CD Details
All Artists: Georges Bizet, American Traditional, Wil Hopcyn, Howard Goodall, Irish Traditional, Peggy / Burke, Sonny Lee, William Arms Fisher, Spiritual Traditional, Henry Rowley Bishop, Franz [Vienna] Schubert, James Horner, Robert Lowry, Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky, Alma Bazel Androzzo, Johannes Brahms, William Henry Monk, Hoagy Carmichael, Barry Wordsworth, London Symphony Orchestra, Sissel Title: Bryn: Bryn Terfel Sings Favorites Members Wishing: 0 Total Copies: 1 Label: Deutsche Grammophon Release Date: 10/14/2003 Genres: Folk, New Age, Pop, Soundtracks, Classical, Broadway & Vocalists Styles: Vocal Pop, Opera & Classical Vocal, Historical Periods, Modern, 20th, & 21st Century, Musicals Number of Discs: 1 SwapaCD Credits: 1 UPC: 028947443827 |
Synopsis
Amazon.comThe title of this CD tells it all. Here is one popular classic after another, some folk or traditional, some operatic, some religious or inspirational, some pop. The result in the throat/mind/sensibility of any other singer might be soupy, sappy, or simply uninteresting, but Bryn Terfel--he of the rolling bass-baritone voice who can smoothly deliver notes and phrases at any dynamic level--turns this generous, somewhat sentimental recital into something beautiful and special. After a rousing "Toreador Song" from Carmen, sung with just the right weight (most baritones find it too low, most basses too high) comes a ravishing version of "Shenandoah"; a fine Welsh song is followed by the stunning duet from Bizet's The Pearl Fishers, with Andrea Bocelli singing the tenor part gleamingly and Terfel considerately underplaying his hand. And so it continues through Brahms' Lullaby and Schubert's Ave Maria; the "Love Theme from Titanic" sung with great restraint; renditions of "Danny Boy" and "Home Sweet Home" which are just beautiful; the spirituals "Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" and "At the River," slightly anachronistic but still effective; the gluey "If I Can Help Somebody"; and a few more. It's amazing that Terfel can bring such variety to material which is temperamentally so similar. Some of the arrangements are a bit sticky and overdone, but overall, this disc is a beauty for all seasons. It will make a lovely gift to music lovers of all types. --Robert Levine
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Member CD Reviews
Jim M. from WEST GLOVER, VT Reviewed on 4/29/2022... Superior CD, with a nice variety of songs. I can (and do, sometimes) listen to this one all day.
CD Reviews
Excellent Voice, Cheap Music R. Zartman | 04/26/2006 (3 out of 5 stars) "Bryn Terfel sings everything beautifully. The difficulty with this CD is that some of the music is extremely tawdry.
"The Lord is My Shepherd" and "Abide With Me" are very nicely sung, although the arrangements (like almost all hymn arrangements) leave a good bit to be desired.
The big surprise was to hear him sing "Lazybones" to perfection.
But on the whole it is far better to hear him sing music whose quality matches that of his voice." Magnificent singing doesn't quite cure the indigestion Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 12/08/2009 (3 out of 5 stars) "There are some unforgivable arrangements on this crossover Cd. Even if I could imagine someone who wanted to hear both the duet from Bizet's Pearl Fishers and Home, Sweet Home (didn't Nelly Melba or Jenny Lind insert that song into the Marriage of Figaro?), the tasteless pop arrangements are almost unbelievable. Shenandoah begins with something that sounds like synthesized whale songs, or are they bagpipes? for pure schmaltz, Terfel tries a Josh Groban, turning the love theme from Titanic into an Italian wow-the-crowds. He's a sing I love, but this mix isn't something for everyone, just a lot for those who don't bother to discriminate good from bad. The great Bryn Terfel needs to exercise some quality control."
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