America’s Got Talent 5: YouTube Auditions
USAToday.com has an article up giving us an idea of who to expect on Tuesday’s episode of America’s Got Talent.
Now if you don’t know how the YouTube auditions episode is set up… People were asked to post a YouTube video of themselves showing off their talent and submitting it to the America’s Got Talent YouTube page.
From there, the producers would choose eleven (11) acts to be on the YouTube auditions show while America was asked to view the YouTube auditions and choose the act that they would like to see on the show.
Of the eleven acts chosen by the producers they include:
– Pup, a 7-year-old mutt [and Ed Heiss, his guitar-playing sidekick]
– Ohio pizzeria owner Patt Miller
However, the single act that garnered the most votes by voters via YouTube is:
[…] Jackie Evancho — a 10-year old opera singer […]
Now there is a Jackie that is a reader to the site that was mentioned in a previous post in regards to the YouTube auditions, however without a last name there is no knowing if this is the same Jackie as mentioned.
Also in store… Wednesday’s results episode will include:
[..] Judson Laipply, the motivational speaker whose 2006 Evolution of Dance video has been watched nearly 150 million times.[…]
If you do not know/remember what video that pertains to, here it is.
It sounds like this week’s auditions are going to be mildly entertaining…
“Jackie Evancho — a 10-year old opera singer”
I don’t know Jackie, but no 10-year old is an “opera singer”. The term is terribly misused on the show. Why not just call them “crossover” singers? or popera singers? Or put opera in quotes.
I hate to repeat myself but “opera singer” is someone who single in live operas in opera theaters. This is the official dictionary definition. Since no 10-year old will ever be heard in an opera theater and will ruin her voice forever if she tries, they shouldn’t be called that. Even the great Beverly Sills who was amazing at 8 – there is a video on youtube – and had a radio “career” since the age of 3, was called “opera singer” until she actually started to sing in operas as an adult.
Kitty- Here is her audition if you want to judge for yourself- she is amazing!
I just listened to it as well as other selection including “O mio babbino caro” that she recorded a bit younger.
She is an incredibly gifted child, with beautiful voice, musical, and what I especially like – some expression. But it’s not enough to call her an “opera singer”. Even if she had sung more operatic selections (and she doesn’t), she doesn’t sound like one (yet). Today, it seems anything that’s not pop is counted as “opera”….. Actually, she has a wiki page, and over there she is correctly classified as “classical crossover singer”.
Think about it like figure skating – a gifted 10-year old skater vs an Olympic skater. Opera singers are like well trained olympic athletes. Singing a full opera without microphones without voice waivering even once, without a single wrong or bad-sounding note is an athletic feet, and opera singers train for years to be able to do it; they also study languages to really understand what they sing, and musicianship. Jackie may well develop into one or not or she may choose a different career path e.g. continue with classical crossover career or try musical theater. But right now she simply is not an opera singer.
This is an 8-year old Beverly Sills. Notice how difficult her selection is. The high notes in a child thin voice may not sound pleasant to you, but notice her natural breath support, and her expressiveness. And no, at that age she wasn’t an “opera singer” either. She actually “retired” shortly after this to study which turned out the be the right choice.