The Mario Lanza Story: Two-Part BBC Radio Documentary

[Derek McGovern]

Dear All: As many of you are probably aware, for the last few months
rising British tenor Andrew Bain has been working on a radio
documentary on Lanza for the BBC. This project is finally a reality.
On Monday, October 5 at 11.30pm (GMT) the first of two 30-minute
programmes, entitled The Mario Lanza Story, will be broadcast on BBC
Radio 2. The second part will be broadcast the following Monday
(October 12) at the same time.

Here are some links, kindly supplied by Susan:

For a description of the programmes: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00n2vw9

And to listen live: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/radio2

For those of you are in the US, the programmes will be broadcast at
the following times on each Monday:

4.30pm Eastern time
5.30pm Central time
6.30pm Pacific time

Our Australian members should tune in at 8.30am (Tuesday) and New
Zealanders at 11.30am (Tuesday). These are very convenient times for
many of us, but do spare a thought for our Continental members, who
have to tune in at 12.30am on Tuesday, and for Lou in the Philippines,
where it'll be 6.30am.

Naturally, I'm excited about these programmes. We're extremely lucky
to have someone as musically informed as Andrew on board for this
project, and I'm confident that he will do Lanza proud. Andrew, of
course, is a member of this forum, and I know that he'll be most
interested in everyone's feedback on these programmes.

Here's an earlier post from Andrew (which I've slightly modified to
bring it up to date):

"Hello All: Just to let you all know that I have been working on a
radio documentary for BBC Radio 2 titled; The Mario Lanza Story. I
have co-written and co-produced it and appear briefly in it too.
Armando also very kindly
talked to us over the wire and he features a lot, because he was
fantastic! The documentary is in two thirty minute episodes a week
apart, starting October 5. It is narrated by Dame Kiri Te Kanawa. If
any of you cannot hear
it through the normal channels, I'm sure I will be able to access it
for you.

"I hope that the documentary will be to people's liking, I have tried
to ensure that it is as balanced and fair as I can and that it
includes some good selections of his recordings. We have obviously
covered the controversial aspects of his life but I like to think we
have covered them with sensitivity and fairness - I hope you all will
agree. We have had some lovely interviews, I have talked to all sorts
of people and I am very excited about it."


The guest list that Andrew and his co-producers have come up with is
certainly an interesting one. In addition to Andrew and Armando,
there'll be interviews with actor Terence Stamp (who, as you may
remember, is a great Lanza admirer), celebrated tenors Jose' Carreras
and Joseph Calleja, Terry Robinson, Derek Mannering, and Ellisa Lanza
Bregman. (If I've left any names out, no doubt Andrew will tell us.)

If anyone is unable to listen to the programme live, I understand that
it'll be available in the BBC Radio 2 archive for a week or so.

Happy listening, everyone.

Cheers
Derek

[Derek McGovern]

A correction for our Australian members: Armando's just informed me
that Australia starts daylight saving ("summer time") this weekend.
That means that for those of you who are in Western Australia,
Andrew's programme will begin at the more civilised time of 7.30am,
and at 9.30am for our Victoria, New South Wales and Tasmanian members.
(I'm assuming that the whole of Australia goes on daylight saving at
the same time.)

If anyone's confused, this site should be able to clarify things:

http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/

[vicki]

This is very exciting news! I can't wait!

[Derek McGovern]

Just a reminder to everyone that the first part of Andrew's BBC radio
documentary will be broadcast in just over 14 hours (Monday, 5
October, 11.30pm GMT) at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/radio2

(I'll be at work then, but I'm certainly hoping that I'll be able to
catch it live.)

[Vince Di Placido]

Just listening to the BBC radio documentary at the moment, all good so
far & loving Kiri's speaking voice...
How many times have I heard Mario's voice & it still takes my breath
away... Just beautiful!

[Derek McGovern]

Bravo, Andrew! I enjoyed that very much. Given the time constraints
that you were under trying to squeeze in the essentials of Mario's
life (up to 1951), I thought the programme did very well to cover so
much. The important things were all there: the emphasis on the fact
that Lanza always wanted to be an *opera singer* (not a film star),
that he did perform on the operatic and concert stage (nice touch
using the ending of the Hollywood Bowl Butterfly Duet to illustrate
this), the two roles he sang, the reason that his operatic ambitions
took "a back seat" after he'd been signed to MGM, etc. Excellent
comments on his voice from Alan Titchmarsh, Jose' Carreras, Sammy
Cahn, and others, and I liked the fact that you included Mario himself
talking (in 1958) about the first meeting with Koussevitzky. Red
Buttons's contribution I could have lived with out, but that's neither
here nor there.

The musical selections were always interesting: great idea to include
the beginning of the 1949 Che Gelida, and I liked how you used the
1944 Addio alla Madre in conjunction with Armando's discussion of the
Margelli recordings. It was a brilliant touch finishing with the
conclusion to E Lucevan le Stelle!

Mannering did a good job, as did Dame Kiri in her (very well-written)
narration, and I thought Armando was brilliant.

Again, bravo, Andrew!

[Muriel]

After two hours of checking my computer for this show, I finally was
pleased to hear it. To say I'm happy with the result is an
understatement. What a treat, with none of the usual mistakes. It
included excerpts of Mario's actual interviews in his own voice - I
loved that.

Some other musical numbers were: Granada, the Butterfly Duet with
Frances Yeend, La Donna e Mobile. Using the ending of E Lucevan le
Stelle at the end of this first segment was most effective.

Armando, as usual, explained the greatness of Mario's voice quite
well. In telling of the works he recorded for Maria Margelli, Armando
stated that the true size of Mario's voice was already clear at the
young age of 23. We hear Mario singing Addio all madre at this time.
Armando highlights hearing the full power of the voice, more dramatic
than lyric, but also reaching incredibly fearless heights. Truly an
amazing feat! Grazie, Armando!

I'll let others add their comments now, but I'm quite uplifted by this
new tribute to Mario.

Ciao for now, Muriel

On Oct 5, 7:07 pm, leeann <leeanngha...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Just a quick note re US times for next week.   US Eastern time is
> GMT-5--so the program actually starts  here at 6:30pm eastern; 5:30
> central; 4:30 mountain; and 3:30 Pacific.
>
> Part I gives us  Be My Love, Che Gelida Manina, E Lucevan le Stelle,
> Vesti la giubba, Bel Canto trio excerpts, Mamma mia che vo' sape, and
> more. The sound is breathtaking.
>
>  Lovely to hear Mr. Cesari.  All other comments on hold.

[Jan Hodges]

Well that was a treat. So far it has been very well done and very fair. I thought the choice of Be my Love as the opening number was a good choice as it was his first major hit. The other musical numbers were extremely well chosen as examples of Mario's voice and the commentary was well divided between the contributors with no one person being given the bulk of it...  I liked hearing more of Elissa and Armando and what a bonus to have Mario's commentary as well . My  verdict.... Well done to all concerned! Can't wait for part two. Regards Jan

[Derek McGovern]

For anyone who missed the actual broadcast and would like to hear the
programme, it can be heard here for the next seven days:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00n2vw9

Apologies, by the way, to our American members: whoever supplied me
with the information that the programme would be starting at 4.30pm
Eastern Standard Time was two hours out! I've just checked the world
clock site (after reading grumbles on the Rense site that our forum
had supplied the wrong times), and I see that EST is currently five,
not seven, hours behind Britain's GMT, meaning the programme actually
started at 6.30pm EST. Sorry to make you wait, Muriella!

[Armando]

Surprisingly good! Congratulations to all at BBC 2, particularly
Andrew for, given the obvious time limitations, covering so well the
salient points of Lanza’ life and career.
The musical excerpts were well chosen and I particularly liked Te
Kanawa’s narration as well as her beautiful speaking voice.

Lastly, I never cease to be amazed at how pronounced my accent still
is after so many years living in Australia. No wonder some people
think I’m putting it on!

[Lou]

Had to wake up an hour earlier to catch this broadcast, but I wouldn't
have missed it for anything. Congratulations to Andrew for a very well-
organized, seamless, and authoritative documentary, and to Derek for
alerting me to the broadcast time in my country.

Mario's narrations in his own voice, which I heard for the first time,
bring him back to life, if only for a few magical, poignant moments. I
have nothing but praises for the choice and timing of the songs and
arias. And in giving more time to Armando, Andrew's doco definitely
does Kidel's one better.

Can't wait for the second part!

Lou

[Shaw]

I thoroughly enjoyed that. I liked Lanza's account of his trick with
the Caruso record ("you sound better in person-" ha ha) :-) Loved the
old recording of his "addio alla madre" (wow) and the whole thing was
very tastefully and smoothly woven together. Very good narration from
Te Kanawa as well. Looking forward to part 2

[Lou]

I love your accent, Armando. It's not really that pronounced, just
enough to sound romantic. I'm sure you know that many people think a
trace of Italian is sexy.

Lou

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Lou: I'm sure many listeners shared your assessment! A work
colleague of mine listened to the programme with me, and she was very
taken with Armando's eloquence *and* his accent.

Mario's father retained a strong Italian accent, and he was a similar
age to Armando when he emigrated from Italy.

[Armando]

Well, in view of Lou’s and Derek’s encouraging remarks I’ve decided
not to work on trying to lessen it! :-)

By the way it was good to hear my name pronounced correctly for once!
(by Te Kanawa )

[Derek McGovern]

Speaking of Kiri Te Kanawa's Italian pronunciation, it was a pleasant
surprise to hear Lanza's original name, Cocozza, pronounced correctly
for once!

I've just been listening to the documentary again -- this time through
my home computer speakers -- and the sound quality is startlingly good
on Be My Love, Che Gelida Manina, and E Lucevan le Stelle. I know what
Vince means about having his breath taken away, no matter how familiar
one is with that amazing voice.

Just a couple of comments from the doco that I'd like to reproduce
here (because they sum up so movingly the essence of Lanza):

"Lanza's a combination of passionate feelings, a beautiful voice – a
wonderful colour – very, very communicative, and extremely
spontaneous. So I think it's always a joy to listen again and again to
Mario Lanza" – José Carreras.

And from broadcaster/novelist Alan Titchmarsh:

"There's a great purity – a sort of innocence about Lanza's tenor –
because it was just a kind of *unencumbered* voice. It wasn't hampered
by too much technique. It seemed to me he sang from the heart. When
you hear him singing, you can't believe that this man does not
actually love singing, and to me that's so important. Singing is, if
nothing else, hugely emotional, and there's an enormous emotion behind
Lanza's singing."

> > > > think I’m putting it on!- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

[Andrew Bain]

Thank you all for your kind words about the doc, I am glad you enjoyed it. I have to admit I was a little nervous as to your opinions. You will all be pleased to know that Armando's fabulous accent and opinions will be featuring again next week too! You are quite right about Alan Titchmarsh Derek, he was brilliant. I have to admit we only really interviewed him because he is very popular with the Radio 2 audience in the UK. However he was a revelation, talking with great knowledge, enthusiasm and passion about Mario.

It was very difficult to get it all into 2 30 min broadcasts we really could have filled at least twice that.

Best wishes to all

Andrew

[Derek McGovern]

Andrew wrote:

"I have to admit I was a little nervous as to your opinions."

Ha! You needn't have been. I was just delighted you made it abundantly
clear that Lanza wasn't simply a singer of love songs (as he's so
often presented as). The 1944 Addio alla Madre, the Che Gelida, the
Hollywood Bowl Butterfly Duet, E Lucevan le Stelle...these were all
wonderful examples of a side to him that really needed to be
emphasised -- and you did it beautifully.

Lou mentioned earlier that she'd never heard the tapes of Lanza
talking that you included snippets from on the programme. Lou: here's
a link to the 1958 interview on which Mario talks about his first
encounter Koussevitzky. It's an unusual interview in some respects:
Mario sounds very baritonal indeed here, and his sentence formation is
very strange in a couple of places (eg, "I didn't, in reality, the
truth I must tell..."). It's as if he hasn't spoken English for a long
time. But it's interesting -- and at least he's not telling "porkies"
about substituting his name over Caruso records! (That was a Frederick
Jagel recording, not a Caruso record :-))

Enjoy:

http://www.4shared.com/account/file/137948711/f4de458b/Interview__1958__--_Lanza_talking_about_his_early_years.html

[Andrew Bain]

Yea sorry about the Caruso record bit, I know it was Jagel but as Mario said it was Caruso, we thought it was justifiable to say that "legend has it that he used a caruso record" - naughty I know!

[fish]

Hi Derek, I couldn't find where to do this so hope it's ok this
time.
I agree with what everyone has said about the program. I thought the
excerpts of songs were excellent. It just goes to show that no matter
how long ago Mario sang, today it sounds every bit as wonderful as it
did then and people continue to appreciate that wonderful voice and
will continue to do so into the future because his voice is timeless,

[Derek McGovern]

Oh, I wasn't criticising you, Andrew -- just smiling at Mario's
invention. I don't know how he thought he could get away with that
one! Then again, on the same interview he claims to be almost six feet
tall and a year younger than he really was :-)

Quite possibly he was just helping the MGM publicity department along
with some of this, although to the end of his life he enjoyed taking a
few years off his age when talking to reporters. And who can blame him
after all the tabloid exaggerations about his weight, etc?

[Andrew Bain]

Yes having witnessed the PR machine of SonyBMG in action making things up I know what these big companies are like

[Michele]

Hello Everyone,
Managed to hear the broadcast this morning. Went on line at about
7.15am to give myself plenty of time and couldn't find the programme
(not very computer literate). Came back here to find quite a few
people had heard the show and have to confess I was a bit upset as I
thought I'd missed it. But went back on and managed to find the
recording of the show.
Really wonderful, especially the bits where Mario was actually
speaking, I do love his speaking voice, he could read the Telephone
book and it would be wonderful. Also noticed Ellisa's speaking voice
was really quite musical as was her Father's and wondered did she ever
think of singing. I'm really looking forward to the 2nd half of the
show. Just wish it had been longer.

Armando: I could pick your voice out immediately, having seen you in
"Singing to the Gods". Your accent if most attractive please don't
ever lose it.

Regards Michele

[Stefan Huber]

Many thanks for the link to the BBC broadcast. I've listened to parts of
it and it's really interesting.

There's a similar broadcast on Austrian radio in about half an hour.
I'll be recording it and will let you know if any rare reocrdings
surface there.

The one thing that makes me sad is that no TV station over here is
repeating any of Mario's movies. I recently browsed an internet database
and noticed that "The Great Caruso" and "Toast Of New Orleans" haven't
been on TV since 1999. For "Serenade", I couldn't even find out the last
broadcast date. I hope that maybe this Christmas these movies will be on
air again...

Best regards,

Stefan
Michele schrieb:

[leeann]

What a beautiful tribute, and what an excellently scripted, edited,
and well-balanced program. How thrilling to have the emphasis on the
operatic repertoire and so elegantly to highlight the essence of the
man in such a brief period of time.

Congratulations and thanks to everyone involved in this production.
How fortunate we are on this group to have a bit of the inside track.

And Armando, I'll add the adjective distinguished to your list of
compliments.

Housekeeping: last night I removed a message I'd posted to this
thread. It contained errors of fact--a complete disconnect between my
head and my fingers, and I see it still shows up in some places. So
sorry. Will be more careful.

[Muriel]

Just a few things - Armando, please do not try to lose your accent.
I've just come back from Italy and I miss it already!! I hated coming
home. I also want to amend something I wrote last night. I misquoted
you here:

Armando highlights hearing the full power of the voice, more dramatic
than lyric, but also reaching incredibly fearless heights. Truly an
amazing feat! Grazie, Armando!

What I should have written was "but also reaching incredible fearless
heights." Mi dispiace.... Oh, I now know I had the pronunciation of
your name correctly figured out. I had to laugh when several people in
Italy corrected my pronunciations...I'm learning.

Derek: I didn't mind the two hour wait. What concerned me was I
thought I had missed the program altogether. I could have done without
Red Buttons' remarks also, but he is a highly recognizable person and
he probably meant no harm....

Ciao, Muriel

[Armando]

On Oct 7, 1:42 pm, Muriel <mawscompu...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> Just a few things - Armando, please do not try to lose your accent.
> I've just come back from Italy and I miss it already!!

OK, Muriel, I’ll do my best! :-)

As for missing Italy, I know what you mean, even though there are many
aspects of the Italians that I dislike.

I’m sure Red Buttons meant no harm, but he did embellish the story
somewhat-
300 chops? Not even Mario was capable of that feat! Buttons, by the
way, died in 2006.

Take care!

Armando

[Derek McGovern]

Just a reminder that the second and final part of the BBC Radio 2
documentary The Mario Lanza Story will be broadcast at:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/radio2 at 11.30p.m. (G.M.T.) on
Monday, October 12.

(And for our American members, that's 6.30p.m. EST)

I won't be able to listen live, as I'll be teaching then, but I look
forward to hearing the program a couple of hours later in the BBC
archive: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00n6vmb

Don't forget to post your thoughts on this second instalment!

[fish]

I just finished listening to episode 2, which was just as well done as
episode 1. The selection of song excerpts they played was very
appropriate to what was being said and showed Mario Lanza's
versatility. Very sad hearing that last interview of his with Peter
Lind Hayes, which I feel wasn't really needed to be played. The
conclusion was beautiful, a real "tear jerker".

On Oct 12, 4:25 pm, Derek McGovern <derek.mcgov...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Just a reminder that the second and final part of the BBC Radio 2
> documentary The Mario Lanza Story will be broadcast at:
>

> http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/radio2at 11.30p.m. (G.M.T.) on

[Derek McGovern]

These comments are based on one listening in less than ideal
circumstances while suffering from a heavy cold, but...

Overall, I felt that the second part (or more precisely, the second
half of the second part) was a bit of a mixed bag compared with last
week's programme. While I absolutely loved the detailed analysis of
Lanza's voice from Joseph Calleja & Alan Titchmarsh and the comments
on his versatility from Armando and Andrew, my gut feeling was that
too much precious time was spent emphasising Mario's self-destructive
lifestyle. And once again, Peter Prichard's comments in a Lanza
documentary -- with this now the third time that he's been on one --
were basically gratuitous. Instead of discussing how much Lanza could
eat, which I thought had been adequately covered last week with Red
Button's 300 lamb chops anecdote, or how he got punched by Mario (and
I notice that the details always vary in his retelling!), I wish
Prichard had talked about the important stuff, eg, the successful La
Scala audition that *he alone* says Lanza had in 1958, or about his
voice and its impact on concert audiences. After all, Prichard is one
of the few people left who was with Lanza during (part of) his final
recital tour.

I also felt there was too much emphasis on Lanza's drinking, including
the suggestion in the narration that he was addicted to alcohol by the
early 1950s. That is actually debatable. It would have been nice if
the programme had established that in spite of his serious problems
with alcohol, Lanza (even at the end) was often able to control his
drinking, especially when he was working. Without this clarification,
some listeners may have assumed that Lanza spent his final years in a
state of alcoholic stupefaction.

I also didn't agree with the emphasis on the fact that (according to
Te Kanawa's narration) Lanza -- "even without the ruining influence of
Hollywood" -- would probably never have made it as an opera singer.
This flies in the face of testimony from many people who worked
closely with Lanza in the pre-Hollywood period. (I agree, though, that
by 1959 the prospect of Lanza returning to opera had greatly
diminished -- but that's a separate issue.)

There were plenty of *great* things in the programme, however -- and I
feel that the positives definitely outweighed the negatives. I liked
all of the musical choices save Arrivederci, Roma. Loved the lead into
the Lamento di Federico with the comments about "outstanding" singing
in Serenade. Likewise, Carreras' comments (and imitation of Mario)
leading into the Student Prince Serenade. Magical! Andrew's comments
were also bang on the money when he discussed Lanza's crossover
abilities. And I liked Ellisa's contribution, particularly at the end
with that moving combination of Guardian Angels and her commentary. It
was also great to hear Ellisa intelligently debunking the Mafia
nonsense.

I was very pleased that the programme included Armando's important
point about Lanza having the rare ability to sing (convincingly) from
operas as lyric as L'Elisir d'Amore to the dramatic works such as
Otello. When was the last time you heard that observation on a Lanza
doco?!

Calleja was also wonderful:

"His voice has a very distinctive burnished quality coupled with an
incredible extension. He has very resonant low notes, [a] very
beautiful burnished middle register, and a thrilling, exciting top.
The incredible beauty and emotion he evoked...it was one of those rare
voices that instantly speak to you."

Very moving stuff!

And from Alan Titchmarsh (after he'd rubbished "the cognoscenti" for
sniffing at Lanza on account of his popular appeal):

"Because the voice is so big, there are suggestions that it's
uncontrolled. But if you listen to Lanza singing, there's enormous
control in that voice, his dynamics are exceptionally good, and I
think to write him off as 'Oh, a populist' is a great mistake."

Bravo, Alan Titchmarsh!

And bravo, Andrew, for all your efforts here. I hope you won't be
stung by my criticisms! While we may differ somewhat in how we
perceive Lanza the man, for what it's worth we're in perfect agreement
about his attributes as an artist.

Did your programmes ultimately honour that artist's memory? Yes!!

Cheers
Derek

[Armando]

After the excellent first part last week, the second one, for me, was
an anticlimax. There were a lot of positives, which Derek has already
singled out in his post, but there was almost an equal amount of
negatives. Too much emphasis placed on trivial matters at the expense
of the musical aspects and the usual amount of baloney, particularly
the bit stating that Lanza would probably never have made it as an
opera singer.

Terry Robinson claiming that he had said no to going to Italy is
totally false-Betty didn’t want him there. And the nonsense about the
many extramarital flings is exactly that, since I have documented
proof that they were few and far between.

Good selection of music, and I enjoyed Andrew’s snippet of Because
You’re Mine.

All in all a good effort that could have been much better.

[Michele]

Hi Derek
Have just been on J. Rense's site and Jim Thompson had a few
interesting comments to make about the BBC broadcast.
He also did not agree with Kiri saying that Mario lacked the
discipline to become an Opera singer. I have to ask myself why they
included Pritchard's comments on how Mario could eat like a horse, so
what!! I can remember the lousy press he used to get when he was
alive. The poor man could not do a thing right. Every time he was
mentioned in the press he was referred to as temperamental,
tempestuous or mercurial - never Mario Lanza tenor.But it was great to
hear J. Calleja's comments on his, Mario's voice, he described it
beautifully. Allan Titchmarsh was also right. Mario had incredible
technique as heard in the last song they played 'Guardian Angels' I
just love the way he sang that, no wonder it is such a warm memory for
Elissa.

Listening to this programme it worries me that they may one day make a
movie about Mario Lanza. As Terry said he could be overly generous.
But I think that the less attractive aspects of his life would be
overemphasized in the belief that it would make a more interesting
film. Let's hope if they do ever make a movie I'm wrong.

Regards, Michele

[Andrew Bain]

Hello

Thank you for your comments on part 2 of the radio documentary. I am sorry if you felt it was too much weighted towards the trivial matters of his life. I think a full documentary of his life has to include his lifestyle to an extent. I also think discussing the habits which undoubtably caused his tragic early death should not be regarded as "trivial". However whether it was overemphasised in the programmes is obviously a matter of opinion. The comment in Dame Kiri's narration about not having the discipline to become an opera singer was not something I heard until it was too late to change as I do not necessarily agree with this. I think it would have been very hard for him to change his pathway but we all know he had the capability. Such a categorical statement in my opinion was not correct.

I tried to contribute to the programme in order to make it as fair as possible. The programme we had in fact hoped to make and pitched to the BBC would not have been the same and would probably have been more to the forum's liking. However I am quite pleased with the programme overall and hope that you can take some positives from it. Certainly all my friends who know nothing about Lanza have responded to the programmes extremely positively. They all have said they didnt realise what a great artist he was and want to listen to more of his superb voice.
best wishes

Andrew

[leeann]

Hello.

I'll go along with "it was the best of times, it was the worst of
times." I won't repeat what others have already summarized, but it
was simply stunning to hear authoritative analysis of Mario Lanza's
voice and music--particularly with accompanying musical selections.
Thank you so much for that clarity!

But while I understand the challenges of juggling competing interests
that go into producing a show such as this, I'm terribly disappointed
with the unbalanced, biased, I think, presentation of Mario Lanza's
life. Personal recollections, memories reshaped by the perspective of
time, and interviews were presented without context or in the wrong
context and given factual authority. Although the Mafia myth was
debunked, other already disproven myths were reinforced.

It's problematic. The popular perception of Mario Lanza will probably
never die, but it ought to be treated as such and this forum, Armando
Cesari's biography and other credible websites and authors--and yes,
I'd say with great appreciation, Part I of of the BBC program and the
musical emphasis in Part 2--need more dominant voices. Best, Lee Ann

[Lou]

First off, I agree with Derek that Andrew’s doco ultimately honors
Lanza the artist.
Listening to his recordings in this context, I fell under the spell of
Lanza’s voice and artistry all over again, and for a while I was ready
to believe with actor Terence Stamp that Lanza’a role was not to sing
on the operatic stage but to bring great music to those who, like him,
would never have ventured into an opera house. If the doco had this
effect on me, who is not exactly a stranger to the Lanza sound, I can
imagine its impact on first-time listeners. I wouldn’t be surprised
if, after listening to this broadcast, first-time Lanza listeners find
themselves in record stores checking out CDs under his name.

I agree with the positives noted by Derek. For once, the tiresome
reference to Lanza’s supposedly small voice is thankfully absent.
Instead, Alan Titchmarsh points out that the voice is “so big there
are suggestions [which Titchmarsh takes exception to] that it’s
uncontrolled.”

The unexpected snippet of Andrew’s Because You’re mine and Carreras’
endearingly flubbed snatch of song from The Student Prince Serenade
are special treats, quite apart from the singers' enlightening
comments. But for me, nothing compares with the thrill of hearing
Lanza say, “Every word that I sing, I live. I sing every word as
though it were my last on earth.” I’d read this several times, of
course, but it’s one thing to see the words on paper and another to
hear from the lips of the artist himself the secret, as it were, of
his powerfully affecting interpretations.

Does Andrew’s doco honor Lanza the man? I would say yes,
notwithstanding the hyperbolic (they must be!) descriptions of his
eating excesses, the suggestion of alcohol addiction, and what Armando
dismisses as “the nonsense about the many extramarital flings.”
Overall, the doco manages to portray Lanza as a basically decent,
sensitive man, and a loving and tender father.

Like Armando and Derek, I take exception to Kiri Te Kanawa’s narration
that it is doubtful whether Lanza would ever have made it as an opera
singer. Instead of implying that he lacked “the discipline, hard work,
and sacrifices it takes to be a Domingo or a Pavarotti,” the script
could at least have given Lanza the benefit of the doubt. To my mind,
by pulling himself up by his bootstraps from the pit of deepest
despair to work at recapturing his lifelong dream of an operatic
career, Lanza had demonstrated his capacity for such discipline, hard
work, and sacrifices.

Having said that, by way of gratitude and encouragement, I give Andrew
5 stars out of 5 for a sympathetic and professionally produced, albeit
imperfect, portrayal of Mario Lanza the man and artist.

> > Derek- Hide quoted text -

[Vince Di Placido]

Hi, Andrew! Overall the 2 part documentary was very good, it is just a
shame, as has been said, that the trivial & often untrue things about
Mario are considered relevant in documentaries about Mario. Ideally we
would all love an intelligent even treatment that focuses mostly on
his wonderful voice & recordings & what made them so good, which
actually this documnetary achieved more than any previous attempts. I
was disapointed that there were no recordings from Mario's great 1958
album, "Mario!" actually the documentary needed a bit of good music at
this point in the story so it was an ideal chance wasted,
unfortunately but there was more to praise than criticise.
I agree with Derek, Alan Titchmarsh was very good, I only know him as
a TV gardener from years back when I lived in Edinburgh, but I have to
say he knows his stuff!
Oh! & nice voice Andrew!

[Jan Hodges]

I  enjoyed the second part but not so much as the first. I thought the music selection was excellent and the ending most poignant. There were some nice touches. It was nice to hear Mario speaking again and the comments by Alan Titchmarsh and Terence Stamp were most welcome. I felt in trying to be balanced there was a bit much too of the negative. The important thing is the voice and Mario Lanza the singer not Mario Lanza  and his character faults whatever they may have been. I am not suggesting they should have been ignored but they deserved only a lesser part of the documentary. I disagree with Kiri Te Kanama's final comments and  thought they were uncalled for. Mario was larger than life in most things he did and I think the way the negative aspects of his life  were leveled at him during his life and after his death was only a way of trying to downplay his great gifts. A thing mentioned by Jim Thompson and something which I have often wondered about is the real effect the stint in the Air Force had on Mario just as his career was about to take off. Jan

[Derek McGovern]

I listened to Part Two again last night, and here are a few further
thoughts.

Firstly, I agree with Vince that these two programmes provided more
intelligent analysis of Lanza's voice and singing than any previous
documentary (whether for radio or for TV). It's very important not to
lose sight of that point; as Lee Ann notes above, it was "stunning" to
hear such meaningful comments. While I would have liked a little more
opera in Part 2, I felt that the musical selections in both programmes
underscored the points being made very effectively. Anyone new to
Lanza listening to either of the programmes would surely have come
away impressed, if not blown away, by the magnitude of the man's
talent. And for that, we're very fortunate indeed that Andrew was
involved with this production. Without that involvement, we might well
have ended up with selections from the Lanza on Broadway album or the
roughest moments from the Coke Shows.

And I'm not exaggerating, for just last week BBC Radio Cambridgeshire
actually played the dreadful "So in Love" from the Broadway LP as
their sole example of Lanza's "golden voice"!

I'm pleased to see that Andrew was also unhappy with Te Kanawa's
assertion that Mario could never have been a successful opera singer.
For me, that was the most unfortunate aspect of the programme, and I
wish it had been emphasised that up until Lanza went to Hollywood, all
signs were pointing to a major operatic career. Te Kanawa's comment
also contradicted the glowing accounts in Part One of Lanza's early
operatic success and thriving concert career in the 1940s. But at the
end if she had instead said something like, "By 1959 it was becoming
increasingly unlikely that Lanza would return to the opera stage,"
then I wouldn't have had a problem with the narration. At the same
time, though, the programme should have established that, more than
anything else, Lanza wanted to be a great opera singer (and a snatch
of the 1958 Vesti would have illustrated that he was still honing his
operatic craft at the end of his life), and that his drinking largely
stemmed from the realisation that he was not fulfilling that ambition.

It was also unfortunate that Terence Stamp's mistaken comment that
Lanza never appeared in full-length operatic productions wasn't
corrected, as unless listeners had heard Part One, many would have
believed that myth.

As for the drinking, I felt there were far too many comments on this
subject for such a short programme. Including Te Kanawa, I think six
people spoke about it. Surely one or two comments would have sufficed?
This over-emphasis made it seem as though Lanza was hopelessly
addicted, rather than being the binge drinker that he actually was. It
also obscured the positive aspects of his final years: the successful
return to live performing after a six-year absence, the great
recordings that he made at the Rome Opera for his FTFT soundtrack, the
"Mario!" album, the invitation from Vitale to perform Canio, and the
extent to which he was working closely with top operatic coaches,
refining his singing and becoming a more sensitive interpreter. Even a
hint of these achievements would have been great in the programme, and
more meaningful than Terry Robinson's ultimately pointless anecdote
about Mario's generosity as a tipper, or Prichard's story about being
punched.

There was sympathy, though, in the way that Lanza's flaws were
discussed, irrespective of whether his "addictions" to food and drink
were exaggerated. I didn't feel this programme was a Lanza beat-up,
and it was really only the last ten minutes or so that I thought could
have been better. The bottom line for me is that the man's phenomenal
gifts *were* celebrated -- and for that we should all be very
grateful.

Andrew: I also enjoyed your singing of Because You're Mine, and I hope
you'll tell us more about your forthcoming tribute album to Lanza.

And, finally, Lou: that comment that you loved hearing from Mario's
own lips ("I sing each word as though it were my last on earth") comes
from the 1956 interview with Ray Heindorf. (It's in our Photos &
Recordings section.)

[Derek McGovern]

On a trivial note, did anyone wonder what Peter Prichard was alluding
to when he said that he'd had to hold onto Lanza's coat-tails during
the meeting with the Queen? If I hadn't already read this anecdote in
Mannering's second book, I might well have wondered what dark deed he
feared Mario might perpetrate on Her Majesty :-) As Prichard told the
story to Mannering in 1992, he was worried that Mario might breach
protocol by kissing the Queen -- "You never could tell with him [where
women were concerned]." Here, however, he didn't clarify what he
meant, thereby leaving the field of interpretation wide open!

I have to admit that I find it hard to believe that Lanza was so
unpredictable that he needed to be chaperoned to that extent. The fact
that Prichard is nowhere to be seen in the photo with the Queen also
casts doubt on the story. And surely it would have been inappropriate
for Prichard, as a mere "minder" at the time, to be lined up with the
performing artists from that night to meet the Queen? No, it doesn't
make sense at all...

[Lou]

Hi Derek: I did wonder why Pritchard felt Lanza might need
restraining. I thought perhaps the latter looked none too steady on
his feet (because of weariness, pain, or medication) and Pritchard was
afraid he might uncontrollably lurch toward her. Never in a million
years would it occur to me that Lanza was boorish enough to attempt to
kiss the Queen. Since, as you pointed out, Pritchard is absent from
the photo with the Queen, I'm inclined to dismiss the anecdote as a
figment of his overactive imagination. :)

Cheers
Lou

[Mike McAdam]

Interesting comments about Andrew's labour of love on the BBC. I,
unfortunately have not even been able to hear all of Part 1 to this
day, let alone Part 2.
There are a couple of reasons I'll touch upon (no boring electronic
details, I promise. Well, maybe a few).
First, I am still on dial-up so, 'nuff said! #%%$&!!
Secondly, the BBC has decided to use the outmoded RealPlayer as their
Internet-listening app.
Pity, as it does not allow you to scroll/slide back to the beginning
of the audio file as, say YouTube does but will begin the tedious DL
all over again whenever you hit the stop button on the player. Very
vexing (this is why I blew RealPlayer away years ago!)
Enough whining for now. I shall trot off to the BBC site forthwith and
see if Part 2 is available for me to DL....dog for punishment that I
am! :-)
Cheers, Mike

> > make sense at all...- Hide quoted text -

[Andrew Bain]

> Just a note on the Peter Pritchard - Queen saga. He showed us lots
> of photos of himself with Mario when we visited him and I am fairly
> sure he showed us one with him in the background at the royal
> variety show when Mario met the Queen (perhaps a different angle to
> normal pic). I may be wrong but I think he showed us this, sorry for
> my dreadful memory! He was alluding to the possibility that Mario
> might, out of force of habit, kiss the lady on the cheek. Us Brits
> are natural worriers! I have no idea whether this story is
> exaggerated or not but I have to tell you all that Peter told the
> story with such a glint in his eye and such great affection for
> Mario, I thought it was a lovely story. Maybe the years have
> embellished his stories but I left Peter's house feeling that he
> absolutely loved the time he spent with Mario, he showed me a lovely
> personal letter on Dorchester hotel paper and clearly thought
> incredibly highly of Mario. He also spoke of hearing his voice in
> the hotel suite, he said the sheer power was unbelievable we should
> perhaps have used this but it didn't quite fit the structure.

Sent from my iPhone

On 14 Oct 2009, at 03:26, Derek McGovern <derek.m...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[Derek McGovern]

Hi Andrew: Many thanks for that! For some reason, though, your text
was partially obscured, so here it is again:

"Just a note on the Peter Pritchard - Queen saga. He showed us lots of
photos of himself with Mario when we visited him and I am fairly sure
he showed us one with him in the background at the royal variety show
when Mario met the Queen (perhaps a different angle to normal pic). I
may be wrong but I think he showed us this, sorry for my dreadful
memory! He was alluding to the possibility that Mario might, out of
force of habit, kiss the lady on the cheek. Us Brits are natural
worriers! I have no idea whether this story is exaggerated or not but
I have to tell you all that Peter told the story with such a glint in
his eye and such great affection for Mario, I thought it was a lovely

story. Maybe the years have embellished his stories, but I left

Peter's house feeling that he absolutely loved the time he spent with
Mario, he showed me a lovely personal letter on Dorchester hotel paper
and clearly thought incredibly highly of Mario. He also spoke of
hearing his voice in the hotel suite, he said the sheer power was

unbelievable we should perhaps have used this, but it didn't quite fit
the structure" -- Andrew.

Yes, it would have been very nice if the above had been included in
the doco. You've actually redeemed Mr Prichard (and that's the correct
spelling of his name, by the way -- quite unusual) in my eyes.

By any chance, did he talk about the supposed La Scala audition? This
is something he first mentioned on a British TV programme ("And God
Created Tenors") in the early 1990s. In a 2007 article for The Legacy
of Mario Lanza newsletter, Derek Mannering ridiculed the notion that
Lanza would have auditioned for La Scala, mainly on the basis that
(his Saint Constantine) Callinicos never mentioned it, and he implied
that Prichard had made the whole thing up ("Peter...tells a great
tale"). I'm not satisfied by that, however. What would motivate
Prichard to lie about such a thing? I would love to sit down with him
and grill him on the whole story.

[Andrew Bain]

I did ask about the La Scala audition and he said that he did go but his story was quite vague about this. He suggested that the La Scala people liked his voice but suggested that they wanted him to work on things more than Mario was prepared to. However it was so vague that I was very uneasy using what he said, again who knows what the truth of the matter was.

[Derek McGovern]

Thanks, Andrew. That account, vague though Prichard was, actually
rings truer in some ways. Hmmn. I don't know what to think now.

[Shawn]

"However I am quite pleased with the programme overall and hope that you can take some positives from it. "

I also was "quite pleased with the programme overall," ;-) and I just wanted to say thanks again.

[Armando]

As you know, Derek, back in 2005 Prichard did elaborate somewhat more
about the presumed La Scala audition. He told me that the audition
took place in 1958, that Lanza sang E Lucevan le Stelle for the
professors, as he termed them, that the pianist was one of the La
Scala musicians and that they offered him an initial two-year
contract. Also that they would supply a coach to work with him in
whatever opera he chose for his debut. Did Prichard make it all up?
I really cant’ see what motive he would have for inventing such a
story.

On the other hand, Steinman was quite categorical in stating that
Lanza had too much pride and would not audition for anyone. He
certainly wasn’t asked to audition for the Rome Opera for whom he was
contemplating singing Canio in the 1960-61 season. But then he didn’t
have to audition for them since the Artistic Director, Riccardo
Vitale, had already heard him when Lanza recorded the operatic
selections for his last film in that theatre.

I really don’t know what to make about the La Scala episode.