I Never Walked Alone: The Autobiography of an American Singer
by Shirley Verrett
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Book Summary Information
Author: Shirley VerrettCollaborator: Christopher Brooks
Edition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2003-04-30
ISBN: 0471209910
Number of pages: 336
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780471209911
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of I Never Walked Alone: The Autobiography of an American Singer
Book Review: In Her Own Words: The Life Of An American Opera Singer
Summary: 5 Stars
Shirley Verrett has written a profound, candid autobiography of her life and career as opera singer. Many singers write their own autobiographies and memoirs, among them include Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavoratti, Beverly Sills, Marilyn Horne and Joan Sutherland. Renee Fleming has also recently released her autobiography. Each singer provides us with an in-depth look at the elements that compose the opera business- from rehearsals, to facing reviews by critics, fandom, scandals, rumors, rivalries, recording sessions, the ups and downs of their careers and their personal lives. In the case of Shirley Verrett, we are treated to an uplifting and inspiring account of her life, and struggles. She's passionate, conversational, down-to-earth and very humble. I could never see her as the stereotypical diva raging and giving orders. Verrett was a classy lady, with artistic integrity, work ethics, morals and a lot of heart. From the first page to the last, we are in for a great ride and she lavishes the book with candid details and her inner thoughts on EVERYTHING. She opens up to us and we experience her life right along with her.
Shirley Verrett was raised as a Seventh-Day-Adventist, a strict and religious Christian denomination which is very active in America. As such, she was raised with the idea that a career in opera, and for that matter any public career, was sinful and shallow. Though perhaps Verrett had issues with her parents, she seems to have reconciled and even made them proud, for indeed she broke barriers in the opera scene. Opera is not rock and roll. It's the highest of all the arts, since it combines music, drama, art and poetry all in one. During the early 60's, it was extremely hard for a black woman to get into opera. Nowadays, it's a field they are experts in- we have seen the success of Jessie Norman, Kathleen Battle and Denyce Graves. But in a time of racial segregation and the desperate struggles of the Civil Rights Movement, it was difficult for a black woman to make it as an opera singer, and moreover, make it to the top as a leading soprano. Verrett tells us about these times. Her idol was contralto Marian Anderson, the first black woman to break the barrier, and tells us of how she met her in person and received great advice. Leontyne Price was on the rise as a dramatiac soprano and so was Grace Bumbry, who like Verrett, started off as a mezzo-soprano. Like Bumbry, Verrett did not want to remain constricted to the mezzo-soprano repertoire, which is actually quite limited and harldy the "star" role in any opera- (Azucena in Verdi's Trovatore, Ulrica in Un Ballo, Cherubino in Mozart's Nozze Di Figaro, Amneris in Verdi's Aida, Princess Eboli in Don Carlo and of course, the inevitable Carmen). Verrett provides us with anecdotes about performing these roles.
These roles Shirley Verrett mastered well, but singing the villain, or the vamp was not something she wanted to stick to. Other mezzo-sopranos, like Marilyn Horne (whom she talks about in her book, clarifying any rumors concering their clash of temperaments) got famous for using tricks to remain mezzos but still be a star- i.e. sticking to the Rossini heroines (most prominently in Semiramide but also L'Assedio Di Corinto, La Cenerentola and many other mezzo-coloratura roles. Dame Janet Baker used her mezzo voice to effectively convey religiosity and grace, while today's Cecilia Bartoli has made the mezzo voice a new form of dramatic soprano by coloring the voice with dizzying coloratura and highs as well as low notes. After making it to the top as a mezzo-soprano, it was time to move on. Like her peer, Grace Bumbry (with whom she was never really a rival, simply a rumor circulated by the media) she began training for the repertoire of dramatic soprano. Now, at last, she was ready to take on the same roles as her other idol, Maria Callas. Though Leontyne Price had already mastered the roles of Aida, Tosca, Leonora in Trovatore and Forza Del Destino, etc, Verrett was ready to hold her own.
Indeed, her stamina and committment served her well. A hard-working and talented artist, she nailed the soprano roles of Bellini's Norma (in a much acclaimed San Francisco Opera performance in 1978 which is also under a live recording) and Tosca which unfortunately was never captured on recording or video/film. As Norma she is passionate, intense, majestic and appropriately dramatic. She tells us of visits to Maria Callas' Paris apartment she inhabited in the late 70's shortly before her highly publicized death. Callas adviced her and Montserrat Caballe not to overdo Norma. Verrett took the advice to heart and was harks back to Callas in her performance, but with a lot more fluidity and better diction to the text. Caballe would do Norma much more than Verrett ever did. As Tosca, she is equally as passionate and intense. I personally dislike that the Italian press in Milan dubbed her "La Negra Callas" when she performed in La Scala, as if color was something people just had to point out. Verrett would go on to master the role of Aida and the heroine in Dialogue De Carmelites. She sang at least 3 times with Beverly Sills, with whom she had a great friendship (as the Lady Jane Seymour in the recording of Anna Bolena, as Adalgisa opposite Sill's Norma and as Neocle in Sill's Met debut in L'Assedio Di Corinto. She worked with the great Leyla Gencer, an underrated but outstanding dramatic diva (as Queen Elizabeth I in Maria Stuarda) and also with Caballe in Lucrezia Borgia. She sounded rather good opposite Placido Domingo in operas as Samson And Delilah and L'Africaine. Her last great role was as Santuzza in Cavalleria Rusticana. Retired, she looks back at her impressive career. She now coaches voice, is a great doner to charitable causes and a spokesperson for opera. This was a truly great book and I loved reading about her experience, which proved how persistence and integrity are eventually rewarded. My favorite moment- her parents, previously rejecting the "material world" and opera too, finally come to see their daughter in a performance of Carmen.
Summary of I Never Walked Alone: The Autobiography of an American Singer
An inspiring self-portrait of a world-renowned African American vocal artistThis is a fascinating account of a gifted woman's coming of age and rise to success at a time when black classical musicians faced barriers at every turn. Shirley Verrett possessed a talent and ambition so dazzling she could not be denied?and she became one of the most celebrated artists of her time. I Never Walked Alone draws the reader into the world of this graceful, fiery artist, dramatically telling the story of her childhood and her brilliant international career. The book is filled with behind-the-scenes tales of this diva?s great performances, roles, and collaborations, offering insight into her stormy personal relationships as well as her private struggles and critical decisions. Featuring forewords and afterwords by such figures as Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, Zubhin Mehta, and Claudio Abbado, this richly detailed book paints a vivid picture of a magnificent survivor and an indelible artist known around the world as the black Maria Callas.
Shirley Verrett (Ann Arbor, MI, and New York, NY) is currently Professor of Voice at the University of Michigan School of Music.
Christopher Brooks is a biographer and award-winning musicologist.
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