The Three Tenors & their successors

[Marjorie]

There's something that has puzzled me for some time now and I was wondering what everyone here thought about it. As you know, there have been many groups that have followed in The Three Tenors' footsteps - The American Tenors, The Irish Tenors, Celtic Tenors, Three Mo' Tenors, Ten Australian Tenors, etc. Yet I believe that none of those groups have become as well-known as the original. Some of the successor groups, or spin-offs if you'd like, have had quite a long run but I don't think their names, certainly not their individual names, are as well-known as those of The Three Tenors.

Any ideas why that is? I'm not an opera expert so I can't really judge how technically good one group is over another. I do know that The Three Tenors never inspired me to listen to opera, while a couple of the newer groups have done just that. And, coming from a background of rock and country, I never would have believed I would one day be listening to opera. But through first The Irish Tenors and then The American Tenors, I now listen to and want to learn more about real opera - not just crossover. So I'm puzzled as to why none of these newer groups have been able to take over the spot held by The Three Tenors and I'd love to hear your thoughts on it. Is it possibly because The Three Tenors already had made a name for themselves in the opera world before joining together as a group? Is it as simple as that?

 

[rojo]

Hey Marjorie,

To be honest, I can`t really answer your question because I have never even heard of these `other` tenor groups. I just think that you are probably correct in your last statement; the reason the Three Tenors were so big was because these men are all heavyweights in the opera world who got together to perform, which I believe was pretty much unheard of before them. At least as far as I know. I`m not an expert on opera or opera singers, but I know some stuff about it.

Just to say, I really enjoy Placido Domingo when he performs in Puccini operas!

 

[Marjorie]

Thanks for your reply, Rojo. I today found an article on the search for the "new" Three Tenors that I found interesting:

http://www.jcarreras.com/articles/2001/time030501a.stm

I wasn't listening to opera at all when The Three Tenors first took to the stage together. From this article I can see that it must have been quite an opera happening. Now that they have set the stage for this type of act, I wouldn't think it would be so hard to replicate it. There must be many talented tenors out there who would be fit to steps into their shoes.

 

[rojo]

Well, sorry, but I have to disagree- I think it would be pretty difficult to replicate it. I`m sure there are very many talented tenors out there, but as to fitting into their shoes...hmmm, I just can`t see that happening. Don`t forget that the three original tenors were huge names in the opera world with long, well-established careers behind them. But then again, stranger things have happened- I`m not really up on the latest opera singer scene.

I just don`t know if there is a future for this type of act. The whole thing was pretty risky/wacky to begin with. Hence the difficulties the subsequent other 3-10 tenor groups have had in being as successful as the original.

So, just curious, have you listened to any operas? And if so, which ones, and what did you think?

 

[Marjorie]

The only opera I've been able to listen to the whole way through is LaTraviata. I really enjoyed that and could follow the story. I prefer to just listen to the main arias and not all the fill-ins. A whole opera goes on too long and I lose interest. I think that's why I enjoy the crossover classical singers like The American Tenors, Russell Watson and Andrea Bocelli. They just sing the main songs from the operas and I find those really beautiful. Songs like Nessun Dorma, Nella Fantasia and Granada.

It's a shame if acts like these don't really make it in the music world because I think they've done so much to open up the world of opera and classical music to those who never would listen to it otherwise.

Marjorie

 

[rojo]

I think that there is quite a following for singers such as you have mentioned, after all they`ve been well-promoted in the mainstream. As long as people (like you) keep supporting them, they will continue to flourish.

While I am not a big fan of Andrea Bocelli, and I`ve never heard the American Tenors, I don`t see how it could be a bad thing to promote opera/classical music as they do.

I`m no opera expert, I like many kinds of music, but I hope you won`t give up on opera, or classical music in general; there are lots of different kinds, and lots of different composers to try. Maybe you could look for some shorter stuff!