Jerry Hadley - Comfort ye my people -Messiah - Handel

Jerry Hadley (June 16, 1952 July 18, 2007) was a student of my teacher from 1978, after getting his masters degree in music from the University of Illinois in 1977. He then started teaching at the University of Connecticut. A 1993 article by Noël Goodwin in Opera magazine stated, "After 15 years Hadley still goes back to this Sicilian American who, he says, gave him confidence and secure knowledge of what he is doing with his voice at any given time, through teaching methods that are direct and physiological." Hadley also stated, "(I was) lucky above all else to have found a teacher in New York without whom I really doubt I could have really built the career I have." Here he displays wonderful balanced vocal registration and release of constriction which are the cornerstones of the technique that he learned and that I teach.

[@SilverSingingMethod]

There is actually no proof that singers in Handel's time used mostly straight tone. Most of the confusion comes from scholars tying to apply instrumental markings to the voice. Orders given to instrumentalists to "not vibrato" have been mistakenly also given to the singers. Also, early music tends to have different definitions of tremolo and vibrato than we use today. And the oldest manuscripts of bel canto teach that the voice must have vibrato.

[@darklord220]

YES

[@modestavicentefuertes2286]

But the tenors used to sing using falsetto or head voice after the E4 before Dupreou.

[@jefolson6989]

Vibrato is natural. To sing straight, one must hold the cords apart , preventing the constant restorative "massage" that correct vibrato provides.Its not good for the voice.(my theories)Hadley's vibrato is great. Never calls attention to itself, but gives the tone a vitality and impulse. You would notice its absence. He had a voice that "crossed over" easily but he didn't alter his technique. Aksel Schiotz is still the benchmark vocally and the his English is proof that it IS a singable tongue.

[@SilverSingingMethod]

@@modestavicentefuertes2286 No they didn't.

[@edgarkigozi7568]

Gifted Hands...

[@SilverSingingMethod]

I think you can have fun when your voice is free so that you can do with it what you wish with confidence.

[@SilverSingingMethod]

@leafrey Did you know him personally?

[@MourningHazeBand]

Very well done this one is. I have very few things to say other than that. The one thing that I'd have to say is that accomplished would most likely be pronounced accomplish "ed" in Handel's time, so it is usually preformed as such. And "highway, for our God" was a little off. Ad Lib. doesn't indicate that you can make worse the sound, but do all in your ability to keep it simple but sounding good. It was a little off, but no one can be perfect all of the time. I imagine it was better in person.

[@bigowl9408]

Such a rich voice for a tenor. This must be my most favorite of all renditions of this moving piece from Handle's Messiah.

[@hightenor123]

Jussi's voice may not have big in the sense that it was not thick, but it was pointed like a laser beam. It was loud at the back of the theatre as it was 5 feet away. I think it is the magic of a wonderful technique that voice size doesn't really matter... It pales in importance next to to solid projection. So many "big" thick voices go nowhere but to the back of their own head. Ps.... Bravo Jerry!!!

[@sopranosd]

Wow I love his voice. I have been told about him by various coaches and singers and they are so right! Such a sweet but strong voice. A true tenor - definitive tone. So sad he left the world so young.

[@stevimichael5553]

sopranosd agree..tragic end..gorgeous voice

[@SilverSingingMethod]

And yes, people have no clue about voice and technique! LOL! Nice to meet you. I have put many videos of Hadley up on my channel.

[@SonicPhonic]

Truly magnificent. His artistry is undeniable-his tasteful ornamentation and vibrato are perfectly fitting.

[@alessandramarc285]

JERRY, I WILL MISS YOU FOR ALL ETERNITY...NOT ONLY FOR YOUR PRODIGIOUS GIFT AS A SINGER , BUT FOR YOUR ACHINGLY TENDER SWEET LOVING HEART AND YOUR UNPARALLELED SENSE OF HUMOR !! YOU ARE SO SO SOOOOO SORELY MISSED AND LOVINGLY REMEMBERED...FOREVER !!!

[@ralphsanders01]

What a garland spirit! His voice is only overshadowed by his amazing heart, soul and passion for his gifts and life!! What a role model he was for all who trodded the same pathway after him! May his soul and sweet voice be remembered always!💞🎶💞

[@robertmorris17]

He seemed to really enjoy singing ! What a treat

[@blessloveheal]

What is beautiful is the joy that is expressed in that smile that passes over his face throughout this most beloved piece from Messiah.

[@kyleaustin7045]

"Come for tea my people"

[@eduardoalvarado4330]

Lmaooo

[@MacMcCaskill]

Haha! After all, it was a land of milk & honey!

[@willmaddux7426]

sorry Just do no hear Come for tea my people. Check your hearing!!!!!

[@geraldkiing1904]

Damn it now i can never hear this 🤣🤣

[@kyleaustin7045]

@@willmaddux7426 r/woosh

[@kraftpr]

Wonderful to hear a real TENOR sing this -- not some of the emasculated pseudo-tenors they get for those "authentic" versions. My opinion. So sad that Jerry Hadley took his own life. I wish those closest to him could have seen that he needed help. Such a great loss.

[@martinmoller5591]

yes

[@flaze3]

What are you talking about? He has a slightly lower voice. It doesn't mean higher voiced tenors are emasculated.

[@stone8193]

flaze3 he is a lyric tenor. This is how a lyric operatic tenor should sound. His voice is not low. In fact it’s high. The emasculated comment refers to the fact that modern tenors do not sing with their full sound because they think their true sound is a less masculine sound due to either psychological reasons or coordinative problems such as constriction, which makes the voice colorless and loses it’s operatic size and fullness and weight

[@francoaragosta4285]

I love Hadley's work, but please keep in mind that ORATORIO is N_O_T "OPERA," and in the Baroque Era performance practices and singng styles were very different from those used today in performances bel canto works, and those of Mascagni, Cilea, Verdi, Puccini to say nothing of Wagner and Richard Strauss.

[@tenorcarloscol]

@@francoaragosta4285 That is a modern school thought my friend. The tendency that pretended to recreate Baroque singing in such an exaggerated way was originated in the 20th century.

[@jimraw1]

Jerry Hadley was one of the most versatile tenors. I remember during a PBS Great Performances of Show Boat, he talked about how he approached different styles of music and was able to demonstrate. Singers such he and Placido Domingo are few and far between - we miss you greatly Jerry.

[@modestavicentefuertes2286]

Mingo was a joke

[@oliverdelica2289]

@@modestavicentefuertes2286 true

[@SilverSingingMethod]

I totally agree. And today there are virtually no true spintos and dramatics - generally speaking. When you compare them to what a *real* spinto (like Corelli) or dramatic (like Del Monaco) they are nowhere even close. Which is why when we talk about Hadley, it is true that he was a lyric in the truest sense. Compared to the greats. But compared to the lyrics singing today he is bigger. They sing like leggieros.

[@노와시]

great! he surely has a holy spirit

[@rychehed]

This man was pure class,one of the great voices of this century,check out his tom rakewell.

[@soprano774]

He was a really great singer. This is so fine. When he sang Werther at NYCO, he was as good as any who ever trod the boards in that role. May he rest in peace.

[@SilverSingingMethod]

Actually, he has the perfect voice type for this. It is not too big at all and he had very fast fioratura. However, people are so used to nasal, womanly sounding tenors it is hard for them to grasp a lyric tenor sound. He was selected constantly by conductors to sing this. And of course not every performance will be your best. This is excellent.

[@MidnightIsolde]

Agreed. His voice is perfect. I had the pleasure of hearing Messiah performed recently, and the tenor singing was wonderful. True tenor sound, much like Jerry Hadley. It's a real delight to hear a true tenor sing

[@michaelmiller1215]

The finest tenor of my lifetime. A tragic loss.

[@m33cav]

Beautiful. God bless Handel.

[@최성욱-x2g]

Isaiah 40:1 - 4 1. Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. 2. Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD's hand double for all her sins. 3. The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4. Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: To God Alone Be All The Glory.

[@Tetsuo315]

Absolutely beautiful! Rest in peace.

[@ajessm]

A beautiful rich and warm voice. Love his interpretation.

[@expatmartin]

A wonderful artist with a most beautiful voice and one heck of a nice guy. RIP Jerry Hadley and thank you for gift which you shared so generously with the world.

[@matteobitetti3810]

Clean, unfettered and completely Jerry! What a tenor he was!!!!!

[@JohnHyland2]

Bravo Jerry! One of my favorite tenors from his era. Very rich and focused.

[@SilverSingingMethod]

I don't use the term "thick" because for me that means something entirely different. Björling did project because he had "core" to his sound, but it was a small sound. Conversely now days we have tenors who have no scuro to the sound. They have nothing BUT chiaro. And it is just as bad in a sense. I rather hear chiaroscuro alla Caruso, Gigli, Pavarotti etc.

[@DLJ2890]

TOTALLY WRONG. When a lyric tenor such as Bjorling had core resonance it was in no way small. you are not correct to say Bjorlings voice was small. You need to study more about vocal resonance

[@francoaragosta4285]

A lovely, lively robust-yet-refined rendition of this standard, perhaps too-often-performed Christmas favorite. I greatly admired Hadley's work, and still feel stricken at his abrupt, unnecessary departure from this life in the midst of a splendid career.

[@avuncular300]

A great singer with incredible honesty in all his performances. A tragedy with his passing.

[@vaughnlonganecker986]

how tragic, most everyone commenting is focused on worldly man's opinion/words, you miss the reason for Handel's Messiah, the Messiah, His words, listen and repent and obey.

[@romalisan1]

A very beautiful voice. It is a pity that people do not ask for help when they need to. I think that we often forget to say to other people that we love them. Mr. Hadley is a great lost to our world.

[@hazelssister]

why did jerry commit suicide?

[@道-p2e]

Among millions of version, Jerry's is my first take. Controls so well, right amount of power. Very classic taste,

[@analogyman]

This is my favorite part of Handel's Messiah! (BTW, I've been a Buddhist for the past 46 years.) Thank you for posting this on KZbin for the rest of us.

[@IvanIvanov-vy7pt]

And are you STILL on the "crooked path"???

[@manthasagittarius1]

Some of the best tenors in that generation were able to pull in that darker dramatic quality and still have plenty agility and the flame at the top. I think of Franco Corelli, for example. This performance is too charming for words, leaving aside technique altogether. He is purely dancing it, and looks like he is having a ball.

[@ceciliavargaslizarraga]

Maravilloso!. Wonderful how he express this!

[@elliotportner8020]

Beautifully delivered and deeply registered for internal spiritual moving and emotionally depth

[@DionIsaiah]

A tenor with balls should be singing this aria and Hadley did this!

[@wgb135]

COMFORT YE MY PEOPLE

[@FredericKahler]

He is my role model for next weekend's performance. I adore his interpretation and hope to do him honor!

[@lightbulbfish]

@FredericKahler how did your performance turn out?

[@steinarj4627]

Comfort ye.. he comforts me.. :-)

[@matthewanderson3750]

I don't know anything about voice, but this really communicates the heart of Isaiah 40.

[@eloisem3214]

Exactly what I was thinking. And the joy on his face...beautiful! Could this have been exactly as Handel had envisioned this piece being sung?

[@angelacooper2661]

This aria is in E major (I am a string player with perfect pitch). I have the cassette of this performance in Dublin, Easter 1992; I was not yet twenty two at the time, so thirty years ago!

[@KimberlyNoel-yc7dl]

You are joking. This doesn’t even come close to emoting the piece. Of course, some like other bad singers who can’t emote like Jonas Kaufmann.

[@charlottepatterson2864]

He looks as if he’s having an absolute blast singing this. And why wouldn’t he be? He had a beautiful voice and the know how to use it singing the Word of God set to some of the greatest music ever written.

[@ozielich]

The best Idomeneo I ever saw on stage and it was in his vocal decline!

[@meudeusefiel9820]

The lyrics are actually the very words of God almighty.

[@filledwithpeace]

Isaiah 40:1-5 🕊 Praise Be To our LORD GOD & Savior Jesus the Messiah!

[@tanyaclements212]

Comfort hurting people right now please Father Yahuah in Yahushuah Hamaschiach's name and HalleluYAH and amen.

[@SilverSingingMethod]

I don't understand this comment?

[@tenorschofield]

Bravo!!!, great artist was Jerry Hadley!!!!, his voice ,as you said, is not in a single place, but in his "maschera" and comming form his mouth (with a perfect air support); always from to top to low attacks...BRAVO!!!!!!!!!!!!...thanks Jerry, we will remember you forever!!!!

[@js59695]

John Schofield mask?

[@stone8193]

The voice cannot be placed. Can we get away from this made up mask crap? You can’t place where the voice goes.

[@ngatihine6072]

crazy nonsense only maschera is in un ballo maschera. deep pharyngeal resonance that is all helped with right tongue position and appoggia breathing. your welcome

[@ekowsaint-gideon8802]

I think this is my favorite of Handel's Messiah.

[@Wynstorm3]

Thank *you* for posting beautiful, uplifting music, and for keeping Jerry's memory alive.

[@EliominDZ]

las coloraturas no las hace bien, están sucias

[@NLosorelli]

that diminuendo at the beginning? Beautiful.

[@Spawwwman]

At 3:24, Brilliant. Well the whole is is amazing but when he does that with his voice!!! Just, wow...

[@aviryd]

Bravura. PERFECT voice,Articulation ,interpretation & magnificent deep warmth. J.M.Ainsley was my favorite until i ran into this unbelievable productionof of hadley sound:-) Tears of joy

[@SilverSingingMethod]

When I say it is "lost" I mean it *IN GENERAL*, not to mean that not a single person on the earth has the approach. MOST don't teach it or have it. And those things like amplification and enhancement have had a lot to do with it. Hadley started going downhill after 1993 because he started changing his technique, going to another teacher in NY. So he also LOST it.

[@SilverSingingMethod]

Danny who? I have had people ask me that before. No, I am not Danny. I studied with Tom for about a decade and now teach the technique completely by his recommendation. Anyway, I remember him speaking of a Danny who died in a car crash. He sang in Germany.

[@tita4359]

Such incredible singing

[@SilverSingingMethod]

The voice tags have nothing to do with what Hadley's voice was or wasn't. They are general operatic terms. I know people who heard Björling and they said the voice was very small. Hines, in fact, said he was disappointed when he sang with him as it was so small. Hadley was a lyric. Pure lyric.

[@seyidon7809]

The beauty of classical music. Comfort ye my people says the good LORD. Every valley shall be exalted. Every difficulty shall be dissolved. And the glory of the LORD will be revealed.

[@hozmessianicministries1484]

Love Love Love This. Thank you Yeshua Messiah for gifting this gentleman with such a wonderful voice and the musicians with their musical ability. Ahmein

[@sopranosd]

'dancing it' -- perfect way to describe this performance. It is so chipper and beautiful at the same time.

[@clifftanch]

He has a strong and appealing voice. I am Sad at the end he did not understand the joyful message in Isaiah 40.

[@jimraw1]

I totally agree with 01jocooper - this should only be sung by a tenor or baritone with good range. Handel wrote this with the male voice in mind. I remember several years ago a friend of mine tried to convince to perform the Laudamus Te (the soprano duet) from Vivaldi's Gloria. Even though I had the range, I refused to do it simply because it wasn't really didn't fit the male voice. Sometimes change is great - but sometimes things are writted a certain way because that's what is best.

[@alexeiderperezhernandez461]

3:52 Is Barbara Bonney so little paid that she has pluri-employed as a violinist?

[@yanzexu6912]

lol I can't help to laugh when I sing 'shall be' -- you can search for 'Chinese meaning of sha bi'

[@tiffaniedavidsen5421]

Beautiful hymn! My first time hearing it was in the movie "Gifted Hands" ~a movie about Ben Carson's life! WOW! Such a win w/this beautiful hymn & artist, & a movie about a man who feared God & gave him glory in his work. So blown away by both.

[@kotchka32]

Beautiful rendition of Messiah openers.

[@Kimberly-tm4gr]

La encontré gracias a manos milagrosas

[@sgnmath1234]

A real man's voice. Full of depth , power and strength with good melisma.

[@ronnydavidarigaspar1915]

ñofi señores

[@rogermetzger7335]

One of the problems with playing the violin is that you might never be invited to sing the Messiah. Conductors want you to play in the orchestra. That's a thrill, mind you, but.... Maybe in heaven?

[@nqobilebridgetmhlongo4224]

this song is well constucted ,i love this artist

[@OperaBuff1935]

What a gorgeous rendition of this opening recit and aria by one of the great American tenors of the late 29th Century. I wept when I listened to this - both at the performance of Jerry Hadley and at his untimely death by his own hand 3 1/2 years ago. I pray that Jerry's soul is comforted. He brought so much joy to his many fans in opera, oratoria, and crossover pieces as well. God rest your soul, Jerry.

[@relike868p]

What? 29th century?

[@tenorschofield]

Maravilloso!!!

[@GeraldTodd]

I posted this in my FB page and my email list as the USA plans to move its Embassy to Jerusalem.

[@brandonburrell8517]

That's so cool.

[@SilverSingingMethod]

Thanks!

[@georgesadek7900]

King George world respect respected world wide empire

[@kevincrum1179]

Mr Miller always tries to get me to sing this. I told him I dunno, Mr Miller, I think I'm a baritone. He said no, I think you're a lazy tenor. 😅

[@GladmoneyAdderley]

I should make a meme.... I don't always listen to Opera But when I do, I like hearing it in English. 👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿👏🏿 1st time hearing opera in my language

[@pugh.joseph]

Meme material kzbin.info/www/bejne/mGiooKuipJyop5I

[@MrDavidPun]

A masterful job by Jerry Hadley. Both the tenor and the orchestra sang Every Valley with wonderful energy and spirit. Unfortunately I can't say the same for Comfort Ye. If was too fast and rushed and the orchestra played it in a perfunctory manner. This was entirely the fault of the conductor. Jerry Hadley did his best to create a more intense emotional atmosphere, but he could not easily counter the poor interpretation by the conductor.

[@timananda]

Great version. What a shame.

[@edmonddantes6486]

Stunningly beautiful and humble. I feel the same awe when listening to the amazing ANDREY NEMZER singing SAINT FRANCIS PRAYER. Such humility and inspiration!.

[@annhayes1032]

Beautiful, beautiful. Touches me deeply.

[@culltim]

Come for tea!

[@tenorschofield]

I am shocked to learn Jerry Hadley died in 2007; may his soul reach the comfort and joy in Heaven with our Lord...the same joy he gave us with his extraordinary talent and his marvelous humanity. Thank you Jerry Hadley for showing us the way to voice excellence. We will always remember you!!!!!

[@SilverSingingMethod]

"Choking"? That is positively inaccurate. Choking means that the larynx is raised, pressing up against the hyoid bone and the throat is closed in the Valsalva maneuver. You would not be able to sing at all if that were the case.

[@heathermitchell5053]

Is that cool,or what?

[@MarwaTarayra]

The classical music is the best to hear, to read with and to feel fly away!

[@NiniaGAHortensi]

Dos deuses! Magnífico!

[@watekeman]

Siempre vengo aquí para recordar cómo es que un tenor debe sonar. La voz debe ser imponente igual que el mensaje que se presenta. Hoy no hay tenor así.

[@gyorgydorogman6974]

Lo que escribe va a misa.

[@su....]

sublime

[@christianbrecht]

@culltim HAHAHAHAHA

[@Alfifa]

Very beautiful! Karlott

[@SilverSingingMethod]

Maybe, as you say, in a small house. But the orchestration alone is pretty overpowering in those roles too. The conductor would have to cleverly tone it down. I think it would have been better to stick with his fach. There are plenty of roles there. Let the bigger voices handle what they were meant to handle. :)

[@-Tesla-Live_]

I love his voice, and he sings this with wonderful energy, but the articulation of the runs is pretty laboured.

[@robertwilderblue6395]

I love this performance. I have a complicated history with Jerry Hadley. Including, goddammit...

[@SilverSingingMethod]

You mean the name Cafiero?

[@akinkunmicook2977]

He will be missed!