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Thursday, May 18, 2023
Moody Blues - Nights in White Satin
Catherine, Princess of Wales plays piano in incredible surprise cameo at Eurovision
Catherine, Princess of Wales, stunned Eurovision viewers with a surprise cameo appearance playing piano as the song competition finale began.
As is tradition, the grand final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 opened with a ‘flag parade’, as performers from the 26 competing countries assembled in the UK’s Liverpool Arena, to a soundtrack of musical performances.
Amongst them: a surprise performance from Catherine, Princess of Wales.
This year’s theme was a celebration of Ukraine, as Liverpool hosted the event on behalf of the country since the ongoing Russian invasion made it impossible for last year’s Eurovision winners to do so.
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The performance kicked off with 2022 Eurovision winners, , performing ‘Voices of a New Generation’.
The performance blended their winning song ‘Stefania’ with string quartet, a guitar-shredding solo by 2022 runner-up Sam Ryder atop the city’s Royal Liver Building, a ballet performance, and piano cameos from the Princess of Wales and Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Wearing a royal blue dress in a subtle nod to the Ukrainian flag, the Princess of Wales played a short segment on the piano against the rich, red backdrop of Windsor Castle’s Crimson Drawing Room.
The opening segment also featured a piano performance by the great British composer and musical theatre legend, Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Following the broadcast on Saturday 13 May, the Kalush Orchestra released a statement thanking the Princess of Wales for joining their performance.
They also extended an invitation for her to join them on a future tour: “We would definitely like to invite her to tour with us if she would like to pursue a new career in a hip-hop folk band?!” he Princess of Wales’ first public piano appearance was on Christmas Eve in 2021, when she accompanied singer-songwriter Tom Walker in ‘For Those Who Can’t Be Here’ at Westminster Abbey, dedicating the performance to the ‘unsung heroes’ of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Princess learned piano as a young girl, taking lessons with Daniel Nicholls between the ages of 10 and 13. She is also known to have achieved Grade 5 in singing and music theory, having reportedly been deputy head chorister in her chapel choir, as well as having played flute in a chamber orchestra and flute choir, alongside her sister Pippa.
An epic ‘Nessun Dorma’ that leaves a Royal Albert Hall audience in awe
By Kyle Macdonald
One of the great singers of our time, brings Puccini’s timeless opera masterpiece to an iconic concert hall. It’s a performance not many will ever forget.
“Vincerò!” or “I will win!” – it’s the famous and always moving climax to the aria from Puccini’s opera Turandot.
The aria is one of those very special moments of music that has gripped and enchanted millions over the years. It found truly global fame in the 1990s thanks to , Italia 90, and Three Tenors CDs that were on virtually everyone’s shelf.
Its drama and power, combined with that enduring public appeal makes it a natural show-stopper in live performances.
And so it was on this night, before 5,000 people at London’s Royal Albert Hall, during an opera-themed Classic FM Live with Viking.
But there’s always more than just those high notes at the very end of the aria. And on that night, there was a singer perfectly matched to reveal every glorious, moving moment of ‘Nessun Dorma’. Watch above.
Michael Spyres is an American opera singer. He’s rare for the fact that he can sing in both baritone and tenor voice types. His range spans from the rich and resonant baritone register, up to the highest notes of most agile Bel Canto tenor. Alongside the Puccini, he also gave us a baritone aria that night.
It’s one of the reasons why this performance was so special.
Puccini sets the scene with hushed orchestra, on this occasion it played by English National Opera and conductor Paul Daniel. The singer then enters, pleading ‘Nessun dorma’ – first in the middle of his register, and then low. Then that powerful lyricism starts. This is all perfect territory for Spyres to show off that sonority and voice.
From these opening cries, to the final ‘Vincerò!’ on that winning high B, it’s a journey like few others in music. Spyres held that hall in rapt silence, before everyone erupted. ‘Nessun dorma’ does it every time.
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