Lawrence Brownlee - Je crois entendre encore - Les pecheurs de perles

[bodiloto]

Nella mia gioventù questa aria la cantavano uomini...

Questa e la voce d'un ragazzo che ha 14 anni.

[msozturk]

Greetings to great singer Lawrence Brownlee... Our hearts are aligned...

[du6053]

That was PERFECT!!!

[ediritoma]

Bravo!!!

[ajking26]

unbelievable.

[brothamanjbush25]

the melody starting at 2:45 is unworldly..too pure

[brothamanjbush25]

im a young black teen who wants to study opera..what is the title of this piece so i could understand the lyrics in english...the intensity of the voice is mesmerizing but it would take greater effect if i knew what he was saying

[raffadizzle]

@brothamanjbush25 It's in the title of the video ;)

[myrhilles]

Monsieur, c'est vous qui semblez le plus à l'aise dans cette performance ! bravo

[josepliric]

BRAVISSSIIIMO



[sonnym1]

Fantastico!!

[Tenortastic33]

I am just enraptured by this performance. 

[sushiyang]

ABSOLUMENT EXTRAORDINAIRE !!!!!!!!!

[09yeahAZ]

I love the people that say "Bravo" to the end, it must be very nice for the singer to hear that !

And trully, bravo bravo milles fois ! Une voix magnifique !

[jimmyl324]

perfect!!!!!!!!!!!

[1057jb]

belle voix, mais des progrès à faire pour la diction

[kettycity]

Tout simplement merveilleux. Je n'ai jamais entendu cet air chanté avec autant de perfection et de sensualité.

[bierzobayoba]

Es muy primario intentar comparar unos timbres de voz con otros.

Cada tenor nace con un timbre que la técnica depura y modela. Brownlee tiene una bella voz y en este caso una cadencia exquisita.

Bravo Maestro.

[BeliaToscana]

Enchanting voice singing an enchanting song.

[tamino20002000]

A very nice person as well:)



[IsingOpera]

Lawrence Brownlee offers us a lirico leggiero voice that rivals that of his contemporary, Juan Diego Flórez. Whomever you prefer is entirely your choice, but keep in mind the "rounded" quality of Brownlee's instrument. Such color combined with ease in his upper register(s) makes for a very romantic and Italianate sound - something this writer prefers.

[legato699]

@IsingOpera I agree with you. I love Brownlee's rich voice, but Diego Flórez is a great comedian (listen to his rendition of "Ah mes amis..."), and has a good French diction. Italian diction is easier for singing: it's the language that gave us the art of Bel Canto.

But I understand your preference.

[petion2010]

@IsingOpera Juan diego Florez is a great and talented tenor. But I prefer Brownlee. There's something about Florez high pitch feminine like voice that annoys me.

[JCLAWS]

great line, great expressiveness, great control and placement

[legato699]

He's excellent. Ease and control. Generous. A pleasure to hear. Thanks for posting.

[dchiapello]

The way Brownlee approaches his high notes is stunning - smoothly and with such ease. The orchestra sounds a bit wheezy here. 

[thezubiri]

Después de Alain Vanzó,la mejor versión de esta ária.¿Es Max Valdés el director? ¡De qué orquesta se trata y de cuándo?

[emguliyev77]

Even Rolando Villazón is much better singing is only experience ... Best  Wishes to our brother!

[emguliyev77]

It is Wonderful  ... but please if you don't understand what bel canto is .. don't make such decisions like - he is like Pavarotti. The guy is singing academic vocal - he is whiting his voice very much - yes it is a different stile - but not any close to Pavarotti.

[Jefraz01]

another very good performance was given by the french singer Tino Rossi during the 30s.

[Jefraz01]

his french is very good, quite no american accent. and such a voice...

[lightlyso]

His voice is like a velvety dark night. Exquisite!

[BERNARDOANUK]

Lawrence and Alfredo Krauss are the best in this Aria. Very nice.

[cocardeux]

lawrence brownie

[federricoilgrande]

Bravo Larry !

[MasterJamesYoung]

Sublime.

[blueredsam]

Beautiful, simply beautiful. I cannot find words to describe the beauty of this beautiful voice.

[prokofiev1231]

Brilliant!!! Such a beautiful voice, the sort of voice one rarely hears these days. Among my firm favorites of this aria, along with Gigli.

[21Drake]

Envy me, for I have only encountered this unbelievable wealth of a voice just very recently :D

 Truly, I cannot possible begin to describe how transfixed I am by Mr. Brownlee... This is something completely out of this world. Coming from a Corelli admirer, that is :).

[MrJeffreydunson]

A powerful & heroic tenor !!!

[learnofme]

*.* o.0 WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO­OW

[ninocanito]

Ce tenor a une technique assez peu courante de nos jours. Les voyelles sont jamais trop ouvertes, les contre-ut complètement naturels, il est un digne succésseur de Simoneau, Verreau ou Legay.

[mikeleewardcc]

those 5 who didn't like this video are deaf and/or racist!

[saintsaens21]

@mikeleewardcc and you are definitely an imbecile and/or idiot!

[808OMGWTF]

@saintsaens21

so you must be deaf and/or racist...

[PIPZZZ02]

Time stood still.

Few singers can make this happen.

[notsobluebear]

The very definition of sublime - thanks for sharing this

[gorgolaka]

I never thought I would hear anyone singing this aria with the same talent and perfection as of Alfredo Kraus. But now I have to say I am glad I heard it because this is an excellent performance. Well done Lawrence !! hope to hear much more from you. The feeling and emotion this tenor transmits is, nowadays, of no match.

[tequilaredbeer]

1:38 여기서부터... ^^

[tingchenchang]

Lovely voice!!!

[DziemianMusic]

brilliant 1

[rosimarioliveira]

Bravissimo!!!

[Largo64]

This young tenor is simply wonderful! What a warm, rich voice!

[penstu1967]

I love Brownlee, but so far for this piece my favorite is Villazon's. Villazon's is more sweet, more soft and romantic. Brownlee strong voice is great, but not for this piece!

[robertdonkers]

@penstu1967 Listen to some of the old French tenors, like Alain Vanzo. That is the real French sound. But I like them all and a larger voice singing this repertoire is absolutely wonderful. We still have to hear the voice even wehn we sit at the very back rows in those very large opera houses!

[penstu1967]

I love Brownlee, but so far for this piece my favorite is Villazon's. Villazon's is more sweet, more soft and romantic. Brownlee strong voice is great!

[FoggyRoad81]

@penstu1967 Unfortunately for you, you'll never hear Villazon sing this again, because his sound came from a bad technique that broke down in less than a decade. That "soft" sound was Villazon unable to adequately project in a high tessitura.

[ngaurhoth]

@gman20101 Oh my! I though Armida was INCREDIBLE!

@BrianDonaldMcKay I've found only studio recordings of Vanzo, (who does sing this beautifully); the two voices are quite different, and singing to a packed concert hall is rather different as well. A live, in performance recording would be a much better comparison.

[gman20101]

@ngaurhoth his manner of singing with permanent vibrato reminds me giuseppe morino (check on youtube)

[Majlor70]

OOOOH, MERVEILLEUX!!!



[BrianDonaldMcKay]

Sorry, my posting was affected by ipod. I wanted to say that the effort to support the voice rather than float it in the way Vanzo did, can be heard at the end of most phrases. A pity for it slightly mars a lovely performance.

[BrianDonaldMcKay]

repertoire if hé listened to Alain Vanzo.

[BrianDonaldMcKay]

of the Voice is quite at the end of the phrase. He could learn something about this

[BrianDonaldMcKay]

Pretty good but the tongue could be more consistently forward for the French. His rather muscular control

[gman20101]

exellent interpretation, no shouting, beautiful cantillena. didnt like him in Armida though (saw on DVD)

[adri1a2n]

Bravo, bravo y más bravo.

[Gotthard38]

It is a beautiful voice and diction.

[francesca7564]

Voici ce qui s'appelle chanter avec générosité et beauté ...

Mille respect Monsieur Brownlee de nombreux mélomanes de France .

Merci pour le post .

[MrJeffreydunson]

The Voice of Opera

[francesca7564]

Monsieur Brownlee, toute mon admiration . Pas de place pour les petits esprits ici .

[flaze3]

Just sublime!! Perfect technique and phrasing.

[vervideosonline1]

Way much better than Kraus... 

[jbaravel]

Impecable!!! bravo, maravillosa voz

[5nick3r5]

Simply astounding - one of the best recordings on YouTube (up there with Alfredo Kraus IMO).

[MrMasakhane]

1st time listening to him, something came up but in few more years its gonna be established

[rossinidonizetti]

Simply one of the most heart-rendingly beautiful pieces of singing that I've ever heard. Thank you so much. Bjoerling gave the same poignant suggestions of multiple tones within the same note, but his poignancy was silver. LB has a warm tobacco gold to his. What a privilege to have heard this. May the angels protect you.

[MrAndrew1907]

Forgive me.. but i believe that Lawrnce Brownlee acheives something almost supernatural. I consider him to be of the same caliber of Pavarotti. Simply legendary, out of this world.

[Swany243]

@MrAndrew1907 This is exactly how I feel. His voice is one of those voices that has a supernatural feeling. So beautiful and still in total control.

[matthieusarah]

Three people need to go see their physician to have their ears checked!

[petion2010]

@matthieusarah No, just more consistent used of "cue tips" or "ear wax removal" would help them greatly.

[matthieusarah]

@petion2010 ;)

[Agorante]

My first paid singing job was doing Negro Spirtuals. We had a young black tenor named Donald Coleman. He was sensational but his career never went anywhere. Until about 20 minutes ago when I came across all these Brownlee videos, he was the best black tenor I had ever heard.

[peque1204]

Dios me enamoré de él por la voz, que bella!!!!

[jmhidalgo]

EXCELENTE VERSION. YO NO CONOCÍA A ESTE GRAN TENOR. MUY BUENA INTERPRETACIÓN. EN TODO CASO, VER Y ESCUCHAR LA MAGISTRAL VERSIÓN DE ALFREDO KRAUS QUE SIGUE SIENDO PARA MÍ INCOMPARABLE, RECONOCIENDO QUE SON DOS ESTILOS DIFERENTES Y POR TANTO, NO CREO QUE DEBAN COMPARARSE. GRACIAS.

[steakopera]

Absolutely brilliant.

[petion2010]

My goodness, flawless technique and great voice.

[vivomusique]

Simply performed beautifully simple--- such ease and musicality. Absolutely my favorite performance of this aria. This video/performance needs to be seen in voice lessons and vocal pedagogy classes.

[jankerle58]

My dear God! Great! Wish I was there!

Magnificent!

[baltoman24]

Everything that Mr. Brownlee does is the TOP! this is magnificent-gorgeous, Thank you for posting this! how fortunate was the audience!

[matthieusarah]

Is there a DVD of this?

The most beautiful rendition of this aria I've ever listened to, IMHO!

[aarontenor]

I have never heard more perfect singing in all the world than this clip! Every singer has flaws from time to time and every singer does SOMETHING during the course of an aria that keep it from being PERFECT. Kraus's version was my favorite with Gigli, Vanzo, and Gedda being right behind, BUT, this is the first clip I have seen that is literally perfection! This is now, by far my favorite. Lawrence Brownlee is absolutely unbelievalbe.

[harvinsky]

mamma mia, his voice is perfect! he's got gifted voice. brilliant voice.

i love his voice, his performance.

[paulostroff99]

Lovely! TY Dobri for sharing,and colaraturafan for posting.

[John49nl]

be careful Lawrence do't let them make you crazy, watch that beautiful voice

[jimbograz]

Bravo - there aren't words that can describe the journey my emotions travel each and every time I listen to this performance. I have been greatly moved. Bravo Lawrence Brownlee...and thank you!!!

[maskinan]

Very beautiful voice with alot of potential.  Look forword to follow up on his carrier.

[cocoloco707]

DEMASIADO PARA MIS OIDOS!!... WAU PERFECION ME HE QUEDADO TONTO.. GRANDE VOZ BROWNLEE, ME HE CONMOVIDO HASTA LLEGAR EL PUNTO DE LLORAR.. BRAVOOO BRAVISIMO

[Isreal94]

2:52-2:58 I COULD LIVE ON THAT ONE PHRASE! so beautiful.

[hayyu2008]

Words cannot describe how beautiful this great tenor's voice is. He is, without doubt, THE GREATEST bel canto tenor singing today. No better voice could sing Rossini. The sublime tone and beauty of his voice in this aria made me cry. He combines the greatest characteristics of many great tenors ... in one magnificent voice. He stirs up so may emotions in me when I hear him sing. I hope to see him live and shake his hand some day, please God.

[MrJeffreydunson]

This tenor takes you along on this journey, and let's you feel the tale through his marvelous interpretation. what a generous soul.

[dachampishea]

His voice is like... Milk and honey.

[jimbograz]

wipes away tears ...the best gift I've received this year...hearing this spectacular, mesmerizing performance. WOW!

[MrFernando1934]

My God, what a beautiful voice. Listening to this interpretation a nearly trembled, and shed some tears. God bless this man!

[MrFernando1934]

My God, what a voice and personality; I trembled and shed some tears while listening to this aria sung by this superb tenor.

[trombo8]

what a great interpretation, what a great tenor

[raffadizzle]

oh gawd.... his extreme high notes... oh gawd... so fantastic... oh gawd

[happelleppah]

imho a little bit too fast but great voice. Bravo

[thera766]

never imagined him singing this song ,he does it so well that you wouldn't even find faults.

[actionsrlouder]

That conductor sucks!!! Didn't give him the space for expressiveness at the end.. Asshole!

[Tonioo84]

Superb !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Mekertitch]

Génial!!!

[davidmurphy1974]

This is amazing! great GREAT tenor!

[foxchool]

Astounding. I have never heard this aria sung better. Thanks for posting!

[escr76]

¡Maravilloso!¡Fantástica técnica e interpretación!

[flaze3]

si, bravo maestro. Su voz esta mas lejos que palabras pueden dscribir :)

[sebastien1chartry]

Parfaite maitrise de la voix mixte!!!! :D PERFETTOOOO!!!!!

[GermanOperaSinger]

Great singing - enjoyed this one very much. Bravo indeed!

[1974586]

buen trabajo! pero sin duda Rolando Villazòn lo hace mejor en los matices y los pianos, no se puede cantar siempre "arriba" con una pieza tan dulce... Bravo!

[1974586]

Good job, but Rolando Villazon is the best !

[bigus]

rolando villazon uses pure falsetto. his sound is okay otherwise but he isn't doing his voice any favors. but we like who we like regardless i know not everyone cares for my favorites either =D

[giagfa]

Su coloratura le permite abordar pasajes muy dificiles pero para Les percheurs de perles hubo pocos que lo han podido abordar. A mi juicio, no llega con su fiatto y toma aire muy evidente, y noto que se esfuerza sobremanera. Su voz es esplendida, pero su tesitura y cuerda no llegan a lo que este pasaje bellisimo de Massenett exige. Comparemos a Leopold Simoneau, Guedda, Fernando de la Mora, Caruso poseian un color de voz suave y aterciopelada.

[coryisawake]

That final phrase is marvelous!

[25joseluis333]

!!! BRAVO !!!-!!BRAVI-SIMO!!...Hermoso TEMA,Melancolái a Flor de Piel. Grán INTERPRETE (que Yo no Conocía), aunque el Tema si lo he escuchado con Otros Divinos Artistas, de está Maravillosa Música que es la ÓPERA...se me ha puesto la piel de "gallina" enrrizada ESCUCHANDO Hermosa Interpretación. Así que lo pondre en mis FAVORITOS.Agradecido a *coloratufan* por sus Buenas Subidas de Vídeos, y sú Buen gusto por tán Grande Música.

[royarmjr]

Brownlee's rendition is just georgeous! His voice is soft, elegant and full of passion. I think we have to acknowledge what each tenor has to offer, in his very distinctive voice. It does matter what the composer wrote of course, but each singer gives his own rendition of the aria. Such is the case of Alfredo Kraus, who also gives, in my opinion, one of the best renditions of this beautiful aria. Please, check it out too!

[FaustinaBordoni]

I'm with FoggyRoad81. While Brownlee doesn't sing a ppp high C, he doesn't blast the high C. He sings the last few lines with great restraint. And his legato singing is exemplary. His technique here is sensational.

[jdfreder2]

The ease of production he is able to achieve is amazing! He probably sings his rep while mowing the lawn or something like it's no big deal!

[aaronsande]

It was beautiful, but this aria is one of the most beautiful and haunting ever written. However, a leggiero tenor should be able to sing the final passage pianissimo, as written, high C and all!

Kudos for not transposing this down, though, as some of the greatest lyric tenors of all time did.

[FoggyRoad81]

@aaronsande Interesting observation, do you know of any clips on youtube where a tenor sings this succesfully without transposing, but works the pianissimo? I for one think the lovely melting legato speaks for itself and he shows restraint in the final passages.

[aaronsande]

@FoggyRoad81 I don't think so...I don't have perfect pitch so it would take some work for me to check each version to make sure it was in the right key.

However, just a half-step lower, Giuseppe di Stefano offers a version with a successfully soft high note. He had some of the best dynamic control of any non-leggiero tenor =D

If anyone did a pp high C, Lemeshev would have...hmm...

Brownlee did a great job here, I agree. I just hoped he might have a quieter high C.

[bigus]

@aaronsande di stefano really? you think? his technique was beyond horrible. he had to resort to pure falsetto much of the time because he lacked control and his voice suffered from it quite badly. he did have a beautiful voice and was a great interpreter but even that suffered as his voice could no longer do what it needed to phrasing wise. there are some great sounding recordings he made before his voice failed. with proper technique he would have been much greater.

[aaronsande]

@bigus No one was discussing technique here, but there are aspects of Brownlee's technique that are every bit as flawed--if not more--as di Stefano at his worst. I don't know where you got your information about di Stefano, but it is incorrect. His only significant issue was uncovering too high--I don't expect you know what that means, technically--in an attempt to sing more dramatic roles than he should. And so he wrecked his voice. Not a major technical issue.

[bigus]

actually i know quite well what covering is and it wasnt a case of uncovering too high, it was the fact that he didnt cover at all. also the fact that it ruined his voice should be proof of how big of an issue that actually was. analyzing and critiquing vocal technique is a hobby of mine. not only do i personally sing but i read and listen quite extensively. brownlee has flawless technique and a quality instrument.im sorry if i insulted your hero but his technical failings are factual and obvi.

[aaronsande]

@bigus You obviously didn't listen to any early di Stefano. He's hardly my hero, but from your worship of Brownlee I can only conclude that you are a dedicated fanboy.

Anyone who claims to study technique as much as you do should have a different level of respect for today's singers and those of the past than you do. Hence you are clearly deluded.

It is a minor technical issue that created serious results. (continued)

[bigus]

by saying brownlee has flawless technique hardly constitutes worship, anyone with an ear for technique or and understanding of it can tell.as a matter of fact i have listened to early DS as well as early Carreras both started fabulously with beautiful voices that were ruined through poor use and poor rep choices. had their technique been better they could have sang whatever music they wanted to "without" dmging the voice.the problem is they moved too quickly into rep they shouldn't have.

[aaronsande]

@bigus As to di Stefano resorting to falsetto, that is pure myth. And I've not heard it before so you might have invented it yourself. If you're referring to his extremely quiet final note in this aria, or his gorgeous diminuendo in E Lucevan le Stelle, for example, those are sung in pure head voice, not falsetto. Head voice has more resonance and can still fill an opera house. Falsetto, usually, cannot. You can hear the body connection in those notes, proving they are not falsetto.

[bigus]

minor technical problems dont create serious results like that imo. the thing with florez and brownlee is they have tiny voices yes but they don't push them either which is a sign of intelligence because they have easy high notes and can sing their rep with ease and have plenty of volume without the need of amplification. there is plenty of ring/squillo whatever you want to call it to fill any opera house, despite the fact that the houses are bigger now then they ever were back in the early days

[aaronsande]

@bigus That particular technical problem, while minor IMO, IS one that can wreck your voice when combined with singing out of repertoire (in the more dramatic direction). As I have been saying. If you sing your appropriate repertoire only, it will not usually become evident, as a light tenor. Did you listen to his singing of this aria? It's on youtube. If you don't agree it's better than Brownlee, I don't know where to go with our conversation =D

[bigus]

its fine that you like di stefano's version better we both have the right to our opinion of course. personally i like brownlee's version better along with gedda's they both sing it in the higher key than DS or Gigli but they have easier high notes also. DS goes into pure falsetto on his final note,but its lovely. and Gigli uses a falsetto mix quite a bit in his version, but whatever even gedda pops in and out of falsetto but his final C has supported core and brownlee full MV.pref, is opinion =)

[bigus]

you can sing only your fach rep and still mess your voice up when you have poor technique. if you dont cover the middle notes but sing wide open like DS did you will still wreck it. i dont thing DS sang much music that his voice couldn't handle, i think he was blessed with a natural gift that was able to sing the music naturally and so didnt work his technique out thoroughly enough to support the music over a long period of time i think its the same with carreras, except carreras pushed too.

[aaronsande]

@bigus Hmm...you seem to think Florez and Brownlee don't use amplification. I also don't know where to go with that. I have stopped trying to convince non-believers of the truth, but...do some research =D amplification is now being used everywhere, for larger voices than those!

The MET is still the same size as when Corelli and others could fill it with their voices...there is no excuse for amplification. We are not rock singers ;D

[aaronsande]

@bigus Florez and Brownlee have very little Squillo, by the way. I'm not sure why you think otherwise. Resonance, sure, but squillo? Nope. That is more present in dramatic singers' voices, like Corelli and Del Monaco, and Caruso of course.

[bigus]

tiny voices work exactly the same as big voices, everyone has vocal chords, diaphram so on and so forth. squillo is another term for ring, resonance, phonation etc. its what makes the voice carry and happens when the chords are coming together nice and tights. airy voices in contrast dont have it because there is too much air in the tone. brownlee certainly does.its just not as in your face as a large heroic or spinto opera houses and recital halls have been getting larger since opera was born

[bigus]

its not a myth, ive heard him do it. as his voice got worse he had to just to hit the notes cleanly at times. also his wide open singing all the time caused him to frequently go off pitch.if you think thats a myth just go back and visit the recordings.im talking about what i have actually heard not what i have read about even though its pretty common knowledge.i respect him for his personality, passion,and beauty of phrasing because thats as obvious as his poor technique was, and worthy of resp.

[bigus]

pavarotti used amplification also so did just about everyone who sang on the concert stage in the last 50 years big whoopie? not in the opera probably but for concerts yes. its pretty common and accepted. naturally a smaller voice will not be as loud as a big voice, but that doesnt mean that they NEED amplification to be heard, way different.

[aaronsande]

@bigus As for Brownlee, like Florez, one problem of his is entirely too little "chest voice" development (thyroartenoids in the larynx are underdeveloped). It is common among persons who are blessed with a light tenor voice from the start, and since the high notes come easily to this sort of singer it is a frequent training error to assume this means technique is perfected. The voice is small, with less projection than even a leggiero should have, and often requires amplification.

[tenor9216]

@aaronsande Not totally sure about that... the high C is actually not written in the score (the tenor is supposed to hold the E while the oboe plays that little theme). I personnally think his high C is at a really reasonable volume (he even does a slight decrescendo... certainly not easy to do !). If you wanna hear a piano high C in this aria, listen to Heddle Nash. it's gorgeous ! too bad that he sings it in English though...

[aaronsande]

@tenor9216 Well, you're right I shouldn't have said "as written" because it made it seem I was saying the high C passage's NOTES are written that way. I was referring to the dynamic "pianissimo, as written" =D

Ugh, I usually can't listen to arias translated!

[FoggyRoad81]

Must. stop. obsessively, listening. to Lawrence Brownlee. But can't!!!

[ianmceuen]

This concert has basically all my favorite music on it. Bravo!!!

[tenorman123]

Bravo!