Bryn Terfel Jones was born in Pantglas, North Wales, the son of a farmer (he knew of another Welsh baritone named Delme Bryn-Jones, so Terfel chose Bryn Terfel as his professional name). Terfel had an interest in and talent for music from a very young age. A family friend taught him how to sing, starting with traditional Welsh songs. After winning numerous competitions for his singing, Terfel moved to London in 1984 and entered the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, from which he graduated in 1989, winning the Gold Medal. He came in second behind Dmitri Hvorostovsky in the Cardiff BBC Singer of the World Competition the same year, though won the Lieder Prize.
In 1990, Terfel made his operatic début as Guglielmo in Così fan tutte at the Welsh National Opera, and later in the same season he sang the title role in The Marriage of Figaro, a role with which he made his debut with the English National Opera in 1991.
Terfel made his United States début as Figaro at the Santa Fe Opera. In 1992, he made his Royal Opera House, Covent Garden début as Masetto in Don Giovanni, with Thomas Allen in the title role. Terfel's international breakthrough came when he sang Jochanaan in Strauss's Salome at the 1992 Salzburg Festival. Terfel went on to make his début as Figaro at the Vienna State Opera. That year, he also signed an exclusive recording contract with Deutsche Grammophon, and returned to the Welsh National Opera to sing Ford in Falstaff. In 1993, he recorded the role of Wilfred Shadbolt in The Yeomen of the Guard, by Gilbert and Sullivan. Terfel has said that he would like to record "an album of Gilbert and Sullivan arias."
In 1994, Terfel sang Figaro at Covent Garden, and made his Metropolitan Opera début in the same role. He also sang Mahler's Eighth Symphony at the Ravinia Festival under the baton of James Levine. However, back surgery in 1994 (and again in 2000) prevented him from performing in several scheduled events. In 1996, Terfel expanded his repertoire to include Wagner, singing Wolfram in Tannhäuser at the Metropolitan Opera, and Stravinsky, singing Nick Shadow in The Rake's Progress at the Welsh National Opera.
In 1997, Terfel made his La Scala début as Figaro. In 1998, Bryn had a recital at Carnegie Hall which included works by Wolf, Fauré, Brahms, Schumann, Schubert, and others. In 1999, Terfel performed in Paris the title role of Don Giovanni for the first time. That year, Terfel also debuted in the title role in Falstaff at the Sydney Opera House for Opera Australia and then performed the same role at the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
How to Handle a Woman
Bryn Terfel Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
With nary an omission in between.
Well, I shall tell you what you obviously forgot:
That's how a ruler rules a Queen!
And what of teaching me by turning me to animal and bird,
From beaver to the smallest bobolink!
I should have had a whirl, at changing to a girl,
But wasn't there a night, on a summer long gone by,
We saw a couple wrangling away;
And did I not say, Merlyn: What if that chap were I?
And did he not give counsel and say...
What was it now?... My mind's a wall,
Oh, yes!... By Jove, now I recall.
"How to handle a woman?
There's a way," said the wise old man,
"A way known by every woman
Since the whole rigmarole began."
"Do I flatter her?" I begged him answer.
"Do I threaten or cajole or plead?
Do I brood or play the gay romancer?"
Said he, smiling: "No, indeed.
How to handle a woman?
Mark me well, I will tell you, sir:
The way to handle a woman
Is to love her... simply love her...
Merely love her... love her... love her."
The song How to Handle a Woman is originally from the musical Camelot by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe. The lyrics of the song are sung by King Arthur played by Bryn Terfel. The song is about King Arthur’s frustration over the fact that he thinks he has taught his queen, Guinevere, everything there is to know about ruling a kingdom, but in his heart, he knows that he has not taught her how to handle herself as a woman. The song is a love song, but it is also an introspection and an admission of vulnerability from King Arthur.
In the first stanza, King Arthur tells Merlyn, his mentor and wizard, that he has taught his queen everything from A to Z except for how to ‘rule’ a queen. Here, King Arthur is acknowledging that he has not taught his queen how to be powerful in her femininity. In the second stanza, King Arthur wishes Merlyn had taught him how to change into a woman so he could learn how women think, and in the third stanza, Merlyn finally answers his question on how to handle a woman. Merlyn says the trick to handling a woman is simply to love her, without any tricks or manipulation.
Line by Line Meaning
You swore that you had taught me everything from A to Z,
You claimed to have taught me everything there is to know, with not even a tiny detail left out.
With nary an omission in between.
You assured that there were no gaps in your instruction.
Well, I shall tell you what you obviously forgot:
However, there is something important that you must have forgotten.
That's how a ruler rules a Queen!
A monarch can only rule a queen if they truly understand and love her.
And what of teaching me by turning me to animal and bird,
I know you taught me many things about animals and birds.
From beaver to the smallest bobolink!
You covered everything from the largest beaver to the tiniest bobolink.
I should have had a whirl, at changing to a girl,
It would have been enlightening to take on the perspective of a woman.
To learn the way the creatures think!
Doing so would have given me a greater understanding of how living creatures think and feel.
But wasn't there a night, on a summer long gone by,
I recall a summer evening a while ago.
We saw a couple wrangling away;
We witnessed a couple having a heated argument.
And did I not say, Merlyn: What if that chap were I?
I asked you, Merlyn, what I should do if I were in that man's position.
And did he not give counsel and say...
You advised me with some wise counsel, did you not?
What was it now?... My mind's a wall, Oh, yes!...
I am having some difficulty recalling the exact words.
By Jove, now I recall.
Ah, I remember now!
"How to handle a woman? There's a way," said the wise old man,
You said that there is a particular way to handle a woman, as a wise old man.
"A way known by every woman Since the whole rigmarole began."
It has been a well-known method among women for centuries.
"Do I flatter her?" I begged him answer.
I asked whether I should flatter or praise her.
"Do I threaten or cajole or plead?
I asked whether I should threaten, persuade, or beg her.
Do I brood or play the gay romancer?"
I asked whether I should be moody or flirtatious.
Said he, smiling: "No, indeed.
You replied, smiling, that none of these methods are correct.
"How to handle a woman? Mark me well, I will tell you, sir:
You then went on to explain the correct way to handle a woman.
The way to handle a woman is to love her... simply love her...
The only way to truly handle a woman is to fully and simply love her.
Merely love her... love her... love her."
No other action will suffice. Just love her with all your heart, always.
Writer(s): Frederick Loewe, Alan Jay Lerner
Contributed by Jonathan J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@mercedesbeattyperez1542
Han sido todo un acierto los videos de Bryn Terfel y el repertorio escogido. Un gran cantante, posee una magnifica voz. Gracias
@debra333
So beautifully realized, Bryn is amazing. And what a sweet smile at the end!! 💖
@utahdan231
My favorite baritone.
@efraimen1
Great singer and actor.
@jadrankajeliccizmek7090
Beautiful!!!🌷❣🌷
@siviwetshuma5437
Amazing
@tuberobotto
Such a great and rich voice.
@theearlofgrantham9816
Santino Fontana (Prince Hans voice) did a cover of this song too, amazing.
@DarrenBonJovi
what a fucking voice
@kadoguy
Thank you for sharing this! Do you have the rest of the program? He sang several other songs and arias I believe.