Sarah Brightman

All Music Guide:

Broadway star Sarah Brightman was the inspiration behind such stage hits as Phantom of the Opera and Requiem, written in her honor by ex-husband Andrew Lloyd Webber. Born August 14, 1960, in Berkhampstead, England, Brightman began dancing at the age of three, and ten years later made her London theatrical debut in Charles Strouse's I and Albert. By 1976, she was a dancer on the television series Pan's People, and later led the pop group Hot Gossip, which in 1978 scored a U.K. number one hit with the single "I Lost My Heart to a Starship Trooper." In 1981, she was cast in the role of Jemima in Lloyd Webber's Cats; there she and the composer were introduced, and he divorced his first wife to marry her in 1984. Their relationship lasted through 1990, during which time Brightman created the role of Christine Daaé in Phantom, also appearing in Requiem and Aspects of Love; after their divorce, she toured in The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber: A Concert Spectacular. In addition to her stage work, Brightman also recorded a number of solo albums, including 1988's The Trees They Grow So High, 1989's The Songs That Got Away, 1990's As I Came of Age, 1993's Dive, 1995's Fly, and 1998's Eden. The following year saw the release of The Andrew Lloyd Webber Collection, which featured some of her finest moments from Lloyd Webber cast recordings, as well as The Songs That Got Away. Luna followed in the spring of 2000; Encore appeared the next year. Brightman then adopted a Middle Eastern theme for her 2003 release, Harem. Love Changes Everything: The Andrew Lloyd Webber Collection, Vol. 2 arrived in 2005, followed by the CD/DVD Diva: The Singles Collection in 2006. In 2007, Brightman appeared on BBC One's Just the Two of Us and performed at the Concert for Diana, the Shanghai Live Earth show, and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. The following year saw the release of Symphony and an appearance in Repo! the Genetic Opera.

Wikipedia:

Sarah Brightman (born 14 August 1960) is an English classical crossover soprano, actress, songwriter and dancer. She is famous for possessing a vocal range of over 3 octaves. She sings in many languages including English, Spanish, French, Latin, German, Italian, Russian, Hindi, Mandarin Chinese and Japanese.

Brightman began her career as a member of the dance troupe Hot Gossip and released several disco singles as a solo performer. In 1981, she made her West End musical theatre debut in Cats and met composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, whom she married. She went on to star in several Broadway musicals, including The Phantom of the Opera, where she originated the role of Christine Daaé. The Original London Cast Album of the musical was released in CD format in 1987 and sold over 40 million copies worldwide, making it the biggest-selling cast album of all time.

After retiring from the stage and divorcing Lloyd Webber, Brightman resumed her music career with former Enigma producer Frank Peterson, this time as a classical crossover artist. She is often credited as the creator of this genre and remains among the most prominent performers, with worldwide sales of more than 30 million records and 2 million DVDs, establishing herself as the world's best-selling soprano of all time. Her duet with the Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, "Time To Say Goodbye", topped charts all over Europe and became the highest and fastest selling single of all time in Germany, where it stayed at the top of the charts for fourteen consecutive weeks and sold over 3 million copies. It subsequently became an international success selling 12 million copies worldwide. She has now collected over 180 gold and platinum sales awards in 38 different countries. In 2010 she was named by Billboard the 5th most influential and top-selling classical artist of the 2000s decade in the US.

Brightman is the first artist to have been invited twice to perform at the Olympic Games, first at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games where she sang "Amigos Para Siempre" with the Spanish tenor Jose Carreras with an estimated global audience of a billion people, and sixteen years later in Beijing, this time with Chinese singer Liu Huan, performing the song "You and Me" to an estimated 4 billion people worldwide. Since 2010, Brightman is Panasonic's global brand ambassador. Together they launched the song "Shall Be Done" at the 2010 Winter Games held in Vancouver, Canada. Brightman is the element of union in Panasonic's signing of Strategic Partnership Agreement with the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, as she stars the campaign "The World Heritage Special" that is being aired on the National Geographic Channel in 183 countries and areas.

In early 2012 Brightman was appointed as the UNESCO artist for peace for the period 2012–2014 for her “commitment to humanitarian and charitable causes, her contribution, throughout her artistic career, to the promotion of cultural dialogue and the exchanges among cultures, and her dedication to the ideals and aims of the Organization”.

In 2012 In conjunction with Virgin Galactic, The Brightman STEM Scholarship program (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) was launched. It will help young women in the US pursue STEM education across their four year college careers.

Apart from music, Brightman has begun a film career, making her debut in Repo! The Genetic Opera (2008), a rock opera-musical film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman, and in autumn 2011 and early 2012 Stephen Evans' "First Night", starring opposite Richard E. Grant. In addition, she formed her own production company, Instinct Films, where her first film is in pre-production. Brightman is the world's richest female classical performer with a fortune of £30m (about US$49m).

Family and early life

Brightman is the oldest of six children of businessman Grenville Geoffrey Brightman (1934–1992) and Paula Brightman. She was raised Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, England. At age three, she began taking dance and piano classes and went on to perform in local festivals and competitions. At age 11, she successfully auditioned for the Arts Education School in Tring Park, a school specialising in performing arts. At 13, in 1973 Brightman made her theatrical debut in the musical I and Albert at the Piccadilly Theatre, London, playing one of Queen Victoria's daughters (Vickoria). In 1976 she was in the leading TV dance group Pan's People and was later recruited to lead Arlene Phillips' troupe Hot Gossip in 1977. The group had a disco hit in 1978 with "I Lost My Heart to a Starship Trooper", which sold half a million and reached number six on the UK charts. Brightman, now solo, released more disco singles under her own label, Whisper Records, such as "Not Having That!" and a cover of the song "My Boyfriend's Back". In 1979, Brightman appeared on the soundtrack of the movie "The World Is Full of Married Men" and sang the song "Madam Hyde".

1981–1989: Stage career

In 1981, Brightman auditioned for the new musical Cats and was cast as Jemima. In rehearsals she met Andrew Lloyd Webber. After a year in Cats, Brightman took over from Bonnie Langford as Kate in The Pirates of Penzance at the Drury Lane Theatre, London, and appeared as Tara Treetops in Masquerade, a musical based on Kit Williams's book of the same title. On that year she left to play the title role in Charles Strouse's children's opera, Nightingale.

Enticed by a rave review, Webber went to watch her in the show one evening and was flabbergasted. It seemed inconceivable that he could have missed such vocal talent when she'd been in his show for a year. It would be an awakening that would alter more than just his perception of her. It would alter the course of their careers and lives. The two married in 1984, and Brightman appeared in many of Lloyd Webber's subsequent musicals including Song and Dance and the mass Requiem, the latter written for her.

Scarcely a year later, Brightman's crystalline recording of Pie Jesu rocketed up the charts, selling 25,000 copies on the first day of release and peaking at number 3, no mean feat for a song in Latin. With classical music permeating the Lloyd Webber household (Brightman was in heavy operatic training at the time), Lloyd Webber was moved to write the Requiem Mass as a tribute to young victims of war. Its Manhattan premiere, starring Placido Domingo and Brightman, was filmed by both PBS and the BBC for later broadcast. The LP eventually became UK's top selling classical album of the year and earned Brightman a Grammy nomination as Best New Classical Artist."

Brightman starred as Christine Daaé in Lloyd Webber's adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera. The role of Christine was written specifically for her. Lloyd Webber refused to open The Phantom of the Opera on Broadway unless Brightman played Christine. Initially, the American Actors' Equity Association balked, because of their policy that any non-American performer must be an international star. Lloyd Webber had to cast an American in a leading role in his next West End musical before Equity would allow Brightman to appear (a promise he kept in casting Aspects of Love). In the end, it was a compromise that more than paid off. "Phantom" chalked up a staggering $17 million in advance sales prior to opening night on 28 January 1988, and generated a public and media frenzy that is unmatched since. The original cast album was the first in British musical history to enter the music charts at number one. Album sales now exceed forty million worldwide and it is the biggest selling cast album of all time, and has gone six times platinum in the US, twice platinum in the UK, nine times platinum in Germany, four times platinum in the Netherlands, 21 times platinum in Korea and 17 times platinum in Taiwan.

After leaving Phantom, she performed in a tour of Lloyd Webber's music throughout England, Canada and the United States, and performed Requiem in the Soviet Union. Studio recordings from this time include the single "Anything But Lonely" from Aspects of Love and two solo albums: the 1988 album The Trees They Grow So High, a compilation of folk songs accompanied by piano, and the 1989 album The Songs That Got Away, a musical theatre compilation of songs cut from shows by composers such as Irving Berlin and Stephen Sondheim, also Brightman sang the song "Make Believe" at the end during the credits of the children's film "Grandpa"; Howard Blake wrote the music and lyrics.

By 1990, Brightman and Lloyd Webber separated. After their divorce, Brightman played the lead in Lloyd Webber's Aspects in London opposite Michael Praed, before transferring to Broadway. Her work in Aspects notwithstanding, Brightman steeled herself and set forth to find her own footing. Perhaps the most poignant declaration of independence came in the form of her second solo album from this period, an eclectic but personal collection of folk-rock songs that she had hand-picked. It was a departure from musical theatre and indeed, a departure for Webber himself. More tellingly, the album bore a most prescient title: As I Came of Age.

1990s: Solo career

After her very successful stage career, Brightman decided to make a fresh start and embark on a solo career. In 1992, Brightman made an appearance with José Carreras at the Barcelona Olympic Games singing the theme song "Amigos Para Siempre" ("Friends forever") to a worldwide audience of 3 billion people. Following her appearance, Brightman travelled to Germany to work with co-producer Frank Peterson of “Enigma” fame The two collaborated on the album “Dive,” released in 1993 a water-themed pop album that featured "Captain Nemo", a cover of a song by the Swedish electronica band Dive. The album is considered Brightman's first success as a recording solo artist, receiving her first Gold award for exceptional sales in Canada.

Brightman and Peterson’s second collaboration yielded the pop rock album, Fly (1995). The album catapulted Brightman to fame across Europe, and she unveiled its hit track “A Question of Honor” – a mélange of electronic, rock, classical strings and excerpts from the Alfredo Catalani opera “La Wally”. The song and the video were introduced at the World Boxing Championship match between Germany's Henry Maske and Graciano Rocchigiani.

"Time to Say Goodbye", taken from the album Timeless, released in 1997, was the second song Brightman debuted for Maske, this time at his retirement match. This duet with tenor Andrea Bocelli became an international hit and sold more than 3 million copies in Germany alone, became Germany's best-selling single, and was successful in numerous other countries; the album eventually sold over 12 million copies worldwide. It is regarded as one of Brightman's and Bocelli's, signature songs.

In March 1998, her own PBS special, Sarah Brightman: In Concert at the Royal Albert Hall, marked the point when she crossed from Billboard's Top Heat seekers chart to the Billboard 200 chart, with Time to Say Goodbye. The same year, Brightman starred A Gala Christmas in Vienna along side Placido Domingo, Helmut Lottie and Riccardo Cocciante singing traditional Christmas carols. On 7 April 1998 she was one of the guest stars in Andrew Lloyd Webber's 50th Birthday Celebration singing Hossanaa with Dennis O'Neill, Pie Jesu, Phantom of the Opera with Antonio Banderas, All I Ask of You with Michael Ball and Music of the Night.

With the success of Timeless, Brightman felt freer to put herself into her next endeavour. Brightman released her next album, Eden in 1998. She hand-selected each song and convinced the Academy Award-winning Italian composer Ennio Morricone to let her set lyrics to one of his film compositions, “Gabriel’s Oboe” from the film “The Mission” resulting in the now legendary “Nella Fantasia”.

The release of Eden also led to a concert tour of the same name, Brightman’s first world tour and a huge success. Eden reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Classical Crossover chart and No. 65 on the Billboard 200 charts and was certified Gold.

2000–2004: Further international success

Next came the album La Luna. For this album, Brightman chose songs drawing on influences as diverse as pop, vintage jazz, and high opera, in homages to Dvorak, Beethoven and Billie Holliday. La Luna also reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Top Internet Albums and peaked at No. 17, with 900.000 US sales reaching Gold. In 2000 Brightman’s PBS La Luna concert, she sang There for Me in a duet with an up and coming star, Josh Groban. At the end of 2001, Billboard magazine noted Brightman as the most important classical crossover artist from the UK.

In 2000, Brightman sold more records than Elton John and the Rolling Stones, becoming America's highest-selling and top touring British artist.

Brightman ventured for the first time into film acting in 2000 when she was part of the cast of the German film "Zeit der Erkenntnis", based on Rosamunde Pilcher book.

In 2001, Brightman released Classics, an anthology including highlights from three of Brightman's chart-topping releases along with seven new tracks; this was released worldwide except Europe. In the US the album peaked at No. 66 on the Billboard's 200 charts and promptly went Gold. It reached No. 2 on Billboard's Classical Crossover charts.

Her 2003 album Harem represented another departure: a Middle Eastern-themed album influenced by dance music. On Harem, Brightman collaborated with artists such as Ofra Haza and Iraqi singer Kazem al-Saher. Nigel Kennedy contributed violin tracks to the songs "Free" and "The War is Over", and Jaz Coleman contributed arrangements.

The album peaked at No. 29 on the Billboard 200 charts, No. 1 on the Billboard Classical Crossover chart, No. 1 on the Swedish Album Chart, and yielded a No. 1 dance/club single with the remix of the title track. Some time later, another single from the album (the ballad "Free", cowritten with Sophie B. Hawkins) became a second Top-10 hit on this chart. A year later of the album's release, Harem was referred as a multi-million seller in EMI's annual music sales report.

The albums Eden, La Luna and Harem were accompanied by live world tours which incorporated the theatricality of her stage origins. In both 2000 and 2001, Brightman was among the top 10 most popular British performers in the US, with concert sales grossing $7.2 million from 34 shows in 2000 and over $5 million from 21 shows in 2001. In 2004 the Harem tour grossed $60 million and sold 800,000 tickets.

2006–2008: Diva and Symphony

Brightman released a DVD collection of her music videos on 3 October 2006 under the title of Diva: The Video Collection. The Singles Collection is the accompanying CD, released on the same date. The album marked the first time Brightman has released a greatest hits album in the United States; it reached No. 1 on the Billboard Classical Crossover chart. Her other reflective offerings for Europe were The Very Best of 1990-2000 and Classics: The Best of Sarah Brightman.

During this time, subsequent appearances include the Concert for Diana in July 2007, where she sang "All I Ask of You" from The Phantom of the Opera with Josh Groban. Around 15 million people from across the UK watched Concert for Diana at home, and it was broadcast to over 500 million homes in 140 countries; On 7 July 2007 Brightman performed four songs ("Nessun Dorma", "La Luna", "Nella Fantasia" and "Time to Say Goodbye") and debuted her single "Running" at the 2007 IAAF Championships in Osaka, Japan on 25 August. She also participated at the 2007 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, where she performed "The Journey Home" on the Jolly Polly Pirate Ship. She recorded a duet with Anne Murray singing "Snowbird" on Murray's 2007 album Anne Murray Duets: Friends and Legends.

On May 2007, Brightman was invited along with Lesley Garrett to sing at the Wembley Stadium in London the anthem " Abide With Me before the FA Cup final between Chelsea and Manchester United.

At a dinner held at The Mansion House, on 10 September 2008, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales highlighted the urgent need for action to halt tropical deforestation. The Prince invited Brightman to sing at the event they hosted to engage the financial community in the task of finding a solution to the problem of making rainforests worth more alive than dead. The music performed was Nella Fantasia (used in the soundtrack of the movie The Mission) and further declared a Hymn to the rainforests.

On 29 January 2008, Brightman released her first album in five years: Symphony, influenced by gothic music. In the United States, it became Brightman's most successful chart entry and also her highest ranked album on Billboard's "Top 200 Albums". It was also a No. 1 album on two other Billboard's charts: "Top Internet Albums" and "Top Classical Crossover Albums". The album moved there 32,033 copies in first week, according to Nielsen Soundscan. The album was a Multi-Platinum and a top 5 release in China, Taiwan, Canada, Mexico, Japan, and Poland, and a top 20 across Europe.

Featured on the album were artists Andrea Bocelli, Fernando Lima, and KISS vocalist Paul Stanley, who duets with Brightman on "I Will Be with You", the album version of the theme song to the 10th Pocket Monsters motion picture, Dialga VS Palkia VS Darkrai (Pokémon: The Rise of Darkrai). On 16 January 2008, she also appeared in concert at Vienna’s Stephansdom Cathedral, performing songs from her new album. Special guests who sang duets with Brightman include Italian tenor Alessandro Safina, Argentinean countertenor Fernando Lima, and British singer Chris Thompson.

She performed two songs, "Pie Jesu" and "There You'll Be", at the United States Memorial Day concert on 25 May 2008 held on the west lawn of the United States Capitol in Washington D.C.. The top-rated show was broadcast live on PBS before a concert audience of 300,000 and millions more at home, as well as to American troops serving around the world on the American Forces Radio and Television Network. Brightman made her feature film debut as Blind Mag in the rock musical film Repo! The Genetic Opera which was released on 7 November 2008. Brightman was cast in the film at the last minute after the original actress who was cast for the role was dropped. On 8 August 2008, Brightman was honoured to sing the Olympic theme song, "You and Me", with Chinese star Liu Huan in both Mandarin and English at the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony. The event appeased the already established supreme popularity and recognition of Brightman in the Asian country. The performance was broadcast to over five billion viewers. In the 26 hours after the performance, "You and Me" was downloaded 5.7 million times.

On 4 November 2008, Brightman released her first holiday album, entitled A Winter Symphony, the album debuted at number No. 38 on the Billboard Top 200 and scored a number six in the Top Holiday Albums, being the first entry for Brightman on this chart. To accompany Symphony and A Winter Symphony, Brightman embarked on a tour in Autumn 2008; "The Symphony World Tour" featured new and groundbreaking technology, with virtual and holographic stage sets that had never been seen before in any touring concert production.

2009–2010: Rise in Latin American and Asian markets

Following her performance at the Beijing Olympics, Brightman was appointed as the Shanghai 2010 World Expo Promotion Ambassador in Britain. In anticipation of the Expo, she launched "Shanghai Week in London", which showcases the city's heritage and culture.

In response to persistent calls for a global release of the Symphony: Live in Vienna concert, EMI Music launched worldwide the PBS special which features Brightman's landmark performance at Vienna’s St. Stephen's Cathedral on 16 January 2008, in both audio and visual formats. The Symphony – Live in Vienna television special debuted on PBS in March 2008 during the network’s spring pledge drive and aired throughout the month. The album broke all-time records of sales in Taiwan and experienced success in certain Latin American markets.

The music of Brightman was featured in the movie Amarufi: Megami no hôshû (international title: Amalfi: Rewards of the Goddess), which was a special production to mark Fuji Television's 50th anniversary. The first Japanese movie to be shot entirely on location in Italy. In conjunction with the release of the movie Amalfi, Brightman released only in Japan an album titled Amalfi - Sarah Brightman Love Songs which reached Gold status in the aforementioned country.

Autumn 2009 saw Brightman starting a new concert tour called Sarah Brightman In Concert covering Latin America with 13 sold-out performances in Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil. The last venue of the tour, "The Concert of the Pyramid" featured Brightman performing a concert at the archaeological site of Chichen Itza, an UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.

The year closed as Symphony: Live in Vienna was listed as the thirteenth best-selling album of the year in Mexico. (In 2008 she also had 2 top-selling albums in the country: Symphony and A Winter Symphony in the 29 and 83 spots respectively)

Given the increasing popularity of Brightman in Asia, the artist toured there in late 2010 with 5 gigs in Tokyo alone, followed by presentations on Kanazawa, Nagoya, Osaka in Japan, Macau in China and Seoul in South Korea. The singer headed to perform in private events in Canada and Ukraine as well as part of the tour.

On 3 November 2010, Brightman was invited to sing at the Tōdai-ji Buddhist temple complex located in the city of Nara, Japan. The temple is a listed UNESCO World Heritage Site as "Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara". The concert was recorded and later broadcasted nationwide by TBS network.

On 27 January 2011 Hunan Broadcasting System, China's second biggest television network after China Central Television (CCTV) invited Brightman to participate in their Spring Festival, analogous celebration to the New Year's celebrations in the Western countries. She sang Scarborough Fair -Brightman's evergreen song in China- and Nessun Dorma. For the first time it was revealed that Brightman charges an average of US$ 150,000 for interpretation in such events as Chinese media remarked. When announcing the arrival of Brightman in their country, local press took the opportunity to mention China's appreciation and gratitude for the singer by her donations for the development of that area of China after the Wenchuan earthquake.

Her popularity continues to rise remarkably in Asia, with high profile appearances and sales. Brightman was South Korea's best-selling international artist of 2010 with her album Diva: The Singles Collection charting the almost the whole year in the No. 1 spot ahead Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson, Eminem, among others. The album was released in 2006, but charted again in both 2009 and 2010 when Brightman toured there with the Symphony World Tour and Sarah Brightman In Concert With Orchestra. Diva was certified Double Platinum in South Korea. Also, her digital single "Nella Fantasia" has sold 2 million copies in the country.

In Argentina she dominates the charts and holds with her albums the #1,#2,#3,#4,#7,#8 and No. 11 positions on the country's top 20's list of the best-selling classical records of the year.

While receiving the UNESCO Artist for Peace Award, Brightman announced that she is recording a new studio album set for a late 2012 release and will embark on another World Tour in 2013.

Philanthropy

Since January 2010, Brightman is Panasonic's global Brand Ambassador. Together they launched the song "Shall Be Done" at Panasonic's Olympic Pavilion at Live City Yaletown, the official celebration site of the 2010 Winter Games held in Vancouver, Canada. The lyrics of the song express Panasonic's vision for the next generation as well as Brightman's vision, infusing the spirit of 'ideas for life' of contribution for a sustainable society. The song has been used in a wide range of global promotional activities including stores, advertising, exhibitions and other events.

On February 8, 2012 Brightman accepted the UNESCO nomination to be an “Artist For Peace” Ambassador. Additionally, she is actively engaged in Panasonic's UNESCO World Heritage Centre endeavors, and stars in their The World Heritage Special campaign.

Music and voice

Brightman underwent vocal training first with Elizabeth Hawes, head of the Trinity Music College in London, and later with Ellen Faull of Juilliard. She currently studies with internationally known voice teacher David Romano. She is a light lyric soprano and has a three-octave vocal range. According to Brightman, her voice sometimes reaches an F6. However, her highest note sung in public and in studio is the E6 final of "The Phantom of the Opera".

David Caddick, a conductor of Phantom, has stated:

"What is amazing about Sarah is that she has two voices, really. She can produce a pop, contemporary sound, but she can also blossom out into a light soprano. The soprano part of her voice can go up to an E natural above high C. She doesn’t sing it full out, but it is there. Of course, she has to dance while she is singing some of the time, so it’s all the more extraordinary."

She sometimes uses her pop and classical voices in the same song. One example is "Anytime, Anywhere" from Eden, a song based on Albinoni's Adagio in G minor. In the song, she starts out in classical voice, switches to pop voice temporarily, and finishes with her classical voice. Another example is heard in the Lions Gate film Repo! The Genetic Opera, during the songs "Chase The Morning" and "Chromaggia" by her character, Blind Mag.

Brightman's music is generally classified as classical crossover. According to Manhattan Records GM Ian Ralfini, she is largely responsible for the popularity of the genre. In a 2000 interview with People, Brightman dismissed the classical crossover label as "horrible" but stated she understood people's need to categorise music. Her personal influences include 1960s and 1970s musicians and artists such as David Bowie and Pink Floyd, and she incorporates aspects of genres from pop/rock to classical. Her work has also been compared to that of Madonna, Cher and Celine Dion. The material on her albums ranges from versions of opera arias from composers such as Puccini (on Harem, Eden, and Timeless), to pop songs by artists such as Kansas ("Dust in the Wind" on Eden), Dido ("Here with Me" on La Luna), and Procol Harum ("A Whiter Shade of Pale" on La Luna). She sings in many languages which are English, Spanish, French, Latin, German, Italian, Russian, Hindi, Mandarin Chinese and Japanese.

Awards

Stage credits

Musicals

Plays

Filmography

Selected discography

Duets

These Duets were announced but were never made:

Tours