OK I've resisted Spotify for a long time (I hate signing up for
more stuff online), but it is
a good way to share some
music now and then. And there are more and more classical/opera selections that I want to listen to before (or instead of) buying.
And then I found this:
And then I found this:
On one hand, Peter
Mattei wouldn't be my first choice to sing the great (mostly) American
songbook. On the other hand, listening to Peter Mattei sing anything is pretty wonderful.
This album is a nice throwback to the great pop vocalists and legit Broadway voices (before everyone got amplified and started yelling)—and PM is backed up by some really nice Nelson Riddle-ish orchestrations.
PM does a really nice job of not sounding too operatic. About the only non-idiomatic quibble I have so far is a dropped "g" in Some Enchanted Evening, which would work in somthin’ from Carousel or Oklahoma, but not so much in South Pacific. And he really handles the jumpy rangy Cole Porter melody in Night and Day. (More Cole Porter on the follow-up album, please! And maybe some Rodgers and Hart?)
PM does a really nice job of not sounding too operatic. About the only non-idiomatic quibble I have so far is a dropped "g" in Some Enchanted Evening, which would work in somthin’ from Carousel or Oklahoma, but not so much in South Pacific. And he really handles the jumpy rangy Cole Porter melody in Night and Day. (More Cole Porter on the follow-up album, please! And maybe some Rodgers and Hart?)
But really, when Peter Mattei is singing, who cares about a dropped
consonant or slightly odd vowel. I mean if he were singing in Swedish or
Finnish (or many other languages), I’d never know the difference—nor would I care. Anyway, the point is, this is a fun
program. Go listen. Then buy it.
I must say that I was a little bit disappointed by this album. I love it (like anything PM sings) but ... it's not only the weird accent ... I don't know. I find that his voice doesn't sound at its best in this repertoire, except for the Cole Porter song. I'm totally ok with you : give us more Cole Porter songs, Mr Mattei !!! I also like "I've gotta be me". There, you really can hear the deepness and nuances of his voice/soul. The rest is nice but the voice sounds a little bit too uniform for me. Well... it doesn't prevent me from making this album my n°1 at the gym, in my headphones. So much better than pop music ! But what a pity he records so seldom. I read about a Mahler lieder album he recorded last summer... but no news ahead.
ReplyDeleteI've a feeling this was aimed primarily at the Swedish market. It sure would be nice to hear more of him in the lied/opera repertoire!
DeleteYes. The CD is available in Scandinavia, and maybe Europe if Naxos Direct ships there. They don't ship here. I tried. However, a Twitter friend sent me a CD and well, I adore it. And given that English is a second language for Mattei, I think he channels Sinatra beautifully. And the accent just makes it more charming. I'm glad someone put it on Spotify.
ReplyDelete