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."
You Are Love
Mario Lanza Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That makes the lonely winter seem long.
You are the breathless hush of evening
That trembles on the brink of a lovely song.
You are the angel glow that lights a star,
The dearest things I know are what you are.
Some day my happy arms will hold you,
And some day I'll know that moment divine,
The lyrics to Mario Lanza's "All the Things You Are" are a beautiful and poetic description of being in love. The opening line, "You are the promised kiss of springtime," sets the tone for the rest of the song. It speaks to the feeling of hope and renewal that comes with being in love with someone. The next line, "That makes the lonely winter seem long," speaks to the longing and sadness that can come before finding that special someone.
The second stanza, "You are the breathless hush of evening," speaks to the quiet and stillness that can be felt between two people who are deeply in love. The line, "That trembles on the brink of a lovely song," speaks to the anticipation of what is to come, and the joy that can be felt when two people are together.
The final stanza, "Some day my happy arms will hold you," speaks to the hope that one day the singer and the person they love will be together. The final line, "When all the things you are, are mine," speaks to the completeness and fulfillment that can be found when two people who are in love are together.
Overall, the lyrics of "All the Things You Are" are a beautiful and timeless testament to the power of love. It speaks to the hope, joy, and completeness that can be found when two people are truly in love.
Line by Line Meaning
You are the promised kiss of springtime
You are the hope and love that life brings after a dark and sad period
That makes the lonely winter seem long.
You make loneliness and sorrow appear to last longer than they should because of the joy you bring
You are the breathless hush of evening
You are the peaceful and quiet moment that comes after a hectic and noisy day
That trembles on the brink of a lovely song.
You are the anticipation of a beautiful melody that can bring tears of joy to anyone who hears it
You are the angel glow that lights a star,
You are the radiant aura that brings light to everything around you, just like a heavenly being lighting up the sky with a star
The dearest things I know are what you are.
You are one of the most special and valuable things in my life, and I cherish and love you for it
Some day my happy arms will hold you,
One day, I will finally be able to embrace you and hold you close with joy and happiness
And some day I'll know that moment divine,
And on that day, I will experience an otherworldly and sacred feeling of pure love and fulfillment
When all the things you are, are mine!
When I have everything that makes you the amazing person you are, I will know true happiness and contentment
Lyrics © EMI Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: TRADITIONAL, ALF CLAUSEN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
MegaMusiclover1234
@MrKonstantin06 Thank you so much for your kind words and support, they are much appreciated. I am very pleased that you like my new video with Mario. I agree, he was simply the greatest. He touched our hearts with his beautiful voice as few other singers are able to do. Thank you again, it is always very good to hear from you. Likewise, my respect to you.
Joe P
I hadn't heard this one before, and I don't think it's ever been done better. Lanza had what can be described as a bionic voice, and he wasn't shy about letting it out. He truly sang as if it was going to be his last moment on earth. He's been criticized for being excessively passionate; probably by singers who couldn't match his talent.
MegaMusiclover1234
+Louis King
Louis,
You are right, Mario sang with great emotion, straight from his heart and it touches our own. So many singers simply just sing the lyrics and ignore their meaning. Mario brings the song lyrics to life because he sings with true emotion. That quality plus a magnificent voice makes him stand out above all other tenors.
Thank you for your comment.
Kind Regards,
Sandra
Annamaria
Dovrebbero far ascoltare le incisioni di Lanza ai giovani che hanno nelle orecchie solo Giovannotti. e Vasco e. non sanno quindi cosa è la musica vera, quella che deve accarezzare e non rompere. i timpani! Anche alla TV non trasmettono mai musica classica e sui cantanti di San Remo meglio tacere!
ls
Stephen Alderson
Bionic voice - electronic proethasis ! I think you are using the wrong choice if words my friend ! There was nothing synthetic about Lanza's voice !
Ron Stevens
Without doubt, the best version of this that exists. He (Lanza) simply had no equal
Joan Schilleci
You have true talent because you recognize the fact that Mario had no equal!!
degas5000
thanks for the upload and for the tender love & care that went into it! lanza was absolutely brilliant by putting his heart into every syllable, it's immensely enjoyable
Annamaria
Magnifica versione di questa famosa canzone. Solo Mario la può cantare così.
SrSoapFan
Another beautiful video of Mario Lanza singing so majestically along with the clip from That Midnight kiss! This song fits right in with the clip. Loved him & Kathryn Grayson together! Thanks for sharing.