their classical voices add beauty and depth to the performance of modern and classical pieces. Again, we purchased every CD and DVD they have released.
Then, a date I will never forget: August 10, 2010. While flipping through the TV channels, I stumbled across the final 15 minutes of the "America's Got Talent" You Tube episode. Although I had not watched this show previously, I fell upon the part where a 10-year old girl, Jackie Evancho, was being introduced. I was impressed with the intro and decided not to flip to another channel and hear what the little girl had to offer. Wow! The purity, maturity and tonal quality of her voice had me spell-bound and virtually drove me to tears. After that performance, I followed every episode religiously until the end of the competition. I could not wait to hear which piece Jackie would perform next. As David Foster said in a recent interview, this extraordinary talented 10-year old has the potential for a 50-year career.
Watching Jackie during the final month of AGT awoke in me the desire to find out more about the genre and to discover new talented artists. I am grateful to have been introduced to this site through Jackie Evancho's Facebook page. Your site brilliantly meets my goals!
Kim and I can think of no better way to spend an evening than opening a good bottle of wine and watching/listening to a great classical-crossover concert DVD, particularly when the concert venue is breathtaking. My current favourites are Sarah Brightman's "Symphony - Live in Vienna", Andrea Bocelli's "Vivere - Live in Tuscany" and Celtic Woman's "A New Journey" and "Songs from the Heart". I am looking forward to adding to my collection with future concert performances of the new artists I will get to know because of your website.
By the way, we will be attending the "Canadian Tenors" concert in Spring, Texas in November. Can't wait!
Bob M
It was exactly one year ago today that I became a member of this wonderful website, a site that has generated tremendous pleasure and greatly expanded my understanding of both classical-crossover music and its artists How has this website impacted me over the past year? I can say that it has changed my life! I visit the site almost daily and view all of the numerous and informative forum posts. I explore new artists that are brought to my attention by either Nicola or other members and this more than often leads to album purchases. I also closely follow any news and developments related to the artists I have come to love and appreciate. Most importantly, I believe that I have developed friendships with many people from different corners of the World who all share a common interest, and for some like me, a deep passion, for c-c music and its artists. My early exploration led me to appreciate the impact Sarah Brightman has had on classical-crossover as a distinct music category. Much of her music from the 1990's pushed the envelope in combining classical and pop, defining both the sound and content of the genre as we know it today. Almost all of her music has been covered, on numerous occasions, by current artists. And you cannot disregard the impact that Andrew Lloyd Webber had in influencing Sarah and awakening the World to this new sound: most particularly with the immensely popular "Phantom of the Opera", "Evita" and other great musicals. Another supporter of the genre is David Foster as defined by his production and music composition roles over the years with the likes of Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban, Katherine Jenkins and most recently, Jackie Evancho. He has also included the Canadian Tenors in his recent tours. Even though Jackie was the reason I came to this site and I consider her to be an artist for the ages, one of my fondest discoveries has been Hayley Westenra. I did not know much about Hayley prior to becoming a site member other than knowing that she had been part of Celtic Woman during the "New Journey" tour. She has since become my favourite female artist, the one I compare all others to. I also have deep respect for the collective works of Sissel, Cecilia and Katherine Jenkins. I enjoy listening to Giorgia Fumante, Faryl Smith, Camilla Kerslake and Elizabeth Marvelly although the number of their albums in my collection is quite limited compared to the afore-mentioned. In the cases of the last three artists, they are just beginning their careers and have not become as prolific in their album releases. Though most of my exposure to the site was initially focused primarily on female artists, I have also learned to appreciate the talents of several male singers. Among my current favourites are Mario Frangoulis (four albums in my collection), Alfie Boe, Paul Potts and Josh Groban's earlier albums ("Illuminations" has not made a positive impression on me). I cannot wait to receive the Micheal Castaldo albums I recently ordered. Something this site excels at is bringing independent and new artists to the forefront. Several of these artists I closely follow include Pip Lusty (not only for her voice but her song writing and composition skills), Samantha Link for her powerhouse yet refined voice and Grace Bawden, an artist I believe has tremendous potential in either the c-c or opera arenas, whichever she choses to pursue. Another newcomer I will be following closely is Mary-Jess. I am only disappointed that her albums (and most other European and Asian c-c artists) are not easily available in North America. Another certainly worth watching in the future is Toni Gibson. How do the small islands of New Zealand produce so many gifted c-c artists? There must be something in the water! Since joining this site, I have had the pleasure of attending three live concerts. Not many compared to what is available in the UK , but understandable for a classical-crossover starved portion of the United States. Included were the Canadian Tenors last November, Jackie Evancho's debut solo concert last February and Celtic Woman in May. The Tenors cemented my belief that they are among the top vocal groups of the genre and that the whole is immensely superior to the sum of its parts. I cannot wait for their next album to be released (early 2012?). Jackie's concert provided the opportunity to meet and spend some quality time with other members of this site: Kent (kringle77) and Jerry (dfwtexan42). Being present at her first concert as a "headliner" was also a memorable event. With the Celtic Woman venue, I was fortunate to have garnered front row center seats and had the pleasure of meeting Chloe Agnew and Lisa Kelly after the concert both of whom gracefully autographed my Celtic Woman CD and DVD collection. I was impressed with their friendliness, openness and, not to my surprise, their wonderful Irish senses of humour My CD and DVD collection has grown and expanded as my exposure and knowledge of the genre has evolved. What started as a meager collection of less than ten albums has increased to more than one hundred. Not only have I purchased both current and past albums from established artists as I deepen my exploration of their works, but also albums from the many independent artists and up-and-comers featured on this site. If this keeps up, and I expect it will, I may need to purchase another album storage cabinet, sooner than later. There is nothing more enjoyable during the many airline trips I have been involved with over the past year than donning a set of noise-cancelling headphones and setting my classical-crossover playlist (which contains over 1000 individual songs) to "shuffle". The hours just evaporate So a lot has happened over the past year and I am looking forward to both the new discoveries that are to come and the opportunity to personally meet other site members. So as you can both see, Nicola and Adam, your site is now an integral and enjoyable part of my life. Please keep up the great work but continue to maintain the newly discovered balance in your lives. And here"s to another great year.
|
|
|
Post by dfwtexan42 on Dec 10, 2011 16:04:08 GMT
....and it was great meeting all Y'all at Houston! Welcome to the new forum.
|
|