I Have Just Hit Gold! U-Tube & Ave Maria - Many Versions

funnebone 3 years ago

That was very nice..thanks for sharing that

Dottie1 3 years ago

A beautiful song and a beautiful collection.  You really did hit Gold!  Thank you Ajcor for sharing.

Stuart Evans Llansadwrn 3 years ago

I met Luciano and got on with him like a house on fire - a very generous and warm-hearted person. I used to sing in a Pop band - my friend said to afterwards, "Only you could go up to HIM and say, 'I'm a singer as well' !!!" I told him he was 'better than Elvis' and he was very complimentary about Elvis, clearly a hero of his. We talked about Mario Lanza and what a great inspiration he was to him when he was younger. I told him that he was the greatest singer in the world and he was very modest about this; he mirrored comments he made on a chat show about being good at 3 things - football, singing and baking bread ! I sort of rescued him from a mob of fans and he was grateful. I told him that people were impressed with the power of his voice, but I said it was his tenderness that wiped the floor with his audience. 'It takes abig man to cry' - what a voice, what a guy. Stuart E, The Satyrs.

Stuart Evans 2 years ago

Dear Ajcor,

Thank you for your kind response. I can also recall Luciano talking about Di Steffano and Gigli; he said he was Di Steffano's biggest fan - he had a tear in his eye. I was signed to Eurythmics many years ago and I really should have put Luciano in touch with Annie Lennox.. I have watched our operatic hero on u tube with Bryan Adams etc., and he is so generous to his fellow performers. i find him quite mesmerising. There's one little clip ( I wish I could refer you to it but I have forgotten the link) where he is giving a music lesson to his parrot ! I wish I had met him in his villa, sampled his cooking and chatted about football, music .. the world. Sooner or later he would have to sing - canyou imagine: he could sing the telephone directory and make it sound wonderful. I know that when he did give the odd master class, there was standing room only and passers-by would often get in for free -probably much to the annoyance of others ! Others tell me that he was a 'little devil' for not learning his lines, rehearsals etc... but I say he kept it 'fresh' and he really lived those tunes and that's what sets him apart. His inclusive nature is why he was The One to introduce opera to a new generation. Surely Mario Lanz and Caruso, in the context of their generations, are the only ones to compare re this impact beyond the everyday opera audience. I have met so many Pop stars who think they're cool but few as nice as our hero Luciano who really was generous, kind and humble with it too. My favourite rendition by 'our Luciano' which is how we should really think of him is La Donna e Mobile, largely because he doesn't overcook it, he knows it is fun and can get that across to his audience. It's like passing a baton as Luciano and I agreed; each generation adds something and hands it on to the next generation. You can see at the end of this rendition of Ave Maria, his own astonishment at the beauty of Schubert's lovely tune - it's still fresh to him. Goal , Luciano... Goooaaaal !!!!