Ah Mario could have sung the phone book and I'd have loved it. And after all he WAS 19 years old here but boy he was destined for the greatness he had and so much more he missed having died so young. Wish I could have met the man. Amazing. Thanks for posting this.
This poor quality recording gives us a good comparison with Caruso, especially as the young Mario, who taught himself to sing by singing along to Caruso's records, sounds very much in the same style.
Decades later, my concert pianist husband and I tried to make a "demo" recording without hiring a studio. He was playing a 6' Steinway but in every attempt the piano sounded out of tune. So don't bash the pianist who had nothing whatsoever to do with the quality of the recording. If we couldn't get a decent sound decades later, what do you think the equipment used in 1940 could produce?
The reason the piano sounds out of tune is because the recording equipment was not as well electronically controlled as as modern equipment. Equipment in those days was not as stable as modern recording systems . Simple
@MacleanTony a big problem with recording then was mario's voice...the equipment couldn't catch all his sounds....as with the movie where he was in the church singing the lords prayer (or was it ova maria..i forgot,,,lol) but they ended up dumping their equipment and mario sang raw...with the church itself to carry his voice...amazing. so sad to lose him so young...even sadder we will never know the real truth about his death..
Una verdadera reliquia que es muy útil para los jóvenes cantantes. Cantar como Mario Lanza tomó tiempo a Mario Lanza. El estudio es difícil pero con un buen maestro el resultado es asombroso.
that was a relative playing, as i recall the story...the only young artist that may come close is mark vincent...he has so much of marios body language that its almost scary...but no one will ever, ever compare to this man...what a gift..such a sad sad loss for the world////
As a lifelong Mario fan I have never heard these recordings even though I've had a few of Mario's early 78s. His Vesti La Giubba sounds remarkably like his nemesis Enrico Caruso. However the style is clearly a mimic of his style with all the attendant lack of frequency response and dynamics of those early direct-cut 20th century wax and shellac recordings. Lest we forget, his passion inspired a whole generation of famous classical opera tenors,, regardless of his less than perfect style,
Boy, what a great and strong voice at that young age and basically untrained. I grew up listening to Mario Lanza and see the greatness in his from his youth.
"Recorded privately" - probably didn't have studio quality equipment. My late husband was a concert pianist and we tried to make a demo without studio equipment, used what we had, this in the 60s I think. The piano sounded pretty much like this one does. Grand piano itself was in tune. No matter how I tried, couldn't get it any better. I'd been sound engineer for a professional tenor so I knew a thing or two, but nothing I did made the piano sound any better than this.
Why are you guys rambling on about other singers? The subject here is Lanza. And at age 19 he certainly isn't as musically advanced as, say Ponselle or Bjorling were at that age, but it was a wonderful voice and coulda-woulda-shoulda been ... well that never happened, but certainly he had more going for him than most. More certainly tan Del Monaco.
Fabulous example of the very young, raw and untrained Lanza. So many people pick these recordings to pieces but bear in mind that they were never intended for release. This recording was done by Mario for his parents
Isn't it amazing that the greatest thing the Internet has given us is access to the past! This is an amazing piece of history that we would never have heard without the likes of Youtube. Many thanks to the poster for sharing this with the World.
Lanza's voice, while untrained and crude in phrasing, was one of the wonders of the time. As far as Pavarotti is concerned, he allowed himself to be transformed into a elephantine media buffo clown.
By 1990, Pavarotti had become a parody of a fat, arrogant and self-important Italian tenor. Domingo, while much lower profile, was the greater artist, the more photogenic, and sang a vastness of diversified repertoire rivaled by no tenor in history.
@Zva26 By 1990 Pavarotti was fat& no doubt self important,However i never did read that Pav was arrogant. He always did give praise to other singers, wether pop or operatic& was perceived as being pretty humble.Pavarotti also had some signature roles like Daughter of The Regiment,La Boheme,L'elisir D'amore,Lucia&perhaps I Puritani.He also contributed to the rejuvenation of opera through his concerts & bigger than life Persona.True, Domingo did sing more roles than any tenor in history.Continue
@sugarbist - Have you read Herbert Breslin's book about Pavarotti? Yes, he most certainly DID become very arrogant. No, he never bashed other artists, but he became very unreliable, easily ruffled, and was actually fired by Lyric Opera of Chicago for chronic cancellations. His best period was 1970-1985. Everything after that went downhill. Morbid obesity, cancellations, media buffo, etc. Even his mentor, Dame Joan Sutherland, lost patience with him, though they remained friends.
@Zva26 I never did read Breslin's book.I thought the unreliability started around age 63 when he attempted to do The Daughter of The Regiment and couldn't really hit the Hi Cs.I know that after age 62 or so, he started cracking on some high notes and the vocal line wasn't steady as it once was.I remember some cancellations, but I attributed them to age. Del Monaco did state that a tenor should not sing once he passes the age of 60. However MDM kept singing as well.Enjoy
@Zva26 Continue (Domingo)however I really do not think that Domingo had A signature role or roles as many great tenors in history did, like Del Monaco, Corelli, Lauri Volpi,Gigli,Di Stefano,De Muro,Merli, Martinelli,Masini,Fillipeschi or Tucker.It's nice to make history for QUANTITYof roles, but I think it's more important to have at least a few signature roles that an artist excells in.Pavarotti had at least 5. Some of the other tenors I mention had at least 8, DOMINGO?I don't know. Enjoy
@sugarbist - Come to think of it, you're RIGHT! Flagstad (Isolde) Callas (Norma, Anna Bolena,Medea, Violetta), Nilsson (Turandot, Isolde, Elektra)), Pavarotti (Nemorino, Tonio, Arturo), Gobbi (Scarpia & Rigoletto), Sutherland (Semiramide, Lucia, Norma), Scotto (Butterfly) Horne (all Rossini), etc. I can think of no signature roles for Montserrat Caballe' OR Placido Domingo ----- possibly Otello? Hoffmann? You've given me something to think about. No role seems to stand out.
@Zva26 Hoffman perhaps.But I don't really think Domingo's voice is really suited for Otello,based on the great Otello tenors in history, like Merli Del Monaco Martinelli Vinay Pertile Piccaluga Tamagno Paoli.Yes, PD does have the lyricism, but his voice simply doesn't have the dramatic verismo that the role calls for, along with the size of the voice the other tenors have.
Fabulous! For him to tackle such difficult pieces at this young age, after less than 3 years of training is incredible. Despite the tonal inequity, the fact that he could sing like this at 19 years of age is incredible. If you can't do as well, be quiet! Katmandolino is right! "Don't analyze it! Enjoy it!"
@dickdomino1 I'm 63 years old and not pro but my mother was an opera lover,so I was groing up on tenors of the times.Lanza was the best,not because his range of voice but the specialty.Unmistakable his voice I can tell of hundreds. If we take Caruso as a masure,the second would be Gigli.I have all Lanza movies and recordings and I will love him as long as I live.He is a very sad sucsess story.Hallo from Toronto
Witch Ann Cappelletti, the sorceror of So. Philadelphia, 1/2 sister of Barbara Bush, witch daughters of Aleister Crowley, killed Mario's wife with a voodoo doll. No doubt she killed Mario because she wanted him and he didn't want her. I will post more when I learn it.
he just started taking voice lessons and rented second hand 1930 type sound equipment to make this as a gift for his parents.the caruso influence here is apparent but in 4 short years he evolved into the great mario lanza we all know..a voice of great power and beauty and exceptional passion and communication skills conveyed to the listner.
Mario was possibly the finest voice ever, his gift was depprived to us by fools hoodlums and bullies.His life was ended to soon but fortunately his voice will live on for erver
Yeah VMDICKS, you make it sound like he failed to succeed because he didn't get enough training. Hello? Huge movie star and music legend just as he was.
I'm trying to get how someone can sound like this at 19 years of age.
I'd be lucky to have this full and energetic a sound even in ten years.
No, if he was really 19 (I have some doubts) this is the prime god damn example of raw talent.
Some people need to appreciate that even with the pitch problems this would tear down the house.
Lanza is NOT my favourite tenor, quite far from it, but if there was one thing he was practically unparalleled in it was the sheer energy in his voice.
I am lucky that I was young when I first heard Mario. It was love at first sound. I never knew anything bad about him, just that he and Caruso were the greatest singers of all time. And I still thnk so, with Pavarotti added to the list. God bless them
Only 19 years old. How is it possibly. A GREAT talent. He has a beautiful voice and a great talent for american lirics. I have all his recordings and movies. He is onforgettably !
@GuinnevereB May I congratulate you, please, on your very sensible, fair and, I think, accurate comments. The young singer indeed shows a most remarkable talent. Also, his spoken introduction to the record shows the young man's wish to give something to his parents that would please them, and surely that wish would have been granted. This is altogether a moving addition to the fortunately large numbers of the singer's recordings.
@GuinnevereB Lighten up - indeed! If my son presented me with a recording like this at age 19, I would have thought I had died and gone to heaven! Thanks for this posting.
These recordings, if nothing else, show how much needed training was ahead for the young tenor. Sad he never felt the need to seek professional training beyond the basics. That glorious voice could then be ranked among the top artists. And yes, the pianist should be slapped and slapped hard. A shout out to Mooorhe for the historical presentation.
@VMDICKS You sound so sour. How many of us could sing like that at 19 , 30, or even now? So many critics, but so few talented to grace the world with beauty..
STUDENT PRINCE was the most memorable musical for me; i was 11 yrs. The synergy of Edmund Purdom, Ann Blyth & Mario Lanza & the Sigmund Romberg compositions all came together. thus i can't abstract from any of the performances.
It was quite humorous to hear the voice of God with just some simple human technique before Mario earned his wings as an angel. Very inspiring to hear such a voice at this stage of his career and then compare it to the final result after training. I even heard things off pitch. Thanks for the human look into a man who is now immortal.
I am so honored to have heard Mario's voice at 19 years old, it is like a few voices I heard growing up in my neighborhood, raw,but good enough to entertain local people, it was a diamond in the rough, I at 17,saw Mario in person in 1951 at the Milwaukee Auditorium, front row, 15 feet away from him. He was accompanied with only a piano and sang to a crowd of 10,000 people, every seat sold out. a voice that was truly a gift from God. I saw Jan Peerce and Pavarotti in person, Mario's king
These are definitely extremely rare recordings! Thank you for sharing them with us! A true gift from God. As it was said to Caruso, it was so for Lanza as well. "The man does not own the voice. The voice owns the man." Another great talent who sang like the Angels, taken too soon to sing with the Angels.
Thanks for a beautiful gift to aALL of us.. We also know all about Mario's career. I heard him once in Miami in an everlasting recital, his voice was absolutely superb, his Granada was definitely the best ever...JRT
I consider the recordings of his STUDENT PRINCE as his best recordings ever. What a pity that he did"nd show up in this movie. Such a beautiful man and such a beautiful voice.
an enormous talent like that in scotland would have been told to sing basso profondo parts for buffo or told to pipe down.I Know if you study at the RSAMD your lucky if you come out with any voice left never mind a carreer
Mooorhe: Peter G. Davis is perhaps the most respected writer on the human voice and opera and I greatky respect his opinion even when I disagree with him which was fairly often. Davis wrote a history of American Opera Singers that is a materpiece. He wrote a fairly laudatory review of Andrea Chenier but after that Pavarotti made his career a shambles by doing roles that were, at that point, well beyond him. To ignore this would be dishonest.
I don't deny this at all, he shouldn't have touched Chenier or Calaf on the stage, his operatic stage career was a shambles even before the Chenier performances in my opinion.
@gaytenor I doubt that anyone considers Davis "the most respected writer on the human voice." He's a fine critic, and "The American Opera Singer" is excellent. BUT Conrad L. Osborne knows more about the voice and its production. I think Davis (who's a friend of Osborne) would admit that. I too disagree with Davis fairly often, but respect his opinions. I disagree much less often with Osborne -- sure wish he'd collect his wonderful criticism, especially that from the 1960s and 70s:) --
Mooorhe: Osbourne had issues with Pavarotti totally unrelated to pianos or the 1980s. We are talking here about the singing the Met in the recent past and the fact that he was doing roles where he was very hard to hear! In fairness we need to remember that both Davis and Osbourne heard many, many performances and both are objective responsible critics and fine writers. If you have access to HIgh Fidelity magazine the review in question was for La Gioconda with Caballe.
I'm not saying the Osborne's issues were limited to the ego that crept into his performing, he disagreed with the repertoire he took on as he entered the '80s, again, quite rightly too. I'm sure there were other issues, but Osborne could not fault his 1970 Lucia with Scotto.
I don't care for his opinion any more than anyone else's who saw the performances, although I care for his opinion much more than Davis's.
Mooorhe: Why would Osbourne resent Pavarotti? The same remark was made in a very laudatory piece by Peter G. Davis that, as I remember, was made in the New York Times after Pavarotti's death. If memory serves both critics, both at the top of their profession, referred to the use of falsetto in the upper middle and upper voice.
Osborne has issues with the way that Pavarotti conducted himself later on. He rejected (quite rightfully too) the way that many of Pavarotti's operatic performances in the '80s onwards were dramatically inert and all about him, not the operatic storyline.
Mr Davis used a review of Osborne's to put forward some points about his singing. He dragged some of the points out of context though.
An example of this is the mentioned bit of writing. It was Davis's opinion that Pavarotti used a 'breathy unsupported falsetto', I have the review that Davis used, Osborne only speaks of the piani being 'ugly' (this is understandable, he was reviewing a recital from 1968, the year in which Pavarotti was having vocal difficulties due to an awful illness).
The story about Pavarotti's mezza voce is long and complicated, but he definitely did have one for about 13 years.
@Mooorhe ive never heard one recording where pavarotti used breathy unsupported falsetto in anything except one recording of puritani on the high F and it still sounded good.however falsetto is #1 breathy, and #2 unsupported by nature so respected opera critic or not he didnt really understand the actual voice apparently which is possible.i would be hard pressed to find any recording where pavarotti made and ugly sound period. sure he made mistakes being human but very few and far less than most
Mooorhe, If you are talking about Mario, he never was 44 years old for he died 5 some years earlier. He never sang at the met in 1981 beacause he had been dead for over 20 years!!! He never sang in San Francisco in 1969 because of the same reason. But then, you are so knowledgeable about voice characteristics, give me a break!.
A 19-year-old tenor of this caliber today --- with (despite technical limitations because of little or no study) such ENORMOUS talent --- might end up on American Idol. Who could guide such a talent to its full potential these days?
This is absolutely not Mario, it was some kind of a joke, either by Mario or by someone else. I've heard this singer before, but I can't identify him at this moment. He was good.
Let's face it, at 19 he had no business singing "Vesti la giubba" or "E lucevan le stelle" yet, but one can hear the potential in the voice. Interestingly enough, in these recordings the voice has a more baritonal cast than it acquired later, when it acquired the tenorial squillo we associate with him more definitely.
SQUABEX... i cant agree more with you man, his vibratos are exactly like carusos, but unfortunately he cant do it as well, hes tone goes with slower rhythms. "Lanza still is my top favorite" but vibrato wise just cant do it, hes loosing his beauty of the voice, too much!
Well, you can all make what remarks you want to, but this 'aint' Mario Lanza. This is a totally different voice and voices don't change that much from 19 to 25. I have recordings of Lanza singing very early in his career, items from Andrea Chenier and it's clearly him. I think someone's having you all on.
Like early Elvis or the Beatles....you can hear the stellar talent of that voice...what a gift (for us) at just 19...Pavarotti's inspiration was Lanza...who will inspire Pavarotti's replacements. Or is there one...perhaps he will emerge now that the larger than life (no pun intended) player has left life's stage...
The Torna a Surriento is AWFUL. Under pitch, forced, and almost unbearable to listen to. The E lucevan le stelle is not far behind, under pitch..he would be hooted or whistled off stage with those performances.
Come on, these aren't performances per se. They are poor recordings made when he was 19!!! He did FAR better renditions of all these pieces later in life, with the exception of Ch'ella mi creda.
These recordings were a gift to his mother and father early in his training and yet to be taught by the best. 19 is a very young age and these recordings are a wonderful insight into the birth of the great voice. The mistakes, forceing and struggling for pitch on the high notes are a pleasure hear, this DIVO was human after all!
Caruso was his idol from an early age.He stated that he would sing along with Caruso,s recordings.This is very obvious here with the distinct Caruso heavy vibratto.He soon started singing in his own natural voice much to the fortune of the entire world.On these recordings we hear the voice of a much older tenor.He was very talented to do this.But Lanza was a great mimic.We saw this in his films.Cheers
You are probably right in writing that Mario Lanza "has sung better than he sang here". Whether many other singers managed to match or exceed this high standard at the age of 19 is perhaps less likely.
Lanza did sing Pinkerton twice in Madama Butterfly in New Orleans in 1948 and in two performances of The Merry Wives of Windsor at Tanglewood in 1942. He also learned Andrea Chenier in preperation for a subsequently canceled performance with Renata Tebaldi in 1951; Rodolfo in La Boheme for a film version that never materialized; Tonio in Pagliacci and Mario in Tosca for the Rome Opera. But he never took those to the stage.
He sang the role twice at Tanglewood. You can read his biography on Wikipedia, "The Mario Lanza Institute," or "Lanza Legend. com." I do have an old magazine from early 1960 that tells of his life and his career. Apparently he died from a pulmonary embolism at 38 so he never lived to be 44. I think there was a comment below about singing problems at age 44.
In 1942 conductor Serge Koussevitzky provided the young singer with a full scholarship to Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood Massachusetts. He studied with conductors Boris Goldovsky and Leonard Bernstein. Mario had his operatic debut as Fenton in an English translation of Otto Nicolai's 'Die lustigen Weiber Von Windsor.'
I don't care if he could be called an opera singer or nor the true is that he was an outstabding tenor, and for me one of the most beautifull voices of the century.
Fascinating! Where on earth did you find these? Thank you so much for posting them. As for 'listeningtoit's comments, well, you're entitled to your opinion of course but you will find very many people who are far more musically intelligant than I am who will disagree violently with you!
Do not mess things up! Those singing artists you mention were in the movies eventually, once in a while, being true stage opera singers - Peters, Pinza, Caruso!!! Please. Mario Lanza was a movie singer afterall. He eventually sang opera on stage (twice to be exact) and was a recording artist. Many of his recordings show a coarse and laboured sound. He suffered voice problems back in the shooting of the movie "Serenade", in 1956, aged 35!
Listengtoit is woefully misinformed. Lanza did not suffer vocal problems while filming Serenade (which was made in 1955, not 1956). In fact, he recorded the Act III duet from Otello with Licia Albanese during the last weeks of shooting, and she found him in magnificent voice. To quote her: "I can state categorically that he absolutely never had any vocal or musical problems either in the Otello recording I did with him or the other recordings I heard him do. Vocally, he was very secure."
And one further point, "Listeningtoit": Lanza made only seven films in the 12-year period from when he was signed by MGM. His "movie star" status has been exaggerated by his detractors, who conveniently overlook the fact that, in addition to his operatic stage appearances, he also sang over 150 concerts in his brief career. As for "coarse & laboured" singing, I can only assume that you're referring to the awful Lanza on Broadway album of 1956 or to some of his illness-affected 1959 work.
Concerts of course, are not opera, regardless of whether they include operatic arias.
I'm not quite decided on what I consider Lanza to be, I wouldn't call him an opera singer though.
And I was recently browsing your excellent forum, and I felt obliged to correct your statement that '[Pavarotti] never had a true mezzavoce'. That is not true at all.
Hi Mooorhe: Thanks for the compliments about my forum. As to the old argument re whether Lanza should be properly called an "opera singer", well, I hope we can at least agree that he was an *operatic tenor*. Lanza, incidentally, saw himself as an opera singer....With regard to Pavarotti's mezza voce, I'm afraid I have to agree with critic Conrad Osbourne that "he generally resorts to a breathy, unsupported falsetto when one expects to hear the ravishing, elegantly spun true piano sound."
I'm really not sure what Lanza was, I appreciate some of his singing all the same though.
Many people describe Pavarotti's softer singing like that - however, that would be an accurate assessment of his later singing.
Earlier Pavarotti could do perfect mezzavoce on any note up to the B flat. Listen to parts of the 1967 Requiem with Karajan, fantastic mezzavoce on some difficult passagio notes. He could do it splendidly up until the late '70s.
His problem was that he added too much voice to his high notes later on, which weakened his mezzavoce, which he eventually substituted for falsetto at around 44 years of age.
Osbourne did rather resent Pavarotti's ascent to fame, where did you read that by the way?
A good example is if you compare his (excellent) Una furtiva lagrima from the Met in 1981 to an earlier one, you'll notice that in the former, he uses falsetto, and in the earlier ones (most notably the 1969 San Francisco version) he uses a beautiful mezza voce.
Merrill's film was a big flop for him also in 1953 he was fired from the met because of it but did come back after Bing made him say he was sorry etc. He was not as relaxed an actor as Lanza was and the film was not really bad with Dinah Shore he did not sing much that was the problem. Schmidt made very good films but the country was controlled by the crazies then.
Yes but Pav. did not need film, Mario outside of concerts made his biggest profit in film. I am not trying to dismiss Lanza because i was drawn to opera by him but in Germany many where drawn to opera by Schmid, the NAZIS burned his films in germany at the start of the war, lucky we have copies to see He was not allowed by crazy hitler in germany even though he was popular before hitler--- schmidt was a Jew.
Pavoratti was a fine singer, would have been great without media as an opera singer alone but yes TV and his out going personality helped sure he had good managers, film and TV appearances made him more well known yes. Lanza sang well in his early Hollywood Bowl shows, better from an artistic nature then later when he was in Hollywood making films but Pavoratti if you compare with the rich lyric tenor of Lanza, pav was a polished constant serious singer he sang opera very well, fine tech.
Tozzi was on sound track of the movie south pacific cause actor brazzi could not sing. josef schmidt was in at least 6 films where he played a concert singer much like his own life he sang in opera a few times in boheme on stage but was under five feet tall, his movies where very popular in germany. pavoratti sang well in the film but was very heavy and really did not look good compared to lanza who was handsome and not as heavy when he filmed and being american had no accent in films.
actually many opera singers appeared in Film like Gigli who made many films in Italy and one in English. Peerce appeaed in two and was on the sound track on one. Peters also. Pons was in 3 movies, Melchior was in a few. Lenard Warren was in one, Merrill another but where not main characters. Pons was, Mac Donald and Eddy both sang IN opera more then once AND WHERE IN FILM. BJORLING MADE SEVERAL FILMS IN SWEDEN AS LANZA DID HERE, PINZA WAS IN MORE THEN ONE, EVEN WITH LANA TURNER, CONTINUE==.
Hollywood will always be Hollywood. Lanza was in the movies and it spread out his art all over the globe. Stage opera singers (with some exceptions) never appeared in films. Pavarotti made one movie in Hollywood (mediocre) but TV and American media made him a global celebrity.
You're absolutely incorrect about stage opera singers not appearing in film. In the days when you could turn the radio on and it was probably that you would hear opera, singers like Ezio Pinza, Roberta Peters, Jan Peerce, Beniamino Gigli, Giuseppe Di Stefano, Grace Moore, Gladys Swarthout, Giorgio Tozzi, and Lauritz Melchior are are few of many who appeared in films. Even Caruso was in one or tow.
No, I meant that soprano *Grace Bumbry* had attended one of Lanza's concerts. Joan Sutherland also attended his first recital at the Royal Albert Hall.
Has a complete opera ever been recorded by him? at any time? Even a non major recording would be a find and worth a lot. He should have been recorded when he did sing one complete act of Boheme somewhere-- besides his complete Butterfly also never recorded, most of his career was concerts and movies but he was not a pop singer.
Sadly, Lanza was a victim of the limited recording options at the time in that pre-magnetic tape period. Neither of his operatic appearances at Tanglewood in 1942 -- the two Fentons in The Merry Wives of Windsor and the one-off presentation of Act III of Boheme with Irma Gonzalez & others there -- was recorded. The saame goes for his two acclaimed Pinkertons at the New Orleans Opera in 1948 (as recently confirmed to me by the archivist of the N.O. Opera).
Still today he is more listened to then most opera singers, look at the numbers even here 827 as of now heard this, many opera singers alive don't get these kind of numbers he will always be popular even if not like when he was alive.
COULD BE BUT IT'S EASIER TO JUDGE WHEN YOU HEAR THEM LIVE, TUCKER HAD A VERY SPINTO SOUND, LANZA WAS MORE LYRIC AND WELL PEERCE HAD HIS OWN SOUND, VERY RICH. LANZA AND GIGLI VERY BEAUTIFUL BUT THE USE OF THE VOICE ALSO COUNTS I ENJOY LANZA BUT HAVE A PROBLEM WITH MUCH OF CORELLI's Singing even with his great voice.
Well, there are some strong opinions here, I'll just add in my own for fun :p.
I think that Lanza did have more potential than Tucker or Peerce. He had one of the best voices I've ever heard, sometimes when listening to Lanza, it sounds like pure gold is streaming from his mouth, a feat that I believe only Gigli could better. Pavarotti, Peerce, Tucker and many other great tenors of the last century just didn't have voices as beautiful as his.
Italian came very naturally to Lanza and he sounded very warm and Italian. Of course he could have used the voice much better, I don't think he ever mastered piano singing. And of course, he wasn't a true operatic tenor, but I still believe credit is due to him.
He is just too good to fault!!
3093bert 1 hour ago
THE ACCOMPANIST IS GREAT! tHE SINGER IS GREAT! WHO FORGOT TO TUNE THE GODAWFUL PIANO???????
operabuffey 3 days ago
Wow! That piano is so out of tune. Its difficult to enjoy this!
operabuffey 3 days ago
Ah Mario could have sung the phone book and I'd have loved it. And after all he WAS 19 years old here but boy he was destined for the greatness he had and so much more he missed having died so young. Wish I could have met the man. Amazing. Thanks for posting this.
TonyDi 2 weeks ago
This poor quality recording gives us a good comparison with Caruso, especially as the young Mario, who taught himself to sing by singing along to Caruso's records, sounds very much in the same style.
gragrn 4 weeks ago
What a great Singer!!
patarthenry 1 month ago
Decades later, my concert pianist husband and I tried to make a "demo" recording without hiring a studio. He was playing a 6' Steinway but in every attempt the piano sounded out of tune. So don't bash the pianist who had nothing whatsoever to do with the quality of the recording. If we couldn't get a decent sound decades later, what do you think the equipment used in 1940 could produce?
LanzaLover2 1 month ago
The reason the piano sounds out of tune is because the recording equipment was not as well electronically controlled as as modern equipment. Equipment in those days was not as stable as modern recording systems . Simple
MacleanTony 1 month ago
@MacleanTony a big problem with recording then was mario's voice...the equipment couldn't catch all his sounds....as with the movie where he was in the church singing the lords prayer (or was it ova maria..i forgot,,,lol) but they ended up dumping their equipment and mario sang raw...with the church itself to carry his voice...amazing. so sad to lose him so young...even sadder we will never know the real truth about his death..
meshell86 3 weeks ago
@meshell86 One story is that the maffia done him in.
operabuffey 3 days ago
Eine ganz besonders gute Gestaltung dieses Liedes, und mit wunderbarer Stimme gesungen.
Musikfreundism 1 month ago
Una verdadera reliquia que es muy útil para los jóvenes cantantes. Cantar como Mario Lanza tomó tiempo a Mario Lanza. El estudio es difícil pero con un buen maestro el resultado es asombroso.
eduardofuentesm 2 months ago
that was a relative playing, as i recall the story...the only young artist that may come close is mark vincent...he has so much of marios body language that its almost scary...but no one will ever, ever compare to this man...what a gift..such a sad sad loss for the world////
meshell86 2 months ago
As a lifelong Mario fan I have never heard these recordings even though I've had a few of Mario's early 78s. His Vesti La Giubba sounds remarkably like his nemesis Enrico Caruso. However the style is clearly a mimic of his style with all the attendant lack of frequency response and dynamics of those early direct-cut 20th century wax and shellac recordings. Lest we forget, his passion inspired a whole generation of famous classical opera tenors,, regardless of his less than perfect style,
hmscollingwood 2 months ago
You say you're not a Mario Lanza Fan ~~. are you more Caruso or more Pavarotti (???) That is ~~> Before or After // with Lanza ... in the Middle?
rosamondmdopwell 2 months ago
Boy, what a great and strong voice at that young age and basically untrained. I grew up listening to Mario Lanza and see the greatness in his from his youth.
edejan 2 months ago
Great voice, but sings flat in a lot of these arias...
Swany243 2 months ago
"Recorded privately" - probably didn't have studio quality equipment. My late husband was a concert pianist and we tried to make a demo without studio equipment, used what we had, this in the 60s I think. The piano sounded pretty much like this one does. Grand piano itself was in tune. No matter how I tried, couldn't get it any better. I'd been sound engineer for a professional tenor so I knew a thing or two, but nothing I did made the piano sound any better than this.
LanzaLover2 3 months ago
Why are you guys rambling on about other singers? The subject here is Lanza. And at age 19 he certainly isn't as musically advanced as, say Ponselle or Bjorling were at that age, but it was a wonderful voice and coulda-woulda-shoulda been ... well that never happened, but certainly he had more going for him than most. More certainly tan Del Monaco.
diarci 4 months ago
19? Christ almighty... Incredible...
ckrohm 5 months ago
Fabulous example of the very young, raw and untrained Lanza. So many people pick these recordings to pieces but bear in mind that they were never intended for release. This recording was done by Mario for his parents
ronaldo190172 6 months ago
Well, all young tenors love to sing arias they should not do until the voice is mature, lets say at 35 !!!!!!
delosreyesgavikanes 6 months ago
davis and osbourne are wrong about everything
cccorsetti 6 months ago
Isn't it amazing that the greatest thing the Internet has given us is access to the past! This is an amazing piece of history that we would never have heard without the likes of Youtube. Many thanks to the poster for sharing this with the World.
mickram23 6 months ago
Thank you sir for this piece of this legendary voice. Gold dust for the fans. Lots of respect and admiration!
Shamsithaca 7 months ago
Lanza's voice, while untrained and crude in phrasing, was one of the wonders of the time. As far as Pavarotti is concerned, he allowed himself to be transformed into a elephantine media buffo clown.
By 1990, Pavarotti had become a parody of a fat, arrogant and self-important Italian tenor. Domingo, while much lower profile, was the greater artist, the more photogenic, and sang a vastness of diversified repertoire rivaled by no tenor in history.
Zva26 7 months ago
@Zva26 By 1990 Pavarotti was fat& no doubt self important,However i never did read that Pav was arrogant. He always did give praise to other singers, wether pop or operatic& was perceived as being pretty humble.Pavarotti also had some signature roles like Daughter of The Regiment,La Boheme,L'elisir D'amore,Lucia&perhaps I Puritani.He also contributed to the rejuvenation of opera through his concerts & bigger than life Persona.True, Domingo did sing more roles than any tenor in history.Continue
sugarbist 4 months ago
@sugarbist - Have you read Herbert Breslin's book about Pavarotti? Yes, he most certainly DID become very arrogant. No, he never bashed other artists, but he became very unreliable, easily ruffled, and was actually fired by Lyric Opera of Chicago for chronic cancellations. His best period was 1970-1985. Everything after that went downhill. Morbid obesity, cancellations, media buffo, etc. Even his mentor, Dame Joan Sutherland, lost patience with him, though they remained friends.
Zva26 4 months ago
@Zva26 I never did read Breslin's book.I thought the unreliability started around age 63 when he attempted to do The Daughter of The Regiment and couldn't really hit the Hi Cs.I know that after age 62 or so, he started cracking on some high notes and the vocal line wasn't steady as it once was.I remember some cancellations, but I attributed them to age. Del Monaco did state that a tenor should not sing once he passes the age of 60. However MDM kept singing as well.Enjoy
sugarbist 4 months ago
@Zva26 Continue (Domingo)however I really do not think that Domingo had A signature role or roles as many great tenors in history did, like Del Monaco, Corelli, Lauri Volpi,Gigli,Di Stefano,De Muro,Merli, Martinelli,Masini,Fillipeschi or Tucker.It's nice to make history for QUANTITYof roles, but I think it's more important to have at least a few signature roles that an artist excells in.Pavarotti had at least 5. Some of the other tenors I mention had at least 8, DOMINGO?I don't know. Enjoy
sugarbist 4 months ago
@sugarbist - Come to think of it, you're RIGHT! Flagstad (Isolde) Callas (Norma, Anna Bolena,Medea, Violetta), Nilsson (Turandot, Isolde, Elektra)), Pavarotti (Nemorino, Tonio, Arturo), Gobbi (Scarpia & Rigoletto), Sutherland (Semiramide, Lucia, Norma), Scotto (Butterfly) Horne (all Rossini), etc. I can think of no signature roles for Montserrat Caballe' OR Placido Domingo ----- possibly Otello? Hoffmann? You've given me something to think about. No role seems to stand out.
Zva26 4 months ago
@Zva26 Hoffman perhaps.But I don't really think Domingo's voice is really suited for Otello,based on the great Otello tenors in history, like Merli Del Monaco Martinelli Vinay Pertile Piccaluga Tamagno Paoli.Yes, PD does have the lyricism, but his voice simply doesn't have the dramatic verismo that the role calls for, along with the size of the voice the other tenors have.
sugarbist 4 months ago
Fabulous! For him to tackle such difficult pieces at this young age, after less than 3 years of training is incredible. Despite the tonal inequity, the fact that he could sing like this at 19 years of age is incredible. If you can't do as well, be quiet! Katmandolino is right! "Don't analyze it! Enjoy it!"
JimmyWyatt4931 7 months ago
@dickdomino1 It most definately IS Mario Lanza. The 'magic' IS there. There are no other singers that have this kind of passion!
katmandolino 9 months ago
This is sooo beautiful it makes me cry.....don't analyze it enjoy it........x
katmandolino 9 months ago
What amazing maturity from a 19-year-old. Absolutely amazing.
SusieLee09 9 months ago 2
its obvious he was trying to sing like caruso,u can hear the mannerisms and the line shaping of caruso.
hobo1975 1 year ago
@dickdomino1 I'm 63 years old and not pro but my mother was an opera lover,so I was groing up on tenors of the times.Lanza was the best,not because his range of voice but the specialty.Unmistakable his voice I can tell of hundreds. If we take Caruso as a masure,the second would be Gigli.I have all Lanza movies and recordings and I will love him as long as I live.He is a very sad sucsess story.Hallo from Toronto
judithbrandl 1 year ago 3
great for 19 but lots of pitch problems and out of his technical range for the time. still pretty dang good.
bigus 1 year ago
For 19 this is monstrously good.
nicksum29 1 year ago 8
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ronaldo190172 1 year ago
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ronaldo190172 1 year ago
I don,t want to be rude,but if you have an ear,this is clearly not Lanza.Sorry
judithbrandl 1 year ago
twenty years old? great
SuperDevinci 1 year ago
Thank you beutifull voice but a bit imature rending however the voice still thrills
sylviamable 1 year ago
An absolutely first rate instrument ... would that he had had the discipline....and the taste.
vpo2g2 1 year ago
Witch Ann Cappelletti, the sorceror of So. Philadelphia, 1/2 sister of Barbara Bush, witch daughters of Aleister Crowley, killed Mario's wife with a voodoo doll. No doubt she killed Mario because she wanted him and he didn't want her. I will post more when I learn it.
074August 1 year ago
This is incredible he is singing the way that Caruso sang . A mature Caruso imitating him . You can hear him revert to it in his recordings .
tenorismo 1 year ago
I think is a fake recording i don't believe it mario it's a older voice
robertostaal 1 year ago
@robertostaal Hes imtating the way caruso sang the airas on record. 19 yrs old
tenorismo 1 year ago
@tenorismo
No i don't beblieve it because the voice is not correkt.
The voice is older This is someone else.
.But oke doesnt matter i know the voice.
robertostaal 1 year ago
he just started taking voice lessons and rented second hand 1930 type sound equipment to make this as a gift for his parents.the caruso influence here is apparent but in 4 short years he evolved into the great mario lanza we all know..a voice of great power and beauty and exceptional passion and communication skills conveyed to the listner.
dmar5143 1 year ago
C'est un document historique fort intéressant
Heureusement que Lanza a fait des progrès techniques et d'interprétation ensuite.
Mais c'est amusant et émouvant.
italopera 1 year ago
Mario was possibly the finest voice ever, his gift was depprived to us by fools hoodlums and bullies.His life was ended to soon but fortunately his voice will live on for erver
shadeylanes 1 year ago
I Love hearing famous great singers imitating the other greats like Caruso in this case. I hope I sound as good as this NOW after years of study!
ffilchtaeh 1 year ago
nice one considering its age, when recording is practically inferior .
del2reb 1 year ago
amazing its sort of like Zelig . Just like Carusos recording .
tenorismo 1 year ago
amazing its sort of like Zelig . Just like Carusos recording .
tenorismo 1 year ago
a real talent, like the other Mario (del Monaco)... unfortunately Lanza didn't have the time to get all he deserved....
gaemp 2 years ago
What was he doing singing Canio at age 19? Mozart would have been more like it at that age.
kimancuo 2 years ago 3
Yeah VMDICKS, you make it sound like he failed to succeed because he didn't get enough training. Hello? Huge movie star and music legend just as he was.
Hunterunc 2 years ago
I'm trying to get how someone can sound like this at 19 years of age.
I'd be lucky to have this full and energetic a sound even in ten years.
No, if he was really 19 (I have some doubts) this is the prime god damn example of raw talent.
Some people need to appreciate that even with the pitch problems this would tear down the house.
Lanza is NOT my favourite tenor, quite far from it, but if there was one thing he was practically unparalleled in it was the sheer energy in his voice.
Jaaakob 2 years ago 3
what an amazing voice he had!
Aetion 2 years ago 2
I am lucky that I was young when I first heard Mario. It was love at first sound. I never knew anything bad about him, just that he and Caruso were the greatest singers of all time. And I still thnk so, with Pavarotti added to the list. God bless them
DIANNEELEE 2 years ago 2
Only 19 years old. How is it possibly. A GREAT talent. He has a beautiful voice and a great talent for american lirics. I have all his recordings and movies. He is onforgettably !
qklq42 2 years ago 4
Instead of abusing the pianist, I'd have had the damn piano tuned, to solve a huge percentage of the problems with the accompaniment.
And while I'd recommend continuing, lifelong training to ANY singer, of course, I'm amazed at the magnitude of this native talent.
Yes, it could have been better. It's astoundingly good, just the same, considering the circumstances.
If he walked on water, some people would gripe because he got his shoes wet. My advice is: lighten up.
GuinnevereB 2 years ago 14
@GuinnevereB May I congratulate you, please, on your very sensible, fair and, I think, accurate comments. The young singer indeed shows a most remarkable talent. Also, his spoken introduction to the record shows the young man's wish to give something to his parents that would please them, and surely that wish would have been granted. This is altogether a moving addition to the fortunately large numbers of the singer's recordings.
rupepill 2 years ago 3
Guinnevere...agree...I was amazed at
the natural talent as well. His vibrato
was far faster at a young age and of course he had some technical issues,
but at 19 he was incredible.
brunobrandy 2 years ago 3
@GuinnevereB Lighten up - indeed! If my son presented me with a recording like this at age 19, I would have thought I had died and gone to heaven! Thanks for this posting.
RossouwCora 1 year ago 3
These recordings, if nothing else, show how much needed training was ahead for the young tenor. Sad he never felt the need to seek professional training beyond the basics. That glorious voice could then be ranked among the top artists. And yes, the pianist should be slapped and slapped hard. A shout out to Mooorhe for the historical presentation.
VMDICKS 2 years ago
@VMDICKS You sound so sour. How many of us could sing like that at 19 , 30, or even now? So many critics, but so few talented to grace the world with beauty..
kickinbackinOC 2 years ago 3
He sounds so much like Caruso here.
AZo9jojo 2 years ago
I would slap that pianist.
wattever333 2 years ago
STUDENT PRINCE was the most memorable musical for me; i was 11 yrs. The synergy of Edmund Purdom, Ann Blyth & Mario Lanza & the Sigmund Romberg compositions all came together. thus i can't abstract from any of the performances.
edsnantonio 2 years ago 2
It was quite humorous to hear the voice of God with just some simple human technique before Mario earned his wings as an angel. Very inspiring to hear such a voice at this stage of his career and then compare it to the final result after training. I even heard things off pitch. Thanks for the human look into a man who is now immortal.
davidcraig99 2 years ago 2
I am so honored to have heard Mario's voice at 19 years old, it is like a few voices I heard growing up in my neighborhood, raw,but good enough to entertain local people, it was a diamond in the rough, I at 17,saw Mario in person in 1951 at the Milwaukee Auditorium, front row, 15 feet away from him. He was accompanied with only a piano and sang to a crowd of 10,000 people, every seat sold out. a voice that was truly a gift from God. I saw Jan Peerce and Pavarotti in person, Mario's king
candyjoe1 2 years ago 3
These are definitely extremely rare recordings! Thank you for sharing them with us! A true gift from God. As it was said to Caruso, it was so for Lanza as well. "The man does not own the voice. The voice owns the man." Another great talent who sang like the Angels, taken too soon to sing with the Angels.
HuggzFaerie 2 years ago
una cabra cantando
Gustavocasanovatenor 2 years ago
estoy de acuerdo y usted canta mejor que este senor
tenor56 2 years ago
muchas gracias ,un saludo
Gustavocasanovatenor 2 years ago
Incredible!!!!! To have a voice like that at 19!!!! OMG. It gives me chills! thats raw talent!!!!!!!!!!!!
tenorenchanted 2 years ago 11
He has a similar vibrato to Caruso here. Still not to his glorious stage that we know but greatness is inherent.
atenorforjesus 2 years ago 3
i hear that too
viv3147 2 years ago
NOOO!! OMGG 19 YEARS OLD!!
operateen 2 years ago 5
Yes he was 19 and this is mario, a family member played some of it for me many years ago so this is the truth it was the 19 year old kid.
halavey 2 years ago 2
Thanks for a beautiful gift to aALL of us.. We also know all about Mario's career. I heard him once in Miami in an everlasting recital, his voice was absolutely superb, his Granada was definitely the best ever...JRT
josemuso1 2 years ago 3
I consider the recordings of his STUDENT PRINCE as his best recordings ever. What a pity that he did"nd show up in this movie. Such a beautiful man and such a beautiful voice.
Hans NL
qklq42 2 years ago 4
i agree - Student Prince is my favourite musical
palmbyo2 2 years ago
no. wunderlichs granada was the best. i LOVE MARIO but wunderlichs granada is unparalled
searnold56 2 years ago
i cant believe he was 19 at this recording, is that true?
APODOR 2 years ago
ANYWAY with all the talk above. Back to mario, you can hear the voice growing. It's untrained now, but as we know, it will bloom
Michaelbos 2 years ago
i think if i heard someone who was untrained singing like this i would bow down to them. its not untrained. he's just young
Joestn77 2 years ago 12
an enormous talent like that in scotland would have been told to sing basso profondo parts for buffo or told to pipe down.I Know if you study at the RSAMD your lucky if you come out with any voice left never mind a carreer
luigicorvi24 2 years ago
there are some tention and throat notes in his voice but in general...not bad...I don`t feel any solid vocal school here...
svjatazarov 2 years ago
Mooorhe: Peter G. Davis is perhaps the most respected writer on the human voice and opera and I greatky respect his opinion even when I disagree with him which was fairly often. Davis wrote a history of American Opera Singers that is a materpiece. He wrote a fairly laudatory review of Andrea Chenier but after that Pavarotti made his career a shambles by doing roles that were, at that point, well beyond him. To ignore this would be dishonest.
gaytenor 2 years ago
I don't deny this at all, he shouldn't have touched Chenier or Calaf on the stage, his operatic stage career was a shambles even before the Chenier performances in my opinion.
Mooorhe 2 years ago
@gaytenor I doubt that anyone considers Davis "the most respected writer on the human voice." He's a fine critic, and "The American Opera Singer" is excellent. BUT Conrad L. Osborne knows more about the voice and its production. I think Davis (who's a friend of Osborne) would admit that. I too disagree with Davis fairly often, but respect his opinions. I disagree much less often with Osborne -- sure wish he'd collect his wonderful criticism, especially that from the 1960s and 70s:) --
stevevandien 1 year ago
Mooorhe: Osbourne had issues with Pavarotti totally unrelated to pianos or the 1980s. We are talking here about the singing the Met in the recent past and the fact that he was doing roles where he was very hard to hear! In fairness we need to remember that both Davis and Osbourne heard many, many performances and both are objective responsible critics and fine writers. If you have access to HIgh Fidelity magazine the review in question was for La Gioconda with Caballe.
gaytenor 2 years ago
I'm not saying the Osborne's issues were limited to the ego that crept into his performing, he disagreed with the repertoire he took on as he entered the '80s, again, quite rightly too. I'm sure there were other issues, but Osborne could not fault his 1970 Lucia with Scotto.
I don't care for his opinion any more than anyone else's who saw the performances, although I care for his opinion much more than Davis's.
Mooorhe 2 years ago
Mooorhe: Why would Osbourne resent Pavarotti? The same remark was made in a very laudatory piece by Peter G. Davis that, as I remember, was made in the New York Times after Pavarotti's death. If memory serves both critics, both at the top of their profession, referred to the use of falsetto in the upper middle and upper voice.
gaytenor 2 years ago
Osborne has issues with the way that Pavarotti conducted himself later on. He rejected (quite rightfully too) the way that many of Pavarotti's operatic performances in the '80s onwards were dramatically inert and all about him, not the operatic storyline.
Mr Davis used a review of Osborne's to put forward some points about his singing. He dragged some of the points out of context though.
Mooorhe 2 years ago
An example of this is the mentioned bit of writing. It was Davis's opinion that Pavarotti used a 'breathy unsupported falsetto', I have the review that Davis used, Osborne only speaks of the piani being 'ugly' (this is understandable, he was reviewing a recital from 1968, the year in which Pavarotti was having vocal difficulties due to an awful illness).
The story about Pavarotti's mezza voce is long and complicated, but he definitely did have one for about 13 years.
Mooorhe 2 years ago
@Mooorhe ive never heard one recording where pavarotti used breathy unsupported falsetto in anything except one recording of puritani on the high F and it still sounded good.however falsetto is #1 breathy, and #2 unsupported by nature so respected opera critic or not he didnt really understand the actual voice apparently which is possible.i would be hard pressed to find any recording where pavarotti made and ugly sound period. sure he made mistakes being human but very few and far less than most
bigus 1 year ago
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Jonnybrams 2 years ago
For all the negative postings, can you sing?
Michaelbos 2 years ago 3
he was one of our greatest i only wish he was still with us today and one of my fravorats was donkey seranade lucy
jeff72496 2 years ago
Mooorhe, If you are talking about Mario, he never was 44 years old for he died 5 some years earlier. He never sang at the met in 1981 beacause he had been dead for over 20 years!!! He never sang in San Francisco in 1969 because of the same reason. But then, you are so knowledgeable about voice characteristics, give me a break!.
watsupapasfritas 2 years ago
I'm talking about Pavarotti, of course I know that Lanza never sang at the Met.
Mooorhe 2 years ago
You can hear the Caruso influence here at this age.
sherom 2 years ago
definitely
jguar17944 2 years ago
A 19-year-old tenor of this caliber today --- with (despite technical limitations because of little or no study) such ENORMOUS talent --- might end up on American Idol. Who could guide such a talent to its full potential these days?
stevevandien 2 years ago
This is absolutely not Mario, it was some kind of a joke, either by Mario or by someone else. I've heard this singer before, but I can't identify him at this moment. He was good.
LawrenceGalante 2 years ago
i'm sorry to have to tell you that is DEFINITELY the voice of MARIO LANZA believe me....no one else
brandanebute 2 years ago
Of course this is Mario...the voice is absolutely unmistakable....everybody wich says its not him should go and see an ear specialist a.s.a.p LOL
chris99103 2 years ago 4
Let's face it, at 19 he had no business singing "Vesti la giubba" or "E lucevan le stelle" yet, but one can hear the potential in the voice. Interestingly enough, in these recordings the voice has a more baritonal cast than it acquired later, when it acquired the tenorial squillo we associate with him more definitely.
philipvanlidth 2 years ago
Simply extraordinary.
zekscrab 2 years ago
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PGUTTA03 2 years ago
SQUABEX... i cant agree more with you man, his vibratos are exactly like carusos, but unfortunately he cant do it as well, hes tone goes with slower rhythms. "Lanza still is my top favorite" but vibrato wise just cant do it, hes loosing his beauty of the voice, too much!
KnownAsTheone039 2 years ago
Well, you can all make what remarks you want to, but this 'aint' Mario Lanza. This is a totally different voice and voices don't change that much from 19 to 25. I have recordings of Lanza singing very early in his career, items from Andrea Chenier and it's clearly him. I think someone's having you all on.
dickdomino 2 years ago
I'm afraid that that this is Lanza singing.
Mooorhe 2 years ago
Yes this is an untrained Mario Lanza - still beautiful though.
endgammer 2 years ago
Thank you so much! Heard this version of "Vesti la giubba" in an Austrian Radio show before. I was searching for it since then!
Love to hear Mario sing "Chella mi creda"!
greghauser 3 years ago
Like early Elvis or the Beatles....you can hear the stellar talent of that voice...what a gift (for us) at just 19...Pavarotti's inspiration was Lanza...who will inspire Pavarotti's replacements. Or is there one...perhaps he will emerge now that the larger than life (no pun intended) player has left life's stage...
talondriver6 3 years ago
He played piano or it's an other personn?
petrof4056 3 years ago
The Torna a Surriento is AWFUL. Under pitch, forced, and almost unbearable to listen to. The E lucevan le stelle is not far behind, under pitch..he would be hooted or whistled off stage with those performances.
Vairguy09 3 years ago
Come on, these aren't performances per se. They are poor recordings made when he was 19!!! He did FAR better renditions of all these pieces later in life, with the exception of Ch'ella mi creda.
ShawDAMAN 3 years ago 2
These recordings were a gift to his mother and father early in his training and yet to be taught by the best. 19 is a very young age and these recordings are a wonderful insight into the birth of the great voice. The mistakes, forceing and struggling for pitch on the high notes are a pleasure hear, this DIVO was human after all!
simontenor 3 years ago 6
@Vairguy09 He was 19....
ronaldo190172 1 year ago
Caruso was his idol from an early age.He stated that he would sing along with Caruso,s recordings.This is very obvious here with the distinct Caruso heavy vibratto.He soon started singing in his own natural voice much to the fortune of the entire world.On these recordings we hear the voice of a much older tenor.He was very talented to do this.But Lanza was a great mimic.We saw this in his films.Cheers
Squabex 3 years ago 3
An incredible vibrato. isn´t?
checkmatein6 3 years ago
Yeah, a tremolo to my ear..
Pawelp 3 years ago 2
Thank you for posting these too seldom heard examples of singing in youth by a great tenor.
rupepill 3 years ago 3
You are probably right in writing that Mario Lanza "has sung better than he sang here". Whether many other singers managed to match or exceed this high standard at the age of 19 is perhaps less likely.
rupepill 3 years ago
Agreed!
stevevandien 2 years ago
Lanza did sing Pinkerton twice in Madama Butterfly in New Orleans in 1948 and in two performances of The Merry Wives of Windsor at Tanglewood in 1942. He also learned Andrea Chenier in preperation for a subsequently canceled performance with Renata Tebaldi in 1951; Rodolfo in La Boheme for a film version that never materialized; Tonio in Pagliacci and Mario in Tosca for the Rome Opera. But he never took those to the stage.
badpdx 3 years ago
He sang the role twice at Tanglewood. You can read his biography on Wikipedia, "The Mario Lanza Institute," or "Lanza Legend. com." I do have an old magazine from early 1960 that tells of his life and his career. Apparently he died from a pulmonary embolism at 38 so he never lived to be 44. I think there was a comment below about singing problems at age 44.
movielover1954 3 years ago
In 1942 conductor Serge Koussevitzky provided the young singer with a full scholarship to Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood Massachusetts. He studied with conductors Boris Goldovsky and Leonard Bernstein. Mario had his operatic debut as Fenton in an English translation of Otto Nicolai's 'Die lustigen Weiber Von Windsor.'
movielover1954 3 years ago
I don't care if he could be called an opera singer or nor the true is that he was an outstabding tenor, and for me one of the most beautifull voices of the century.
And also a very stilish singer..
Viva Mario!
enricodicapri 3 years ago 4
Fascinating! Where on earth did you find these? Thank you so much for posting them. As for 'listeningtoit's comments, well, you're entitled to your opinion of course but you will find very many people who are far more musically intelligant than I am who will disagree violently with you!
Clive1939 3 years ago
Do not mess things up! Those singing artists you mention were in the movies eventually, once in a while, being true stage opera singers - Peters, Pinza, Caruso!!! Please. Mario Lanza was a movie singer afterall. He eventually sang opera on stage (twice to be exact) and was a recording artist. Many of his recordings show a coarse and laboured sound. He suffered voice problems back in the shooting of the movie "Serenade", in 1956, aged 35!
listeningtoit 3 years ago
Listengtoit is woefully misinformed. Lanza did not suffer vocal problems while filming Serenade (which was made in 1955, not 1956). In fact, he recorded the Act III duet from Otello with Licia Albanese during the last weeks of shooting, and she found him in magnificent voice. To quote her: "I can state categorically that he absolutely never had any vocal or musical problems either in the Otello recording I did with him or the other recordings I heard him do. Vocally, he was very secure."
derekmcgovern 3 years ago
And one further point, "Listeningtoit": Lanza made only seven films in the 12-year period from when he was signed by MGM. His "movie star" status has been exaggerated by his detractors, who conveniently overlook the fact that, in addition to his operatic stage appearances, he also sang over 150 concerts in his brief career. As for "coarse & laboured" singing, I can only assume that you're referring to the awful Lanza on Broadway album of 1956 or to some of his illness-affected 1959 work.
derekmcgovern 3 years ago 2
Concerts of course, are not opera, regardless of whether they include operatic arias.
I'm not quite decided on what I consider Lanza to be, I wouldn't call him an opera singer though.
And I was recently browsing your excellent forum, and I felt obliged to correct your statement that '[Pavarotti] never had a true mezzavoce'. That is not true at all.
Mooorhe 3 years ago
Hi Mooorhe: Thanks for the compliments about my forum. As to the old argument re whether Lanza should be properly called an "opera singer", well, I hope we can at least agree that he was an *operatic tenor*. Lanza, incidentally, saw himself as an opera singer....With regard to Pavarotti's mezza voce, I'm afraid I have to agree with critic Conrad Osbourne that "he generally resorts to a breathy, unsupported falsetto when one expects to hear the ravishing, elegantly spun true piano sound."
derekmcgovern 3 years ago
I'm really not sure what Lanza was, I appreciate some of his singing all the same though.
Many people describe Pavarotti's softer singing like that - however, that would be an accurate assessment of his later singing.
Earlier Pavarotti could do perfect mezzavoce on any note up to the B flat. Listen to parts of the 1967 Requiem with Karajan, fantastic mezzavoce on some difficult passagio notes. He could do it splendidly up until the late '70s.
Mooorhe 3 years ago
His problem was that he added too much voice to his high notes later on, which weakened his mezzavoce, which he eventually substituted for falsetto at around 44 years of age.
Osbourne did rather resent Pavarotti's ascent to fame, where did you read that by the way?
Mooorhe 3 years ago
A good example is if you compare his (excellent) Una furtiva lagrima from the Met in 1981 to an earlier one, you'll notice that in the former, he uses falsetto, and in the earlier ones (most notably the 1969 San Francisco version) he uses a beautiful mezza voce.
Mooorhe 3 years ago
Merrill movie was something like Aron Slick from Pumpkin Creek
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
Merrill's film was a big flop for him also in 1953 he was fired from the met because of it but did come back after Bing made him say he was sorry etc. He was not as relaxed an actor as Lanza was and the film was not really bad with Dinah Shore he did not sing much that was the problem. Schmidt made very good films but the country was controlled by the crazies then.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
Yes but Pav. did not need film, Mario outside of concerts made his biggest profit in film. I am not trying to dismiss Lanza because i was drawn to opera by him but in Germany many where drawn to opera by Schmid, the NAZIS burned his films in germany at the start of the war, lucky we have copies to see He was not allowed by crazy hitler in germany even though he was popular before hitler--- schmidt was a Jew.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
Caruso made the film My Cousin was one of them but movies where in the infant stage then. anyhow he did not need films.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
Pavoratti was a fine singer, would have been great without media as an opera singer alone but yes TV and his out going personality helped sure he had good managers, film and TV appearances made him more well known yes. Lanza sang well in his early Hollywood Bowl shows, better from an artistic nature then later when he was in Hollywood making films but Pavoratti if you compare with the rich lyric tenor of Lanza, pav was a polished constant serious singer he sang opera very well, fine tech.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
Fair comments. Pavarotti's film flopped unfortunately, it was a mistake.
Mooorhe 3 years ago
Tozzi was on sound track of the movie south pacific cause actor brazzi could not sing. josef schmidt was in at least 6 films where he played a concert singer much like his own life he sang in opera a few times in boheme on stage but was under five feet tall, his movies where very popular in germany. pavoratti sang well in the film but was very heavy and really did not look good compared to lanza who was handsome and not as heavy when he filmed and being american had no accent in films.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
actually many opera singers appeared in Film like Gigli who made many films in Italy and one in English. Peerce appeaed in two and was on the sound track on one. Peters also. Pons was in 3 movies, Melchior was in a few. Lenard Warren was in one, Merrill another but where not main characters. Pons was, Mac Donald and Eddy both sang IN opera more then once AND WHERE IN FILM. BJORLING MADE SEVERAL FILMS IN SWEDEN AS LANZA DID HERE, PINZA WAS IN MORE THEN ONE, EVEN WITH LANA TURNER, CONTINUE==.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
For the record: Björling featured briefly in three Swedish full-length films.
RudySunseeker 2 years ago
Hollywood will always be Hollywood. Lanza was in the movies and it spread out his art all over the globe. Stage opera singers (with some exceptions) never appeared in films. Pavarotti made one movie in Hollywood (mediocre) but TV and American media made him a global celebrity.
listeningtoit 3 years ago
You're absolutely incorrect about stage opera singers not appearing in film. In the days when you could turn the radio on and it was probably that you would hear opera, singers like Ezio Pinza, Roberta Peters, Jan Peerce, Beniamino Gigli, Giuseppe Di Stefano, Grace Moore, Gladys Swarthout, Giorgio Tozzi, and Lauritz Melchior are are few of many who appeared in films. Even Caruso was in one or tow.
VinylToVideo 3 years ago
You mean Fleming heard a recording of a live concert don't you she is much to young to have heard him live in house.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
No, I meant that soprano *Grace Bumbry* had attended one of Lanza's concerts. Joan Sutherland also attended his first recital at the Royal Albert Hall.
derekmcgovern 3 years ago
Has a complete opera ever been recorded by him? at any time? Even a non major recording would be a find and worth a lot. He should have been recorded when he did sing one complete act of Boheme somewhere-- besides his complete Butterfly also never recorded, most of his career was concerts and movies but he was not a pop singer.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
Sadly, Lanza was a victim of the limited recording options at the time in that pre-magnetic tape period. Neither of his operatic appearances at Tanglewood in 1942 -- the two Fentons in The Merry Wives of Windsor and the one-off presentation of Act III of Boheme with Irma Gonzalez & others there -- was recorded. The saame goes for his two acclaimed Pinkertons at the New Orleans Opera in 1948 (as recently confirmed to me by the archivist of the N.O. Opera).
derekmcgovern 3 years ago
Still today he is more listened to then most opera singers, look at the numbers even here 827 as of now heard this, many opera singers alive don't get these kind of numbers he will always be popular even if not like when he was alive.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago
Since she was so young he was already a great voice, I still admire him, he was the most beautiful voice of the 20th century
maritere1939 3 years ago
COULD BE BUT IT'S EASIER TO JUDGE WHEN YOU HEAR THEM LIVE, TUCKER HAD A VERY SPINTO SOUND, LANZA WAS MORE LYRIC AND WELL PEERCE HAD HIS OWN SOUND, VERY RICH. LANZA AND GIGLI VERY BEAUTIFUL BUT THE USE OF THE VOICE ALSO COUNTS I ENJOY LANZA BUT HAVE A PROBLEM WITH MUCH OF CORELLI's Singing even with his great voice.
pearlmuth3 3 years ago 3
Well, there are some strong opinions here, I'll just add in my own for fun :p.
I think that Lanza did have more potential than Tucker or Peerce. He had one of the best voices I've ever heard, sometimes when listening to Lanza, it sounds like pure gold is streaming from his mouth, a feat that I believe only Gigli could better. Pavarotti, Peerce, Tucker and many other great tenors of the last century just didn't have voices as beautiful as his.
Mooorhe 3 years ago
Italian came very naturally to Lanza and he sounded very warm and Italian. Of course he could have used the voice much better, I don't think he ever mastered piano singing. And of course, he wasn't a true operatic tenor, but I still believe credit is due to him.
Mooorhe 3 years ago