wow, superstar talent, she has one of those voices, gifted from god, never heard her until today, I could listen to her sing all day, every day, blown away...
Audra Mcdonald has the voice of the century! It is so good to hear her sing this song for, as "Bess" in the new production, she does not sing it - which is the greatest piece of music in the entire show. Maybe in the history of American music?
@dancingmckay Saw Porgy and Bess in previews two weeks ago. Greer was amazing, he brought great energy and well placed and carefully selected notes to Sportin Life, he really went old school, steered clear of the high B's , offered stong notes in the middle range while exceeding in dance and movement. Brought to mind Cab Callloway. If you can get to NY go, an amazing cast and a great musical rendition of Gershwin's work.
Audra McDonald is starring in Porgy and Bess on Broadway, but as Bess (and rightfully so). She's performing with Norm Lewis (Porgy) and David Alan Grier (Sportin' Life). The actress who sings this song in the play is Bryohna Marie Parham (as Serena).
Run do not walk to buy tickets to ART's production of Porgy and Bess which is definitely coming to Broadway, the marquee is already up.....January 2012.
AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING performances by one very stellar cast
@Sunflower0122Z if you're talking about the ART version, Audra McDonald played Bess and didn't sing this... But I agree, the woman who sang this was pretty great and it was interesting hearing it in a lower key.
The pain and aguish of the song are absolutely palpable. She should be as famous as Beyonce. 'cept in America you gotta shake yo bootie an' pop yo kouchie for da big time.
I have watched this video too many times to count and EVERY single time I am blown away by her power, her talent & honesty. GOOD LORD woman you are blessed!!!!
Sondheim said, "Certainly I can think of no better Porgy than Norm Lewis nor a better Bess than Audra McDonald, whose voice is one of the glories of the American theater." No rebuke there.
@tmlupone Bess doesn't sing this song, unfortunately. But I still think she'll win the Tony. Did you catch Ben Brantley's review? He couldn't stop gushing over how amazing she was. (And who can blame him?) LOVE HER!
its great that she's humble and all but TAKE A PROPER BOW lady! audiences erupt for her and she's back in her chair in a nanosecond! nothing wrong with enjoying a bit of glory when you've got a talent like this...
superb performance though and thank you for posting
Perhaps for your taste, but the tempo is bang on for what Gershwin marked in his score. The Miles Davis album is mind-blowingly good, but don't forget - it was his interpretation of an opera he adored. Have a look at a score of this music, and the tempo Gershwin wanted for this aria. It matches what this conductor did here.
My God! Che divina meraviglia. Grazie Signora McDonald, grazie della sua eccezionale voce, del suo gusto, della sua espressività e dell'incredibile intensità della sua recitazione. Ogni volta che arrivo al minuto 3'27 piango e subito dopo maledico quell'incapace regista che ha tolto l'inquadratura dal suo volto!
Great diction WOW!!!! A true artist, and a great presence!!! The only thing is her vibrato which is to my taste, a litte too quick, but it is a question of taste. Or else her high notes sound absolutely fabulous, shame she doesn't take more time at the end, I guess that is how the conductor wanted it. In any case, she is a great singer, RESPECT.
It's so good that you'd half-expect MTT and the orch to be weeping while she sings...... holy sh*t that was incredible...she's young here, too, must have been early 90s
I would never put down My Lady Audrey, but, her refinement of this piece into an "Aria" is a little like putting a gold ring in a pig's snout. This song is about SOUL and wallowing in pitty - not lofty apsiriations of vocal granduer. She is not wasting her time on TV, she's making a living. How many of her CD's do you own? She a beautiful woman with so much talent she radiates SUCCESS! Her outlet for that success can not be limited to the stage.
This is an aria from the opera "Porgy and Bess" by George Gershwin. Maybe YOU should start doing your homework before you start speaking of things you know nothing about. And let me tell you, that this interperation is GENIOUS. Has it ever accured to you that emotion and your so called "vocal graduer" can go hand in hand? Obviously you don't know much about music, or culture for that matter since you failed to recognize one of the most famous operas ever written, you pretentious wise-guy.
This is an aria from the opera "Porgy and Bess" by George Gershwin. Maybe YOU should start doing your homework before you start speaking of things you know nothing about. And let me tell you, that this interperation is GENIOUS. Has it ever accured to you that emotion and your so called "vocal graduer" can go hand in hand? Obviously you don't know much about music, or culture for that matter since you failed to recognize one of the most famous operas ever written.
Powerful, haunting, incredible! In my opinion, Porgy and Bess is really the only American work that can be classified as great opera, and Audra is among the very best to sing the part of Serena.
Chills. Great voice all around --- opera, American songbook, Broadway. I love her range, especially with classical style. BTW, whatever happened to Opera Ebony?
LOVE This woman. I saw this on PBS years ago and went right out and bought the 2 CD set. Still listen to it all the time. MAN the talent. THIS is who young aspiring singers need to listen to.
@Pr0m0m I love Porgy & Bess and collect different versions. Can u tell me which one this is from please? Never had the pleasure to see her perform this role on the stage. Thanks.
Yes she AUDRA MCDONALD is a VERSATILE singer, that is what I meant by CONTEMPORARY. Someone who can sing music other than classical/opera. If opera singers were more VERSATILE, opera COMPANIES/THEATERS would draw larger, (NON OPERA ORIENTED) audiences, therefore reassuring opera will till have an audience after the older generations die!! If you don't understand that, please don't reply because I have better things to do....
@osbornd89 I have to say that I find some of what you say to be true. We have raised a generation of singers that do not appreciate or understand the arts. Just look around the nation at the school systems that are cutting funding for the arts. I am an opera singer, and I agree we need to be versatile, but I think there is a time and place for everything. I dont think opera houses need to do more mainstream music. It is just that, an opera house. There are opera companies that do light
@osbornd89 opera, and they are wildly successful. WE as singers have to take the initiative and go out and inform people about our artform. I watched Angela Brown do a performance of Opera from a Sistah's Point of View. Highly insightful. It just goes to show that opera is not as supported as it needs to be because it is not taught as it needs to be.
@chrisscruzzz LOL! I was saying that more opera singers need to be more 'contemporary' with their repertoire so they can bring larger audiences to opera.
Audra McDonald is a SINGER! Not opera singer, not Broadway singer not a Jazz singer, a SINGER! Times are changing and young people are less likely to go to the opera these days, but if opera singers learnt to sing music other than classical they will gain huge popularity across all fields of music and therefore get butts in seats!!
@osbornd89 Maybe other singers should also learn how to sing operatically? It's difficult to bash people who have taken time to refine the voice as an instrument. Most of the sounds of contemporary music are simply obstructions to a clear voice. For somebody who spends time evening and relieving tension from the voice, there's no *desire* to sing *incorrectly* to please an audience. Also,, after training in art song (interpreting esoteric poetry) there's little desire to go back to pop.
@Doromir i can tell you it aint easy fa real. but i truly believe it must have took her some weeks close to a month to make every note and word apart of her. i would love to share a stage with her.....(dreaming)
@Doromir She has a degree from Julliard in Classica/Opera. This was really where she started....
You're right though - it's not easy to switch styles. However, broadway performers with a classical (read technical) vocal background will find that they can sing just about everything because they have healthy voices/good technique and thus understand how to make modifications across genres in a way that is still healthy and sounds ggood!
@carr0760 Her degree was in vocal performance not Opera. I don't mean to come off snooty but there is a difference. But yes her vocal technique is secure and wonderful!
@spintotenor83 I stand corrected. I thought she had done both Classical and Opera training. I think I was melding her educational background with Kristen Chenowith!
And...not snooty...I'm a professional (classically trained) singer and voice instructor myself. I am well aware of the difference as I was trained at a university with both Opera and Vocal Performance (classical) programs.
@myfavoritefairy@futuresuperstar4life...... don't forget she has won two Grammy awards also... I really hate this bitch.. She makes me so jealous I can't stand reading her bio's.. WHEN WILL SHE BE WASHED UP.. I want to be talented like her DAMN IT.
@LaBelleOfTheBall2 the 15 people who now dislike this..I wish you were her man now and dead. I heard that she will be coming to broadway Dec 2011 with a revival of Porgy and Bess singing the role of Bess. I will be first on line to hear and see that. Brava madame.
@steelearch I happen to be a huge fan of La Diva Battle. But that's neither here nore there. What the heck does Kathleen Battle have to do with this performance? i don't get it. What a silly and ugly comment.
This is such a fine performance. The ending is sensitively rendered. A+. However, no one still can match Price in this song. Her voice is superhuman.
@myfavoritefairy ..and others who appreciate this clip. It is from a 1998 PBS special from Carnegie Hall in Celebration Of "George Gershwin at 100". Fortunately I recorded this 105 minute program and have it on transfer to DVD-R. Truly remarkable performances by Audra, Brian Stokes Mitchell as well as Frederica von Stade all under the baton of John Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony. George would have been proud!
@futuresuperstar4life I'm a dudette, actually! She is a wonderful singer; did not know she had a music career before Private Practice, one of my favorite shows.
@myfavoritefairy - I believe Audra made her debut in "Master Class", singing opera in order to play a voice student of Maria Callas. She has a great voice for both opera and musical theatre.
@sopranosd Actually it was the year before, 1994 (age of 24) she was in Carousel on Bway. I was privileged to see her and it was evident even then that she would go places.
wow, superstar talent, she has one of those voices, gifted from god, never heard her until today, I could listen to her sing all day, every day, blown away...
TheKapnight 1 day ago
I just saw her plan Bess on Broadway this week. SHE IS JUST AWSOME!!!!!!!!!
TheKingJacob1 4 days ago
16 people's men are gone too...
broadwaymaniac92 1 week ago
She sings this song better than ANYONE I've ever heard!! FLAWLESS pitch!!!! LOVE IT!!
pniggy711 1 week ago
Good God That was amazing!!! I want to get to that point where i can have all that space and resonance without straining myself. She is wonderful!!
cewldudette 2 weeks ago
3:18 Wow!
barbdavis1981 3 weeks ago
Audra Mcdonald has the voice of the century! It is so good to hear her sing this song for, as "Bess" in the new production, she does not sing it - which is the greatest piece of music in the entire show. Maybe in the history of American music?
larsbonner 3 weeks ago
Caught the Broadway show last night. It deserves win every Tony award for which it will be nominated. It's as close to flawless as it can be.
bahbahdoo 3 weeks ago
I wish her range was more impressive.
Thefuzz144 3 weeks ago
@Thefuzz144 I really, really hope that was sarcasm.
ShowtuneSampler 3 days ago in playlist AUDRA MCDONALD
It's really too bad the duet she sang with Brian STokes Mitchell doesn't seem to be available on You-tube. It was and is fantastic.
Ptrich 1 month ago
The tempo's just a little too fast for a lament, I think. Other than that, excellent. This song always moves me to tears when I sing it.
Tamaresque 1 month ago
OMG!!!!
Love it
lpatterson7 2 months ago
@gamesport88 - LUCKY!!!!
MJKT95 2 months ago
gamesport-I'm jealous, wish I could see this!
Would love to see David Alan Grier's Sportin Life! Enjoy
dancingmckay 2 months ago
@dancingmckay Saw Porgy and Bess in previews two weeks ago. Greer was amazing, he brought great energy and well placed and carefully selected notes to Sportin Life, he really went old school, steered clear of the high B's , offered stong notes in the middle range while exceeding in dance and movement. Brought to mind Cab Callloway. If you can get to NY go, an amazing cast and a great musical rendition of Gershwin's work.
mm9913 2 months ago
@mm9913 Glad you enjoyed the show, wow Cab Calloway style! Would love to see it! Gonna try!!!
dancingmckay 2 months ago
Audra McDonald is starring in Porgy and Bess on Broadway, but as Bess (and rightfully so). She's performing with Norm Lewis (Porgy) and David Alan Grier (Sportin' Life). The actress who sings this song in the play is Bryohna Marie Parham (as Serena).
MJKT95 2 months ago in playlist Favorite videos
@MJKT95
I'm going next week! I'm so excited!!
gamesport88 2 months ago
Will someone please tell me if Ms. McDonald will be singing soon in this masterpiece on B'way as rumored??? Spine tingling performance--very deep....
windstorm1000 3 months ago
@windstorm1000 She will, but she doesn't sing this song. She's playing Bess, not surprisingly.
MuzzyBarker 3 months ago
i love her,can't wait for the broadway production
tfeesq
TFEESQ 4 months ago
do you have the full performance because i notice Brian Stokes Mitchell sitting their chilling lol I'd love to hear his voice as well :)
BroadwayKeepsMeGoing 4 months ago
Gorgeous. Breath taking.
Scottfb1028 5 months ago
The double portandos at the end are gut-wrenching and perfectly done. Wow.
dellaroux 5 months ago 3
Run do not walk to buy tickets to ART's production of Porgy and Bess which is definitely coming to Broadway, the marquee is already up.....January 2012.
AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING performances by one very stellar cast
Hensel310 5 months ago
@Hensel310 Thank u == I was not aware of this, I'm in Europe, gotta get home in time for That!
lilccaddy 5 months ago
I just saw here sing this this past week and it was amazing. Different than this version. I highly recommend seeing the new production in Cambridge.
Sunflower0122Z 5 months ago
@Sunflower0122Z if you're talking about the ART version, Audra McDonald played Bess and didn't sing this... But I agree, the woman who sang this was pretty great and it was interesting hearing it in a lower key.
MissEntity 5 months ago
Rumor has it the Broadway transfer has been cancelled.
briandbl 6 months ago
@briandbl I've been following the show and I heard this too, but they still have every intention of coming in for a January opening night.
BdaSinga 5 months ago
Remarkable performance.
The pain and aguish of the song are absolutely palpable. She should be as famous as Beyonce. 'cept in America you gotta shake yo bootie an' pop yo kouchie for da big time.
lginpdx 6 months ago 2
I have watched this video too many times to count and EVERY single time I am blown away by her power, her talent & honesty. GOOD LORD woman you are blessed!!!!
newyorker2581 6 months ago
Sondheim said, "Certainly I can think of no better Porgy than Norm Lewis nor a better Bess than Audra McDonald, whose voice is one of the glories of the American theater." No rebuke there.
jrlexjr 6 months ago 2
Okay...she NAILS it.
jrlexjr 6 months ago
Wow, interesting hearing Sondheim rebuke the shit out of her.
brubinstein1 6 months ago
@brubinstein1 He didn't rebuke her. He said nothing about her.
cherry1920 6 months ago
@cherry1920 Yes, he made a comment on McDonald's statement that Bess is “often more of a plot device than a full-blooded character.”
brubinstein1 6 months ago
I saw her in Carousel, Master Class, etc etc. She is a force of nature. That voice. Once a century.
disneylandman66 7 months ago
I can't wait to hear her sing this on Broadway this fall! Her 5th Tony Award, yes?
tmlupone 7 months ago
@tmlupone She won't. This will be sung by another character. And not this fall, it starts previews in December, opening in January.
briandbl 6 months ago 2
@tmlupone Bess doesn't sing this song, unfortunately. But I still think she'll win the Tony. Did you catch Ben Brantley's review? He couldn't stop gushing over how amazing she was. (And who can blame him?) LOVE HER!
JackGrote89 6 months ago
I think she turned me straight.
ipswich728 7 months ago 30
This woman is my hero... all I have to say.
AlcinoustheXIIth 7 months ago
its great that she's humble and all but TAKE A PROPER BOW lady! audiences erupt for her and she's back in her chair in a nanosecond! nothing wrong with enjoying a bit of glory when you've got a talent like this...
superb performance though and thank you for posting
BGSourgas 8 months ago
Sing Audra!!!!
felderjohnnie2011 8 months ago
Completely and utterly in love with Audra.
thejwatt85 8 months ago
She's FABULOUS..does us classical singers proud..
raymjm 8 months ago
way too fast, think of Miles davis instead.
SALLEMJAZZ 9 months ago
Perhaps for your taste, but the tempo is bang on for what Gershwin marked in his score. The Miles Davis album is mind-blowingly good, but don't forget - it was his interpretation of an opera he adored. Have a look at a score of this music, and the tempo Gershwin wanted for this aria. It matches what this conductor did here.
pianomags 8 months ago
My God! Che divina meraviglia. Grazie Signora McDonald, grazie della sua eccezionale voce, del suo gusto, della sua espressività e dell'incredibile intensità della sua recitazione. Ogni volta che arrivo al minuto 3'27 piango e subito dopo maledico quell'incapace regista che ha tolto l'inquadratura dal suo volto!
Grazie ancora Audra.
Alessandro.
alejjn 9 months ago
SHE SINGS!!!! She selivered the song beautifully and her voice is even the entire way through. I loved it.
wonwie 10 months ago
i didnt know she could sing????!!!!! brava Ms.Mcdonald
misypooh 10 months ago
This is pure greatness.
madamerotten 11 months ago
SING! SING! DIVA SING! A FABULOUS performance of this. Great pathos and gorgeous voice!
orvtimlaw 11 months ago
quel plaisir de l'écouter chanter de l'opéra aussi ! elle est vraiment géniale !!!
fillette71200 11 months ago
Audra, your man's not gone, I'm right here, Sweetheart! ;)
musicaorganum 11 months ago
If Audra McDonald sang Opera exclusively she would EAT !
dachampishea 11 months ago
OMGoodness!! Just perfect. She is fabulous.
actresschelc 11 months ago
Great diction WOW!!!! A true artist, and a great presence!!! The only thing is her vibrato which is to my taste, a litte too quick, but it is a question of taste. Or else her high notes sound absolutely fabulous, shame she doesn't take more time at the end, I guess that is how the conductor wanted it. In any case, she is a great singer, RESPECT.
Geexx4 11 months ago
ugh!I love this piece!! and she just kills it!you betta sang audra
forevermorphingari 11 months ago
It's so good that you'd half-expect MTT and the orch to be weeping while she sings...... holy sh*t that was incredible...she's young here, too, must have been early 90s
MicRichy1 11 months ago
She's a BEAST!!!!!!!!!!!!
TheBigruss63 11 months ago
This is the best rendition of this song I have ever heard!!
choirboybjs 1 year ago 21
ugh, what a BEAST.
hgracethompson11 1 year ago
Wow, what power! Just beautiful!
TheGreenSphinx 1 year ago
brilliant performance!
kirter23 1 year ago
This is perfection.
dachampishea 1 year ago
This makes my hair stand on end... this has got to be the most extraordinary rendition of this song, ever. She is BEYOND.
seanpatrickdoyle 1 year ago
This has been flagged as spam show
Too much vibrato!
ieremias01 1 year ago
@ieremias01 It's a matter of taste. Yours, apparently, is all in your mouth.
Largo64 8 months ago
Superb Audra. Sends shivers down my spine every time I hear it, especially the horrendously difficult glissandos at the end.
tessgregory987 1 year ago
I would never put down My Lady Audrey, but, her refinement of this piece into an "Aria" is a little like putting a gold ring in a pig's snout. This song is about SOUL and wallowing in pitty - not lofty apsiriations of vocal granduer. She is not wasting her time on TV, she's making a living. How many of her CD's do you own? She a beautiful woman with so much talent she radiates SUCCESS! Her outlet for that success can not be limited to the stage.
BornGayTaughtToHate 1 year ago
@BornGayTaughtToHate But it IS an aria. Porgy and Bess is an opera.
tessgregory987 1 year ago
This is an aria from the opera "Porgy and Bess" by George Gershwin. Maybe YOU should start doing your homework before you start speaking of things you know nothing about. And let me tell you, that this interperation is GENIOUS. Has it ever accured to you that emotion and your so called "vocal graduer" can go hand in hand? Obviously you don't know much about music, or culture for that matter since you failed to recognize one of the most famous operas ever written, you pretentious wise-guy.
JapaneseFlowerGarden 1 year ago
This is an aria from the opera "Porgy and Bess" by George Gershwin. Maybe YOU should start doing your homework before you start speaking of things you know nothing about. And let me tell you, that this interperation is GENIOUS. Has it ever accured to you that emotion and your so called "vocal graduer" can go hand in hand? Obviously you don't know much about music, or culture for that matter since you failed to recognize one of the most famous operas ever written.
JapaneseFlowerGarden 1 year ago
I don't understand why she is wasting all of her talent on this TV show... she belongs on stage not on TV
Naomi could be played by anybody but her voice is unique.
regina2601 1 year ago
@regina2601 Because TV pays MUCH more than Broadway and professional music does in this country.
barose1 3 weeks ago
I wish she would've sung "Summertime"
whatIfeeliscool 1 year ago
Audra!!! You MURDERED this song!
bee109bee2007 1 year ago
@bee109bee2007 No she didn't. It's the best version i've ever heard.
tessgregory987 1 year ago
@tessgregory987 Murdered is a good connotation...I meant she did exceptional lol
bee109bee2007 1 year ago
OH Audra. Oh, Audra.
blahq123 1 year ago
she sings with such sincerity. thank you audra
Babs22h 1 year ago
@myfavoritefairy who knew audra mcdonald could waste her vocal talents spending years as an overdramatic fat ass on private practice
blooshnog 1 year ago
Wow, I am a new fan. I love the passion and intensity of her performances. I want to see her love.
poistu 1 year ago
She's got great diction. Most people who sing this song are totally incomprehensible. She's crystal clear.
Plus, um...the voice is godlike...
yougottagetagimmick 1 year ago 31
@yougottagetagimmick that's that good Julliard training there lol
khamikins 1 year ago
Powerful, haunting, incredible! In my opinion, Porgy and Bess is really the only American work that can be classified as great opera, and Audra is among the very best to sing the part of Serena.
madamerotten 1 year ago 3
@madamerotten that isn't true. Susannah is also a great American Opera.
spintotenor83 10 months ago
@spintotenor83 Perhaps, but so many so-called American operas are not so good. "Nixon In China," for one.
madamerotten 10 months ago
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tubeslord 1 year ago
Chills. Great voice all around --- opera, American songbook, Broadway. I love her range, especially with classical style. BTW, whatever happened to Opera Ebony?
tubeslord 1 year ago
She is awesome--just great! Nothing else to say....
vrob125 1 year ago
This gives me chills everytime i watch this......i love it!
virtuous08 1 year ago
LOVE This woman. I saw this on PBS years ago and went right out and bought the 2 CD set. Still listen to it all the time. MAN the talent. THIS is who young aspiring singers need to listen to.
Pr0m0m 1 year ago
@Pr0m0m I love Porgy & Bess and collect different versions. Can u tell me which one this is from please? Never had the pleasure to see her perform this role on the stage. Thanks.
lilccaddy 1 year ago
@lilccaddy it's from the 100 Birthday celebration of Gershwin CD Michael Tilton Thomas is the conductor
Pr0m0m 1 year ago
@Pr0m0m -- Thank you very much!
lilccaddy 1 year ago
I love it!
MWaits 1 year ago
For the people who don't quite get me:
Yes she AUDRA MCDONALD is a VERSATILE singer, that is what I meant by CONTEMPORARY. Someone who can sing music other than classical/opera. If opera singers were more VERSATILE, opera COMPANIES/THEATERS would draw larger, (NON OPERA ORIENTED) audiences, therefore reassuring opera will till have an audience after the older generations die!! If you don't understand that, please don't reply because I have better things to do....
osbornd89 1 year ago
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jcatenor 1 year ago
@osbornd89 I have to say that I find some of what you say to be true. We have raised a generation of singers that do not appreciate or understand the arts. Just look around the nation at the school systems that are cutting funding for the arts. I am an opera singer, and I agree we need to be versatile, but I think there is a time and place for everything. I dont think opera houses need to do more mainstream music. It is just that, an opera house. There are opera companies that do light
jcatenor 1 year ago
@osbornd89 opera, and they are wildly successful. WE as singers have to take the initiative and go out and inform people about our artform. I watched Angela Brown do a performance of Opera from a Sistah's Point of View. Highly insightful. It just goes to show that opera is not as supported as it needs to be because it is not taught as it needs to be.
jcatenor 1 year ago
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chrisscruzzz 1 year ago
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chrisscruzzz 1 year ago
@chrisscruzzz LOL! I was saying that more opera singers need to be more 'contemporary' with their repertoire so they can bring larger audiences to opera.
osbornd89 1 year ago
@osbornd89 uuumm what are you saying...tryin to understand you. are you saying she is a versatile performer and can sing various techniques?
mrsfthomas 1 year ago
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osbornd89 1 year ago
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osbornd89 1 year ago
those 13 people just don't have a clue
mrsfthomas 1 year ago
Audra McDonald is a SINGER! Not opera singer, not Broadway singer not a Jazz singer, a SINGER! Times are changing and young people are less likely to go to the opera these days, but if opera singers learnt to sing music other than classical they will gain huge popularity across all fields of music and therefore get butts in seats!!
osbornd89 1 year ago
@osbornd89 Maybe other singers should also learn how to sing operatically? It's difficult to bash people who have taken time to refine the voice as an instrument. Most of the sounds of contemporary music are simply obstructions to a clear voice. For somebody who spends time evening and relieving tension from the voice, there's no *desire* to sing *incorrectly* to please an audience. Also,, after training in art song (interpreting esoteric poetry) there's little desire to go back to pop.
tggold 9 months ago
Wow! I wonder how long it took her to work this up. Switching back and forth between styles is not always easy
Doromir 1 year ago
@Doromir i can tell you it aint easy fa real. but i truly believe it must have took her some weeks close to a month to make every note and word apart of her. i would love to share a stage with her.....(dreaming)
mrsfthomas 1 year ago
@Doromir She has a degree from Julliard in Classica/Opera. This was really where she started....
You're right though - it's not easy to switch styles. However, broadway performers with a classical (read technical) vocal background will find that they can sing just about everything because they have healthy voices/good technique and thus understand how to make modifications across genres in a way that is still healthy and sounds ggood!
carr0760 1 year ago
@carr0760 Her degree was in vocal performance not Opera. I don't mean to come off snooty but there is a difference. But yes her vocal technique is secure and wonderful!
spintotenor83 10 months ago
@spintotenor83 I stand corrected. I thought she had done both Classical and Opera training. I think I was melding her educational background with Kristen Chenowith!
And...not snooty...I'm a professional (classically trained) singer and voice instructor myself. I am well aware of the difference as I was trained at a university with both Opera and Vocal Performance (classical) programs.
Thanks!
carr0760 10 months ago
@3:10 my heart stopped. Thank you for posting this!
operachild 1 year ago 2
awesome technique! I would have thought this song a little too heavy for her, but she nails it. I love the quality of her sound.
sopranosd 1 year ago 2
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chrisscruzzz 1 year ago
@myfavoritefairy@futuresuperstar4life...... don't forget she has won two Grammy awards also... I really hate this bitch.. She makes me so jealous I can't stand reading her bio's.. WHEN WILL SHE BE WASHED UP.. I want to be talented like her DAMN IT.
chrisscruzzz 1 year ago
@chrisscruzzz umm are you okay?
mysweetsmile23 1 year ago
@chrisscruzzz she's just amazing! no other explanation!
futuresuperstar4life 1 year ago
@chrisscruzzz
lol, hate much?!
CHRISTELAMPONIN123 1 year ago
um everyone lols
saraijohnson86 1 year ago
well DAMN! what a voice smh...HIT REPLAY
Lyssiann 1 year ago
Simply SENSATIONAL, FANTASTIC,
the1andonlyLOVEable 1 year ago
.....DAAAAAAAMN! OMG, I was SO not expecting that. Wow.....amazing, simply amazing.
Azanthis 1 year ago 2
ive done electrical work on her house in montrose NY. wired up all her landscape lights and did her pool motor/filter/heater
fpsluke88 1 year ago
I could watch and listen to Audra McDonald all year.
unclealand 1 year ago 2
13 people have no musical taste.
LaBelleOfTheBall2 1 year ago 54
@LaBelleOfTheBall2 15 now. Where do these troglodytes come from? Why, caves and culverts, of course!
Largo64 8 months ago
@LaBelleOfTheBall2 the 15 people who now dislike this..I wish you were her man now and dead. I heard that she will be coming to broadway Dec 2011 with a revival of Porgy and Bess singing the role of Bess. I will be first on line to hear and see that. Brava madame.
aa4285 7 months ago
I can't get enough of this performance
thehappysongstressX 1 year ago
I want to be her when I grow up. But then again, who doesn't?!
McKaylaDonald 1 year ago
sang heffa!
lchicks102 1 year ago
Kathleen Battle isn't worthy of washing Audra McDonald's dishes.
steelearch 1 year ago
@steelearch Not a good comparison.
keynotelane 1 year ago
@steelearch Not a good comparison.
keynotelane 1 year ago
@steelearch I happen to be a huge fan of La Diva Battle. But that's neither here nore there. What the heck does Kathleen Battle have to do with this performance? i don't get it. What a silly and ugly comment.
LittleRichOne 1 year ago
@steelearch how you could even try to compare these to women baffles me..
bigsick3270 1 year ago
Comment removed
chrisscruzzz 1 year ago
absolutely brilliant.
illbeastonishing16 1 year ago
This is such a fine performance. The ending is sensitively rendered. A+. However, no one still can match Price in this song. Her voice is superhuman.
mdehkram 1 year ago
This woman is fabulous.
tenore23 1 year ago
AMAZING
lbmt1 1 year ago
she was trained at Julliard as a classical singer i believe.
Laurensings21 1 year ago
@Laurensings21: And, we are mad she doesn't sing more of it. Clearly--CLEARLY--she is at home in that tradition.
vinemp 1 year ago
I like this and Leontyne Price's version.
chicagomarchingbands 1 year ago
Brava! I knew that she hailed from Broadway, but had no idea how great of a classical singer she is!
cleongatl 1 year ago
shit, son. That is the stuff right there.
mkurnat 1 year ago
I love this piece! I'm using it in my Choral Tech class! Audra is a goddess!
1:40
3:10
3:39
crttopnik 2 years ago
I saw her on Broadway when she did "Ragtime." You have no idea how powerful she is live. AMAZING!
bellestar3 2 years ago
GOSH!!! That's all I can say.
ShannonShevelle 2 years ago
I just keep coming back. There just aren't the right words to describe how amazing and wonderful her performance is.
tdavidray 2 years ago
Wow! Who knew Naomi could sing like this?
myfavoritefairy 2 years ago 25
my thoughts exactly! she's amazing.
miaphoe 2 years ago
THIS IS AUDRA MACDONALD!
Gikl27 1 year ago
@myfavoritefairy: We did!
vinemp 1 year ago
@myfavoritefairy ..and others who appreciate this clip. It is from a 1998 PBS special from Carnegie Hall in Celebration Of "George Gershwin at 100". Fortunately I recorded this 105 minute program and have it on transfer to DVD-R. Truly remarkable performances by Audra, Brian Stokes Mitchell as well as Frederica von Stade all under the baton of John Tilson Thomas and the San Francisco Symphony. George would have been proud!
gilturk115 1 year ago
@myfavoritefairy: I started watching "Private Practice" *because* I knew Naomi could sing -- and act -- like this!
CeeJayNYC 1 year ago 3
@myfavoritefairy dude she had 4 tonys b4 private practice came out
futuresuperstar4life 1 year ago 2
@futuresuperstar4life I'm a dudette, actually! She is a wonderful singer; did not know she had a music career before Private Practice, one of my favorite shows.
myfavoritefairy 1 year ago
@myfavoritefairy - I believe Audra made her debut in "Master Class", singing opera in order to play a voice student of Maria Callas. She has a great voice for both opera and musical theatre.
sopranosd 1 year ago
@sopranosd Actually it was the year before, 1994 (age of 24) she was in Carousel on Bway. I was privileged to see her and it was evident even then that she would go places.
buelljr123 1 year ago
@myfavoritefairy everyone. everyone knew. audra has been doing musical theater infinitely longer than she has been on private practice.
einsteinjr08 1 year ago
@myfavoritefairy everyone. everyone knew. audra has been doing musical theater infinitely longer than she has been on private practice.
einsteinjr08 1 year ago 2
@myfavoritefairy the world of ppl who knew about Audra before she was Naomi LOL
khamikins 1 year ago
@myfavoritefairy ..some people don't know Audra has been singing for a long time. That is when the first time I ever saw her, singing on Broadway.
jmusic45 1 year ago
I saw this just once on PBS years ago and it has stayed with me ever since. Just unforgettable. Thanks for posting! This performance is breathtaking.
lcowles 2 years ago 2
Wow. That was wonderful.
ChaseOnMars 2 years ago
I luv 3:10-