The Music of Charlotte Church

NB : Charlotte Maria Church is a Welsh Singer actress, and television presenter. She became famous as a child singer of classical hymns and shot to fame before branching out into pop type songs in 2005.

Charlotte Church was born 21st February 1986 in Llandaff, in Cardiff Wales. She was born Charlotte Maria Reed. She was brought up as a Catholic by her mother, Maria. Charlotte was later adopted by Maria’s second husband, James Church.. Charlotte came to the public’s attention when at 11 years of age she sang “Pie Jesu ” over the telephone for a television show in 1997, which followed by her performance the Big, Big Talent Show in 1997. Charlotte then sang in concerts at the Royal Albert Hall, Cardiff Arms Park, and opened for Shirley Bassey in Antwerp. In 1998 and after leaving The Cathedral School in Llandaff, Charlotte attended Howell’s School Llandaff in Cardiff where she had won a scholarship to study music. She balanced her singing and performing with school with the help from tutors when she was on the road and she said in many interviews that she was "just like every other girl her age".

After Charlotte Church was introduced to the Cardiff impresario Jonathan Shalit who became her manager. She released her first album, Voice of an Angel through her publisher Sony BMG. This album was a collection of arias, sacred songs, and traditional pieces and sold millions worldwide making her the youngest artist on the British classical crossover charts with a No. 1 album.

In 2000, she released an album of Christmas Carols. This included Church's first foray into a more pop-influenced style in the title track Dream a Dream , She also sang with Gilman in "Sleigh Ride" on his CD Classic Christmas .

2001 and Charlotte Church added more pop, swing, and Broadway with her album Enchantment.. That same year Church made her first film appearance in the 2001 Ron Howard film A Beautiful Mind . And as Celine Dion had a concert engagement and was not available to perform the film's end title song, "All Love Can Be ", Composer James Homer requested Charlotte to sing this song which he then re-wrote the music to accommodate her vocal range. In 2002, at 16, she released an album called Prelude, and took part in the Royal Christmas tour, which concluded her classical music career.

More than 10 million records worldwide were sold by 2007, over 5 million copies in the US alone; and in 2010 Charlotte was said to be worth as 11million pounds - although there was one report in 2003 that valued her worth at 25 million pounds. Recently she hosted the third series of her chat show The Charlotte Church Show.

Charlotte is now coming of age with a loving husband and two children and it is at this stage that she has left behind her classical career - although she assures us that she still has these beautiful musical qualities - and is now rigorously pursuing her pop career. Good Luck to her - her young voice has certainly given me much pleasure in those years when she was growing up and singing those marvellous hymns.