Latest Singing Stories

By Alicia Spates, Herald & Review, Decatur, Ill. Jul. 31--The Second Edition knew only one song and performed it on the Mini Place Stage for its first Decatur Celebration appearance in 1999. "We sang 'Galileo' by the Indigo Girls," said singer Brad Barding, the group's founder. "We kept wondering, 'Should we keep singing the one song?' " The a cappella group has come a long way since then. It has returned to perform at Celebration each year except last year, and it now has a full catalog of...

By Scott Cantrell, The Dallas Morning News Jul. 30--SANTA FE, N.M. -- One of those only-in-Santa Fe vistas greeted the audience for Monday's performance of The Marriage of Figaro. Behind row upon row of faux flowers on the stage of the Crosby Theatre, the open upstage gave a view of real purple mountains and streaks of clouds in a yellowish sunset. The best set painter couldn't have matched the magic. Santa Fe Opera's new production of Mozart's evergreen is certainly lively and...

By Laura Capitano Karaoke lovers, get thee downtown to try singing with a live band backing you - one of Jacksonville's most beloved local bands, in fact. Little Green Men have been entertaining Northeast Florida with their spirited, costumed performances of '80s covers for the past decade. Now they also head up Karaoke Band Fun Show every Wednesday night at Mavericks Rock N' Honky Tonk at The Jacksonville Landing. (Note: Just because Karaoke Band Fun Show happens at a place known for bull...

By David Patrick Stearns, The Philadelphia Inquirer Jul. 15--PRINCETON -- For all of this community's affluence, superb venues, and ample IQ points, opera hasn't been the most dependable presence here, though this fifth season of Opera New Jersey may be a positive turning point. The opening-weekend productions of La Traviata and La Cenerentola filled the niche of quality summer opera in a congenial chamber setting more successfully than ever before. It's true that sets are mostly borrowed...

By Howard Cohen, The Miami Herald Jul. 11--The Sopranos was never quite like this: Baroness Vladka (rhymes with vodka, for reasons that will soon be apparent) von Loudenstimme has had a long career on the opera stage but for how much longer is anyone's guess. She's still got the pipes but she likes to soak them in booze whenever she can -- as in during every performance. So she hires the younger Southern belle Gwendoline Josephine Bellevoix Bouvier, who fancies herself French and cultured...

TAU scientists have developed an electronic ear to judge and coach vibrato techniqueVibrato -- the pulsating change of pitch in a singer's voice -- is an important aspect of a singer's expression, used extensively by both classical opera singers and pop stars like Shakira. Usually, the quality of a vibrato can only be judged subjectively by voice experts.Until now, that is. A research group from Tel Aviv University has successfully managed to train a computer to rate vibrato quality, and has...

Red Karaoke, the premier European karaoke website, today launched its English language version in the United States, at www.redkaraoke.com. Red Karaoke is a free social network for music lovers, offering more than 14,000 songs for karaoke enthusiasts, and tools that enable users to interact with the site as well as with other members. Numerous features allow users to record their own video and audio files, personalize each song, and share these newly-created karaoke files, building a...

By John Von Rhein, Chicago Tribune Jun. 19--Casting has been announced for the Chicago premiere of the opera "Margaret Garner," which the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University will present Nov. 1-9 in association with Michigan Opera Theatre. Mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves, for whom composer Richard Danielpour wrote the title role, will sing the first two performances, Nov. 1 and 2. Graves is perhaps best-remembered for her smoldering Carmen in Lyric Opera's production of the Bizet opera...

NASHVILLE, Tenn., April 3 /PRNewswire/ -- Capitol Records Nashville today launched an innovative online country music talent search contest, called "The Road to Nashville." The contest gives aspiring country singers the chance to become Nashville's next big country star by auditioning online at http://bix.yahoo.com/TheRoadToNashville. For anyone with vocal talent and anyone who enjoys discovering great singers, this contest provides a new road to fame based on the votes of the online...

VIENNA (Reuters) - Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, among the most renowned opera and concert sopranos of the 20th century, died at her Austrian home on Thursday at the age of 90, local media reported. The German-born Schwarzkopf sang for a galaxy of famed conductors, including Herbert von Karajan, in a career that originated with training in Berlin during Germany's Nazi era and wound up four decades later in 1975. APA news agency said she died in the town of Schruns in western Vorarlberg...