Operatic career:
Born Alfredo Arnold Cocozza in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he was exposed to opera and singing at a young age, and by the age of 16 his vocal talent became apparent. Starting out in local operatic productions in Philadelphia, he later came to the attention of conductor Serge Koussevitzky, who provided young Cocozza with a full student scholarship to the Berkshire Music Festival at Tanglewood in Massachusetts. Koussevitzky would later tell Lanza that, "Yours is a voice such as is heard once in a hundred years."
His operatic debut, as Fenton in Otto Nicolai's The Merry Wives of Windsor, was at Tanglewood on August 7, 1942, after just six weeks of study with conductors Boris Goldovsky and Leonard Bernstein. It was here that Cocozza adopted his stage name from his mother Maria's maiden name of Lanza. His performances at Tanglewood won him critical acclaim, with Noel Straus of The New York Times hailing the 21-year-old tenor as having "few equals among tenors of the day in terms of quality, warmth, and power."
His operatic career was interrupted by World War II, when he was assigned to Special Services in the U.S. Army Air Corps. He appeared on the wartime shows On the Beam and Winged Victory while in the Air Corps.
He resumed his singing career in October 1945 on the CBS radio program Great Moments in Music, where he made six appearances singing various operatic selections. He later studied under Enrico Rosati for fifteen months, then embarked on an 86-concert tour of the United States, Canada and Mexico between July 1947 and May 1948 with George London and Frances Yeend. In April 1948, he sang Pinkerton in the New Orleans Opera's Madama Butterfly. A concert at the Hollywood Bowl brought Lanza to the attention of MGM's Louis B. Mayer, who signed Lanza to a seven-year film contract with Metro Goldwyn Mayer. This would prove to be a turning point in the young singer's career.
Film career:
MGM's contract with Lanza required him to commit to the studio for six months, and at first Lanza was able to combine his film career with his operatic one, singing two acclaimed performances as Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly for the New Orleans Opera Association in April 1948. He also continued to perform in concert, both in solo appearances and as part of the Bel Canto Trio with George London and Frances Yeend. In May 1949, he made his first commercial recordings with RCA Victor. However, his first two films, That Midnight Kiss and The Toast of New Orleans, were very successful, as was his recording career, and Lanza's fame increased dramatically.
In 1951, Lanza portrayed Enrico Caruso in The Great Caruso, which proved to be an astonishing success. At the same time, his popularity exposed Lanza to intense criticism by music critics, including those who had praised his work years earlier.
In 1954, Lanza was dismissed by MGM after he had pre-recorded the songs for The Student Prince. The film was subsequently made with actor Edmund Purdom miming to Lanza's vocals. During this period Lanza came very close to bankruptcy as a result of poor investment decisions made by his former manager. Owing about $250,000 in back taxes to the IRS, Lanza withdrew from the public eye for a time.
Mario Lanza at home.He returned to an active film career in 1956 in Serenade; despite its strong musical content, it was not as successful as his previous films. Lanza then moved to Rome, Italy in May 1957, where he worked on the film Seven Hills of Rome and returned to live performing in a series of acclaimed concerts throughout Britain, Ireland and the European Continent. In early 1958, he auditioned for the management of La Scala in Milan, and was immediately offered a minimum two-year contract to sing at that theatre. The opera initially discussed was Puccini's Tosca. Later that year, Lanza also agreed to open the 1960/61 season at the Rome Opera as Canio in Pagliacci. At the same time, however, his health began to decline, with the tenor suffering from a variety of ailments, including phlebitis and acute high blood pressure. The following year, in April 1959, Lanza suffered a minor heart attack, followed by double pneumonia in August. He died in Rome in October of that year at the age of 38 from a pulmonary embolism. His widow moved back to Hollywood with their four children and died of a drug overdose five months later; the younger of their two sons died of a heart attack at the age of 37. When Lanza died rumors spread that the notorious mob boss Lucky Luciano (Salvatore Luciano) had had him killed after he refused to perform for him but those rumors quickly died down because they simply were not true. Soprano Maria Callas would later say of him, "My biggest regret is not to have had the opportunity to sing with the greatest tenor voice I've ever heard."
Lanza's short career covered opera, radio, concerts, recordings, and motion pictures. He was the first artist for RCA Victor Red Seal to receive a gold disc. He was also the first artist to sell two and half million albums. A highly influential artist, Lanza has been credited with inspiring the careers of successive generations of opera singers, including Plácido Domingo, Luciano Pavarotti, Leo Nucci and Jose Carreras, as well as those of singers with seemingly different backgrounds, and influences, his RCA Victor label-mate Elvis Presley being the most notable example. In 1994, tenor José Carreras paid tribute to Lanza in a worldwide concert tour, saying of him, "If I'm an opera singer, it's thanks to Mario Lanza."
Away in a Manger
Mario Lanza Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
the little Lord Jesus laid down his Sweet head.
The stars in the bright sky looked down where he lay,
The little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.
The cattle are lowing, the baby awakes,
But little Lord Jesus no crying he makes.
I love thee, Lord Jesus! Look down from the sky,
Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask thee to stay
Close by me forever, and love me, I pray.
Bless all the dear children in thy tender care,
And fit us for heaven, to live with thee there.
The lyrics of "Away in a Manger" tell the story of the birth of Jesus in a manger, with a sense of innocence and purity. The first line, "Away in a manger, no crib for his bed," sets the scene of the humble birthplace of the Messiah. The second line emphasizes the tenderness of the moment: "the little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head." The third line brings in the setting of the night and the stars that witnessed the event. The final line of the first stanza paints a picture of the newborn baby Jesus, asleep on the hay.
The second stanza shifts the focus slightly to the baby Jesus waking up, but not crying. The emphasis is not on the discomfort of being in a manger surrounded by animals but on the serenity that the little Lord Jesus brings. The third stanza is a prayer addressed to Jesus. It is a plea for Jesus to stay close, to be a constant companion throughout life. Finally, the prayer asks Jesus to bless all the children and prepare them for eternal life in heaven.
Line by Line Meaning
Away in a manger, no crib for his bed,
The little Lord Jesus had no proper place to sleep.
the little Lord Jesus laid down his sweet head.
The little Lord Jesus finally found a place to lay his head.
The stars in the bright sky looked down where he lay,
The stars in the sky looked down on the little Lord.
The little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.
The little Lord Jesus went to sleep on a bed made of hay.
The cattle are lowing, the baby awakes,
The cows are mooing, and the baby wakes up.
But little Lord Jesus no crying he makes.
The little Lord Jesus does not cry.
I love thee, Lord Jesus! Look down from the sky,
I love you, Lord Jesus! Look upon me from the heavens.
And stay by my side until morning is nigh.
Be with me until morning comes.
Be near me, Lord Jesus; I ask thee to stay
Lord Jesus, be close to me; I am asking you to stay.
Close by me forever, and love me, I pray.
Be with me forever, and love me, I pray.
Bless all the dear children in thy tender care,
Bless all the precious children under your care.
And fit us for heaven, to live with thee there.
Prepare us for heaven, so we may live with you there.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Capitol CMG Publishing, Peermusic Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: . Traditional, Michael Philip McGlynn
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
evelyn riggs
I still haven’t found another singer that I can follow as much as I followed Mario Lanza still my idol even though he is no longer with us and been gone since 1959 .
bronwyn west
so beautiful, thanks for posting, it was a tragedy that he died so young when he still had so much to offer the world, and he was probably the best tenor of our time and no tenor has ever come close to having the gift he had, but at least we are blessed to still have his music as his legacy to the world and to us his fans
34Packardphaeton
The acclaimed conductor, Arturo Toscanini, declared Mario to be the greatest tenor of the first half of the 20th century.
Otoniel Prado Correa
excelente,magnifico.
Rawrlor
This carol takes me back to the days of my chilhood.
evelyn riggs
Mario Lanza
My idol I love all his films his songs & no one can sing Ave Maria like he could he sadly died in 1959 he was so devoted to his singing it was a strain on him .before becoming a big star he was a truck driver well we all have to start somewhere .I still miss his magical & magnificent voice today .
lonman1234
The soaring heights of the greatest tenor to have breathed breath on this earth to date...
warholsoup100
Amazing!
Seducio Santini
Excellent pronunciation of English!
34Packardphaeton
The Christmas song written by none other than Martin Luther, almost 500 years ago.