Sometimes life does have a soundtrack. At least ours does. Take, for instance, the moment we got the phone call from our private investigator that the DNA results came back and we are not Oprah’s secret half-sister. Talk about devastation.
In the background, the music swelled as Joyce DiDonato belted out the final notes of Je suis gris! (which translates to “I am Gray”). It was perfect. Our world was dark, cloudy and lacked any semblance of vibrancy at the news that we were not going to be able to change our last name to Winfrey. No summers with Gayle. No prostate probes by Dr. Oz. And absolutely no bed linen thread-count tests with Nate Berkus.
So it only seemed appropriate that this was the very moment we fell in love with a new opera CD. After all, what’s more dramatic than opera? Well, besides a mid-air rescue of seven women in labor crossing a rope ladder between helicopters. Over a volcano. Surrounded by pregnant-woman-eating dinosaurs.
In Diva, Divo, mezzo-soprano DiDonato takes on some of opera’s most beloved arias with one unique twist. She’s singing both female and male roles. Avant garde, no?
Every song is hauntingly beautiful and quite delightful. Plus, opera’s a great way to impress people at our next dinner party. Because last time we had the boyfriend’s boss over for dinner, Cee Lo Green’s F^ck You didn’t exactly go with the Lavender Panna Cotta we’d whipped up for dessert. Or our boyfriend’s plea for funding to create a summer napkin-folding camp for blind children.
But now, we’ll impress the hell out of them. In fact, they’ll be so dazzled by our musical prowess that when we sneak off to the corner and start turning the lamp on and off, they’ll praise us for our opera-in-film knowledge, too.
So if you’re tired of the latest pop sensation or heartbroken country twangfest, pop in a CD filled with music that’s stood the test of time.
To Joyce DiDonato and her Diva, Divo we proudly say, “Brava/Bravo!”
Releases today
$14.54 on CD at Amazon.com
Also available as a download on iTunes
www.virginclassics.com
Gay List Daily Giveway
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Just fill out the Contact Us form with your name and e-mail address, along with phone number and delivery address in the comments section for a chance to be randomly chosen for your very own CD. No e-mails, please. Entries must be received by 11:59 p.m. tonight, Tuesday, January 25, 2011.
