# Pavarotti and friends result...



## sabrina (Apr 26, 2011)

I love Pavarotti, and I respected his amazing career, including his popular decision to do duets with pop singers. The main reason, beyond the commercial one, was to promote opera to a larger number of people. 
I don't know how many pop/rock focused people were converted toward opera... I think, the result was in fact to expose different more "obscure" singers to harder core opera lovers. It happened to me, and maybe to others.
I'll post one of the duets I loved a lot!


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## Dongiovanni (Jul 30, 2012)

Two legends on stage ! No one can sing A man's world better than James Brown himself, and he is still in top shape here. Very impressive. I think I will never like this kind of crossover stuff. But I think it will help to get attention for opera.


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## dionisio (Jul 30, 2012)

sabrina said:


> I love Pavarotti, and I respected his amazing career, including his popular decision to do duets with pop singers. The main reason, beyond the commercial one, was to promote opera to a larger number of people.
> I don't know how many pop/rock focused people were converted toward opera... I think, the result was in fact to expose different more "obscure" singers to harder core opera lovers. It happened to me, and maybe to others.
> I'll post one of the duets I loved a lot!


Whatever you do, please, please, please...PLEASE, do not watch Pavarotti/Sheryl Crow duet La ci darem la mano...

If THIS is a way to expose opera to other public, it's a sad way.


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## sabrina (Apr 26, 2011)

dionisio said:


> Whatever you do, please, please, please...PLEASE, do not watch Pavarotti/Sheryl Crow duet La ci darem la mano...
> 
> If THIS is a way to expose opera to other public, it's a sad way.


LOL! I have watched the duet you're talking about. It's really painful...I can't understand the choice, as the aria is for a soprano and a baritone, and neither fit the bill. It is true, Pavarotti sang it well enough...quite sad


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## dionisio (Jul 30, 2012)

sabrina said:


> LOL! I have watched the duet you're talking about. It's really painful...I can't understand the choice, as the aria is for a soprano and a baritone, and neither fit the bill. It is true, Pavarotti sang it well enough...quite sad


I told you not too 

Nevertheless may this be a lesson why singing (or singers or music) is an art in extinction. People like Rhianna are millionaires and they have no value at all (other than exposing themselves) and singers (who really sing!) struggle to live.


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## Dongiovanni (Jul 30, 2012)

sabrina said:


> LOL! I have watched the duet you're talking about. It's really painful...I can't understand the choice, as the aria is for a soprano and a baritone, and neither fit the bill. It is true, Pavarotti sang it well enough...quite sad


I have seen this before... There is also Sting with Angela Gheorghiu... Operatic singing and pop singing is so remote in style, technique and many other facets, that it is just absurd to do a duet like this. If you don't know the context, it could pass as satire. This is where crossover fails all the time.

There is a hilarious interview with Rolando Villazon where he tells about the crossover recordings by Domingo he listened to as a kid... He does a very comic imitation of John Denver


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## sabrina (Apr 26, 2011)

dionisio said:


> I told you not too
> 
> Nevertheless may this be a lesson why singing (or singers or music) is an art in extinction. People like Rhianna are millionaires and they have no value at all (other than exposing themselves) and singers (who really sing!) struggle to live.


Yes, it's so sad. I don't know anything about Rhianna, though I saw today her wax model, showed in the news program. 
In the end, it's vox populi...

And because I am really sad, I'll try to cheer up a little. I am not a fan of crossover singing, but I love some parts of it though...like this one:


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## mamascarlatti (Sep 23, 2009)

sabrina said:


> Yes, it's so sad. I don't know anything about Rhianna, though I saw today her wax model, showed in the news program.
> In the end, it's vox populi...
> 
> And because I am really sad, I'll try to cheer up a little. I am not a fan of crossover singing, but I love some parts of it though...like this one:


In this "duet", I feel as though someone has turned on two competing radio stations at the same time, by mistake. I'd rather listen to one or the other. Usually opera, although I did like Barry White in this song. Take away his mike, though, and he'd be inaudible at 30 steps.


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