Sarah Brightman

Sarah Brightman

Sarah Brightman is an English classical crossover soprano, actress, songwriter, and dancer. Quite the accomplished Lady I daresay!She is the eldest of six children. She began taking ballet when she was three years of age. When she was eleven she began attendance at the Arts Educational Boarding School for Jazz and Acting. She was often teased at school which made it a difficult time for her. She tried out for the Royal Ballet but was rejected. Ms. Brightman debuted as a dancer in troupes such as Hot Gossip and later released a string of disco singles. She achieved greater fame as a musical theatre performer and partner of theatre composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, with home she originated several roles including Christine Daae in The Phantom of the Opera. Her 1984 marriage to Lloyd Webber, which ended in 1990 in divorce, attracted tabloid coverage throughout the English speaking world. She met Andrew Lloyd Webber in 1981 when she auditioned for a role in the in CATS. She won the role of Jemima. After her divorce, Sarah became a crossover artist with former Enigma producer Frank Peterson. Her style, a blend of classical vocals and pop-inspired instrumentation and arrangement, earned her further success. Sarah has undergone vocal training first with Elizabeth Hawes, head of the Trinity Music College in London and then later with Ellen Faul of Juilliard. She currently studies with internationally known voice coach David Romano. She has a three octave vocal range that extends to an F above Soprano C. Her highest recorded notes are the E6 in “Phantom of the Opera” and the F6 in the video version of “How Can Heaven Love Me.” She has received over 150 Gold and Platinum awards in 34 countries and is the only artist to hold #1 spots on the Billboard Classical and Dance charts simultaneously. She has sold over 26 million albums worldwide.

Discography (That I Own)

1. The Phantom of the Opera (1986-1988 ) – This is the original cast recording of the Phantom of the Opera in which Sarah Brightman played Christine. She was fantastic in the role and while others have gone on to play it with great success, it is still hard for me to think of Christine and not hear Sarah’s voice.
   
2. The Trees They Grow So High (1989) – I have read many bad reveiws about this album by Sarah fans which I think is tragic. Their complaints are normally the same that this album is not like Sarah’s other Pop or Classical Crossover albums. I love this album. Sarah took great care to give us beautiful folk songs that were lovingly sung and arranged. Even if they do prefer her other albums it is still a shame in my opinion that they didn’t give this album a better chance.
   
3. The Songs That Got Away (1989) – This album is full of obscure and some not so obscure musical theater songs. Sarah does a beatuiful job here and the album was produced shortly after she had finished playing Christine in The Phantom of the Opera. It is a must for those who love to hear Sarah singing in a classical operatic style.
   
4. Dive (1993) – You may have guessed that this one is a concept piece and in this one Sarah takes us deep into the sea. The album has a delightful pop sound but rest assured, it is not the bubblegum pop that make many, myself included cringe. Instead this album leans a bit toward a sort of eloquent and fun dance sound. She touches upon animal cruelty in one of her songs but have no fear, for she is not preaching so much as informing allowing her listener to know that these things happen in the world and then she leaves it up to the listener to change it if they will.
   
5. Fly (1995) – This album has more of a rock sound and Sarah proves with this album that she can do rock very well indeed. When Fly is heard along with her other albums it is crystal clear that Sarah likes a great many styles and shall never be hemmed in to just one which makes this fan very happy indeed!
   
6. Surrender (1995) – This album is superb! I truly enjoy hearing Sarah sing such classics as The Phantom of the Opera, and Macavity The Mystery Cat. Some of the songs on this album are in fact in Italian and Spanish. For those who have loved hearing Sarah sing Andrew Lloyd Webber songs, they should check this one out, it’s fantastic.
   
7. Time To Say Goodbye (1997) – This is album is marked with plenty of operatic tunes, which make it a due for those who like opera and a don’t for those who prefer it when Sarah sings pop or classical. Personally I like it when she does all of the above. She has a beautiful voice which is shown off quite well on this album.
   
8. Eden (1998 ) – Otherworldly, ethereal, those are two words that come to mind when I think of Sarah Brightman’s Eden album. With her ethereal soprano voice she pulls us into an other world, her Eden. The songs are beautiful and from this album comes one of my absolute favorite songs from Sarah Brightman – Deliver Me.
   
9. La Luna (2000) – This album is the one I heard that truly made me begin to love Sarah Brightman. In truth it may be my all time favorite, though her latest (Symphony) is running a close race. The beginning intro to La Luna immediately sets the mood taking and Sarah takes us yet again to a different land altogether. My favorite from this album is Hijo de la Luna in which Sarah weaves a beautiful story for her listeners.
   
10. Eden Millenium Edition (2000) – This is the Millenium version of Eden and is every bit as good as the original.
    
11. A Whiter Shade of Pale/A Question of Honor (2001) – This is a single full of remixes of the two songs A Whiter Shade of Pale and A Question of Honour. While the remixes of A Whiter Shade of Pale are fun I am still ambivalent toward the remixes of A Question of Honour.
    
12. Classics (2001) – It’s been said time and again, and I must admit that I agree, that Sarah Brightman is an either you love it or hate it singer. Those who love to hear her sing operatic classical rarely seem to like to hear her sing pop and vice versa. There are very few, my best friend and I are among this particular group, who just love to hear her do both. In any case, this album has Sarah singing in a far more Operatic and Classical mein. Sarah herself never has claimed to be an Opera singer, but she has a powerful and lovely voice and she enjoyed the challenge of singing the songs on Classics.
    
13. The Very Best of Sarah Brightman (2001) – A fabulous collection of Sarah Brightman songs. This is the second album of Sarah Brightman’s that I ever listened too and I love the songs every bit as much today as I did when I first heard them with my best friend who introduced me to Sarah’s work. It is hard to say that this is the Very Best however. She has done such fabulous work that it must have been truly hard for Sarah and the producers of this album to narrow down exactly which songs would make the cut.
    
14. Encore (2002) – The album is full of fabulous showtunes sung by Sarah. One of my favorites from this album is “If I Ever Fall In Love Again” from the Crooked Mile. Her rendition of “Memory” from Cats sung in Italian is simply heavenly.
    
15. Harem (2003) – Another fabulous album by Sarah. She shines on this album showing off her many myriad music styles along with the addition of the eastern feel to the music and songs. It is lush and inviting and terribly exotic.
    
16. Live From Las Vegas (2004) – Yet another fabulous work by Sarah. Live From Las Vegas the Cd is actually a companion to the DVD. I do not own the DVD but I have seen clips from it. Live From Las Vegas is considered the Harem World Tour and of course there are songs from Harem on the cd, however one should not believe that it is simply all about Harem. She is also performing other beloved songs of the past on this album such as La Luna, Time to Say Goodbye, A Question of Honour and more.
    
17. Love Changes Everything (2005) – This is a marvelous collection of songs written by Andrew Lloyd Webber. Sarah’s voice is lovely on this album and it seems to me that she has fun with the music.
    
18. Diva – The Singles Collection (2006) – If you have never heard Sarah Brightman before then this would be the album for you. It contains songs from her previous albums and is a collection of fun and interesting songs that can really give the listener a feel for what Sarah’s music is like and what more she is capable of in her future endeavors.
    
19. Symphony (2008 ) – Sarah’s latest album and I have to add one of my favorites. This album is voluptuous full of marvelous sounds and I simply adore the slightly Gothic edge that she has given this album. Please understand that I mean ancient Gothic not the wave of music style. Her songs conjure up the feel and images of Gothic castles, cathedrals and other dreamy yet shadowy landscapes. This is a fabulous album.

In Conclusion
My best friend, introduced me to the wonderful Sarah Brightman. It started with listening to the Phantom of the Opera and then she shared every album of Sarah’s that she got her hands on with me. I cannot thank her enough for that. Sarah has a beautiful voice and her songs are fun and moving, fantastic and lilting. Best of all… she keeps getting better. Both Harem and Symphony are proof of that and I look forward to her next album.