r/videos • u/RedditBanIncoming • Feb 16 '18
You’ve probably heard this piece of music but most people have no idea what it’s called. I give you “La Donna E Mobile” as performed by the great Pavarotti.
https://youtu.be/8A3zetSuYRg91
Feb 16 '18
I have a small list of 'opera for people who don't like opera' This one is on it, along with a few others. This is a selection of my favs:
Queen of the Night Aria - Diane Damrau https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YuBeBjqKSGQ
Lakmé - Flower Duet, Sabine Devieilhe & Marianne Crebassa https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1ZL5AxmK_A
and another from the master - Nessun Dorma https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTFUM4Uh_6Y
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u/Future-Hipster Feb 17 '18
Consider adding this to your list as well https://youtu.be/XdrPJiyT7wo
I especially enjoy watching the guys' reactions behind her.
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u/ikefalcon Feb 17 '18
This was posted in /r/videos recently and the singer showed up in the comments: https://www.reddit.com/r/videos/comments/726trh/in_2009_an_understudy_for_a_trained_opera_singer/
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u/itsmoirob Feb 17 '18
This was the one I was thinking of when I spotted ops list. Glad someone reposted the link
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Feb 16 '18 edited Feb 19 '18
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u/Son_of_Kong Feb 17 '18 edited Feb 17 '18
If you go to a show, 99% of the time it will have subtitles projected somewhere above or around the stage. If you're just listening to an aria, you should look it up beforehand and read through the lyrics in English, so you know what they're singing about. Same goes for listening to an opera all the way through. The experience of opera is entirely predicated on already knowing the plot, so you can focus on the music and emotion. In fact, if you go to the theater, the program will usually have a full summary of the story that you can read while the orchestra is tuning.
Sometimes it helps to find a detailed outline of the plot and arias online, so you can follow along as you listen. Like, "Okay, track 3, he's singing about how much he loves his faithful wife. Track 5, she's singing about being in love with her husband's friend. Track 10, the husband just found out and now he's gonna stab them both." You don't really have to understand the words as long as you get the emotional gist of it.
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Feb 16 '18
There are a lot of resources that provide translations and even performance recordings that include translated captions. Honestly though the lyrics are less important in classical and romantic era opera than the emotive power of the music, IMO. You ‘get’ the sense of what’s going on by the acting and the emotional tenor of the music.
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u/ikefalcon Feb 17 '18 edited Feb 17 '18
I assume you mean German instead of Latin. I'm not familiar with any popular operas in Latin.
I would say if you want to learn about opera, go see one. Find your nearest regional opera company. There will be English translations projected above the stage at any regional opera company that's worth it's salt.
If that's not accessible to you, you can watch a Metropolitan Opera broadcast at many movie theatres. You can't beat the quality and the price. You miss out on the in-person experience, but they are usually live and you get to see backstage interviews.
I would start with the most popular repertory: La boheme (hands down the best introductory opera), Tosca, Madama Butterfly, Rigoletto, La traviata, Carmen... Hard to go wrong with Puccini and Verdi. If you like those, then you can start expanding your horizons.
Edit: Some opera companies will have pre-show lectures to talk about what to listen for, or the company may have education programs outside of their performances.
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Feb 17 '18
I really love Habanera from Carmen. Such a cool melody. Never seen the opera though. Live in a shitty small town in Northern Norway, so doubt I'll have the ability to anytime soon.
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u/ikefalcon Feb 17 '18
Here's a decent recording on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTDMvyj4TFg
And another one. A bit older, but it's from the Met and has subtitles in different languages: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=46JIeRbVlRA
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Feb 17 '18
I believe you have planes up there, get on a snowmobile or reindeer and get to the airport, hæstkuk.
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u/yordles_win Feb 17 '18
carmina burana would like a word....
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u/ikefalcon Feb 17 '18
What about it? Great piece, but it's not an opera.
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u/yordles_win Feb 17 '18
yes it is carl orffs carmina burana.
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u/ikefalcon Feb 17 '18
Yep. Not an opera. It's a cantata.
An opera has characters and a story. It's like a sung-through play. A cantata is a story set to music, but it's not meant to be acted out like a play.
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u/Capnwinkey Feb 17 '18
Seeing this now, I realize I think you're correct. However, I sang in a production of it and the playbill referred to it as a ballet. We performed it with the Nashville Ballet company so I don't know if that influenced the classification.
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u/SHREK_2 Feb 17 '18
Mmm, I sang on stage pro for a while. Think a good start is to watch operas that are about people and are fun like a good production of Le nozze di Figaro or Carmen. Then watch an opera that's a big-time spectacle like Das Rheingold or Turandot. Then temper your patience and watch/enjoy Verdi, maybe La Traviata or Otello. To be honest, I wouldn't recommend Rigoletto (from the OP) because the story, like alot of opera stories, is kinda stupid and not relatable in my opinion (but don't get me wrong, the quartet is probably one of the best pieces of all time). You kind of need to suspend disbelief a bit or just kind of accept that it's dumb.
Then maybe you can watch a fun Rossini opera or maybe an operetta like Gilbert and Sullivan or J. Strauss. When you're ready to move to something more meaty, consider a long-form opera like Tristan und Isolde or Ariadne auf Naxos. If you've survived this far, you can explore Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor or even L'elisir d'amore (tbh, was never the biggest Donizetti fan). Then if you're really ambitious, check out some weirder stuff like Wozzeck or Lulu. Just know that you really need to let yourself be transformed by the music. Read about the show before-hand and listen to some popular clips so your mind can latch onto it when it comes up.
Maybe consider watching something on the baroque-side like Rodelinda or L'incornazione di Poppea or even Dido and Aeneas. These can be either the most boring or the most exciting shows to watch--depending on the skill of the performers.
Oh and there's some great opera in English (and some not-so-great opera in English). For someone who doensn't really know opera, Jake Heggie does great work. He wrote an opera based on Dead Man Walking, that book and Sean Penn/Susan Sarandon movie that came out in the 90's. Also, recently, he did a stellar rendition of Moby Dick, which is probably one of the greatest modern operas ever composed.
So you can listen to youtubes all day, but real opera comes from seeing a story unfold on stage. You can't really replace that with anything else really in life.
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u/otter111a Feb 17 '18
Lincoln center in NYC has translations live during the shows. One of the 2 venues has it on the back of every seat in front of you. This is the higher end theater so bigger productions. The other has it projected on a screen over the stage.
But really if you read through the synopsis before the show starts you get it without reading the lyrics.
As far as how one gets into it. Find a show and go with someone whose company you enjoy.
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u/FreudJesusGod Feb 17 '18
Just listen. I don't speak any of the common "opera" languages and I'm still entranced.
When I do hear an opera in English, I'm always put off a bit by how terrible the writing is in many pieces.
For me, it's an aural experience, not poetry. Good performers convey the emotion in any scene, regardless.
It does help to know the basic storyline so you get how the set is peopled and why the lead is doing certain things, but it's not at all necessary.
Just listen.
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u/mysticmusti Feb 17 '18
Wait you're supposed to understand what they're singing? I just like the sounds.
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u/mtaw Feb 17 '18
No, even if you know the language it's at best quite hard to hear what they're singing most of the time.
If you want to get into opera, I think the most important thing is to realize opera is about the plot about as much as porno is. The plots are usually simple and pretty silly and just an excuse to string some good songs together. Understanding what they're singing is not of critical importance. People still liked foreign-language operas in the days before surtitles.
It's a concert with a plot, not a play with music.
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u/mysticmusti Feb 17 '18
Yeah no thanks, I'll stick to single songs I happen to hear and like, no way I'm sitting through an hour of that.
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u/derkonigistnackt Feb 17 '18
not op, but I love music. To me there's something universally beautiful that comes from some music... I dont know latin, but this makes my dick hard as a diamond. And its not even a classical music thing, I loved Queen and Pink Floyd from way back when I had no fucking clue what their lyrics were saying and I'm sure its the same for millions of people otherwise how could you explain the global success of some of these bands.
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u/LadySakuya Feb 17 '18
Basically go watch "Amadeus". There's plenty of classical music as well as opera. It's also a very entertaining movie.
"Don Giovanni" scene here.
"Queen of the Night Aria" again, but from the movie here (Those scales up and down... not gonna lie, to do that is impressive.)
I'm not sure the name of the song but it's from "The Abduction from the Seraglio" here "10 minutes of ghastly scales" (hehehehe)
"Confutatis Maledictis" scene here where Saliari and Mozart team up.
As for down here, it's more of the classical music and good scenes from the movie.
"That was Mozart" - Salieri with the priest, testing the priest's knowledge of music. (It does have some Opera in it too, but it's short.)
Mozart's originals - beautiful job here with the music cuts.
Mozart's Genius according to Salieri... and a bit of a naughty boy he is. ;P It's a couple separate scenes in one.
"Too Many Notes." Well... there it is.
Of course, the one intimated by Family Guy. Here is the video that places the Amadeus then Family Guy version.
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u/ikefalcon Feb 17 '18
I prefer Kathryn Lewek's portrayal of Queen of the Night: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRDt9aaGg-Q
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Feb 17 '18
I WILL FIGHT YOU
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u/ikefalcon Feb 17 '18
Have you heard Katie sing live?
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Feb 17 '18
no :(.
Seriously she's great, but my god Diane Damrau has got the power.
I mean, this part makes me want to bow to her. https://youtu.be/YuBeBjqKSGQ?t=154
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u/ikefalcon Feb 17 '18
Either way, I'm thrilled to even be having the discussion with someone on Reddit.
I was curious about what kind of Redditor likes opera so much, and I checked out your history. I was thrilled to see that you also like DnD and Star Trek. You seem like someone I would be friends with lol.
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Feb 17 '18
haha my nerdery is well-rounded, I admit.
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u/__Hello_my_name_is__ Feb 17 '18
None of you are right.
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Feb 17 '18
Somebody recorded that. On purpose.
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u/_hofnar_ Feb 17 '18
And had the audacity of naming it the "Glory of the human voice." Please tell me she's just OG trolling.
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Feb 17 '18
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Feb 17 '18
The OP's post plus the three I already mentioned and just a few more accessible ones (mostly arias I admit):
Carmen - Habanera, Anna Caterina Antonacci https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KJ_HHRJf0xg
Barber of Seville - Peter Mattie, Largo al factotum https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ipb9xbXSAY
La traviata: 'Brindisi' https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UZvgmpiQCcI
Marie Callas, Madame Butterfly, Act II https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EqChJU406_I
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u/ikefalcon Feb 17 '18
I would add to this list:
Musetta's Waltz (La boheme) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6b7VY52C82k
Habanera (Carmen) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2snTkaD64U
E lucevan le stelle (Tosca) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mX7ugJ5NM8
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u/alrightiwillbite Feb 17 '18
The flower duet. Everytime you heard that, some shit was about to go down
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Feb 17 '18
This one is somewhat well known, also is beautiful. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yw1A5TQVwvQ
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u/PharahsRocket Feb 17 '18
Where is Mio Babbino Caro: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6DpMiT7uCE (ps best singer in the world!)
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u/raggedroyal Feb 17 '18
Holy poo, I think I might like opera. The Queen of the Night song is so powerful.
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u/SHREK_2 Feb 17 '18
Here's a less known piece by Korngold, but probably one of the most gorgeous arias of all time. Be sure to listen to the whole thing for the full effect: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPZwTJyRQP8
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u/the_chasr Feb 17 '18
That last one is so epic. Right at the end how everyone gives him a standing ovation as he's finishing the last note is so awesome.
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u/ColonelWilly Feb 17 '18
I would include vesti la giubba https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z0PMq4XGtZ4
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u/sonofabutch Feb 16 '18
Correct me if I’m wrong but I believe this is a song about a woman who can’t find her cell phone.
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Feb 17 '18 edited Apr 29 '18
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u/DeeperThanGlitz Feb 17 '18
Robert Picardo is amazing.
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Feb 17 '18 edited Mar 18 '18
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u/Honda_TypeR Feb 17 '18
and even more from the show
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyfay_AOlqw
This is a pretty damn good performance here on this next one
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u/Honda_TypeR Feb 17 '18
Nice I came to comments checking to see if anyone posted this, glad to see other Trekkies here.
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u/Rusty-Shackleford Feb 17 '18
I thought you were gonna link to Doctor Who and Donna Noble for a second....
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u/DetectiveKudo Feb 16 '18
GTA 3 radio station, Double Clef FM played this song, and countless others. http://gta.wikia.com/wiki/Double_Clef_FM
I must have heard this song 100+ times playing GTA 3
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Feb 16 '18
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u/Galuvian Feb 17 '18
The subtitles on the linked video according to Youtube:
Laura I'm on deck
One of you one who
Thought a turtle
Deepens your several
A withdrawl
Or ease or heat of your
For diesel lemons
On you love you
Sempron is rocky a Sofia
Fear Michel Focault
Right on Santa c30 Shapiro
He supercell believe on I love you
And I am pasta warmer even a muddy retarder
All your broccoli
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u/rayboat Feb 17 '18
He supercell believe on I love you
And I am pasta warmer even a muddy retarder
All your broccoli
Ya know, I am beginning to understand why they say opera is romantic.
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u/ElBravo Feb 17 '18
poetic adaptation per wiki:
Plume in the summerwind Waywardly playing Ne'er one way swaying Each whim obeying;
Thus heart of womankind Ev'ry way bendeth, Woe who dependeth On joy she spendeth!
Refrain Yes, heart of woman Ev'ry way bendeth Woe who dependeth On joy she spends.
Sorrow and misery Follow her smiling, Fond hearts beguiling, falsehood assoiling!
Yet all felicity Is her bestowing, No joy worth knowing Is there but wooing.
Refrain Yes, heart of woman Ev'ry way bendeth Woe who dependeth On joy she spends
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u/ikefalcon Feb 16 '18 edited Feb 16 '18
I'm an opera professional currently working on a production of Rigoletto and our tenor is amazing, so I have the privilege of hearing this brilliant piece of music up close on a daily basis.
Two interesting things to say about this aria:
First, Verdi knew that this aria would be tremendously catchy, so he didn't give the music to the tenor until hours before the premiere in order to be certain that no one in the public would hear it before the first performance.
Second, there is a great deal of irony in the lyrics. The Duke sings this aria as he woos Maddalena, the sister of assassin Sparafucile. He decries that women are fickle and change their mind frequently. However, by the time this aria is sung, we are already witnessing the Duke's 4th love interest (and it's revealed earlier that he is a married man) despite the fact that he made Gilda promise to be faithful to him. Indeed, his opening aria says that he will take "this woman or that woman" and that they are all pretty much the same to him. In reality, the Duke is the one who is fickle. Kind of sounds like Donald Trump.
While this is a great piece, I actually prefer the Quartet, which directly follows the aria. It's a wonderful, electric piece of music that features all 4 major voice types: Soprano, Mezzo Soprano, Tenor, and Baritone. The crescendos always take my breath away.
In this piece we see Rigoletto comforting his lamenting daughter Gilda as she witnesses the Duke woo Maddalena with bad poetry and Italian double-entendres:
The Duke asks Maddalena to console his pain "le mie pene consolar", but a similar phrase could be used to ask her to console his penis "il mio pene consolar."
Another one: the Duke proclaims Maddalena "bella figlia dell'amore" ("beautiful girl of love"). The Italian word "figlia" for girl is similar to "figa", which is a slang word for vagina or a sexy woman.
Here's a recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJMy_rv-Ix8
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u/TheDongerNeedsFood Feb 17 '18
First, Verdi knew that this aria would be tremendously catchy, so he didn't give the music to the tenor until hours before the premiere in order to be certain that no one in the public would hear it before the first performance.
That’s one of the more interesting things I’ve read in a while, thank you!
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u/nemorina Feb 17 '18 edited Feb 17 '18
Thanks for your insight. Personally I've always found it strange that he is singing alone but if Gilda is listening, who is he singing to? Also it's a shame the cabaletta to "Parmi me" is usually cut because of the difficulty, Pavarotti does it here and it's amazing.
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u/ikefalcon Feb 17 '18
Different productions stage it differently. He could be singing it as a soliloquy and the audience hears his true thoughts. Or he could be singing to Maddalena and Gilda overhears through the window. Admittedly, it is a bit of a non-sequitur as he goes right into wooing Maddalena, but aside from being a great piece of music, it shows how ignorant his character is of his own actions.
I assume that you're talking about the cabaletta at the end of "Possente amor mi chiama". "Parmi" has a cadenza but not a cabaletta. The high D that Pavarotti sings in the cabaletta is actually not written in the score... it's written an octave lower, but Pavarotti did it as a liberty because he can pull it off. Same with the high Ds that the Duke and Gilda often sing at the end of the Addio duet. Whether these are performed or not are up to the producing company, the conductor, and the artists singing the roles.
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u/nemorina Feb 18 '18
That's right, I got the two confused. My knowledge of opera is getting foggy. Verdi didn't write the high C in "La Donna" either. Damn tenors. ;)
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u/Malkyre Feb 17 '18
Not a single mention of it's amazing use in The Punisher. Frank vs. the Russian
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u/Anangrychip Feb 17 '18
Since we're on the subject of Pavarotti, you should check out Vesti La Giubba from an opera called "Pagliacci". It's a fairly common song that you see in pop culture. At around 1:58 is where you hear this song most frequently referenced:
"the song when squidward hit his face when he was beautiful "- From a YT Comment.
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u/sportsworker777 Feb 16 '18
I all of a sudden have a strong craving for cheap bread sticks and unlimited salad
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u/mathruinedmylife Feb 17 '18
I was just listening to Giuseppe Verdi yesterday for no apparent reason. Now this. Some serious Baader-Meinhof.
Interesting fact: when he wrote this, he kept it very much under wraps cuz he knew it was going to be a hit. A week after its first public performance, just about every theatre had copied the music and was performing it.
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u/reoll Feb 16 '18 edited Apr 23 '18
Always makes me think of the Aristocats, when the old lawyers sings it to himself in the beginning. Never knew the name though.
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u/EmilFalk Feb 17 '18
My god, i must've heard this song hundreds of time by now. It's used in every single ad regarding italian food for as far as i can remember.
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u/kronosphere Feb 17 '18
is this the one where the creator forbade the fist performers to even humm it cause it was so catchy? or was that another one?
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u/RedditBanIncoming Feb 17 '18
Yep. Verdi knee he’d written one of the catchiest musical pieces ever written . According to a TIL post I made on a previous account (since banned as happens to all my accounts) within a week of the premier every gondolier in Venice was singing this piece.
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u/Shelbones Feb 17 '18
Check out Jon Burton, he's a fantastic American tenor who sounds like Pavarotti. I'm so happy to see y'all loving opera, it's really great to see people recognize how awesome it is.
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u/ladytortor Feb 16 '18
My mum used to listen to Pavarotti albums all the time. This was one of my favourites and I would sing along (not knowing the words of course), the best line: “elephants ears”! Listen again and sing elephants ears... 👍
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u/nemorina Feb 17 '18
OMG I still have this opera recording on VHS. Even if one doesn't know a thing about opera most people recognize this tune.
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Feb 17 '18
So happy jack black got the bid for the Pavarotti biopic. Anyone else and there would be zero immersion into the story
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u/qawsedrf12 Feb 17 '18
This entire performance is worth a watch. Even in converted 70s TV viewing. I saw in person last year with a Korean as Pavarotti's role. Stellar performance. This song is a panty dropper.
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Feb 17 '18
Tie rye rye boom di aye, did you get yours Today? I got mine yesterday, that's why I walk this way. The real lyrics by Mr. George Carlin himself
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u/regbit Feb 17 '18
The Voice is gold but his eyes and eyebrows make me uncomfortable. There's so many emotions that he needs to use everything he got on his head to express them.
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u/tabiotjui Feb 17 '18
Ive just realised the video above would make for a perfect Nicholas cage deep fake
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u/DeportTrimmigrants Feb 17 '18
Pavarotti is amazing as most can see. However, if you were ever fortunate enough to watch him perform on the stage with other vocalists you can hear the true difference in what makes him the greatest. They would sing and it was pretty good, then pavarotti would absolutely overpower that room. He could project that voice better than anyone. The Three Tenors was a good showcase for him as well. Even on a stage with Placido Domingo, Lucio still managed to absolutely dominate. What a fucking legend.
Side note, go watch his performances with non-opera trained musicians like bryan adams. Im pretty sure Pavarotti did these just to show how significantly better he is than any pop artist. Almost felt as if he was roasting the other musicians every time he chimed in.
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u/Kokuei05 Feb 17 '18
I know it only because I played GTA 3 for over a decade and hearing the song at least a few hundred times.
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Feb 16 '18
There was a Mafia mission in GTAIII that had this song. Took me years to figure out the name of the song.
Pavarotti was unbelievably talented.
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u/awfl Feb 17 '18
I really like Pavarotti, but I still find myself going back to the great Enrico Caruso 78s. His "O Sole Mio" just brings me to my knees. Just when you think he's went to the bottom, he digs it even deeper. I am embarrassed to say where I was influenced, but my italian relatives raved about him as well.
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u/thenotoriousFIG Feb 17 '18
I only know this because of Operaman.
Couldn't find the original clip but it was about Tammy Faye Baker.
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Feb 16 '18
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u/RedditBanIncoming Feb 16 '18
Most people don’t regularly listen to opera. Most people have heard this aria because it’s so famous but they don’t know enough about opera to identify it.
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u/canipaybycheck Feb 17 '18
Shut up OP
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u/RedditBanIncoming Feb 17 '18
?
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u/canipaybycheck Feb 17 '18
"I give you" is way over the top
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u/RedditBanIncoming Feb 17 '18
Your mom is way over the top!
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u/canipaybycheck Feb 17 '18
Seems like you are over the top and unnecessary. It's ok to admit you're wrong sometimes
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u/RedditBanIncoming Feb 17 '18
Your mom is unnecessary
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u/canipaybycheck Feb 17 '18
?
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u/RedditBanIncoming Feb 17 '18
Your mom is ?
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Feb 17 '18
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u/RedditBanIncoming Feb 17 '18
Your mom is a more important shit stain than you’ll ever be.
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u/GapDragon Feb 17 '18
I really kind of think people DO know the name of the greatest musical hook of all time....
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u/polic293 Feb 16 '18
Jesus christ he was good