Rockwell Blake@Tucker Gala 1992

[Fliegenfaenger11]

How is it possible, that such a talented singer with such a great material of voice sings stylistically to beside of good taste? He screams and many people mistake that for intensity. He press and force his voice. The most part of the music is over the top.

[jglass54]

Amazing!!  Wow.

[MultiTatiana1977]

The real bel canto!!!

[Operaandchant90]

that is an AMAZING tenor. proof that light tenors can still have balls.

[magicmonkichi]

@Operaandchant90

HA~! :D

[magicmonkichi]

@Operaandchant90

HA~! :D

[AriaSinger1]

he is 41 years old here

[MadameBorgi]

Un único rossiniano, Juan Diego Florez muy bueno tambien y muchos otrso, pero el temperamento y la destacada agilidad en sus escalas de forma "legato" sin "jadeos" entre notas le hacen únicos para cantar Rossini y además ese gran fiato!!! muchos tienen que aprender de Blake y me refiero a los actuales!!!!

[StuartLou]

Ah, the days of the NYC Opera. I heard Blake there- many times. But, that was another world ago. Love him.

[ukumar67]

4:32!!!.

[agreval74]

todos ustedes son maricones

[acitipo]

@agreval74 Seguro que violaron de niño, por eso "ves" maricones por todos lados. busca un buen siquiatra antes de que te suicides.

[GameJourney]

How does he not run out of breath? Jesus

[GameJourney]

3:35. Amazing runs there. So smooth.

[acitipo]

IMPRESIONANTE SU GRAN DOMINIO DE LA VOZ Y SU INTERMINABLE FIATO

[queridia]

@mckellysmellybelly.  I think you should not express ideas like this. A few (9) people may not agree with you, but here's one that disagrees with you. But I wouldn't EVER think you should go die in a fire. Shame on you.

[rlee1976]

OMGosh! That's the longest note I've ever heard a Rossini-esque tenor sing! I agree the sound is kind of unpleasant because of the driven sound of the vibrato, but he really was quite the master of the fioratura sections and high notes...

[RossiniSoprano]

NEVER get tired of seeing/hearing that!!

[lubidog]

Anyone who doesn't think this is amazing has never tried to sing! Rocky is astonishing technically and emotionally. I have heard him do this live.

Astonishing...

[AriaSinger1]

18 second messa di voce on a Bb 4...simply unbelievable. What a wonderful role-model for young tenors!

[MrFalconford]

Voices can last when managed correctly we can learn alot from Rockwell.

[jomoses07]

does his vibrato bother anyone else...? just me?!

[spgtenor]

@jomoses07 - Yes, it's just you.  This is opera where vibrato is required for good singing. HIs vibrato happens to be within the perfect frequency for bel canto, regardless of register. Most tenors have a problem with consistency of vibrato between registers, except for Mr. Blake. He's the only tenor that I've ever heard that can bridge all registers with a consistent vibrato frequency. Cheers!

[Pawelp]

@jomoses07 He has a great technique, but also quite an ugly timbre and there is something too "driven" about his voice. The vibrato doesn't seem to spin freely, even though it's not too slow if that's what you meant.

[jomoses07]

@Pawelp that is what i meant and i do agree. thanks.

[eyesk8er]

@Pawelp We seem to generally agree that his technique is exceptional. But technique cannot override the unpleasant sound that comes through all too frequently in his singing. I have heard singers with less perfect technique who were far more satisfying to listen to. Some people have very pleasant voices, other do not. He has made some adjustments, so it seems he is aware of this, but his voice still retains some of its unpleasantness.

[Pawelp]

@eyesk8er I believe there are exceptional aspects of his technique but also faulty ones, some of which contribute to the ugliness of his sound.

[trishengrin]

What erstelage said x 2 ! I've been a fan since the 1982 George London Gala, when he sang L'Italiana and threw a high D in just for fun! Evviva il Rockwell! :-)

[LibbySingsMezzo]

Did Blagojevich used to conduct?

Overall, I don't think Mr. Blake's singing is that impressive, but the last minute of this video is truly amazing. Where did he store all that air? Love his face at the end.

[bartok6969]

@LibbySingsMezzo - Overall, you're not persuasive in your argument since you cannot produce a better rendition by another tenor. If you don't like the quality of his voice, then it says nothing of his singing, technique or performance.

[StuartLou]

I'm so glad i heard him in person- always thought he was great.

[baritonodaw]

4:46, The BEST messa di voce I have ever heard heard in my life.... The breath control is out of this world!!!

[ezayi]

I absolutely adore him. Bravíssimo!!!!!

[ezayi]

I absolutely adore him!

[rrgallo]

That's real vocal control!

[alecs1976]

goat! goat! GOOOOOOOAAAAAAAT !

[hajune]

Really special! Only John Gary, who holds the Guiness Book of Records for being under the water the longest could hold a note as long as Rockwell. It would have been interesting to see them perform together.

[JanoFliberreti]

What a canyon! Amazing Rocky =)

[Englishtenor2]

Un fil de voce!!!

[brolobear]

Well, it's actually a "meSSa di voce" (not meZZa) but Rocky still kills everyone with this aria. LOL

[StuartLou]

Great!! I'm so glad i was able to hear him "live" at the NYC Opera.

[baritonodaw]

WOW!!!! "MEZZA DI VOCE IT IS"!!!!!

[Gio0587]

Impressionante il controllo del respiro e dell'emissione della voce nel finale!!!!

[Cojorbas06]

Es increible que mucha gente no conozca a un tenor que ha tenido una calidad tan impresionante como esta. NO solamente por el agudo final, que es la guinda del pastel, sino por como resuelve las dificultades de esta partitura tan compleja por la cantidad de florituras.

Y muchas gracias brividokaldo por compartir esta maravilla.

[acitipo]

@Cojorbas06 Es verdad lo que dices pero un cantante tambien tiene otras caracteristicas se le reconoce otras cosas como timbre, color, repertorio, suerte, sencillez, te pongo el ejemplo Volpi tenia una voz extraordinaria pero era antipatico, Caruso era Spinto casi nunca llegaba al Do de pecho, y todos lo adoraban. hay varios factores....

[Cojorbas06]

@acitipo Entiendo entonces que lo que quieres decir, es que no solamente es la voz o la calidad del artista lo que le da un reconocimiento. No obstante, yo me refería en mi comentario más al virtuosismo que demuestra aqui Blake. Cantar esto, supone no solo tener la voz: supone tener un alto nivel musical, controlando todo lo que se hace.

[willmeyer2150]

He holds that last note for almost 19 seconds! 19 SECONDS! Not to mention how awesome the rest of the piece is.

[DonRolini]

Wow! thats all I have to say is wow! not even Juan Diego Florez could even think of pulling that of! I love it!

[cocoloco707]

por los CLAVOS DE CRISTO!!!!!! :o

[fantasopera]

acojonante!!!!

[ema20anno]

Bravo!!!!!! Las coloraturas son perfectas, y apianar un Do asi por Dios!!!

Un aplauso a este gran Tenor

[floridante2k]

NOW THAT IS A "MEZZA DI VOCE" !!!!!!

Rocky is indeed a great singer of the 80s and 90s...

[trrill]

I. AM. GAGGING.

[erstelage]

HOLY SH*T. Freaking amazing. I'm sorry, no one even comes close to Rocky as a technician. I hope we have a real successor in the near future!

[Harbaugh87]

@erstelage Juan Diego Florez is the closest thing right now as far as mainstream bel canto singers, but nothing beats Rocky short of early Pavarotti.

[NewJersey5858]

JESUS

[dhblaloc]

THE greatest tenor of his kind ever. Period.

[mongemark]

that's incredible messa di voce how the legendary Farinelli...

[Nello7]

W.O.W.!!!

That was my first listen to Mr. Blake and I am astounded at everything that he brought to this performance. Thank you for introducing me to his art.

[maxazi]

Sei sempre il numero 1

[jpkushin]

messa di voce!

[enfava]

He is really one of the three best tenors singing Rossini altogether with Merritt and Matteuzzi. Simply brilliant!

[rrgallo]

Who's the conductor?

[Gioachino82]

Simply the best!

[martello79]

Great technique. Very impressing.....

[coloraturafan]

This is wonderful, just amazing singing BUT you should hear his 1996 Pesaro performance... goose bumps all the way...

[bartok6969]

At 3:45 Rocky looks ready to kick some ass! And the 18 seconds on the Bb at the end is remarkable.

[bonnisolli]

Suck on that Florez.........3.32 to the end is breath taking

[pelolu2001]

Dominio absoluto de la emision vocal. Portentoso. Ha convertido este aria de una "obra menor" de Rossini en un ejemplo vivo del esfuerzo y del estudio contínuo realizado a lo largo de muchos años. Sombrerazo.

[fabrizzzio48]

Magnifico comentario, al punto, escueto, pero completo.

Saludos Pelolu!

[pelolu2001]

Saludos fabrizzio48 y gracias.

[NEMORINO1976]

capo, capo, capo. impresionante

[rosetheatre]

run run run as fast as you can .... you can't catch me ORCHESTRA , ~~ I'm the gingerbread man ..... Faster that you..HA HA!

[BariTenoreDram]

-.- it's ok....

[NEMORINO1976]

haha

[girardje70]

quel agilité dans cette voix

[tklogan11809]

Str8 to my faves, oh Rocky faster, faster, more more!

[italianoperafan]

Magnifique! Magnificient! Thanks a lot for this posting. I could write thousands of words. But just a few words here: M. Blake singing Rossini (and French opera)... whom else???

[lpw0021]

Wow. Flawless. What an incredible musician. And I love the smartass look he gives at the end. I feel like he's saying, "yea, I just did that!"

BRAVO!

[operaeater]

O.O

just wow, that's all I can say.

[Musicadivina1969]

Ho avuto la fortuna di conoscerlo.....: unico per la tecnica portentosa!!!

[TrojanVocals06]

WOW! ....Just WOW!

[spgtenor]

Just like in Rocky IV, he's not a man, he's a machine! That's why he's the heavyweight champ in the world of singing.

[jeffro887]

This makes me sick! How is he so good. His voice still sounds so young and healthy, and yet, some of the things he can do with his voice are almost impossible. Bravo!

[idreno6386]

Tecnica strabiliante, mezzi vocali strepitosi, sensibilita' superiore, classe ineguagliabile e quella giusta punta di istrionismo: UNO DEI PIU' GRANDI (e sicuramente il piu' grand edi tutti i tempi nel genere che doveva continuare a frequentare)

[raycanto76]

THIS MAN IS UNBELIEVABLE and is a vocal techinican par execellence!!! The breath support is why he able to contol those long passages and the mezzi di voce at the end.

[NEMORINO1976]

Me pone la piel de gallina! Maestro!

[FoggyRoad81]

he can breath, too bad it sounds like a kazoo.

[rosetheatre]

Yup, when I hear all the Bravo's at the end you have justified your comment.

Whatever

[colino72]

All Americans in the audience, by any chance?

[spgtenor]

The ovation would have been much louder had it been in Italy, where he was idolized for helping to revive Bel Canto music, particularly Rossini.

[fabrizzzio48]

Ha ha ha! I have heard many takes on Blake, but the Kazoo, quite genial!

In fact that's an essential of his technique, to have the voice function like a wind instrument. Which is what it is.

[RossiniSoprano]

He doesn't just have marvelous breath control. And is that all you hear, a kazoo? He also has supreme musicianship and expression. Maybe you need to have those things yourself in order to hear them. Too bad for you!

[colino72]

Kazoo, no. Not necessarily pleasant, I would agree.

[donatello1]

Incredible as always, does he ever breath in this aria?

[lavendicata]

bu ne yaaaaaaa?

[rosetheatre]

Does anyone know if Blake sung anything else in this concert? If so, can someone post it?

Thanks

[HandelLover1989]

Impossible is nothing!

He is master of breath taking!

[smnole]

JUST INCREDIBLE!!!!!

Greetings from Poland!

[Operaphile]

BRAVO BRAVO BRAVO ROCKY!!!!!!!!!! The best breath control in the business!!!!!!!!

[mezzo404]

AMAZING! Thank you!

[Ankhsnammon]

Marìa,què hermoso video...y què excelente versiòn de esta difìcil romanza!

Esto... y lo de chernov(aaaaahhhh!!!!!!),me han hecho el dìa!!!!!

Besicossss!!!!

Nina

[rosetheatre]

OK, I've now watched this video at least 15 times since it was put on last night. I'm so addicted.

[lasultanica]

yes, you are!, but there is not cure for your adiction!!!!!

: )

[ritomesito]

Ahi has estado bien, no hay vuelta atras. Besitos sultana.

[salva1960garcia]

Lo imposible hecho realidad.

Verdadera magia.

Gracias.

[lasultanica]

I missed this video very much!! Bravo Rockyyyyyyy!!

[ritomesito]

Gracias sultanita bonita

[lasultanica]

de nada Rito, m lo enviaron a mí esta mañana, no veas qué alegrónnnn, fué el primer vídeo en el q ví a Blake y es el mejor del D'ogni più sacro impegno (para mí, claro). lo echaba muchísimo d menos. besicos gordos.

[salvadorpuawar]

Gracias por el boletin guapisima. Yo tambien lo echaba de menos.

[francescoco91]

Gracias por el boletin! besos...

[rosetheatre]

Yes!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! thank you for putting this back on! Best ever recording of this aria. Woohoo! thank you thank you thank you!

[lasultanica]

thank you Emilio for sending it to me! and thank you brividokaldo! thanks a lot.

: )