Charles Hart - The Phantom of the Opera (Original 1986 London Cast)
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Free Music Notes for The Phantom of the Opera (Original 1986 London Cast)
Free Music Review: The ultimate stage love story. A truly unforgettable musical experience.
Hit: 5 Stars
On January 9 2006, PHANTOM OF THE OPERA became the longest running show in Broadway history. Beating Webber's other mega-musical. You know the one I'm talking about, the one about dancing felines. There are those who will never give Andrew Lloyd Webber the time of day. They state the only reasons why this musical is so successful is because of that infamous rising and crashing chandelier, that elaborate grand staircase that opens the second act, those sculpted Candelabras that rise so effortlessly from the Phantom's silver lake. This may be true since few would ever deny PHANTOM's on stage spectacle.
But what about the music?
This recording of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA also has the distinction of being the biggest selling musical album of all times. Now last time I checked the LP, the cassette tape or the CD of Webber's epic musical does NOT include any chandeliers or pyrotechnics. It's just music. For those, like me, who are a sucker for a good melody, PHANTOM OF THE OPERA has tunes to spare.
Many Webber-hating critics have stated these songs are "throw-away". Some have even stated that someone with no musical talents could have written them. Really? If that is the case then why do so many people still confuse Webber's mock-opera's in PHANTOM as actual operas? That's because musical piece's like "Hannibal", "Il Muto", and the Phantom's magnificent opera "Don Juan Truimphant" are not only vocally challenging but musically challenging as well. And many of PHANTOM's other songs like the famed "The Music Of The Night", "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" and "Think Of Me" are not only melodic but cover an enormous range as well. Like one of Webber's more intelligent critics stated, just try humming one of these tunes and you'll realize they're not as simple as you think.
Let's not hate the composer for having the ability to write good tunes. If this musical has stood the test of time, it's due largely to Webber's awesome score. Even the musicals less complicated pieces like "Angel Of Music" (my personal favourite) and "Little Lotte" are hauntingly gorgeous with great orchestrations.
The original leads of this block-buster do some great stuff in this recording also. In my opinion, this is Michael Crawfords best vocal performance ever captured on record. Although he sounds a bit nasal at times, his voice is still powerful and poignant. His solos are rich in character and emotion. Once Crawford makes his grand entrance in "The Mirror (Angel of Music)", you will be captivated by the power of his voice.
The late Steve Barton is also outstanding in the role of Raoul. His voice is beautiful, controlled, very rich in tone. His brilliant vocal work makes the much hated character of Raoul much more likable. This Raoul is more of a hero than an annoyance. You'd be surprised at what a good voice can do to a lack-lustre role. Barton is definately the best Raoul on record. The film Raoul, Patrick Wilson is a close second.
Sarah Brightman however is my least favourite Christine. Admittedly, she has an enormous range. Also, her voice does give us moments of great beauty but it is an acquired taste. Like Crawford, Brightman's voice is too nasal at times and she doesn't seem to be able to control her vibrato. I also have to state that her performance on this recording lacks any real emotion. She sings every single song "in tune" but there is no character in the notes that she is singing. It sounds like Brightman is just vocalizing. Giving us a recital. Not a dramatic performance. With that said, her rendition of "Angel Of Music" is lovely, her "Think Of Me" is quite good and her duet with the Phantom on the title song is definately one of the highlights. It's a shame that her performance (for me) goes downhill after that.
My favourite Christine is the Canadian soprano, Rebecca Caine who I saw perform the role in Toronto. Caine's performance was sublime and I recommend getting The Canadian Cast Recording just so you can hear Caine's extraordinary vocals. It's reason enough to at least give it a try but keep in mind, those who are familiar with Sarah Brightman or Emmy Rossum (another favourite of mine) may find Caine's operatic voice a bit too over-powering at first. Repeated listening is a must.
Andrew Lloyd Webber's score is definately the star of this production. Aside from his ardent detractors, only a few can deny the sheer beauty of these tunes or of his lush orchestrations. The strings are especially spellbinding. Just listen to them during "Angel Of Music" or "The Point Of No Return". You will see what I mean.
This is definately one of Andrew Lloyd Webber's greatest, most cherished scores. It is no wonder millions have fallen in love with it. For those who have not yet experienced it, surrender to it's magic. Get transported to a time and a place where beauty and music reign supreme. That is the magic of Andrew Lloyd Webber's music of the night.
Highly Recommended.
Free Music Review: Musical theater doesn't get much better than this
Hit: 5 Stars
The Phantom of the Opera combines the creative energies of Andrew Lloyd Webber, Hal Prince and Michael Crawford to forge a melodic fusion of eroticism and piety, which, bolstered only by the strength of a tiny ivory mask, conceals the face no one can ever love.Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals have been frequently derided by critics as lacking in originality and character and relying to heavily on spectacle rather than substance to make their dramatic effects. New York Times theater critic Frank Rich, in fact, began his review of Lloyd Webber's Aspects of Love, which directly followed Phantom, thus: "Andrew Lloyd Webber, who is second to none when writing musicals about cats, trains and falling chandeliers has made an earnest but bizzarre career decision: he has written a musical about people." One need look no farther than the unbearably moving final 10 minutes of The Phantom of the Opera to realize that such assumptions are nothing other than mean-spirited nonsense. Or so it seems to someone like me who even in our mischievous postmodern mood finds it morally redemptive and emotionally transporting to watch a man be denied his every bid for affection and stripped of disguise after disguise until he has no choice but to embrace the solitude he longs to escape.
The Phantom of the Opera has surpassed all films, plays, books and movies to become the most popular piece of art (or entertainment, for that matter) ever created and it's not hard to see why. So affectingly, assuredly and compassionately does Lloyd Webber draw this Phantom that generations of theatergoers have found his memory impossible to escape. Phantom incorporates all of the gifts Lloyd Webber has displayed in his other musicals, from Jesus Christ Superstar to Cats--his incredible gift for melody, his impeccable sense of structural order, his ability to transport us into an alternative universe filled with whimsical variety, his sensitive and heartfelt treatment of his characters, who usually resemble gods more than humans in the gravity and scope of their whims and actions.
But many of the techniques we see in Phantom are new to Lloyd Webber's career. In "Notes" he interweaves two principal melodies--a bouyant, jovial duet between the fop opera managers and a driving, rhythmically tricky, tonally ambiguous melody--and a variety of incidental tunes to create a melodic sequence of swelling momentum and seamless organization. Lloyd Webber, in fact, perfects this technique in Sunset Boulevard, setting the various exchanges of "Let's Have Lunch" to intricate jazz riffs. Lloyd Webber also uses interesting whole tone centered themes, massive choruses and strident, fractured high pitched wails, sometimes shattering melodies and out of the ruins creating entirely new ones, to conjure up the Phantom's balancing dark side--the venemous, vengeful, homicidal monster who uses his twisted magic to bend the Opera Populaire and Christine to his uncompromising will. In the finale he fractures the hushed, unbroken triads and measured, submissive chants of Don Juan Triumphant--the Phantom's opera--into a spastic tired intoned by the hero and a wail blared out by trumpets. To comprehend the aesthetic logic of Phantom is to understand it as a moment of culmination and revolution in Lloyd Webber's career.
Like Jesus Christ Superstar and Sunset Boulevard, Phantom is in many ways about control and surrender. In the show's heartbreaking conclusion, the Phantom cleaves to Christine's receding form as she and Raoul vanish across the lake, promising one another lifelong, mutual love to "All I Ask of You," one of the show's fine romantic ballads--even though no hope remains for the Phantom he cannot let go of his beloved. And after showing Christine and Raoul the compassion and mercy he has never known, the Phantom resolves to finally leave the world that could never give him the slightest shred of decency, dignity or love: "You alone can make my song take flight! / It's over now, the Music of the Night!"
The Phantom of the Opera is a tragedy full of wisdom to which it behooves is, as morally aware, thinking creatures, to listen, for it reminds us the real and earnest love--born from the Phantom's desperate need for acceptance or Jesus Christ's compassion for mankind--and that insubstantial mixture of sex, sentimentality and mutual favor-giving that most people think of when the hear the word "love" today have nothing in common. The evening conclusion finds the crestfallen and beaten Phantom wrapping his cloak around himself and vanishing as the orchestra thunders out "Music of the Night." Meg, the little ballet girl, finds the Phantom's mask and carresses it in her tiny hands as the lights go out and the orchestra sounds out the last, ascending chord sequence, which lurches contrarily and hauntingly from C charp major to D minor halfway through: despite the overwhelming despair and defeat engendered by the Phantom's demise, someone takes on the Phantom's painful love and art and, by the strange mercy of the universe, finds the hope and will to go on.
Free Music Review: Glory incarnate in the form of song
Hit: 5 Stars
Ever since the day that I first heard "Music of the night" on my grandmother's copy of this CD, I knew that this was the greatest music I would ever hear. And you know what? I was RIGHT!The main character is the best, most fascinating, most lovable character in all of fiction. I love him in every work of fiction he is in, be it novel, movie or anything else at all, but never more that here, in the place where I discovered him, in his purest form. He is like a God to me, and also serves as an infinitely improved mirror of my own soul. I don't honestly care if he is a murderer; I love him. He puts all else to shame.
The story...oh, the beautiful, shockingly romantic story...is the most moving portrayal of the classic "beauty and the beast" archetype possible. Due to its deadly seriousness and endless tragic depth, the over-the-top emotions are as far from corny or overblown as night is from day. The plot is so moving that it can support truly insane, frenzied acting...and it isn't even the star attraction.
This star attraction is the music. The instrumentation is a divine blend of rock and classical music, gorgeous and echoing and sounding like it came from the Heavenly choirs, but the greatest thing about this production is the voices. Michael Crawford is, in my opinion, the greatest singer of all time bar none. There are simply no words to describe this man's god-like, aching, thunderous, GLORIOUS high tenor voice, except perhaps that it contains a truly perfect blend of masculine and feminine sounds. Even this description is incomplete in that it does not express his genius. Hear him; that is the only way to understand the glory that is his voice.
As if that weren't enough, the _second_ best singer I've ever heard is also a major singer in this musical...the seraphic opera soprano Sarah Brightman. She can make me weep, sigh, and bow down in worship. Her quiet, pitifully shy Christine is yet another of my favorite characters in all existing fictional works, second only to her beloved and a tiny handful of others. And unlike many later actresses who played Christine, she never let us forget for a moment that Christine genuinely loved the Phantom. She supported the seriousness of the story rather than undermining it as many Christines do. She is perfection, second only to her phenomenal co-star.
Steve Barton, although he fades in comparison to the other two main cast members, is still a stunning singer, his lovely light baritone and sweet yet sometimes frightening acting making a potentially loathsome character into a fully sympathetic one, simultaneously noble, compassionate and psychotic.
My God, even the humorous bit-part cast members are brilliant. Andre, the manager, has a sweet, light tenor, and his partner Firmin's deep, dry baritone is equally stunning. Carlotta and Piangi manage to have exaggerated, "ugly" voices while still sounding beautiful and professional, and Madame Giry herself, the least of the major cast, has an excellent eerie "ghost story" voice, perfect for the part, and quite a nice singing ability. But Meg, with her sweet, quiet mezzo, is ever better than Steve Barton, and the greatest by far of the supporting cast. All of these can also act as well as any drama expert, and all of them are among my all-time favorite singers.
Finally, while every song in this musical is a work of genius and a huge favorite of mine, my five favorite songs of all time are all from this musical--the tender, achingly glorious _Wandering child_, the echoey, powerful _Mirror_, the sinister, seductive _Point of no return_, the quite genuinely stunning _Phantom of the Opera_, and most of all _Music of the Night_, which, when sung by Michael Crawford himself, is in my opinion the standard by which all other music must be judged.
I have used the word _Glorious_ several times throughout this review. This is because it is the only word for "Phantom" when performed by the original cast, and a word I have always associated with this divine salvation in the form of music. Five stars in only the smallest fraction of what this brilliant work deserves. GET THIS CD! It is truly divine. It is the greatest music ever. Any sane person will worship this godlike work of genius. Thank God for Lloyd Webber and Michael Crawford!
I will say it one more time. GET THIS CD!
Free Music Review: Sing for me...
Hit: 5 Stars
When I was living in London in the mid-1980s, the hottest ticket to get was 'Phantom of the Opera', playing at Her Majesty's Theatre (of the few theatres in the West End that regularly changes its name, depending upon the gender of the reigning monarch), opposite the Haymarket Theatre. One could see long lines around the block before each performance, scalpers outside looking to cash in on their earlier luck of getting tickets, and disappointed tourists who did not realise that they had to book months in advance to get a seat. My secretary in the House of Commons got tickets in the queue, for four months hence, and was worried that by that time Michael Crawford might have decided to move on, and she would get stuck seeing a second-cast Phantom. In the end, she was fortunate. Crawford was still on when she got there. But I will never forget the evil in her eye the morning about two weeks later when she asked what I'd done the night before, and I replied innocently (no, really, innocently!) 'I went to see Phantom of the Opera last night.' If looks could kill, I would not be writing this now. I actually got to see Phantom twice on the London stage, with Michael Crawford, Sarah Brightman and Steve Barton, and both times were on a fluke. The first time I was walking past the theatre about 10 minutes after the start, and a scalper who had been unsuccessful at selling his tickets was giving it out at cost. This is the time my secretary nearly killed me. The second time was 'inherited' from a friend who was unexpectedly called out of the country on Foreign Office business.
I got the tape of the cast recording as soon as I could after seeing it the first time, and it brought back all of the wonderful scenes. The music of Andrew Lloyd Webber seems to either captivate or irritate, but not a lot in between. And, in fact, I find some of his music which falls into each camp for me. Phantom is one of those for me in which there are no weak songs.
Perhaps the best song of all is 'Music of the Night', a haunting minor key piece with superb lyrics which weave hopefulness and darkness together skillfully. The chord change at the end of the song, from minor to major and back to minor, is one of the most memorable changes in modern musicals. Crawford's strong but expressive and quivering voice exudes emotion as the lyrics work to expand perceptions:
'Night time sharpens, heightens each sensation;
darkness stirs and wakes imagination..
Silently the senses abandon their defenses...'
Strong songs such as the title piece, 'Phantom of the Opera', which mix traditional pipe-organ with modern electronic beats seem to work well in getting the mood established for the power the Phantom has over Christine, played beautifully by Sarah Brightman. Brightman became an international star in this role; she planned it that way--some cynics might say she used Webber to get stardom and then dumped him (of course, I would never say such a thing!). Brightman's voice was not the strongest, either on the recording or on the stage; she has matured much since then; however, as the part of Christine was to be a young-discovery, maturity and strength might have been misplaced in this role.
Raoul, Christine's true love interest, is played by Steve Barton, who does a very good job, with a good vocal interplay with Brightman on songs such as Think of Me and All I Ask of You, in addition to the interplay with Crawford on various songs, particularly nearing the conclusion of the story.
However, my favourite chorus piece has to be 'Notes', in which the proprietors of the opera, as well as the singers and patrons, begin to receive notes from unknown sources, and suspect everyone save the real source, the Phantom, who in the end comes into the scene -- this song is humourous, choral, and dramatic with simultaneous and dissonant elements in wonderful exchange. It then spins down to a wonderful violin strain that shows the fragile state of Christine in a beautiful musical way, hard to express in words.
This is a fun musical, with tunes and a story which stay with one long after hearing, and one that entices repeating over and over. Even though the 'craze' for Phantom has died down from its height more than a decade ago, the strength of the musical shows in the strong sales and widespread recognition that the songs from this musical generate.
Free Music Review: ONE OF THE BEST AND MOST LOVED MUSICALS OF ALL TIME
Hit: 5 Stars
Today, after Phantom of the opera became the second longest running musical in history (Cats by the same composer holds the first place) of the West End and Broadway, and being one of the most produced of Andrew Lloyd Webber's work around the world, we can only agree with the statement of "The Times" reviewer which appeared on October 10, 1986, a day after the premiere in London, who wrote: "One thing is clear: Gaston Leroux's famous story is God's gift to the musical theatre. It wraps up the legends of Faust, Svengali, and Beauty and the Beast into a grand final death rattle of the romantic agony. It turns a theatre-the Paris Opera-into a replica of the universe, from the Statue of Apollo above the city's rooftops down to the infernal regions with their furnaces and stygian lake. And, musically, not only does it unfold to an accompaniment of the operatic repertoire, but also features a protagonist who is himself a great composer."
Phantom, with its operatic and lush melodies, intensive story and grandiose staging, remains one of the best and most beloved musicals of all time. That status is confirmed by the fact that it is finally going to the big screen - as a movie based on the musical, directed by Joel Schumacher and produced and worked on by Lloyd Webber himself, due to premiere in December 2004.
The musical is based on the Gaston Leroux's novel of the same title. It is set in the second part of the 19th century Paris and its famous opera house. The young soprano, Christine, is discovered as a talented young opera singer in the opera house. She is noticed by an old childhood friend, Raoul, and they fall in love. However, we find out that a third person, the mysterious Phantom, hiding behind a mask, is a musical genius who had been giving Christine singing lessons and who has developed a mad passion for his young pupil. He hides in the catacombs of the opera house, lurking on the outside world. He is determined to keep Christine for himself and the story evolves from here.
Apart from this interesting plot, the audiences were swept away by Lloyd Webber's tremendous score, which probably remains his best work. It combines the beautiful love songs and sweeping operettic arias, with numerous orchestral leads and crescendos. You can't help but being charmed by this beautiful and haunting score. The large numbers, especially, the last one, will probably move you deeply. The most popular numbers are "The phantom of the opera", a vibrating duet between Christine and the Phantom; "All I ask of you", a lovely love duet between Christine and Raul; Phantom's mesmerizing voice will hold you till the end in "The music of the night", Christine in "Wishing you are somehow here again" will evoke sadness, and many more.
One of the main reasons for the early success of this show and this recording was its original cast. Sarah Brightman, who plays Christine, was at that time married to Lloyd Webber and the role was written especially for her. Her soprano is more than adequate for this material and it ranges from low and soft to high and strong. It seems that Michael Crawford was born to play The Phantom not only because of his vocal abilities but also because there is some powerful, almost hypnotic attraction in his voice and performance, exactly how the Phantom is supposed to sound. His vocal transformations from sadness to wickedness are simply amazing. Steve Barton joins The Brightman - Crawford duo with the same power; the warmth in the voice as Raoul says it all. The other members of the cast are also noteworthy, especially Rosemary Ashe, as the snobbish primadonna Carlotta.
The lyrics by Richard Stilgoe and Christopher Hampton work well, despite the fact that some things are left unexplained, such as the source of the Phantom's mysterious powers. The show opened in October 1986 in London and was transferred to Broadway in 1988. It is currently still running on both locations.
The CD package comes with production photos and a full libretto.
The Phantom is a must-have for the musical theatre buffs all over the world.