What music are you listening to?

 
 
Andreas Scholl, counter-tenor, singing Handel's Ombra Mai Fu. This is my favorite period for music. Whenever I feel out of sorts mentally or emotionally, I turn to this kind of music. It soothes my soul.

I hate to admit it but now that I'm more familiar with the counter-tenors I prefer them to sopranos for this music. Could Farinelli and the other castrati have sounded more like angels than this man? It's hard to believe.



Thinking of our other thread on music and the replaying of it, I've probably listened to my favorite classical pieces thousands of times over my lifetime. Not just this one, either.

I probably listen to Pachelbel's Canon in D every other week, and when people drop in who know music, they sometimes accuse me of playing nothing but Vivaldi.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVn2YGvIv0w
 
It's A New Day...It's a New Life...And I'm Feeling Good. :)

 
non-proletarianized Black music is the way to go

This thread is for posting videos of music, not your political beliefs. Do it again, and I will issue an infraction.

Everyone else get back on topic now.
 
Andreas Scholl, counter-tenor, singing Handel's Ombra Mai Fu. This is my favorite period for music. Whenever I feel out of sorts mentally or emotionally, I turn to this kind of music. It soothes my soul.

I hate to admit it but now that I'm more familiar with the counter-tenors I prefer them to sopranos for this music. Could Farinelli and the other castrati have sounded more like angels than this man? It's hard to believe.

I have really tried, but the most I can do is to enjoy the voice of a countertenor, though still getting that thinking "oh this note would've been sung with such better vocal dynamics and effortlessness by a soprano or mezzo-soprano!" It's unavoidable, many times I am loving an entire performance until some higher note or higher fioritura is necessary in the score, and that thought "Oh if he were just a soprano!" comes to my mind again. LOL! I love some countertenors, mainly Andreas Scholl (what a divine "Ombra mai fu" you posted there!), Franco Fagioli and Emmanuel Cencic... but still I miss that fuller and more "colorful" core of the sound of a good mezzo or contralto. As wonderful as a countertenor is, the top notes are never as free and ringing as that of a soprano or mezzo, it's almost impossible, and the lowest tones are seldom as vibrant and effortless as that of a good contralto (but then what can we do when true contraltos have almost vanished these days?). Tallking about contraltos and their imminent disappearance, I was so happy to find this young girl singing AMAZINGLY in a true and seamless lyric contralto voice. This kind of voice, when assisted by an excellent technique, transports me to another realm.

 
I have really tried, but the most I can do is to enjoy the voice of a countertenor, though still getting that thinking "oh this note would've been sung with such better vocal dynamics and effortlessness by a soprano or mezzo-soprano!" It's unavoidable, many times I am loving an entire performance until some higher note or higher fioritura is necessary in the score, and that thought "Oh if he were just a soprano!" comes to my mind again. LOL! I love some countertenors, mainly Andreas Scholl (what a divine "Ombra mai fu" you posted there!), Franco Fagioli and Emmanuel Cencic... but still I miss that fuller and more "colorful" core of the sound of a good mezzo or contralto. As wonderful as a countertenor is, the top notes are never as free and ringing as that of a soprano or mezzo, it's almost impossible, and the lowest tones are seldom as vibrant and effortless as that of a good contralto (but then what can we do when true contraltos have almost vanished these days?). Tallking about contraltos and their imminent disappearance, I was so happy to find this young girl singing AMAZINGLY in a true and seamless lyric contralto voice. This kind of voice, when assisted by an excellent technique, transports me to another realm.


Very nice. I too like a good contralto voice. Unfortunately, a lot of classical music singers I know don't want to be contraltos. They insist on pushing into the higher registers with very mixed results. They tend to get very insulted when you praise them fervently when they singer in lower keys, as if you're saying they're not very good sopranos. The truth is, they aren't, and people are trying to prod them to sing in their more "natural" voice.

I'm not like that; even just singing in choirs as I do, I've realized I can't comfortably sing soprano most of the time. I blame it not on the passing of the years, but to having to yell at my children!

Do you think you would have liked the voice of the castrati for whom a lot of this music was written?
 
"I Believe in You". Such a nice, idealistic view of life and love. Derek was an excellent choice for the music video. Now there's a blonde man I really, really like: a kind, open, charming face with great smile and laugh, in addition to overall good looks. Love him. Love Michael Buble too, and no, not because he's half Italian. :)

 

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