I bought tickets for my mother and I to see Jonas Kaufmann as Énée at Covent Garden, but Kaufmann was taken ill and Bryan Hymel stepped in at short notice. Of course, we'd looked forward to seeing Kaufmann for months, but we certainly were NOT disappointed by the substitution! We've seen many operas, but this production was easily amongst the most memorable - in no small part because of Hymel's magnificent performance. Can't wait to see him again.
I was at the Met for this HD performance. You're right - the audience went nuts, and for a good reason. Hymel has a ringing voice with lyric and heroic qualities, and effortless high notes.
I saw this surprise Met debut and the house went insane - for very good reason. This man is the real deal. A great voice -- loads of ring, natural size, effortless top range, and true musicality. How exciting to witness the debut of a new, great, world class tenor.
I'm perplexed by some of these comments. I was at this Met performance of Jan 5, 2013. Astonishing on every level. And Bryan Hymel filled the hall with rich thrilling sound, as did Susan Graham. And yes, I heard Domingo & Pav & Vickers & Gedda & Krause & Kaufmann many times in the theater. Hymel is the real thing.
I've now heard this tenor 4 times at Covent Garden and once at the RAH. Twice in this role, once in Robert Le Diable, once in Vepres Siciliennes and once in Don Jose, and I'm still completely underwhelmed. To me he sounds tight, throaty and very small, rather like a mini Domingo. Please somebody tell me what I'm missing. I can't believe people are comparing him to Jon Vickers, Vickers had ten times the volume, as well as a glorious top. I can't see this guy singing Siegmund or Otello or even Samson. What's the fuss all about?
Sorry Alex, I can't help you! Maybe it's just a matter of taste. I saw Vickers in all his great roles, and Domingo too. And I find Hymel very thrilling - perhaps not as dramatic as Vickers or with as beautiful a voice as Domingo, but we nearly fell out of our seats when we saw Bryan as Aeneas.
Alex Daniel What all the fuss is about is a true heroic tenor as it was understood at the turn of the 20th century. The kind of voice that Leon Escalais had. A voice that had a thrilling top, power, and remarkable flexibility. Hymel has all of these traits. I doubt that Hymel has any desire to sing the roles you mentioned since they are not in his fach. This man sings above top c with ease and RING and that is what its all about. As for comparison to Vickers I agree that said comparisons are a total stretch since Vickers SANG A TOTALLY DIFFERENT REPERTOIRE and always had serious problems in his upper register. Vickers had a short top that has been documented on numerous recordings both live and in studio. The Troyens aria Hymel sings the hell out of above has a high c which Vickers avoided to the best of my knowledge in every live performance. I am a huge fan of Vickers especially as Otello, Peter Grimes, and Tristan but it was a totally different voice. As to the size of Hymel's voice I will trust the opinions of others whom I know who have heard him in person and their remarks are totally contrary to yours.Your remarks concerning a tight throaty voice are just damn nonsense!!
I was at this performance, and I can tell you. This dude does not fuck around. This is the type of voice that comes around only a few times each century.
You'n can only give with the instrument that God gave you. If you sing beautifully , and intelligently , you will just fine. The big voices of the past aren't cultivated today.
I just returned to this clip, a performance I actually attended during a Met matinee. Hymel’s voice resounded through the house. So reading these comments just makes me laugh at the pitiful “critics” who trash everyone (except the execrable Callas, of course), and predicted Hymel’s demise. Well, it’s 2020 and he just sang Le Damnation de Faust at the Met, and received extraordinary reviews.
Thank you for sharing. I have watched this clip over and over and over again. ❤️❤️❤️❤️ it. Sir Antonio Pappano knows the voice best in picking the right replacement and making them the rising star from Kaufman to Grigolo and Hymel.
I first heard Hymel in Les Troyens (HD Met) and when he walked on the stage and stated 'Reine, je suis Enée', I thought I was hearing a resurrected Vickers.
Which theaters are you talking about that are "bigger" than before? The Met has always been huge. Most of the great houses have been around for decades and it was never an issue before. It cannot get any bigger than the arena di Verona. The Met, La Scala, Berlin, Vienna, San Francisco, Paris etc etc have been the same forever.
Bravo, Bryan! Enee requires a voice that embraces a huge range - from heroic tenor to spinto. Very few tenors have managed the role believably. I saw Vickers at the Met in the early '70s and he had both the voice and the presence to do it. This guy surprised me. Terrific!
Bryan Hymel is a voice which comes along perhaps once in a lifetime, and at this point, very close to a heroic tenor - he is only 33, I believe, so his voice will mature and become even bigger...
I was there for the performance... Not sure what people mean about a mic or movie theater enhancement. He actually sounds this astounding, I not better. Some people are just plain bitter because they will never sing like this. The ovation speaks for it's self. I suppose that's fake too? Get over yourselves haters.
I think what they are taking about is the difference in sound between the broadcasts and the house. Because the instruments recording the performance are on stage with the singers it can be hard to know what the voice is like live. Patrons have grown weary of voices that sound the part on the radio and then do not translate live. They should stifle their cynicism here, Hymel is marvelous and we should be proud to have such an incredible tenor!
Bravo! Finally a sizable tenor voice at the Met after so many years without having one. I am impressed so far. But only time will tell. Anyone, is his voice the size of Domingo's or Pavarotti's? Lyric or spinto?
I heard him do Tosca in Santa Fe. I never saw Pavarotti live, but my father had seen Pavarotti 70 odd times and assured me the voice of Pavarotti was far more lyric in quality and less hefty. It isn't hard to believe, Hymel's voice is extremely imposing live.
Auch wenn der Sänger heute leider stimmliche Probleme hat; man spürt förmlich, wie sensationell seine Interpretation an diesem Abend gewesen sein muss! Der heldische Gesang ist brillant und wagemutig. Ein exzeptionelles Erlebnis!
At times his voice reminds me of Jon Vickers only with a bit more melody to it. I heard him in Les Troyens at the RAH/London, no sound enhancement, and he sounded great from where I was sitting, an exciting new talent I think.
I don't remember having heard this aria (and also Nuit d'ivresse) sung better than how Bryan Hymel did it. His French diction is perfect and his performance, athletic to say the least. From now on, his Aeneas will be the standard to which any other tenor will be compared to.
I am hoping to hear him in New Orleans so I can hear what you did. I have heard him only on RUclips and he sounds great. Such an easy clear top register. Check out his Asile Hereditaire from Guillaume Tell. It's a video of a live recital that is of poor sound quality, but he is still thrilling.I think he is the upcoming tenor phenomenon.
Listening to this again it does not impress me. The slow middle section is quite unsteady and the line uneven. But it strikes me that there is not much tone in what should be the meaty center of his voice. It is pallid and generic. He has that overdrive he can go into above the staff, but if you actually isolate the famous C, for example, it’s not at all a heroic tone or technically well produced. All credit to any tenor who can get this far without collapsing, but it’s not in my view a major voice. (And I read now in 2020 that he is in a vocal crisis and cancelling all engagements. You’d think tenors would by now have figured out that Bill Schumann at AVA is vocal poison.)
usually the HD is too loud this sounds like it needs a boost?-listened to the radio broadcast of this-sound was much better-just listening, outside of Vickers who was remarkable and profound but obviously not comfortable with all the role Hymel was a delightful surprise, and when have you ever heard all the high notes sung in this impossible role? great hopes for him, hope the tenor disease doesn't destroy him
He is a spinto, as was Domingo (now that he is singing baritone repertoire I refer to him as was). Pavarotti was a lyric. His voice carried very well as it was produced beautifully. I have yet to hear Hymel in the house so I cannot judge size. I speak of color of voice.
Perhaps the observation that Hymel's first solo album 'Heroique' is devoted to French heroic tenor arias that all have passages of great intensity in the upper register might clear up some confusion. Hymel might be classified as a 'Fort tenor' by voice type. Leon Escalis, Cesar Vezzani, Georges Thill, are all of this type and in one way or another they perfectly illustrate what is demanded of a French heroic tenor. Tony Poncet was almost a parody of this voice type and he just might make your ears bled he's that bad at times. An examination of the scores of operas written for this type of tenor, even in the operas Verdi wrote or recast for the Paris Opera will reveal the difference. Verdi recast 'I Lombardi' in a revision as Jerusalem and the main tenor aria 'La mia letiza infondere' goes no higher than an a' in the revision the aria is 'L'Emirde lui m'appelle ...je veux encore entendre' with two top c's since the great tenor Gilbert Duprez was the ruling tenor of the Paris Opera and was the first to sing a high c' from the chest.The aria is very beautiful and has been recorded by, among others, Escalis, Vezzani, Vargas, Alagna, Giordani, and Domingo(done when he was approaching 60 and the high c"s are merely strained bleats but the rest of the singing is beyond praise). Hymel has included this aria on his album to be released Tuesday and I can hardly wait to hear his performance. Lastly the recording of Meyerbeer's 'Robert le diable' with Hymel in the title role has one of the most amazing pieces of singing I've ever heard from a LIVING TENOR in his performance of the Sicilienne "Jai perdu-Ma revanche" with an extended trill (decent) and some high wire singing in the upper register with a stunning top c" etc.. If this aria had been sung by Juan Diego Florez like this it would be an excellent performance by Hymel has a much heavier voice and his performance recalls the remarkable recording done by Escalis. SHICOFF1 makes excellent points and as Hymel gets older his voice will get darker and thicken a bit which is when he might do some of the traditional spinto roles but not, I hope, Otello or worse the Wagner operas and end up as a leather lunged bleater.
Avez-vous vraiment écouté l’enregistrement réalisé par THILL...vous semblez passer sur son nom au milieu d’autres grands chanteurs ...mais soyons sérieux ..pensez-vous que la voix de THILL soit comparable en clarté , beauté du timbre , émotion et vaillance compris à un chanteur ctuel ou passé ..des belles voix souvent....mais des interprétations avec une telle beauté vocale ??? Eluzalyrics
Pavarotti had great ring and a kind of reediness to his tone that was unique and beautiful. He was more of a lyric/spinto (I think that would be the fach) and I wish he had stuck to that rep. Singing big opera like Turandot put an edge on his voice because he pushed to be heard over the big orchestra. If you want to hear vintage, to-die-for Pavarotti, listen to the 1972 recording of La Boheme with Mirella Freni (who was also fantastic - a perfect Mimi). Or his debut at the Met in La Fille du Regiment. His Cavarodossi (Tosca) was peerless. I had the privilege of hearing him once live, in that role, and the memory never leaves me. Bryan is an heroic tenor, a voice particularly suited to French repertoire, I believe. He has a ringing, effortless sound.
This is one of the dumbest comments ever. If Hymel is "caprino", that makes nearly every important tenor of the recording era ALSO caprino. Of course you hear a miked sound...this is from a VIDEO BROADCAST. He's wearing a mic in his hair or upper costume for the broadcast. Until you hear this voice in the house you have NO cause to be critical. He's an exciting young tenor and the sum of his positives FAR exceeds any negatives.
I believe the Met uses floor mikes for the recordings; perhaps hanging mikes. Not sure. It is impossible to compare this kind of recording with the real thing. A studio recording, especially on vinyl, is one place one might hear close to the real sound. Bryan's sound filled the house, and his charisma and acting brought the character to life. He is an incredible tenor with excellent technique, and when he was asked to step into this role, he was ready. Opera singers are amazing; they have to prepare for moments that may never come. Still, they study music, languages, style and of course vocal technique. They pore over scores to reveal every nuance. It takes incredible dedication and hard work to bring a performance to life. Bryan exemplifies that hard work. Hence the fact that he could step into a huge role at the last minutes. It was an extraordinary debut. He was prepared and courageous. He knew he could do it and he did!
Caprino,Nasal,Constricted.Sounds Miked,you dont hear the sound filling the space reverberating and resonating,you just hear a focused miked sound.Thanks for the video!
The high C that comes in the middle of the aria (just after 5:42 here) is one of the most god-awful to sing I know of. It's very short, so you can't massage and adjust it after you hit it. It comes in a big leap, and must give tenors nightmares. This climactic phrase is played first by the orchestra and--contrary to what Thill thinks--it's a melodic note that you that you can't just leave out. Listen to the RUclips clips and you'll see the various problems.
The audience seems to disagree with you. I didn't mind it, myself. I thought his performance was beautiful. I wish this telecast were made available on dvd/blu-ray.
Bravo Bryan! If the critics here had any value they would not waste their time on youtube.com critiquing people who are out there being paid to do what they love. Since no one is paying for their opinion they feel the need to give it out for free. Get a life people. Bryan is too busy working with professionals to read this crap.
Sound enhancement?! nonsense! His voice actually sounds significantly better live. You don't get an impression of the well balanced overtone that is present in his voice, nor do your speakers enwrap you with his sound. I would actually say his voice records very poorly. That should tell you something about how amazing his voice actually is.
I agree. Recordings don't do his kind of ring justice. Maybe if we still recorded on vinyl we'd get a better, truer sound. cd's are just not capable of enough nuance.
So what magazines can I read reviews that you have written on other singers? Newspapers?. . . Oh none? God, you "singer bashing" folks on youtube make me sick. You know better than anyone else. "He better be careful singing that way!" Why dont you listen to him in interviews? Have you ever spoken with him? The voice is exactly the same. Just enjoy it for what it is. Next time you're out shopping make sure you stop and get a life.
The conducting is too weak without relief and sound like a mashed baby-food; Well he's a great singer with nice high notes, but but... the style is not very good and his taste for long high notes has nothing to do with Berlioz to my mind.
Your "kermit" point is well taken, as is his tendency to "spread" the sound in the upper register. He doesn't appear to cover the top at all and this gives me worry as it does you. He sings like a lot of people who come out of AVA. He is to be commended for rising to the occasion and making a hell of a Met debut in a hell of a difficult role. Time will tell about his longevity.
Marc Peycker I was at the Met for this very performance. The conductor was Fabio Luisi. For me, this long epic just flew by, didn’t seem sluggish at all.
Not surprising judging from what I've heard from this conductor in the past - IMO a bad choice by the Met. Pappano conducting this opera runs rings around him.
He has a quite strong voice (carried all the way to the amphitheatre at the ROH), though he needs to work on expression and nuance. He is at his best in heroic moments (as this one), but was very limited in the love duet in Act 3 (and so was his partner in London, Eva-Maria Westbroek).
... No thanks. The top should grow. With every great singer, both male and female, the voice grows larger with each higher tone. His top is spread with no cover. And he does sound like Kermit. It's the tongue
Some people like 'Kermit the Frog',good luck to you.If you cant hear the difference between this singer/good singers previous/ present,your comment makes complete sense.For me i hear nothing but constriction, and ugly singing.The balance of the registers are out,there is no chest voice,the vibratos is fast and tremolos,the voice is all forward in the mask,the sound is almost guttural too.I feel sorry for his vocal chords,he wont last very long.great tenors dont have his vibrato,only poorer ones.
I bought tickets for my mother and I to see Jonas Kaufmann as Énée at Covent Garden, but Kaufmann was taken ill and Bryan Hymel stepped in at short notice. Of course, we'd looked forward to seeing Kaufmann for months, but we certainly were NOT disappointed by the substitution! We've seen many operas, but this production was easily amongst the most memorable - in no small part because of Hymel's magnificent performance. Can't wait to see him again.
Both are wankers.
This is some of the most spectacular singing I've ever heard. Bravo to you Bryan, as always mightily impressive.
Bravo!!! And what a response from the audience. This must have been incredible in the house. This role is perfect for Hymel's voice.
I was at the Met for this HD performance. You're right - the audience went nuts, and for a good reason. Hymel has a ringing voice with lyric and heroic qualities, and effortless high notes.
I saw this surprise Met debut and the house went insane - for very good reason. This man is the real deal. A great voice -- loads of ring, natural size, effortless top range, and true musicality. How exciting to witness the debut of a new, great, world class tenor.
I'm perplexed by some of these comments. I was at this Met performance of Jan 5, 2013. Astonishing on every level. And Bryan Hymel filled the hall with rich thrilling sound, as did Susan Graham. And yes, I heard Domingo & Pav & Vickers & Gedda & Krause & Kaufmann many times in the theater. Hymel is the real thing.
He absolutely is!
I've now heard this tenor 4 times at Covent Garden and once at the RAH. Twice in this role, once in Robert Le Diable, once in Vepres Siciliennes and once in Don Jose, and I'm still completely underwhelmed. To me he sounds tight, throaty and very small, rather like a mini Domingo. Please somebody tell me what I'm missing. I can't believe people are comparing him to Jon Vickers, Vickers had ten times the volume, as well as a glorious top. I can't see this guy singing Siegmund or Otello or even Samson. What's the fuss all about?
Sorry Alex, I can't help you! Maybe it's just a matter of taste. I saw Vickers in all his great roles, and Domingo too. And I find Hymel very thrilling - perhaps not as dramatic as Vickers or with as beautiful a voice as Domingo, but we nearly fell out of our seats when we saw Bryan as Aeneas.
Alex Daniel What all the fuss is about is a true heroic tenor as it was understood at the turn of the 20th century. The kind of voice that Leon Escalais had. A voice that had a thrilling top, power, and remarkable flexibility. Hymel has all of these traits. I doubt that Hymel has any desire to sing the roles you mentioned since they are not in his fach. This man sings above top c with ease and RING and that is what its all about. As for comparison to Vickers I agree that said comparisons are a total stretch since Vickers SANG A TOTALLY DIFFERENT REPERTOIRE and always had serious problems in his upper register. Vickers had a short top that has been documented on numerous recordings both live and in studio. The Troyens aria Hymel sings the hell out of above has a high c which Vickers avoided to the best of my knowledge in every live performance. I am a huge fan of Vickers especially as Otello, Peter Grimes, and Tristan but it was a totally different voice.
As to the size of Hymel's voice I will trust the opinions of others whom I know who have heard him in person and their remarks are totally contrary to yours.Your remarks concerning a tight throaty voice are just damn nonsense!!
gaytenor Each to his own then. Lol.
Bryan, this brought me to tears! I am so happy for you and your success! And I get to brag that I sang with you!
An astounding performance! Well done!
I was at this performance, and I can tell you. This dude does not fuck around. This is the type of voice that comes around only a few times each century.
Magnifique, sensationnel !!
You'n can only give with the instrument that God gave you. If you sing beautifully , and intelligently , you will just fine. The big voices of the past aren't cultivated today.
I just returned to this clip, a performance I actually attended during a Met matinee. Hymel’s voice resounded through the house. So reading these comments just makes me laugh at the pitiful “critics” who trash everyone (except the execrable Callas, of course), and predicted Hymel’s demise. Well, it’s 2020 and he just sang Le Damnation de Faust at the Met, and received extraordinary reviews.
Thank you for sharing. I have watched this clip over and over and over again. ❤️❤️❤️❤️ it. Sir Antonio Pappano knows the voice best in picking the right replacement and making them the rising star from Kaufman to Grigolo and Hymel.
I wouldn't put Grigioli in any category except awful
I first heard Hymel in Les Troyens (HD Met) and when he walked on the stage and stated 'Reine, je suis Enée', I thought I was hearing a resurrected Vickers.
This was a delightful production, one of the best of the season - thank you for posting this.
Which theaters are you talking about that are "bigger" than before? The Met has always been huge. Most of the great houses have been around for decades and it was never an issue before. It cannot get any bigger than the arena di Verona. The Met, La Scala, Berlin, Vienna, San Francisco, Paris etc etc have been the same forever.
Truly a remarkable performance; what a great voice and an impeccable French diction. I`m sure that we will hear from him a lot in the coming years.
Bravo, Bryan! Enee requires a voice that embraces a huge range - from heroic tenor to spinto. Very few tenors have managed the role believably. I saw Vickers at the Met in the early '70s and he had both the voice and the presence to do it. This guy surprised me. Terrific!
GRANDE CANTOR!
what a performance! can't wait to see it on PBS later this year!
Bryan Hymel is a voice which comes along perhaps once in a lifetime, and at this point, very close to a heroic tenor - he is only 33, I believe, so his voice will mature and become even bigger...
Such a shame this isn't on DVD. It was all-around one of the best performances I've ever seen recorded, and there are a LOT out there.
I was there for the performance... Not sure what people mean about a mic or movie theater enhancement. He actually sounds this astounding, I not better. Some people are just plain bitter because they will never sing like this. The ovation speaks for it's self. I suppose that's fake too? Get over yourselves haters.
I think what they are taking about is the difference in sound between the broadcasts and the house. Because the instruments recording the performance are on stage with the singers it can be hard to know what the voice is like live. Patrons have grown weary of voices that sound the part on the radio and then do not translate live. They should stifle their cynicism here, Hymel is marvelous and we should be proud to have such an incredible tenor!
Great!!! More please
Bravo! Finally a sizable tenor voice at the Met after so many years without having one.
I am impressed so far. But only time will tell.
Anyone, is his voice the size of Domingo's or Pavarotti's? Lyric or spinto?
I heard him do Tosca in Santa Fe. I never saw Pavarotti live, but my father had seen Pavarotti 70 odd times and assured me the voice of Pavarotti was far more lyric in quality and less hefty. It isn't hard to believe, Hymel's voice is extremely imposing live.
Amazing.
This is an CRAZY hard sing! Bravo!
Auch wenn der Sänger heute leider stimmliche Probleme hat; man spürt förmlich, wie sensationell seine Interpretation an diesem Abend gewesen sein muss! Der heldische Gesang ist brillant und wagemutig.
Ein exzeptionelles Erlebnis!
At times his voice reminds me of Jon Vickers only with a bit more melody to it. I heard him in Les Troyens at the RAH/London, no sound enhancement, and he sounded great from where I was sitting, an exciting new talent I think.
I don't remember having heard this aria (and also Nuit d'ivresse) sung better than how Bryan Hymel did it. His French diction is perfect and his performance, athletic to say the least. From now on, his Aeneas will be the standard to which any other tenor will be compared to.
Yeah Bryan!
I am hoping to hear him in New Orleans so I can hear what you did. I have heard him only on RUclips and he sounds great. Such an easy clear top register. Check out his Asile Hereditaire from Guillaume Tell. It's a video of a live recital that is of poor sound quality, but he is still thrilling.I think he is the upcoming tenor phenomenon.
Listening to this again it does not impress me. The slow middle section is quite unsteady and the line uneven. But it strikes me that there is not much tone in what should be the meaty center of his voice. It is pallid and generic. He has that overdrive he can go into above the staff, but if you actually isolate the famous C, for example, it’s not at all a heroic tone or technically well produced. All credit to any tenor who can get this far without collapsing, but it’s not in my view a major voice. (And I read now in 2020 that he is in a vocal crisis and cancelling all engagements. You’d think tenors would by now have figured out that Bill Schumann at AVA is vocal poison.)
usually the HD is too loud this sounds like it needs a boost?-listened to the radio broadcast of this-sound was much better-just listening, outside of Vickers who was remarkable and profound but obviously not comfortable with all the role Hymel was a delightful surprise, and when have you ever heard all the high notes sung in this impossible role? great hopes for him, hope the tenor disease doesn't destroy him
He is a spinto, as was Domingo (now that he is singing baritone repertoire I refer to him as was). Pavarotti was a lyric. His voice carried very well as it was produced beautifully. I have yet to hear Hymel in the house so I cannot judge size. I speak of color of voice.
well said.
Perhaps the observation that Hymel's first solo album 'Heroique' is devoted to French heroic tenor arias that all have passages of great intensity in the upper register might clear up some confusion. Hymel might be classified as a 'Fort tenor' by voice type. Leon Escalis, Cesar Vezzani, Georges Thill, are all of this type and in one way or another they perfectly illustrate what is demanded of a French heroic tenor. Tony Poncet was almost a parody of this voice type and he just might make your ears bled he's that bad at times. An examination of the scores of operas written for this type of tenor, even in the operas Verdi wrote or recast for the Paris Opera will reveal the difference. Verdi recast 'I Lombardi' in a revision as Jerusalem and the main tenor aria 'La mia letiza infondere' goes no higher than an a' in the revision the aria is 'L'Emirde lui m'appelle ...je veux encore entendre' with two top c's since the great tenor Gilbert Duprez was the ruling tenor of the Paris Opera and was the first to sing a high c' from the chest.The aria is very beautiful and has been recorded by, among others, Escalis, Vezzani, Vargas, Alagna, Giordani, and Domingo(done when he was approaching 60 and the high c"s are merely strained bleats but the rest of the singing is beyond praise). Hymel has included this aria on his album to be released Tuesday and I can hardly wait to hear his performance. Lastly the recording of Meyerbeer's 'Robert le diable' with Hymel in the title role has one of the most amazing pieces of singing I've ever heard from a LIVING TENOR in his performance of the Sicilienne "Jai perdu-Ma revanche" with an extended trill (decent) and some high wire singing in the upper register with a stunning top c" etc.. If this aria had been sung by Juan Diego Florez like this it would be an excellent performance by Hymel has a much heavier voice and his performance recalls the remarkable recording done by Escalis.
SHICOFF1 makes excellent points and as Hymel gets older his voice will get darker and thicken a bit which is when he might do some of the traditional spinto roles but not, I hope, Otello or worse the Wagner operas and end up as a leather lunged bleater.
Avez-vous vraiment écouté l’enregistrement réalisé par THILL...vous semblez passer sur son nom au milieu d’autres grands chanteurs ...mais soyons sérieux ..pensez-vous que la voix de THILL soit comparable en clarté , beauté du timbre , émotion et vaillance compris à un chanteur ctuel ou passé ..des belles voix souvent....mais des interprétations avec une telle beauté vocale ???
Eluzalyrics
Much bigger than Pavarotti's. He is on the heavier side of a spinto. Live his ring is immense and his voice is incredibly thrilling.
so this is actually about YOU!
Wow..listen to the "movie theater" enhancement effect. No ambient sound whatsoever. They are killing opera.
This is a caprino. I've heard him live talented but singing like this will take its toll
When and what did you hear him sing live? Also same questions vis-a-vis Pavarotti?
Pavarotti had great ring and a kind of reediness to his tone that was unique and beautiful. He was more of a lyric/spinto (I think that would be the fach) and I wish he had stuck to that rep. Singing big opera like Turandot put an edge on his voice because he pushed to be heard over the big orchestra. If you want to hear vintage, to-die-for Pavarotti, listen to the 1972 recording of La Boheme with Mirella Freni (who was also fantastic - a perfect Mimi). Or his debut at the Met in La Fille du Regiment. His Cavarodossi (Tosca) was peerless. I had the privilege of hearing him once live, in that role, and the memory never leaves me. Bryan is an heroic tenor, a voice particularly suited to French repertoire, I believe. He has a ringing, effortless sound.
This is one of the dumbest comments ever. If Hymel is "caprino", that makes nearly every important tenor of the recording era ALSO caprino. Of course you hear a miked sound...this is from a VIDEO BROADCAST. He's wearing a mic in his hair or upper costume for the broadcast. Until you hear this voice in the house you have NO cause to be critical. He's an exciting young tenor and the sum of his positives FAR exceeds any negatives.
I believe the Met uses floor mikes for the recordings; perhaps hanging mikes. Not sure. It is impossible to compare this kind of recording with the real thing. A studio recording, especially on vinyl, is one place one might hear close to the real sound. Bryan's sound filled the house, and his charisma and acting brought the character to life. He is an incredible tenor with excellent technique, and when he was asked to step into this role, he was ready. Opera singers are amazing; they have to prepare for moments that may never come. Still, they study music, languages, style and of course vocal technique. They pore over scores to reveal every nuance. It takes incredible dedication and hard work to bring a performance to life. Bryan exemplifies that hard work. Hence the fact that he could step into a huge role at the last minutes. It was an extraordinary debut. He was prepared and courageous. He knew he could do it and he did!
Caprino,Nasal,Constricted.Sounds Miked,you dont hear the sound filling the space reverberating and resonating,you just hear a focused miked sound.Thanks for the video!
The high C that comes in the middle of the aria (just after 5:42 here) is one of the most god-awful to sing I know of. It's very short, so you can't massage and adjust it after you hit it. It comes in a big leap, and must give tenors nightmares. This climactic phrase is played first by the orchestra and--contrary to what Thill thinks--it's a melodic note that you that you can't just leave out. Listen to the RUclips clips and you'll see the various problems.
The audience seems to disagree with you. I didn't mind it, myself. I thought his performance was beautiful. I wish this telecast were made available on dvd/blu-ray.
Bravo Bryan! If the critics here had any value they would not waste their time on youtube.com critiquing people who are out there being paid to do what they love. Since no one is paying for their opinion they feel the need to give it out for free. Get a life people. Bryan is too busy working with professionals to read this crap.
Sound enhancement?! nonsense! His voice actually sounds significantly better live. You don't get an impression of the well balanced overtone that is present in his voice, nor do your speakers enwrap you with his sound. I would actually say his voice records very poorly. That should tell you something about how amazing his voice actually is.
I agree. Recordings don't do his kind of ring justice. Maybe if we still recorded on vinyl we'd get a better, truer sound. cd's are just not capable of enough nuance.
So what magazines can I read reviews that you have written on other singers? Newspapers?. . . Oh none? God, you "singer bashing" folks on youtube make me sick. You know better than anyone else. "He better be careful singing that way!" Why dont you listen to him in interviews? Have you ever spoken with him? The voice is exactly the same. Just enjoy it for what it is. Next time you're out shopping make sure you stop and get a life.
The conducting is too weak without relief and sound like a mashed baby-food; Well he's a great singer with nice high notes, but but... the style is not very good and his taste for long high notes has nothing to do with Berlioz to my mind.
Your "kermit" point is well taken, as is his tendency to "spread" the sound in the upper register. He doesn't appear to cover the top at all and this gives me worry as it does you. He sings like a lot of people who come out of AVA.
He is to be commended for rising to the occasion and making a hell of a Met debut in a hell of a difficult role. Time will tell about his longevity.
In a way it makes sense, theatres getting bigger and bigger, orchestra tuning gets up to 444........these circumstances kill singers
Sluggish conductor = not good for Berlioz. Pity.
Marc Peycker I was at the Met for this very performance. The conductor was Fabio Luisi. For me, this long epic just flew by, didn’t seem sluggish at all.
Not surprising judging from what I've heard from this conductor in the past - IMO a bad choice by the Met. Pappano conducting this opera runs rings around him.
Big voice but a strange sound..not beautiful to me!
He has a quite strong voice (carried all the way to the amphitheatre at the ROH), though he needs to work on expression and nuance. He is at his best in heroic moments (as this one), but was very limited in the love duet in Act 3 (and so was his partner in London, Eva-Maria Westbroek).
... No thanks. The top should grow. With every great singer, both male and female, the voice grows larger with each higher tone. His top is spread with no cover. And he does sound like Kermit. It's the tongue
Some people like 'Kermit the Frog',good luck to you.If you cant hear the difference between this singer/good singers previous/ present,your comment makes complete sense.For me i hear nothing but constriction, and ugly singing.The balance of the registers are out,there is no chest voice,the vibratos is fast and tremolos,the voice is all forward in the mask,the sound is almost guttural too.I feel sorry for his vocal chords,he wont last very long.great tenors dont have his vibrato,only poorer ones.
very great voice but cannot understand his French