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."
With a Song in My Heart
Mario Lanza Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just a song at the start but it soon is a hymn to your grace
When the music swells, I'm touching your hand
It tells me you're standing near, and
At the sound of your voice, heaven opens its portals to me
Can I help but rejoice that a song such as ours came to be
But I always knew I would live life through
But I always knew I would live life through
With a song in my heart for you
The lyrics of "With a Song in My Heart" are an ode to the power of music and love. The singer describes seeing the object of their affection and how just the sight of them inspires a song in their heart. As the music swells and they hold hands, the singer feels the presence of their beloved and is transported to a state of euphoria. The singer can't help but rejoice at the fact that they share a song together and that they will live their lives with a song in their heart for each other.
The song speaks to the universal experience of being moved by music, and how music can enhance our lives and relationships. The idea that a song can become a hymn to someone's grace is a beautiful and poetic expression of the transformative power of music. The lyrics are emotive and paint a vivid picture of the singer's feelings, and Mario Lanza's powerful vocals and Ray Sinatra's lush orchestration only serve to amplify the song's impact.
Line by Line Meaning
With a song in my heart, I behold your adorable face
Just the thought of you fills me with joy and happiness
Just a song at the start but it soon is a hymn to your grace
This song started out as just a tune, but now it has become an expression of my love for you
When the music swells, I'm touching your hand
As the music grows louder and more passionate, I feel as though I am holding your hand
It tells me you're standing near, and
The music brings me closer to you, as if you are right beside me
At the sound of your voice, heaven opens its portals to me
The sound of your voice brings me joy that is akin to what one might experience at the gates of heaven
Can I help but rejoice that a song such as ours came to be
I cannot help but be grateful and rejoice that we have a love song that is uniquely ours
But I always knew I would live life through
I knew that I would always carry on, even in the face of adversity
With a song in my heart for you
With you in my heart, I am always filled with a joyful song
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Lorenz Hart, Richard Rodgers
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Phyllis Ramsey
What a joyous song sung by a marvelous tenor voice! Thank you, Mario!
Rolando Raimundo
O tempo segue o seu destino mas esta como outras tantas canções de Mário Lanza continua a prender e a penetrar fundo no coração, com o som único desta dádiva de Deus que ele recebeu: a sua voz. Onde quer que estejas Mário Lanza, um abraço de gratidão.
PCplays99
What an incredible talent he was. What a sad life and what a loss for all of us.
SrSoapFan
Glorious, just like him & his golden voice. He puts A Song In My Heart each time I listen to this beautiful video & watch his movies on TV, DVD, & listen to his CD's. He & his voice were taken from the world much too soon, but never to be forgotten.
RN Healer
Whether he was singing operatic arias, show tunes, or the popular songs he made famous, Mario Lanza made them all sound passionate, romantic, and beautiful. There will never be another voice like his.
Aqua librium
I cant believe I had an orchestra in my house. This truly is a song in my heart now. What a beautiful voice. What a legend he was
nod bod
What a voice-clean and pure!
Palmarola2012
Thank you for posting this marvelous performance. It shows Lanza's fantastic talent. A great book explains so much about him. It is the bestseller, A KID FROM PHILADELPHIA, MARIO LANZA, THE VOICE OF THE POETS. It is a series of essays that exhibit his life and ability to be the greatest of tenor and the greatest of performers.
Lois Toran
Palmarola2012 h
Ed H.
Palmarola2012 There will never be another. He passed on my 13th birthday. The worst birthday of my 72 years.