TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Jackie Evancho: Seeks to expand crossover appeal
(AFP/Paul Morigi)The teenage singer and classical crossover sensation, Jackie Evancho, wants to show how far she has grown as a singer and musician with the release of her new album, Awakening
Change Size
(AFP/Paul Morigi)
The teenage singer and classical crossover sensation, Jackie
Evancho, wants to show how far she has grown as a singer and musician
with the release of her new album, Awakening.
In support of the album, the 14-year-old Evancho has launched an international tour.
'The album is a bunch of songs from different genres, from pop to aria. I think it's going to be a fun ride,' said Evancho in a recent phone interview.
Her previous studio album, Songs from the Silver Screen, which is a mix of Disney-movie ballads, show tunes and romantic and whimsical numbers, was released in 2012.
'I took quite a long break [since my last album]. With the new one I wanted to show that I've been maturing as an artist and my expertise in this area has grown. I want to show a different side to my voice,' said the platinum-selling singer.
Awakening is also a milestone for the singer. Produced by Nick Patrick, the album is Jackie's first release for the Sony Music Masterworks imprint, Portrait.
On the album, Evancho treads into new territory without straying from her signature blend of lush classical crossover compositions.
Besides 'Memories', a ballad by the Dutch band, Within Temptation, as well as Andrew Lloyd Webber's classic 'Think of Me' from the Phantom of the Opera, the album contains classical standards such as Caccini/Vavilov's 'Ave Maria' and Rachmaninoff's 'Vocalise'. 'I'd never sung Rachmaninoff's 'Vocalise' before,' said Evancho. 'It was fun for me because there weren't any words to learn, so I could focus on the beauty of the music.'
She also extends her stylistic reach with contemporary material on songs such as the haunting folk song 'The Rains of Castamere' from the HBO hit series, Game of Thrones, and U2's 'With or Without You'.
'Some of these songs are more on the pop side and more up-tempo than the songs I usually sing, but it was really fun,' she said.
Evancho admitted that prior to singing the U2 hit, she had never listened to music from the Irish rock band.
'It's kind of my dad's idea. He was listening to the song and he said that I'd sound really great if I sang it. I agreed because I thought it was really cool,' Evancho said.
'It sounded really great, so we decided to keep it on the album,' Evancho said, who has since listened to other U2 songs, describing the band as having a really cool sound.
Evancho said she liked all kinds of music, depending on her mood and whatever happened to be playing on the radio.
'I'm currently listening to songs by the rock duo Black Keys, and pop rock band Maroon 5. I am also currently enjoying Meghan Trainor's 'All About The Bass' ' I just think it's really cool and funny,' she said.
After discovering her precocious singing ability, Evanco was enrolled in a number of voice competitions in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 2008. After finding success, she began taking voice lessons and competing more widely.
A year later, at the age of 9, she released her independent debut album, Prelude to a Dream, which mainly featured covers of classical crossover songs, such as 'Con te partirò', 'The Prayer', 'To Where You Are', 'Concrete Angel' and 'Amazing Grace'.
In 2010, she won global praise for her stunning performance on NBC's America's Got Talent, when she won second place. She was signed to Columbia Records and proceeded to release a string of successful recordings, including 'O Holy Night', 'Dream with Me', 'Heavenly Christmas' and 'Songs from the Silver Screen'.
Evancho, who wants to study music in college, has begun to dabble in songwriting.
'It started with me just fiddling around on the piano and I thought I might as well write a song. I have written a number of compositions with lyrics. I hope I can improve and write more songs that can be included on future albums,' she said.
