I have come to appreciate one facet of my work as a voice teacher to which I used to give not a moment’s thought… and that is the need for me to expose my students to great singers who are completely unknown to them but who are a cherished part of my own musical makeup.
Case in point: a couple of days ago I got an email from my former student Trevor Parker, alerting me to the fact that is was the birthday of one of the most legendary sopranos in history, Leontyne Price. His email included a YouTube link which got me going on a quest to find other examples of Ms. Price’s amazing singing on YouTube. . . and I found a veritable feast of brilliance there, including something that was labeled “must see” that absolutely lived up to those words. It was a surreptitiously filmed black & white video of the soprano in live recital, singing the final aria from Puccini’s “Madama Butterfly.” (It was her third and final encore.) And she tore the roof off the place, unleashing that uniquely opulent voice of hers with electrifying intensity. There’s even a moment before the aria is even finished when she uncorks a thrilling high note that gets half of the crowd clapping and cheering – and the other shushing them so the rest of the aria can be heard. It’s powerful testimony to what a great singer at the height of their powers can do to a roomful of listeners.
<<<This aria is only two and a half minutes long, but it packs a shattering emotional punch when sung like this. Cio Cio San has learned that her husband – an American naval officer – has finally returned to Japan but now married to an American woman, and Cio Cio San finds herself compelled to kill herself for the sake of honor…. but only after she has said farewell to her young son. A few years back, Leontyne Price was given a special lifetime achievement Grammy Award…. and this is the aria she chose to sing during the ceremony. And she knocked ‘em dead, believe it or not. >>>
Anyway, ten minutes after I had watched this stupendous video for the first time, one of my voice students walked into my studio for his lesson. And when I asked Andrew if he had ever heard of a singer named Leontyne Price, he shook his head. No, he had no idea who she was and had never even heard the name. This is a very intelligent young man who cares about singing and who is becoming quite an opera enthusiast. But Leontyne Price has been gone from the opera stage for more than a quarter century, and the typical college junior – even one who enjoys opera – has no particular reason to know who she is or to have heard her astounding voice unless someone has “made the introduction.” (Likewise, a 49-year-old like me has probably never heard of Mr. Wonderful and the Electric Pimples or whoever happens to be lighting up the airwaves at the moment for the teenagers of the world.)
And that’s where I come in. I am realizing that one of the most important things I can do for my students is to open up their eyes and ears to the great singers of the past and the present – and my greatest hope is that I can pique their curiosity and encourage them to explore on their own the legacy of the world’s greatest singers and each one’s particular personal story. Like the woman born of humble means in Laurel, Mississippi who rose to the very pinnacle of the opera world at a time when in many parts of our country she would have been forced to drink from a different drinking fountain. When I watch her sing, such a figure of towering dignity, I think of where she came from and the heights to which she rose- – – and that incredibly beautiful voice sounds still more beautiful and inspiring.
And it’s a voice that everyone – and I mean everyone – needs to hear and know.
pictured above: a peak at the YouTube video which I think so thrillingly captures the magic of Leontyne Price and her singing.