What Did Opera Singers THINK About Aretha Franklin's Nessun Dorma?!
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- Опубліковано 26 сер 2024
- Aretha Franklin stepping in at the last minute to sing, "Nessun Dorma" for operatic tenor Luciano Pavarotti at the 1998 Grammys is considered one of the greatest moments in music and pop culture.
World-renowned soprano, a colleague of Pavarotti, and a friend of Aretha Franklin, Aprile Millo shares why Franklin's rendition of, "Nessun Dorma" is a brilliant performance and a testament to The Queen of Soul's Artistry!
Watch Aprile Millo's Documentary: • Italianità || The Stor...
Episode Credits
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Director: Milik Kashad
Executive Producer: Milik Kashad
Editor: Milik Kashad
Motion Graphics: Milik Kashad
Voiceover: Milik Kashad
Script: Milik Kashad
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I'm a classical singer and I thought Aretha Franklin's "Nessun Dorma" was an absolute marvel. She didn't try to sing it as an opera singer, she sang it as herself and blew it out of the water.
That's the correct perspective!!!
She Sang it like she was in church, with no mic.
Your perspective was on point. Thank you!!! Aretha’s spin was universally praised!!!!
A lot of people don’t know that Aretha studied opera singing with a coach for years. I believe that the aria she sang was one that she already knew. The combination of her amazing skill as a gospel/rhythm and blues singer combined with her operatic training resulted in some kind of hybrid coloratura. I absolutely loved it.
Exactly! And yes she had sung the aria a few nights prior at an event.
I remembered the night that aired I cried like a baby by the time she ended that song. I knew for sure at that moment I was an Aretha Franklin devotee for life and I was only 17. I bought everything of hers from her 1956 recording up to her final album. LOVE YOU QUEEN. You and Mahalia Jackson are my heart🫀and lungs 🫁 in reverse order.
I get goosebumps every single time I watch that performance. After the big ''Vincerooooo'' she does this ''oOooOooOoOooo'' and those notes for some reason sound so good to me. She was the best singer of all time!
Man same!!! It makes me tear up , powerful voice only Whitney can rival her voice
that part gives me goosebumps!
Me too!
Exactly that’s the part
I love the most I play it
Over and over the runs/rif sounds phenomenal! ❤
I have seen Pavarotti sing pop songs in his operatic style and it's fun to witness. I've seen lots of crossover styles over the years. Aretha claims this song as her own and did a great job with it!
Game recognizes game
You got 23 thumbs up, but I'm still, like....ummm, what?
She did that! All that! Brought the house down. Exquisite.
This is why she's the greatest voice
Aretha always had to feel what she sang. So asked what these Latin words meant and felt how they matched feelings within her. The result is a spiritual experience beyond words. ❤
I remember watching the performance as a child being absolutely SPELLBOUND. We share a birthday (tomorrow 3/25) and I’m so honored.
Happy Birthday. I share the March 25th birthday also. Aretha and Elton John, can't beat that!
@@hellosaysdrew I hope your birthday was a great one! Us “3/25’s” are a special, unique bunch.
her marvelous interpretation is one of the most important moments in black music history!
Black Music history ???? It was music, whether it's black or white or Latin, etc. BTW , Turandot written by a white Italian and finished by a white Italian and first performed in 1926 by...you guessed it..a white Italian. Viva Italia. Your comments, although well intentioned , appear to be divisive.
@@sgnmath1234’it was music whether it was black or or white’
‘but it’s WHITE’
In music history.
That performance brought me to tear the first time I saw it! From that day I wanted to make people feel such deep emotion with my music.
I'd have never thought of the Rossini angle. The GOOD content right here
I remember reading scathing reviews on UA-cam. I think it was absolutely fabulous.
She did it her way - Bravo!
The performance was phenomenal because she was able to Incorporate her gospel sound into Opera and that gets into the soul of the listener Simple as that
Best Live performance of all time - also considering she had NO prep time or rehearsal with the choir or orchestra- she wasn’t even supposed to sing at this event! 3 hrs notice to sing one of the most famous songs in history.
INSANE. Truly a spiritual moment.
There is no other singer who could have pulled that off like Queen did! She showed what Jerry Wexler called musical intelligence. Queen literally made me love classical music and start listening to it. And what many do not know is that she sung it in Pavarotti's key.
One of my close friends asked about this performance recently. He had not seen it and he stated that is was amazing. He said that he did not know she could pull something off like that.
You're so right. That auditorium was full of singers. Did any of the others get asked to fill in and to sing an operatic number? No. Aretha was there and that's all that mattered.
Same
That was a quick one lol! Great job as usual! All hail Queen Aretha Franklin. 🎵❤️🔥🕊🌅
Aretha had an insane voice. She covered nearly 4 octaves in chest alone. She could sing anything. She was very agile and her bottom notes were nearly as rich as her top notes.
Aretha’s unique version of this song sings to the soul and chases away the blues.
🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾
This woman was so talented she only needed 15 minutes to review the song before hitting it out of the park!!
It was 8 mins. Queen mentioned it during an interview.
Aretha did a great job here! She was not a classical train opera singer. Only had song the aria a few days before at MusicCares for Pavarotti. She added soul to it! What other singer not trained in opera music could have pulled this off?
She actually had some classical training . . .
She had classical training when she was growing up.
@awula5385 oh OK I never heard that until now thank you
Amazing. Here’s my two cents. None of MS Franklins song can come close to reaching the excellence of her gift than what I just heard. Wowww
🙏🏽💝💜💖🇨🇺🇯🇲🇺🇲 GREETNS WORLD, HAPPY 2024! IT CERTAINLY WAS FANTASTIC, REST IN PARADISE!
I think we all can agree that Ms. Franklin's rendition of Nessun Dorma was unique, certainly no less so than when I have heard classically trained singers attempt pop/soul/jazz etc. Some of those interpretations have been "unique" as well.
She wasn’t trying to sing opera. It was very moving.
I was told in opera circles this interpretation is considered a joke to opera Singers
To most opera it is... But some do appreciate her version and attempt to this song.
Nobodys trying to dismiss the ultimate legend. They're cute
As with all things, it depends on who you ask.
@@UMVELINQANGI Exactly !! When you ask ignorant people of opera and their understanding of the aria and their lack of ability or desire to respect the composers' work and intent they will give you some answer that must be taken with a grain of salt. When folks call it a "song" it is proof that few really understand what this piece of music ( Aria ) is all about. How many individuals really know what "Nessun(o) Dorma means in Italian and what the singer ( Calaf) is singing about ? Too many don't care and are just waiting to hear a key change ( which there isn't in this or most arias) so they can clap and scream in the middle of this "song" thinking they are watching America's Got (No) Talent.
Aretha was asked if she was concerned about opera purists coming after her with criticism, and she said "no". I can see that it might have been disappointing for Pavarotti fans when they heard he couldn't sing, but Aretha did the best that she could, and most people loved it.
They have a nurse who comes in daily. Don’t think he needs our advice, but maybe some parents reading do
To further clarify this was THE soul singer of the century doing classical. She could have sung it classily. But it was best done soulfully.
Do you think she could have matched Jussi Bjorling's , Richard Tucker's or Giuseppe Giacomini's version of this aria which is to be sung only by a tenor and not taken out of context to glorify the singer instead of respecting the composer and his work ??
@@sgnmath1234 You're clearly off your mark here. Arias were always meant to be a showcase for the singers. That was part of the spectacle. And many opera singers went on to become just as famous as composers. Enrico Caruso is just as beloved as Rossini. And this wasn't just for opera: concerts were also written to showcase the virtuosity of the soloist, and the best soloists were expected to improvise the cadenza and fully show off their abilities. This thing of "respecting the composer" is late Romantic bullshit, and was largely responsible for turning classical compositions into dead museum pieces.
Sorry, but it was a mess. Her voice didn't match
I guess it's all about expectations. Some people are more rigid in theirs, and others can appreciate it when reality deviates from what they expected. I am with you in that I am not a fan of Aretha's version, but I think it says more about me as a rigid person than about the actual aesthetic quality of Aretha's performance.
It was mastery. The timing is so perfect it surpasses all
Millo is a legend too
I enjoyed it very much. It was theatrical and entertaining, great performance art but not opera certainly.
@@UMVELINQANGI I enjoyed the performance so much that it led me to real opera, Jessye Norman. Made me a lifelong fan.
I didnt care for it
But your here
Her version was embarrassing
And why do you say that ?
Then why are you here
like your face
It was fine. But the mythology surrounding the performance is crazy. We are to believe that Pav, who indeed was ill and at home in Modena, informed the producers that he was unable to attend and suggested that Aretha replace him…. And this happened less than 24hrs before the broadcast???!!!
Placido was THERE in the audience that night. If Pav was going to perform on a live broadcast, he would’ve been at Radio City well before rehearsals… definitely before 24hrs prior to the show.
My theory is that Pav informed he wouldn’t be there days before and the producers scrambled to get Aretha to perform. But this was no last second replacement. It was a stunt. And it worked.
Here come the conspiracy theorists that we're actually there the night it happened 🙄
@@firelord_ozai we’re? Did you mean to say “were” but were in too much of a hurry to be dumb on the internet?
It happens, I guess, but notice how incoherent your comment is. I never indicated I was there. I was a kid. Call my theory a conspiracy if you’d like. You’re obviously ok with being wrong. Af.
@gaylefranklin I mean giving a whole dissertation about something that you assumed happened, and discounting the story that was already told by the people who was actually there when this moment took place, is you insinuating that you were there. If I'm dumb then I'd hate to see what you're actually like Gayle.
@@firelord_ozai I’ll try to make this as simple as I can.
The narrative that’s persisted since this night has been accepted as fact only because it’s a great story. In the time since, other players in the situation have spoken. Including Pav’s assistant who said he never traveled to New York and remained in Modena for weeks. Domingo himself spoke of being in the room tho didnt have to as the camera was quick to pick up his reaction to the performance. Those facts, when considered along with the task of presenting this performance by an artist, iconic as she is, but has never performed the aria or with the orchestra assembled might suggest that an entirely different operation had been underway… such as knowledge beforehand that Pav would not be in town, that Aretha (known for a perfection second only to Streisand in preparation) and that the old Hollywood cliche of the artist waiting in the wings, pushed onto the stage to fill in at the last minute might play well for the audiences…. All these together, suggest a different, more likely sequence of events.
Now, how you accept this doesn’t matter at all to me. Believe what you like. But rather than be an a$$hole with your comments, try not being that. It would make for a more interesting exchange and I wouldn’t need to stoop to a level that I might enjoy but would rather not do.
@gaylefranklin it's people like you who do a little too much with the dissertations, keep it short and sweet. And let us know the next time you know more about a situation that you weren't present for... I'd love to hear more😉
From a classical perspective, it did not register. From a blues perspective it was wonderful.
It's the musical equivalent of adding hot sauce to angel cake and bragging about the added flavor or using a jackhammer to add rythm to a harp. Some things just don't go together. Doesn't mean Aretha is a bad singer just that she shouldn't do opera. Opera is about subtlety, and Aretha's style is the equivalent of an assault.