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."
If
Mario Lanza Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I could be a ruler of kings
And if you were mine
I could do such wonderful things
I'd say to a star
Stop where you are
Light up my lover's way
Would obey, say
If you were mine
I would live for your love alone
To kneel at your shrine
I would give up all that I own
Yes even my heart
Even my life
I'd trade it all for you
And think I was lucky too
If you were mine
The lyrics of Mario Lanza's song "If" express a deep longing and devotion towards someone. The singer imagines a scenario where the person he desires belongs to him, and he believes that their love would give him great power and the ability to accomplish incredible things. He envisions himself as a ruler, capable of controlling even the stars to bring light to his lover's path. The singer is willing to sacrifice everything, including his heart and life, just to be with this person.
The lyrics convey a sense of unconditional love and selflessness. The singer is ready to give up his own possessions and personal ambitions for the sake of the person he desires. The line "To kneel at your shrine" suggests that the person he loves is almost like a deity to him, someone he reveres and adores above all else. The last lines, "And think I was lucky too, if you were mine," show the singer's belief that having this person in his life would not only bring him joy but also a profound sense of gratitude.
Overall, the lyrics of "If" reflect the intensity of love and the willingness to make sacrifices for the person one cherishes. It portrays a deep yearning and devotion that the singer feels towards the object of his affection.
Line by Line Meaning
If you were mine
If I had the privilege of calling you mine
I could be a ruler of kings
I could possess great power and authority
And if you were mine
And if I had you as my own
I could do such wonderful things
I could accomplish incredible and extraordinary feats
I'd say to a star
I would address a celestial body
Stop where you are
Cease your movement and remain in your current position
Light up my lover's way
Illuminate the path for my beloved
And every star above you
And all the celestial bodies that reside above you
Would obey, say
Would comply with my request, confirm
If you were mine
If I had the fortune of possessing you
I would live for your love alone
I would dedicate my existence solely to your love
To kneel at your shrine
To humbly worship and honor you
I would give up all that I own
I would relinquish everything that belongs to me
Yes even my heart
Indeed, even my very core and being
Even my life
Even my own existence
I'd trade it all for you
I would exchange it entirely for your presence
And think I was lucky too
And perceive myself as incredibly fortunate
If you were mine
If I had the privilege of calling you mine
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: JOHNNY MERCER, MATT MALNECK, MATTY MALNECK
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
the king
This is what I call a real singer.....Mario lanza is a legend. I grew up listening to his music. RIP
sugarbist
PURE CLEAN SOUND WITH BEAUTIFUL DICTION.I CAN LISTEN TO HIM FOR HOURS
Gigi Insulana
MARIO: SIMPLESMENTE MARAVILHOSO. A mais bela e perfeita voz de todos os tempos: a voz de um anjo de Deus.
colostrx
What a voice makes me feel goosebumps,wish l could have met him and heard him sing live,my mother heard him song live at the london paladium when he came to uk in 1957 she said the power of his voice was breathtaking l was only 4yrs old alas.
SwordOfArthur
An amazing singer, a beautiful song, how sad we have no songwriters who can produce this sort of quality today....the emotion in the words and music added to the fantastic voice of Mario send shivers down your spine.....
sugarbist
Lanza has some critics as well as other great singers&voices have.However the critics do seem to dissapear when he sings many beautiful selections so extremely well as he does here.I have critcized other tenors such as Tucker, Domingo&Carreras,etc. But I also make mention when they do sing something beautiful.Lanza is 1 of my favorites along with DiStefano,Corelli&DelMonaco.I think I'm in good company&would match these 4 voices against any other 4 in history excluding Caruso.Lanza is a treasure
maureen1938
What a BEAUTIFUL video.... thanks a million for posting. What a magnificent voice he had Mario Lanza
Paul Ostroff
A heavenly voice.TY for posting.
OperaBuff1935
I watched a number of Lanza YT postings this morning and have thrilled once again to the glorious voice of this great American tenor. Who said his wasn't a trained voice. The height, the depth. When he changes keys, as he does in this piece, he maintains the same voice qualities, the same - even more - intensity - as ever. He gave so much to us in his short life, and he had so much more he wanted to give. We are all much richer because he lived among us and sang his heart out.
John Musalo
that untrained thing helped him look more like a natural Delmonico said the same so did bob goulet but all fake news Mario studied with Irene Williams in his formative years she was a accredited singer in her day she gave him the fundamentals of the belcanto method of singing then he went to tangle wood university although not mentioned as to who gave him voice lessons but if he was there to improve his technique and vocal production he would almost of certain have studied other wise what would have been the point of being there logically right then after the war he studied with beniominio gigli's teacher enrico rossetti who refines his skills into a master singer so if you follow that resume that's probably more vocal coaching and teaching lessons then most opera singers no ?