Educational Media Reviews Online

These US International Film and Video Festival Gold Camera Award-winning videotapes document the curious phenomenon of a singer’s effort to impersonate another (deceased) singer. In both cases recordings of the earlier singer not only exist, but are familiar to a large audience.

American tenor Mario Lanza gained fame because of the operatic movies he made, perhaps mainly the one where he impersonated “The Great Caruso.” Lanza was no Caruso, possibly because he lacked the discipline and will to have a true operatic career, but he had a sincere following, and still has fans. One of them, Australian radio personality and “music guru” Michael Harrison decided to quit his job and try to make a film about Lanza. Harrison’s son Jonathan also took on the project, and soon a familial band of dedicated amateurs embarked on a quest to raise money and find the right voices for a film called “Lanza.” This video documents the making of the soundtrack for that yet-to-be film, and features Canadian tenor Richard Margison singing for Lanza. Margison has real respect for Lanza and only once appears to poke fun at Lanza’s famous swoopy delivery. Australian film star Tom Burlinson courageously sings for Lanza’s friend Frank Sinatra. (!) Documentary evidence includes one bit of Hollywood footage, plenty of studio photos and a few snapshots. Lanza, who died at 38 (at a weight-loss clinic in Switzerland; the video asks “did the Mafia do it?”) did not have much of a life outside the movies. It is appropriate that a film attempt to tell his story.

The Lanza Sessions is more about Harrison than any other person, and though Margison’s singing is splendid, this project to display the secrets of Mario Lanza’s appeal was not his idea. On the other hand, Marcelo Alvarez: In Search of Gardel documents a singer’s apparently self-propelled effort to replicate another voice. Alvarez is an Argentinian opera singer who for some reason not explained here, decided to attempt to re-record Carlos Gardel’s classic tango songs. That effort (and as much as this video is “about” Gardel, it is also about the work entailed in recording songs) is documented here. Gardel (1880-1935) was born in France and was brought to Argentina at age 3. Raised by a single-parent mother in poorer areas of the country, he was “streetwise” and began singing at an early age. Outlines of his life are presented via interviews with historians and biographers, still photos, and clips from commercial films in which Gardel sang his signature non-political tunes in tango rhythm. Gardel was a beloved figure, who died in his 45th year in a plane crash and has since been memorialized in Argentina with street namings, the historicalization of his home, and a monumental statue in his honor, to which ardent fans are shown bringing flowers, lit cigarettes (to place in the statue’s hands), and prayers of supplication. Alvarez here comes across as a passionate operatic singer in need of constant approval and Gardel appears to be a charming French-Hispanic who is ultimately inimitable. Some scenes are obviously staged for this video, but one takes away something worthwhile about both Gardel and the process of recording after viewing it: an hour well spent.

Both are recommended to singers and general audiences