Now that I’ve taken care of the opera singers’ for this year, it’s time for me to take a look at some of my favorite classical crossover singers and their respective holiday albums. Charlotte Church and Placido Domingo have struck again and this time they have brought in a couple of friends, the splendidly elegant Vanessa Williams and the warm-hearted Tony Bennett. Ah, the charismatic, down-to-earth, and simply put fine, Billy Gilman. He was a charming, young country-singing prodigy as a lad and nowadays, he still keeps his trademark charm, lovability, and wonderful appeal. To make your holidays warm and cozy, we have the fine, down-to-earth, gentleman of a crossover singer, the one, the only Josh Groban. He is additionally joined by a fine selection of songsters, who have accompanied him on this holiday journey. Finally, we have the queen of classical crossover, Sarah Brightman, gracing the listeners with her lilting soprano voice, which gave life to the melodies she sang. This concludes my overall holiday album review marathon for this year, yet do stay tuned for some animated holiday special tributes and lookbacks.
Marathon
My Christmas has been getting super exciting all thanks to these awesome, uplifting, and extremely energetic tenors, who are not only well-known in the operatic world but also in making the holidays exciting and euphoric! First, we have the ardent and adamant French-Sicilian offering a trifecta of Christmas albums, complete with holiday classics, sacred songs, and some songs, which have ended up becoming my absolute favorites. To grace us all with his exceptional musicianship, the ever pristine, gallant, and charming Mexican lyric tenor, El Gran Señor Ramon Vargas, demonstrates his alluring singing voice in this Christmas album, complete with a masterful conductor, a serene Baroque orchestra, and a lovely children’s choir. Feliz Navidad a todos! Then, we have the greatest trio to not only grace the opera world but also the music world in general. That’s right! It’s the legendary Three Tenors, Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, and Jose Carreras singing up a blizzard not only our favorite Christmas Carols but also some fine chamber music. Buon Natale a voi tutti! To wrap up this festive tenor celebration, we have the handsome, dashing, yet ill-fated cavalier of a lyric tenor, Fritz Wunderlich, caroling the night away with such grace and beauty alongside such wonderful colleagues like Hermann Prey, Gundula Janowitz, and Christa Ludwig. Frohe Weihnachten an euch allen!
Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you all samples of my classical singing. Looking back at a lot of these, some were good others were atrocious by my standards today. Regardless, I enjoyed singing each of these songs spanning from 2013 to 2015. These days, I felt like I grew as not only a singer or a performer, but also as a person because I still can’t believe I went this far with my overall life. I hope you all enjoy these selections. Caro Mio Ben (A Cappella) filmed back in 2013. Jerusalem (And Did Those Feet in Ancient Time) In Fernem Land from Wagner’s Lohengrin Se from Ennio Morricone’s Cinema Paradiso Cesar Franck’s Panis Angelicus The Holy City Dalla Sua Pace from Mozart’s Don Giovanni Jules Massenet’s Elegie Martini’s Plaisir d’Amour