Rossini’s "Ah! Quel giorno ognor rammento" from Semiramide

Renowned mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato presents a series of three master classes focusing on opera arias. Here Ms. DiDonato coaches countertenor Keymon Murrah with pianist Shannon McGinnis on Rossini’s "Ah! Quel giorno ognor rammento" from Semiramide.
To watch more videos from Carnegie Hall’s Workshops and Master Classes, visit • Joyce DiDonato Master...
Mezzo-soprano Joyce DiDonato’s performances have been called “a model of singing in which all components of the art form-technique, sound, color, nuance, diction-come together in service to expression and eloquence” by The New York Times. The revered singer presents a series of three public master classes for young opera singers who were chosen from an international pool of applicants. To learn more about Carnegie Hall’s Workshops and Master Classes and to apply, visit www.carnegiehall.org/workshops.

[@magicmonkichi]

Love these classes! Dang Keymon Murrah is one to keep an eye (an ear) out for! Bravo Keymon!

[@CallasAfrica]

He's very special... The voice is big, even, dark with an endless top... This is one of those voices that would get any mezzo shaking in their boots if auditioning for the same pants role.

[@SR-jx8yu]

Holy God in Heaven! This is astounding singing! His voice is powerful and just exceptional! So so perfect for Rossini! His coloratura is wonderful and the power in his voice!!! I saw the recording of him singing this at the Bolshoi Theatre!!! Just beyond description! I’m so happy for him!!! ❤️❤️❤️… Love Maestra Di Donato and these wonderful masterclasses! Thank you Carnegie Hall!!

[@brillianttec3504]

Thank you Joyce for doing so much work to help young artists!!

[@cyrilmf2570]

"Don’t rely on the world to figure it out for you You figure it out what you want to do".... to share to bring. Thanks, Joyce; your advice applies to so many situations. Never expect, do, share, and dare. Thank you for your wisdom; you are a blessing

[@piustwelfth]

He has a gorgeous voice -- so pure and with a beautiful sound. He also seems to have an endless breath. I also like the combination of his high notes with his lower chest voice. I hope he makes a big success.

[@jennyobrien4185]

Keymon Murrah is a class act. More please. And please America can we have him here in Europe ❤️❤️❤️❤️💐💐💐💐

[@pittipat612]

He is incredible! absolutely moved

[@maury0009]

Goosebumps!

[@extraricewithkoko2030]

OMG this voice is divine!!! So big, round, and rich. Please do not lose any of this gorgeous warmth in your voice.

[@carnegiehall]

Thanks for visiting our channel and listening!

[@didi_mega_dudu]

Big, round, and the voice is great too!

[@TheSupersizzina]

Incredible voice, wishing you all the best Keymon 😊

[@lalindisss3224]

An amazing voice.. great talent.. also a awesome coach.

[@csejdy]

Fantastic!!

[@JacquelineLanceTenor]

Such a special countertenor voice. I hope this man will will have a great career ahead of him! I could only dream of having the ease he has in his top notes.

[@tommwi3210]

Absolutely stunning high notes. Wow, he’s gonna be a star.

[@mariapeterholm4442]

Bravo Keymon!!!!!!

[@gberthenson]

This gave me goosebumps! This voice has it all. It is the most complete sound I have ever heard from a countertenor (I must stop using that voice type to refer to Key'mon because he is a mezzo, top to bottom (oh the beautiful warmth of his chest voice!). I can't wait to hear Di tanti palpiti. And Dopa Notte. Please, more!

[@carnegiehall]

Thank you for listening, and we're delighted to know that you enjoyed the performance.

[@Gloriana2012]

PHENOMENAL voice

[@Ellatigojusticiero]

Preciosa voz Oh My God , bella voz!!!!!

[@denizuzunmezzo]

What an exceptional and exciting talent! Hope we can watch Keymon Murrah on an European stage soon.

[@carnegiehall]

Thanks for listening!

[@qwert2020]

And now he’s singing at the MET and other big houses. Good for him!!

[@prosdocimo]

OMG - WOW

[@Sotzume]

This is one of the most beautiful counter tenors today. I hope he has the huge career, he deserves it. I do think that, at least here, he tends to hold back emotionally a bit. Sometimes I think these master classes do more damage than help. In the final part of the aria..both have it wrong. The final cabaletta is about Arsace falling in love with Azema and how his life has changed from that moment forward. Its not about the military.

[@pvangastel5889]

DiDonato is a great singer and an equally great coach, and definitely helps Murrah explore some intellectual aspects of singing. He abandons himself blindly to her suggestions, which, however, do not produce results here. Why? Yes, it takes time for new tricks of the trade to settle in, and Murrah may profit in the long run from her help and through the publicity he gets from this masterclass. But, really, it is Murrah's combination of voice and instinctive sound emission that constitute the bulk and X-factor of this video. He is a star and a sensation already! He easily outshines DiDonato - who seems somewhat overconfident on this particular occasion. Her useful exercises are only useful to students like herself, and in my opinion her bravura mainly lies in her grasp on the audience with witty remarks. If anything, Murrah only needs a coach to protect him from the negative impact that fame may bring. He seems such a nice and genuine guy. I feel privileged to have discovered this phenomenal singer, who will rock the opera world for some time to come. Mr Murrah, thank you for your discipline (for I am SURE that it has taken you a lot of well structured practice to have reached this level of singing) and for sharing your Art with the world. Can't wait to hear you in a real life performance. Greetings from Italy.

[@tedstiles6831]

I think this might be the first negative comment about any master class by a professional on KZbin. I feel like a lot of this is just eh...some of these “exercises” are more distracting than anything. This man’s voice has so much depth and warmth and richness and I hope he doesn’t get trapped in modern voice production techniques. He has so much ammo in his arsenal! Good luck to you, sir.

[@skidaddledo6919]

What do you mean by modern voice production techniques? I’ve seen similar comments and I was wondering what that means.

[@tedstiles6831]

@@skidaddledo6919 The tendency to teach a masked frontal or nasal sound. There is little phonation that happens in “the mask”. Much more warmth and projection happens with proper relaxation, breath, and free vocal production.

[@skidaddledo6919]

@@tedstiles6831 that’s interesting. My voice teacher said she wants to keep me “bright and forward”. I have a larger instrument, and always have. I’m in my thirties, but she said these young singers are sounding “much older” than they are and won’t have lasting careers because they aren’t singing forward. Do you think there’s any truth to that? I said that’s interesting because I believe my voice teacher follows this method. Pencil in the mouth, etc. breathing through a straw.

[@ER1CwC]

@@skidaddledo6919 I’m not Ted Stiles, but I can take a stab at an answer. I think the issue with masky singing is that it isn’t balanced. The sound should be bright, but it should also be dark. It’s about having the right amount of mask, but not too much mask. You achieve this by using the pharyngeal space and being as relaxed as possible (obviously easier said than done). So the forward ‘placement’ (‘chiaro’) is something that comes with the appropriate amount of back space (‘scuro’), and is something that just happens. It isn’t the result of purposefully directing the sound into the mask. The problem with trying to ‘direct sound into the mask’ is that it is often done with tension. The pharyngeal space isn’t really used, and the larynx is also often yanked way up. So the sound actually ends up not projecting well. The sound is ‘forward,’ but it is a sort of fools-gold ‘forward.’ It’s all chiaro without scuro - without bloom. (For women, issues are compounded when they avoid developing chest into the sound too.) Compare Corelli or Pavarotti against Kraus or Aragall. The former two have balanced sounds. The latter two are too masky. There’s probably a danger in trying to sing ‘old and heavy.’ Yes, you do need to have brightness in the sound, and singing without brightness risks a swallowed tongue. But there is also a danger in just trying to sound ‘young, bright, and light.’ Things need to be balanced and engaged. You need to have brightness and darkness - the forward direction and the back space. It’s about sounding right, not young or old. Dramatic singers will typically sound ‘older’, but it would be a big mistake to force a young dramatic singer to sound ‘younger.’ That would be done through tension.

[@Marcus-xs3ee]

His voice sounds so much like Elena Cernei if you all pay attention to his timbre.

[@losfeliz3485]

Why have a countertenor sing this role, other than it takes roles away from mezzo sopranos?

[@Ellatigojusticiero]

Is she the one actress who performed Florence Foster Jenkins? Not the one with Meryl Streep, the other movie?

[@theoperatripleaxel5417]

No.

[@fabriziogarzi9892]

Non ha bisogno delle masterclasses della Didonato.

[@canterlevi]

Why would they make a macho role a pants role and not a baritone or such?

[@theoperatripleaxel5417]

Cause it blends amazingly with the soprano...

[@Yves_Ka]

who do you mean by "THEY"??

[@pittipat612]

I want Marilyn Horne to meet him

[@jasonblack4208]

normally I don't like counter tenors, but....that was impressive (not used to a counter tenor that actually seems like a man and not a...castrated monstrosity lol)

[@eyeshowyou]

He sounds very much like Kathleen Ferrier. What a wonderful voice!

[@carnegiehall]

Thank you for listening!

[@piustwelfth]

His voice does not resemble that of Ferrier. He has a high countertenor voice with a much higher register than Ferrier.

[@Marcus-xs3ee]

He sounds like Elena Cernei,a great mezzo,the timbre is very similar.

[@evgeny9965]

The wonderful round quality of this lush voice is unique for a counter tenor. Joyce doesn’t have much to say about singing. Typical!

[@prosdocimo]

OMG who is he and is the MET hiring him?

[@theoperatripleaxel5417]

The MET is too busy hiring Roth Costanzo... A voice that is not even close to Key Mon's power.

[@whatever4929]

I’m sorry, I never got the point of counter tenors

[@zhamiram6578]

We weren’t born in the time period where it was popular. But most scores were written for counter tenors.

[@whatever4929]

@@zhamiram6578 True .. I mean he is extraordinary, but it just seems weird! He is better than a o lot of sopranos today!

[@pvangastel5889]

Too bad. It's like saying 'I don't like Mozart '.

[@theoperatripleaxel5417]

Is people singing, what is difficult to get about it? It is so simple that just internalized homophobia or prejudice can say otherwise.

[@harrymullany4789]

Her ‘improvements’ are making his voice sound thin and unmusical.

[@ahogbin2644]

Certainly an impressive instrument but I really do not understand her methods. The chair and pencil is bizarre and no wonder he forgets his words as he's swerving about.

[@user-en2fx3vl6h]

What is the purpose to make the voice sound smaller giving priority to consonats intead of vowels?! Puting the voice behind the nose(so called mask) is very dangerous she sounds nasal and makes him sound nasal, he were fine, there's no need for countertenor to place the voice there it weaknesses it.

[@annemiekewielinga7203]

Actually being able to understand the text is nice for the audience

[@user-en2fx3vl6h]

@@annemiekewielinga7203 you won't understand the text if the voice is nasal. That's not the idea. Do you know what happens when nasality occurs? It's air that don't vibrate in the vocal cords and escapes through the veil. It's more air passing than vibrating, it's dangerous at long term, it's not a good sound too.

[@user-ld7fi1gg4v]

Россини не Барокко! Знайте все!

[@user-ld7fi1gg4v]

Он классно поет, что за дерьмо?

[@dudeforcaster8630]

A few more lessons with Joyce and she will turn him into a nasal little mosquito with tight, fluttery, tremulous, strangled ugly high notes, shame.

[@draganvidic2039]

She’s quite useless when it comes to develop a voice into bigger and better...

[@celibidache1000]

... just like herself, the Mother Mosquito.

[@pvangastel5889]

Very funny and not far from the truth.

[@DiomedesDioscuro]

For God sake! It looks like a bad joke.

[@Abigayl1950]

😎 RICLDICOLOUS : an American teaching Italian Repertoire 🤮😡🤬

[@Tkimba2]

Ma che dici?! Non è quello il punto....

[@herrbrucvald6376]

Love the opera, hate countertenors. No such voice existed in Handel's time. It's a 'fake' voice. I can see him as a little boy in his bedroom playing at being a woman, wishing against all hope he was a female, using his falsetto boy voice---as here.

[@alexnowakowskii]

👁👄👁

[@JacquelineLanceTenor]

How can you listen this and hear a fake voice? I agree that many countertenors sound falsetto and fake but his voice is certainly an exception.

[@annemiekewielinga7203]

Shame they don’t castrate young boys for the original Handel sound anymore...

[@Tkimba2]

@@annemiekewielinga7203 ain't the point

[@Tkimba2]

Why make fun of a guy that way?...