Clef Notes: Celebrating the Fourth of July with the incomparable voice of Leontyne Price - The Baltimore Sun’s classical music critic Tim Smith blogs about the sonic art, local and beyond

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July 4, 2009

Celebrating the Fourth of July with the incomparable voice of Leontyne Price

Happy Fourth of July.

For a fabulous blast of vocal patriotism, you can't beat this a cappella performance of "God Bless America" by indelible soprano Leontyne Price, from a concert appearance in 2001. She has always been one of my favorite artists -- a singer with an extraordinarily rich tone and deep expressive power, a woman of ...

great dignity and integrity. I didn't get to hear her in operas before her retirement, but in several concerts that I'll never forget -- not to mention her thrilling a cappella ''America the Beautiful" last fall in Washington, when she was honored at the NEA Opera Awards. At 81, she still sounded supreme. Here she is, filmed in her 70s, delivering Irving Berlin's stirring anthem. Hearing Miss Price her gives me all the fireworks I need for this day.

Posted by Tim Smith at 7:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Comments

a great 4th of July gift...amazing.Thanks Tim.
Doreen

You're most welcome. TIM

Posted by: doreen | July 4, 2009 3:20 PM

Our country's natural treasures not only include mountains, prairies, and oceans white with foam. Leontyne Price must surely be included as one of our most beloved jewels.

Thank you for sharing this.

Couldn't agree more. TIM

Posted by: Robert | July 5, 2009 5:26 PM

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About Tim Smith

I was born in Washington, D.C., and grew up there. Initial thoughts of becoming a cocktail pianist faded when I realized I hated taking requests. I decided to study music history instead, and got a B. A. in that field from Eisenhower College in Seneca Falls, New York, and an M.A. from Occidental College in Los Angeles. After free-lance gigs for the Washington Star and the Washington Post, I worked as classical music critic for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel during the 1980s and '90s, a period when I also ventured into radio, contributing to NPR and hosting a weekly show on a West Palm Beach station. Since April 2000, I've been classical music critic at the Baltimore Sun. Over the years, I've written occasional articles for the New York Times, BBC Music Magazine and other publications, and I'm a longtime, regular contributor to Opera News and the U.K. magazine Opera. You may still be able to find on the remainder racks my one and only book, The NPR Curious Listener's Guide to Classical Music (Perigee, 2002).

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