Product Description John McCormack was one of the finest lyric tenors of the 20th century. A colossus of his time, he was matched only in celebrity by his great friend the Italian tenor, Enrico Caruso. This entertaining and informative documentary explores McCormack s remarkable life and his phenomenal career. John McCormack, The People's Tenor succeeds in placing the tenor in his proper context as one of the greatest singers that Ireland has ever produced and the world has ever seen. For the first time ever on DVD, this documentary explores the tenor s life with rare films and photographs taken during The Golden Age of Opera. Review My deadline for my March column had passed by the time I received an interesting new DVD that would have made a perfect St. Patrick's Day gift for a record collector. John McCormack: The People s Tenor (Kultur), is an hour-long documentary on the great Irish singer. While a few brief clips of his films Song of My Heart (1930) and Wings of the Morning (1937), are shown, most of the time is spent with comments by various McCormack biographers, principally Gordon Ledbetter, author of The Great Irish Tenor. His grandchildren and grandnephew are also interviewed. Robert White, the singing son of the Joseph White ( The Silver Masked Tenor on radio in the 1920s) gets a fair amount of screen time as well. True cylinder record collectors will probably cringe when they hear the rare 1904 recording that McCormack made for Edison being played and then watching the speaker take the cylinder quickly off the mandrel halfway through the record. The 55-minute film, a 2006 British production probably for television, is supplemented by another 30 minutes of bonus interviews. Definitely something McCormack's loyal fans will want. --Steve Ramm, In The Groove
M**.
Meister Singer
I was so fascinated with this CD that I watched it twice in a row after receiving it. Very well put together, flowed well, with lots of interesting interviews from family interspersed with equally interesting photos and narrative and, of course, that magnificent singing. I came upon this rather by serendipity, having grabbed a Three Tenors recording by accident one day (instead of the intended Gregorian chant); this re-awakened an interest in fine tenor voices. I knew only vaguely of John McC. and thought he only did Irish songs, but went on-line to discover, to my delight, his fabulous operatic voice! Though musically and aesthetically perfect, with total note control even through vibrato (something that many famed tenors cannot achieve today), his voice has an indescribable, intangible quality, something which I can only term "character." This comes through so strongly even though recorded with technology far inferior to today's standards. When you can intuit an artist's life experiences, struggles and uniqueness through their work, well, that is truly art, and McCormack is a master of this medium. I'm sure he's been teaching the angels to sing all these years!
L**C
He's the first and best of all the Irish tenors
First of all, I adore John McCormack! I've been listening to his singing for years. He's the first and best of all the Irish tenors, in my humble opinion. This dvd is a wonderful glimpse of his life and career. It's a shame it couldn't have been longer in scope, but what is presented to the viewer is worth having. If you enjoy John McCormack's singing like I do, then this dvd is for you. Buy it while it is still available.
E**N
John McCormack, Irish Tenor
When I was growing up and the Beatles just coming to prominence, my late father repeatedly tried to get me interested in my cultural heritage and specifically, the Irish tenor, John McCormack. This hour-long tribute to McCormack's life and accomplishments provides information about his quick rise to fame and about the body of his work. I was also impressed to hear of his many charitable works. Very enjoyable.
M**O
Great tenor; Great documentary
Anything where I can hear the voice of the great Irish tenor John McCormack gets five stars from me. Even with that bias, this was a highly informative biography that I've watched a couple of times. So for the price of a CD, you get an entire video documentary with lots and lots of beautiful singing.
S**A
What can I say.. he was marvelous and ...
What can I say..he was marvelous and this is entertaining and welldone.
F**R
An Important Music History Documentary
I am grateful to the producers of this DVD. John McCormack needs to be put out into the world to as many people who may not have even heard of him. This DVD puts into perspective the huge impact this amazing tenor had on the world of his day. When we can go back into the first half of the last century and single out anyone for their contribution to the masses' entertainment and inspiration, like John McCormack has done, it's important that he not be forgotten. Hopefully this DVD will help prevent him from disappearing with those that have heard and enjoyed his breathtaking voice.
C**N
One of the most beautiful and technicaly perfect tenor to listen to for a ...
One of the most beautiful and technicaly perfect tenor to listen to for a new singner.Also an insperation for people who think elegance and beautiful singning could be more convaincing than loud singning and certainly more "benefique" if we want to keep a voice healthy for a long period of time.Hope this video will motivate people to listen to more music from him
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