Lanza Trivia Question time: One More Round!

[Derek McGovern]

OK: time for a new Lanza trivia question:

 

As our Lanza Musical Who's Who reveals, Mario Lanza sang with quite a number of young sopranos throughout his career, together with assorted mezzo-sopranos and even a contralto on at least one occasion. Of the females with whom he sang on an actual recording, who was the youngest?   

[Lou]

Derek, was it Elaine Malbin? She was 19 when she and Mario Lanza recorded the duet Vogliatemi  bene for RCA Vicor in 1950.

Cheers,
Lou

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Lou: No, it wasn't Elaine Malbin, though she certainly was very young at the time to be recording professionally.

Keep trying!

Cheers

Derek

[Lou]

Rita Moreno then? She and Elaine Malbin are of the same age, but apparently she was only 18 when she sang Tina Lina with Mario Lanza. (Initially I thought of Luisa Di Meo but she's not in Lanza Musical Who's Who, so I guess that rules her out.)

[jora...@gmail.com]

Derek, you are a cagey one! I don’t know if THIS is the answer you are seeking…but rigorously, Luisa Di Meo was only ten years old when she sang with Lanza on 7 Hills!. My project is about half done, so I should be back in a few months……Joe

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Lou and Joe: No, not Rita Morena or Luisa Di Meo. And this person is not necessarily in the Musical Who's Who either :) 

 

Cheers

Derek

 

 

[leeann]

Very tricky, very tricky. Not necessarily in the Musical Who's Who, so how about halfway--that is on the list, but without a biography?  What about Mary Jane Smith who sang "E Il sol dell'anima...Addio, Addio" Rigoletto duet at the Hollywood Bowl in 1949--although we've talked about that number in connection with Lanza's record-breaking D flat above high C. According to one newspaper article, she was only 14 in 1946, making her 17 in 1949.

I really think the answer is Colleen Lanza in the home recording. No, she didn't sing, but she was WITH him. :-)  Cheers, Lee Ann

 

 

[Rob]

On Friday, February 22, 2013 4:07:33 PM UTC+11, leeann wrote:

Very tricky, very tricky. Not necessarily in the Musical Who's Who, so how about halfway--that is on the list, but without a biography?  What about Mary Jane Smith who sang "E Il sol dell'anima...Addio, Addio" Rigoletto duet at the Hollywood Bowl in 1949--although we've talked about that number in connection with Lanza's record-breaking D flat above high C. According to one newspaper article, she was only 14 in 1946, making her 17 in 1949.

I really think the answer is Colleen Lanza in the home recording. No, she didn't sing, but she was WITH him. :-)  Cheers, Lee Ann

 

Yes! Well thought out, Leeann. That is quite a likely to this teaser.

"She even sings sharp - like me!" - wasn't that Proud Papa Mario's comment about his little daughter's singing? 

[Derek McGovern]

Well done, Lee Ann and Rob!

 

The answer is indeed Colleen Lanza, who at the age of barely three sang a lullaby (can't recall the name, but it involved lyrics such as "Rock the baby") on a home recording with her father, who joined in at the end. And, yes, as Rob pointed out, an amused Lanza noted that his daughter, who sounded very good for a three-year-old, shared his tendency to stray off-key :) (That's mentioned in Armando's book.) I have the recording on a tape somewhere, and it was first given to Armando by Colleen herself.  

 

Cheers

Derek

 

 

[Rob]

Woot, woot! I am stoked! 

Leeann was the actual winner - I merely took the opportunistic leap onto the band wagon.  

Nevertheless, may I suggest, if Leeann does not smoke cigars, she can have the kewpie doll, while I smugly puff away on the see-gar.

 

[Barnabas Nemeth]

Derek, you're very tricky. Is this solution is really valid?

Barnabas

2013/2/22 Derek McGovern <derek.m...@gmail.com>

Derek

 

 

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[norma]

> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_outoff
Derek,any chance of you putting the recording on the forum??
Norma

[leeann]

What a fun story to be reminded of, although some of us (okay, I) got it quite wrong :-).  The family photo section on the website has several images of Colleen with her father in 1951 when she was three, so about the time of the comment--including a shot of Lanza with Betty and Colleen with his first gold record for "Be My Love." (row eight).  Cheers, Lee Ann

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Barnabas: Yes, my question was a cheeky one, but if you go back and read it carefully you'll see that I was not asking who the youngest professional soprano with whom Lanza sang on a recording was---I simply asked who  the youngest female he recorded with was :) 

 

It was just a bit of fun, and, besides, it gave me a chance to share a story that not many members are familiar with.

 

Colleen Lanza was certainly musically gifted---even at three!---and very bright. She was also by far the most knowledgeable of the four children about her father's singing (and opera in general), as Armando discovered when he got to know her in the 1970s. I would love to have met her. It's such a shame her life was not a particularly happy one, and that it ended so tragically.  

 

Hi Norma: I don't have the tape of Colleen and her father with me in Korea, I'm afraid, and even if I did, I no longer have the means of transferring tape recordings to digital format. But I know that the tape is floating around in the UK, at least, as I once made a copy for a member of the British Mario Lanza Society (whom I think went on to circulate it among some of the members).

 

Cheers

Derek

 

  

[Derek McGovern]

I'd completely forgotten that over thirty years ago I made some tapes of Lanza bits and pieces for NZ Mario Lanza Society member Maurice Clarke, who also happens to be a member of this forum. Happily, one of the tapes included the one of infant Colleen singing, and Maurice has very kindly transferred and uploaded the recording to shared.com for all to hear. Here's the link:

 

http://www.4shared.com/mp3/5_rhJYr2/033_Mario__Daughter_Colleen_Ag.html

 

Bear in mind as you're listening that Colleen is probably only two and a bit here, as the recording dates from 1951 and she was born in December 1948.

 

Thanks, Maurice! (I'm sure you've made Norma's day :))

 

[Barnabas Nemeth]

OK. It was really a bit of fun. I haven't heard before that Colleen was somewhat gifty. I met personally with Damone and his sister in New York in 2005, they were not gifted this way at all. I also met with Mario's aunt in Philly in 1992 in their house in Christian Street and we made a video with each other. She told us and showed a lot interesting details. It was real treat for us. Barnabas

2013/2/23 Derek McGovern <derek.m...@gmail.com>

Derek

 

  

--

[Barnabas Nemeth]

Huh, this duett was really charming.

2013/2/23 Barnabas Nemeth <barnaba...@gmail.com>

[George Laszlo]

Derek, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE find a single download site where we can all deposit our files (mp3, photos, etc.)

I really wanted to listen to Colleen but the shared.com site made it extremely annoying to do anything. I was bombarded by ads and a video having nothing to do with the mp3 started to play. Then I was given a message that my email was going to be backed up. I had to close down this site immediately after this. With the anarchy that is now the Internet, we need a secure and reliable way to share. You should reject any links that are not tried and true. Since we have a single forum site, we also need to have a single storage location. Thanks

[norma]

Dear Derek, thanks a million and thank you as well Maurice.It is a delightful recording.
Thanks again Norma

[Derek McGovern]

Hi George: I didn't experience any problems when I clicked on the link that Maurice had provided. But I really don't think we should be complaining, as he went to a lot of trouble on our behalf transferring the recording to a new format, etc.

 

In any event, this is not usually a problem, as most recordings shared on this forum are in mp3 format (attached to posts), rather than 4shared.com offerings. As for photos, members usually insert them inside their posts (or as attachments), so I don't see any problem there. I think a single ad-free download depository site (such as Dropbox) would create more difficulties than it solved for some members because of the need for passwords/complicated explanations, etc. Besides, I already add any significant recordings or photos to our main site (e.g. the recently discovered "Mattinata").  

 

Anyway, I've converted the Colleen recording to an mp3, and here it is attached to this post.

 

Cheers

Derek

[Derek McGovern]

New trivia question!

 

We all know that Mario Lanza was celebrated for the brilliance and ease of his upper register. How many English-language songs did he record that featured high C (or attempted high C) endings? 

[Derek McGovern]

Well, it looks as though my latest trivia question has everyone baffled!

[leeann]

I have no business even tackling this question. None what.so.ever. But maybe it's okay to jumpstart it to open the way for people with actual musical knowledge.

Of course, to the ear that can't actually distinguish notes by name, it could easily appear dozens of songs arranged for the Coke Show might  have reached high C!.

But anyway, here are six English-language selections that have been pointed out over time: how about "Be My Love" and "Tina Lina" (I'm sure about those!). Then "My Destiny," "Wanting You," "One Night of Love," and "Desert Song."

The last note of "Pineapple Pickers," maybe? I've loved that particular ending for the sort of "in your face" spectacular note that, high C or not, is in such contrast to the awkward mediocrity of the song (well, IMHO). And also out of For the First Time--does the "Hofbrauhaus Song" reach the high C? Whatever the note is, it's among those worth waiting for!

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Lee Ann: Oooh: so close!

 

Lanza does indeed sing high Cs at the end of "Be My Love" (non-film versions), "Tina-Lina" (RCA version), "Wanting You," "One Night of Love" (the take featured on the CD When Day Is Done---not the more familiar version from the "B" side of The Student Prince; that version ends on a much lower A-flat), and "The Desert Song" (ghastly Coke version). So that's five songs at least.

 

The other three you mentioned don't end on high Cs, but they're still pretty spectacular! Those are brilliant B-flats that we hear during the Hofbrauhaus Song and at the end of "Pineapple Pickers." Recorded less than a year before Lanza died, they're certainly proof that his upper register was still gloriously intact at the end of his life. (And he goes higher still---up to a B---during the Aida scene at the end of the film.)

 

Any more guesses, Lee Ann---or anyone else? Remember that this question only refers to English-language songs that Lanza recorded that end on a high C.

 

Cheers

Derek  

 

[Barnabas Nemeth]

Hqw about "Here you are"?

2013/2/28 Derek McGovern <derek.m...@gmail.com>

Derek  

 

--

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Barnabas

 

Sorry: that crazy (and slightly shaky) final note on "And Here You Are" isn't a high C; it's a B.

 

And Norma: I had to delete your two posts, as they contained only previous messages!

 

Cheers

Derek

[norma]

On Thursday, February 28, 2013 4:02:55 PM UTC, Barnabas Nemeth wrote:
> Hqw about "Here you are"?
>

> Dear Derek,the song Serenade from the film Serenade?
Norma

[leeann]

Hmmm, well, here's another guess too. What about one version of "Serenade" (from the film)? Sorry, I don't know which recording, but ultimate note is, I definitely up there, and I think sounds strained--unlike Lanza's usual stunning and seemingly effortlessness finales where as a listener, you're suddenly in the stratosphere and don't really always realize how you got there. Lee Ann

[Derek McGovern]

Dear Norma: Yes, "Serenade" from the film Serenade does indeed end on a high C---the version that ends the movie, that is. Well done!

 

Can I ask you a favour? It's becoming very difficult to read your posts, as your own writing seems to get buried with the post you're replying to. (If you look at your last post, you'll see what I mean.) Can I ask that when you reply to a post, you delete everything inside your post except (of course) your own message? That way, it'll be so much easier to read your posts.

 

Thanks!

Derek

 

[Derek McGovern]

Leeann wrote:

 

Hmmm, well, here's another guess too. What about one version of "Serenade" (from the film)? Sorry, I don't know which recording, but ultimate note is, I definitely up there, and I think sounds strained--unlike Lanza's usual stunning and seemingly effortlessness finales where as a listener, you're suddenly in the stratosphere and don't really always realize how you got there. Lee Ann

 

Hi Lee Ann: Yes, that high C on the Serenade "Serenade" is a bit strained by Lanza's standards, although having said that, it sounds almost passable on the DVD version. (The same goes for the second, final high C at the end of "Di Quella Pira.") Certainly, it's no worse than any high C I've ever heard from Domingo, or quite a few other leading tenors :) But on LP and CD, where there's more of an echo chamber effect and less warmth, the note doesn't make for easy listening; in fact, the whole rendition sounds pretty awful!

 

Of course, a retake would no doubt have sorted out the problem---and on "Di Quella Pira" and "O Soave Fanciulla" as well. Detractors of Lanza's later singing often point to those strenuous high Cs on several numbers in Serenade as "proof" that his upper register was no longer as effortless as it had been just a few years earlier. Yet they forget that, unlike Lanza's pre-recording sessions for The Great Caruso with the highly regarded Peter Herman Adler, Warner Bros. wasn't interested in the tenor recording numerous takes to get things "perfect," as indeed Serenade conductor Ray Heindorf freely acknowledged. If we listen to some of the outtakes from The Great Caruso, we can hear worse high Cs than in Serenade on things like "Che Gelida Manina"---and even a strained B-flat on one take of the last part of "Cielo e Mar." The difference was, of course, that in The Great Caruso, Lanza re-recorded these arias until he got them right :)

 

Besides, there are a couple of perfectly acceptable---even thrilling---high Cs in Serenade, along with some stunning Bs and B-flats. In short, the idea that Lanza was losing his upper register by 1955 is preposterous!

 

Getting back to the trivia question, we now have six English-language songs recorded by Lanza with high C endings. Are they any more? :)

 

Cheers

Derek 

 

[Derek McGovern]

Whoops: make that last sentence "Are there any more?" :)

 

 

[Barnabas Nemeth]

Hi Derek, How about "With a song in my heart"?

Barnabas

2013/2/28 norma <norma...@ntlworld.com>

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Barnabas: Sorry: there's no high C on Lanza's recording of "With a Song in My Heart." (The ending probably sounds higher to you than it really is, as Mario is really pushing here.)

 

Cheers

Derek

 

[leeann]

Hi, Norma--I didn't mean to repeat your "Serenade" answer! Sorry! I honestly missed it when I was skimming through posts. It's funny how people come up with the same ideas at the same time as the answers to these questions build.  And yes, I do think there must be more high Cs!  Cheers, Lee Ann

[Derek McGovern]

I'll jump in here at this point and reveal that there are in fact twelve English-language songs that Lanza recorded in which (on at least one version) he ends on a high C (or at least an attempted high C!). So far, six have been identified by Lee Ann and Norma: "Be My Love," "Serenade" from Serenade, "Tina-Lina," "Wanting You," "One Night of Love," and "The Desert Song."    

 

Can you name the other six? (And remember that we're talking about the final note of each song.) Hint: they're not all songs from the Coke Shows :) 

 

Cheers

Derek  

[leeann]

Let's see. Attempted. That makes me wonder if tracks from Lanza on Broadway might be involved here. I need a pitch pipe. (So did Lanza, apparently, when he recorded that album.) But let's see otherwise.

How about

"Thine Alone" and "Someday." seem quite likely.  Then, does the movie version of "Song Angels Sing" ending make it to high C? All The Things You Are"? Lee Ann

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Lee Ann: Well, you scored one high C ending out of that trio of songs---"Thine Alone," "Some Day," and the movie version of "Song Angels Sing." Care to guess which one? :)

 

And I can happily spare anyone tempted to listen to the Lanza on Broadway album by reporting that it contains no high Cs!

 

Cheers

Derek    

[leeann]

So, we have a trivia question within a trivia question (and a reprieve--I still have never listened to Lanza on Broadway).

Well, I'll say "Thine Alone." And I'll add "The World is Mine Tonight" from When Day is Done. And I'll stop. Lee Ann

[Derek McGovern]

No and yes, Lee Ann! "Thine Alone" ends on a B (so that leaves "Some Day" and the Because You're Mine "Song Angels Sing" in contention), but yes, "The World Is Mine Tonight" most definitely ends on a high C.

 

So that brings the number of identified high C-ending songs to seven. Just five to go---or should I put everyone out of their misery?

Cheers

Derek

[leeann]

No misery at all! Just a lack of musical brilliance on my part, at least and for sure. So, I'll say that between "Some Day" and "Song Angels Sing" from the movie, it's the latter, and then I'd better resign. In trying (not too successfully) to differentiate the sound of the high C ending, though, I had to wonder how many operatic arias required that achievement as well--although maybe not necessarily as he finale. Lee Ann

[Derek McGovern]

"The Song Angels Sing" (film version)  is indeed correct, Lee Ann! You should trust your ears more often!

 

I have to say, though, that the film version isn't a patch on the exquisite RCA recording (wretched angels in the Jeff Alexander Choir notwithstanding).

 

So only four songs to go! And here's another hint: only one of them belongs exclusively to the Coke Shows.

 

As for written high Cs in opera, there are not very many that I can think of. Gounod wrote a C for the aria "Salut Demeure" in Faust (and Adolphe Adam went a whole tone higher to a D in Le Postillon de Lonjumeau), but Puccini makes the high C optional for his tenors at the end of "O Soave Fanciulla," and the Butterfly Love Duet, etc. And many of the most famous Cs in opera, such as the two in Verdi's "Di Quella Pira" were never written by their composers. (Verdi did include a few high Cs for tenors, however, in his works.)  The other thing, of course, is that prior to the 1830s, high Cs (and even higher notes) in operas were not sung in full chest voice, but rather in a kind of falsetto head voice.

 

Tenors these days are also quick to point out (quite reasonably!) that a tenor singing a high C in, say, "Di Quella Pira" in the mid-19th century, would actually be singing a note that would be no higher than a B today. That's because pitch has risen quite dramatically in the last 150 years. Pity the poor Italian tenor who has to sweat bullets before a performance of Il Trovatore in 2013, with half the audience waiting for those high Cs! 

 

Cheers

Derek  

 

[norma]

Dear Derek,What about Lover Come Back to Me?but I do not like the ending.
Norma

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Norma: No, that's not a high C at the end of Lover Come Back to Me. I like the audacity of that ending, by the way (and the fairly polarizing arrangement of the song itself), but I do wish that there'd been a retake. Mario falls off the note at the very end---not perhaps the best way to begin an album!

 

Cheers

Derek

 

 

[leeann]

ul

Hi, Derek, I'm withdrawing my trivia quiz resignation, please.

Thank you for talking about changes in tuning and singing notes as written--or not written.

Stories about Carlo Bergonzi came to mind-both on-line. In one, an interview with the Schiller Institute, Begonzi argued against contemporary tuning, which has apparently changed the base level system to a higher one, stating that the modern stress on high and higher notes for tenors presents problems of technique, that it moves
the tenor voice to an unnatural foundation and ultimately, we all will lose because the standard are counterfactual. IN fact, he argues that the dearth of superb tenor voices today is because of this transition to higher tuning standards!

In another (I don't remember where), Bergonzi faced great criticism after a performance for failure to take a high note in a Verdi opera. He brought out the score and argued he had sung as Verdi had written it, and that was that!

Well, I was walking today with headphone up full volume, running through the 3-CD, The Mario Lanza Collection with so many beautifully rendered English-language songs.  Volume alone might have distorted my perspective, but it seems to me these might be good candidates: And "My Song, My Love", "You Are My Love", "Boom-Biddy-Boom-Boom", "And Here You Are."

And then there's "Golden Days." At least one version ends with his not singing in full voice, as does "Bayou Lullaby." Now what those lovely notes are, I couldn't guess.

There's a lot of good listening behind this question!  Lee Ann

[Michael McAdam]

Hi Lee Ann.

My Song, My Love ends on high-C (I spotted that one) but I believe that And Here You Are and Boom-Biddy-Boom-Boom end on a high B?

I've been out of touch for a couple of weeks but these Trivia Quiz's of Derek's always test one's mettle (and memory).

I seem to recall Tell Me Tonight ends on a high-C (or maybe pretty close....a B Flat?)

Mike

On Sunday, March 3, 2013 7:47:20 PM UTC-4, leeann wrote:

Well, I was walking today with headphone up full volume, running through the 3-CD, The Mario Lanza Collection with so many beautifully rendered English-language songs.  Volume alone might have distorted my perspective, but it seems to me these might be good candidates: And "My Song, My Love", "You Are My Love", "Boom-Biddy-Boom-Boom", "And Here You Are."

[Derek McGovern]

Good to see Mike dipping his toes in---and equally nice to see that Lee Ann has rescinded her quiz resignation!

 

Barnabas had actually already suggested "And Here You Are"---but that finishes on a "mere" B, as Mike thought. But "My Song, My Love"? That's a high C winner, Lee Ann! I don't care much for the song, but how many other tenors could toss off not one but two high Cs the way Lanza does here?!

 

"Tell Me Tonight" and "You Are My Love" both end on a B-flat, and "Boom Biddy Boom Boom" ends on a notch higher on a B. So close!

 

As for Golden Days and the RCA Bayou Lullaby, those gorgeous mezza voce endings (especially on the latter) are definitely not high Cs---whatever they are (and I must check them out when I get a moment).  

 

So we've now identified eight high C endings of the twelve in this question:

 

1/ Be My Love (non-film versions)

2/ Serenade" from Serenade

3/ Tina-Lina (RCA)

4/ Wanting You

5/ One Night of Love (Coke broadcast take)

6/ The Desert Song (Coke)  

7/ The Song Angels Sing (MGM)

8/ My Song, My Love

 

Lee Ann: I was very interested in Bergonzi's interview. Of course he's right---and not just about the impossible strain that this pitch raising is placing on voices, but also the absurdity of assigning roles that are far too heavy for a particular voice in those increasingly rare cases where the singer does happen to have an easy high C. As he points out, just because a light leggero or lyric tenor can sing a high C in a Rossini opera doesn't mean the same singer should ever be singing Manrico in Il Trovatore.   

 

Speaking of which, Jose' Carreras in his autobiography points out that the highest written note the tenor has to sing in the opera is an A, making the role "a tenor's delight," he says. But of course audiences expect to hear that C in "Di Quella Pira," which, he adds, "is the very reason why a tenor misses that high note when it comes, or worse, spoils the rest of the aria." He jokingly suggests that opera theatres should advertise the opera either "with the High C" or without it, depending on the tenor's decision, and let audiences choose accordingly :) 

 

Cheers

Derek    

 

[Steff]

Hi Derek,

 

Did anybody already mention "Thine Alone?"

 

Steff 

[Steff]

Derek,

 

And what about "The World is Mine Tonight?"

 

Steff 

[Steff]

 And another try:

 

 "Giannina Mia" ???

 

 

Steff

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Steff: "Thine Alone" has already been suggested---and rejected!---but, yes, you're absolutely right about "The World Is Mine Tonight" and "Giannina Mia" ending on high Cs. Well done!

 

So that leaves just two songs to identify...

 

Cheers

Derek    

 

 

[Michael McAdam]

Derek, you already acknowledged Lee Ann's spotting of The World Is Mine Tonight on Mar. 2nd?

M.

[Derek McGovern]

Whoops! Humblest apologies to Lee Ann! Somehow I missed that post yesterday when I was totaling up the high C songs identified so far.

[Steff]

Hi Derek,

 

I had not noticed either ("The World is Mine Tonight,") as I only looked at your latest list. Without going through all the previous posts, what about "Deep in My Heart, Dear" from the Coke Show?

 

Steff

[leeann]

Steff's guess, "Deep In My Heart" made me seriously wonder if anything else from The Student Prince needed to be thrown on the pile. (Although I'd expect Mike, as the incomparable remasterer of this work to have mentioned it.)  Is it possible that Lanza finishes the incomparable "Serenade," which many consider among his most phenomenal works, with a high C? I haven't revisited Christmas carols either. Lee Ann

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Steff: Lanza does hit a (crazy) high C on the rough-as-old-boots Coke version of "Deep in My Heart, Dear" (on the word "dream"), but it's not the final note of the song.

 

And good morning, Lee Ann: I'm afraid there are no high Cs in The Student Prince or among any of Lanza's recordings of Christmas songs (and that includes "O Holy Night"). The Student Prince "Serenade" ends on a B-flat. 

 

So two elusive songs still remain to be identified!

 

Cheers

Derek

 

[norma]

Dear Derek,
When we finally get the last two songs,it would be interesting to know which had "attempted high Cs"

Norma

[Steff]

What about "Day in, Day Out?"

 

Steff 

[Steff]

 

Was "Earthbound" already mentioned?

 

Steff

[Michael McAdam]

Hi Derek:

As Lee Ann had indicated earlier, the identification of these last two (likely Coke Show) high-C-ending songs will give our participating members (?) the opportunity to troll through many old Lanza recordings. Good stuff! (would that I had some spare time these last couple of weeks......supposed to be retired now - ha!)

Mike

[Lou]

Some shots in the dark: Song of Songs, Behold, Yours Is My Heart Alone, alternate title song from Serenade.

Cheers,
Lou

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Lou: You struck gold! Of those four you mentioned, "Song of Songs" does indeed end on a high C. 

 

So now just one song remains to be identified!

 

And just harking back to a few earlier posts:

 

Norma: I'll certainly let you know which of the high Cs I was referring to as an "attempted" one (meaning that poor old Mario doesn't quite make the note). But we haven't got there yet :)

 

Steff: Earthbound has a spectacular ending, but it's not a high C.

 

And Mike: I do like the idea that this question may have prompted quite a few members to go through the Lanza discography---and, hopefully, rediscover some forgotten gems. 

 

And for anyone struggling with the concept of a high C, this online piano should help:

 

http://www.thevirtualpiano.com/

 

The tenor's high C is the second C from the right of the keyboard.

 

Cheers

Derek     

[Rob]

My Destiny, perhaps? I have not even dug out the recording, relying instead on memory alone.

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Rob: No, I'm sorry: that one's already been ruled out. But you're right in looking at Lanza's post-Coke recordings for that elusive 12th song :)

 

Cheers

Derek 

[Rob]

Thanks, Derek. I should have read the other posts more carefully before leaping in blindly (and deafly if there's such a word). Having now just listened to the youtube videos of it, I realise that the highest note in any case is not the final one in that song.

 

[leeann]

Could it be "My Margo" from The Desert Song, 1959?  Lee Ann

 

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Lee Ann: No, it's not "My Margo" (though its ending is certainly strained), and I should clarify that it is a released recording.  

 

Cheers

Derek

 

[Lou]

Could it be Begin the Beguine?

Cheers,
Lou

[Derek McGovern]

I'm afraid not, Lou! "Begin the Beguine" ends on a high A.

 

Cheers

Derek

[Lou]

Only a Rose?

[Derek McGovern]

Sorry, Lou: that's a spectacular B-flat that Lanza sings on his 1956 version, and again on the finale of his 1959 recording.

 

Cheers

Derek

[norma]

What about. Lover come back to me
Best Wishes Norma

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Norma: You asked about "Lover Come Back To Me" just a couple of days ago, and I replied to you!

 

No, it doesn't end on a high C. Its final note is a B-flat (a tone below a C).

 

Cheers

Derek

[norma]

Sorry about that.It must be short term memory loss!

  Norma

[leeann]

We're SO CLOSE! And if I've got the clues right, we now know it's from the post-Coke era and it's a released recording. I thought I'd take a minute to recap what we've eliminated as a group to get it straight in my head and to keep Derek from having to repeat himself.

So, casually alphabetically, here's what it is NOT (assuming I didn't miss anything and add to confusion):

And Here You Are
Anything from the Student Prince
Any Christmas Song
Any version of Serenade EXCEPT the one that ends the movie
Bayou Lullaby (mezza voce)
Begin the Beguine
Behold
Boom-Biddy-Boom-Boom
Day In, Day Out
Earthbound
Golden Days (mezza voce)
Hofbrauhaus Song
Lover Come Back to Me
My Destiny
My Margo
Only a Rose
Pineapple Pickers
Someday
Tell Me Tonight
Thine Alone
You Are My Love
Yours is My Heart Alone

Back to the turntable (well, mp3 player) :)  Cheers, Lee Ann

[leeann]

PS And yes, I did leave out a major group: 

NOTHING from Lanza on Broadway

There, "done and dusted" as our United Kingdom folk might say. Lee Ann

[Derek McGovern]

Thanks for bringing clarity back to this thread, Lee Ann!

 

And a hint about that final elusive song: the high C is more of a scream, really, plus Lanza is uncharacteristically flat on the note. If only he'd done a retake....

 

Cheers

Derek 

 

 

[leeann]

Is it, no, it couldn't be, "Song of the Vagabonds", with the "and to hell with Burgun-deeee." grand finish? and if it's that, is he on-key with the preceeding "aahhahhhhh" phrasing? I'm listening on the computer while I work--not the best speakers in the world. Lee Ann

[Derek McGovern]

And the prize goes to....Lee Ann!

 

That is indeed a high C that Lanza sings (or attempts to sing!) at the end of "Song of the Vagabonds." You can hear that he's not ready for the note in the lead-up to it; in fact, he's struggling throughout the second half of the song to maintain the energy and rhythm of the superior first half.

 

I'll have to check out the "aahhahhhhh" bits that immediately precede it, but I think he is slightly off-key there (in contrast to his singing of the first half of the song).

 

According to the matrix numbers from The Vagabond King session, "Song of the Vagabonds" was the sixth successive song recorded that evening, so no doubt Lanza was no longer feeling as fresh as he had at the start of the session, when he sang two thrilling high As in "Love Me Tonight." Then again, the "Only a Rose" Finale, with its excellent B-flat ending, followed the "Song of the Vagabonds," so perhaps he got his second wind! 

 

It was certainly madness for him, though, to record an entire album in one session. Even in his peak health years, Lanza had never recorded more than five songs or arias in a single session (in fact, four was the norm for him).

 

Cheers

Derek   

 

[Michael McAdam]

Good on ya, Lee Ann. You are becoming a right little Lanza aficionado, aren't you? ;-)

That song certainly wouldn't have been staring me in the face as "The Vagabond King" is one of the very few Lanza records I don't own (Although I suppose all or most of the numbers would be on YouTube).

That was a good Trivia Quiz, Derek. A pity that more members didn't participate.

Mike

On Thursday, March 7, 2013 8:00:51 PM UTC-4, Derek McGovern wrote:

And the prize goes to....Lee Ann!

 

That is indeed a high C that Lanza sings (or attempts to sing!) at the end of "Song of the Vagabonds." You can hear that he's not ready for the note in the lead-up to it; in fact, he's struggling throughout the second half of the song to maintain the energy and rhythm of the superior first half.

 

Cheers

Derek   

 

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Mike: There's some good singing on The Vagabond King, and I actually think it's Lanza's most consistent 1959 album after Caruso Favorites. It's just a shame it's the worst recorded of all five 1959 albums! (Mind you, there's an RCA Tosca with Del Monaco, Tebaldi and London recorded the same month, I think---and at the same Cinecitta' studios---that's not much of an improvement sound-wise on The Vagabond King.) It remains an enduring mystery how the Italian sound engineers could have done such a fine recording job on the Mario! album, and then made a real hash of things, sonic-wise, on most of Lanza's remaining studio sessions.

 

The "Song of the Vagabonds" isn't one of the highlights of The Vagabond King album (for me), but "Love Me Tonight" and "Nocturne" both have their moments, and the two only "Only a Rose"s (duet and Finale) are nicely done. I also quite like the "Drinking Song" (even with its hauntingly prophetic lyrics---"For if I die as I hope to die/then I'll never be sober again, not I!").

 

Cheers

Derek