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."
We Three Kings of Orient Are
Mario Lanza Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth, the everlasting light
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.
For Christ is born of Mary, and gathered all above
While mortals sleep the angels keep their watch of wondering love
Oh morning stars together, proclaim thy holy birth.
Oh little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth, the everlasting light
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.
The lyrics to Mario Lanza's rendition of "We Three Kings of Orient Are," in fact, depict a completely different song. The actual lyrics to "Oh Little Town of Bethlehem" are a classic Christmas carol that has been sung for over a century. The opening verse describes the quietness of Bethlehem, with the stars shining above the town while its inhabitants slept peacefully.
The second verse makes reference to the birth of Jesus Christ, born to Mary and gathered by angels as mortals slept. The angels sing praises and peace to all on earth is proclaimed, in honor of the holy birth. The final verse repeats the opening lines, further emphasizing the peacefulness and stillness of Bethlehem, while emphasizing that the town is a gathering place for all, representative of hopes and fears spanning the years.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh little town of Bethlehem, how still we see thee lie
The city of Bethlehem lies very still and peacefully
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep the silent stars go by
While Bethlehem rests through the night, the stars shine brightly above
Yet in thy dark streets shineth, the everlasting light
Despite the darkness of the streets, a great and eternal light shines within Bethlehem
The hopes and fears of all the years are met in thee tonight.
All the fears and hopes of many generations are united and fulfilled in Bethlehem on this night
For Christ is born of Mary, and gathered all above
Jesus Christ is born from Mary, and all are assembled to witness the miracle
While mortals sleep the angels keep their watch of wondering love
As humans sleep, angels watch over them with a sense of wonder and love
Oh morning stars together, proclaim thy holy birth.
The morning stars come together to announce the birth of the holy savior
And praises sing to God the king, and peace to men on earth.
People sing and praise the God who is the king, and ask for peace on Earth to prevail
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: LEROY ANDERSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
brianclough
He sings the best version of this carol..
Patricia
I adore this album and this man's voice. I have been listening to him since I was a small child, and have passed this on to my own children.
nyrngrs15
Same here
Richard Hutchison
What a beautiful voice he had! I remember my mother had this Christmas album when I was a little child. She would play it on Christmas Eve night. I could hardly sleep because Santa Claus was comin' to town. This album would lull me to sleep before I knew it! :)
Jeri T
My father would play this every Christmas morning. We would drink eggnog and get ready to open presents while listening. Decades later and it's still my favorite Christmas album.
Verna XXX
Mario's voice is beautiful here, the arrangement, orchestra and chorus aren't up to scratch.
James Kouts
I love Jesus Christ with all my heart.
Timothy Perry
I do too 🙏
saturday player
My father's favourite Xmas album. So many memories of Christmas past. This was played on Christmas day morning as the presents were opened.
Jeri T
We used to wake up to this album every year as kids because my dad would play it!