OlderSat, 19 April 2008 at 10:35 pm
Kelly Clarkson Sings “Ave Maria” For the Pope
Kelly Clarkson, the first season’s winner of American Idol, sings a rousing rendition of the hymn “Ave Maria” for Pope Benedict XVI at Saint Joseph Seminary in Yonkers, New York on Saturday.
About 25,000 young worshippers rallied for the Popemobile (and Kelly).
“I was so excited to be asked to sing for the Pope,” Kelly. “I grew up singing church music, and it’s always been a dream of mine to perform ‘Ave Maria.’ To have that dream come true on such a special occasion is truly a blessing.”
Watch the video below of Kelly belting out “Ave Maria”!
Kelly Clarkson Sings “Ave Maria” For the Pope
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BEAUTIFUL!!
WHAT AN HONOR!
CAN’T PEOPLE
FOR ONCE??? BE NICE
AND APPRECIATE
THE MOMENT
AND BEAUTIFUL KELLY
THE WOMAN WITH THE BEAUTIFUL VOICE
THIS IS NO PLACE FOR MILEY CYRUS OR
BRITNEY
BEAUTIFUL KELLY!
Kelly must have thought this was going to be one of her “gigs” Ave Maria Is not a pop song and it will never be a pop song. She made the song an embarrassment. She dressed wrong. She Knows Nothing about respect to the Pope, the song, the Catholic Church and most of all God. I am sad about how she stuck out one hand to the Pope and she totally knew nothing about going up to the Pope to greet him, she was totally in the dark about what she was supposed to do. I am shocked someone got this job for her and she thought it was a regular “gig” No way Kelly . YOU MESSED UP. BIGTIME.
Why Kelly Clarkson? How on earth did someone approve this disrespectul version of Ave Maria. I am in disbelief that she actually did what she did, down to the mini dress, and to not even walking up to the Pope to speak to him, What a shame.
Like I said before, and after the video again, I must say: her interpretation is not the best.
Some of you say that her version is better for younger audiences, that it was a Youth Rally. The Catholic Church has been founded, among other things, by the respect to tradition. This song is a classic, is not just about the music, is the message the song has about the Virgin Mary and what she represents for the Catholics. So IT IS IMPORTANT to HONOR the song, and to not try to distort it by making some “NEW” version. Does the Catholic Church has now to redefine all their traditions just to appeal to younger audiences? I don’t think so.
Someone said before that for him (her) the Pope was just another guy, and it was very sad to read that. It is an honor and a priviledge that not all of us had to be able to perform in front of the Pope, as it would be to perform in front of the leader of another religion in the world. And because of that, he deserves to be treated with certain respect, no matter if you are catholic, baptist, methodist, or atheist.
Also, as there is a dress code when you go to a palace to meet a Queen or a King or any other Royalty, there is a code that you must follow when meeting someone like the Pope. It doesn’t matter who you are, when you are going to meet someone as important as him, you should follow the rules and dress properly for the ocassion.
Before finishing, I’d like to say that I really like Kelly Clarkson. I think she is a great performer, she has a really good voice, but she was not the best choice for this performance. Her interpretation and her version of the song were not the best, and someone should have told her that you DO NOT wear a low-cut dress when you are going to sing for the Pope.
Kelly is a very talented lady, and I’m sure all artists, at some point in their careers, have made decisions or performances that are not precisely their best ones.
^^The interpretation is not the best to you, but your opinion is like your *******, irrelevant.
Can you even sing?
All I can say is that I found Kelly’s version to be moving. I thought she was fantastic and I didn’t even know it was her till the announcer mentioned her name at the end. As I listened again I found myself moved to tears because this time, for the first time, I understood the true meaning of the song. Before that, I would’ve never listened to the song. The nay sayers can criticize her version all you want but then you truly miss the point of the rally and his visit. She, not an operatic star speaks to the youth today. His visit was about bridging the gap. Bringing people from all sides together for the purpose of one objective- worship. Making slide comments about her weight show how much the pope’s visit and words were lost upon you.
It concerns me that some of you seem to be worshipping the man and not God himself. The Pope is just a man who has been called to do God’s work. My husband is a preacher. He does God’s work as well. We should never lose sight of the higher power. As for Kelly’s version of “Ave Maria” I thought it was beautiful. I am not as familiar with the song as some of you but I thought she was very sincere in the delivery of the song. I was definitely moved by it. I agree with many of you that this was a youth rally. I don’t think Kelly’s dress was inappropriate at all. She looked beautiful. This should be about bringing the youth closer to God. Kelly is a good role model for young people. She is not seen in the tabloids. She presents herself in a positive light. As a parent, I would have been relieved to see Kelly on that stage as opposed to Britney Spears or Lindsey Lohan. I heard some of you say Whitney Houston could have done a better job with the song but do you really think Whitney is the person you want up there rallying your young people? Think. We have got to get our youth excited about God again. I think someone said this earlier - we must bridge the gap. Do we want to try to do this with someone who is in trouble all the time or do we want to try to show the young people that it can be cool to be a Christian? It is a different time. I know. I am not only the preacher’s wife but a high school teacher. I see how children have changed throughout the years. If Kelly touched one person in that audience by singing her rendition of that song, then her job was done well.
rhonda: love your post. Kelly is a great role model, even though she doesn’t want to be, but you never see her in the tabloids, she never gets in trouble, she’s famous for being the nicest person in hollywood, every person that meets her falls in love with her. And she’s so humble. She’s amazing with her fans, that’s why her fanbase is so loyal to her. And most of all, she truly connects with the songs she sings, she makes us feel what she’s singing, and she sings with so much emotion. You don’t hear that nowadays. That’s why i think she was the perfect choice for this song and this time.
Who are any of you to criticize her? Could you have gotten up there in front of 25,000+ people including the Pope and done better than that?
Right, I didn’t think so. This was a Youth Rally…do you really believe that the youth would rather hear someone they have never heard of before/someone they can’t relate to? Kelly Clarkson is a perfectly normal girl with an extraordinary talent. Her voice is stunning and there was absolutely nothing wrong with her performance.
Hated it. Ave Maria is supposed to be sung with meaning and reverence. Kelly totally sang it like she was at one of her concerts. Loud. As a Catholic, not sure how she was chosen for this event anyway. I can think of plenty of singers who could have done much better.
As a Roman Catholic I was so proud to have the Holy Father in our country.
The song was beautifuly sung by a truly talented artist Kelly Clarkson.
I think she was chosen by the Vatican due to her obvious talent and her wholesome reputation in the music industry.
While she is not a Catholic she is a fellow Christian with an obvious respect for the Pope.
I look forward to listening to the song many times, it draws me closer to Ave Maria’s son - our Lord Jesus Christ.
An article from http://www.vintagepostcard.blogspot.com
Kelly Clarkson
Category: Blogging
There have been constant debates on youtube, myspace, facebook, etc. all weekend about Miss Clarkson. She sang the Ave Maria for the Pope at the Youth Rally on Saturday. Any trained musician could hear that she didn’t know the song, her Latin was poorly pronounced, her breath control was pathetic for a professional singer and the ending three notes were weak and out of tune. Not to mention the fact that she was unable to hold a note very long, and for Schubert’s Ave Maria, you have to.
So what? I guess we should all pretend that it was fantastic? Well that is what all of Kelly’s supporters say, along with death threats and some crude language, to the classically trained ear.
One of the reasons I was a little annoyed was there are thousands of people who could have done a better job. Why didn’t they get someone who is studying opera at Julliard, someone who could have benefited from the exposure, someone who is actually CATHOLIC? Do you know how many young and older Catholics out there pay hard earned money each week for their voice lessons in New York City? Classical singers fight tooth and nail for jobs, for any kind of “break”, so I take this as an ignorant snub to the real musicians out there. And most of them can sing the Ave Maria properly!
OK, Kelly is famous, she has power in the music industry, she has a very large “tween” network of supporters, but after she sang her three pop songs, someone else should have come out to sing the Ave Maria to the Pope. Why was Kelly singing at a Catholic conference anyway? She is a non-practicing Baptist. Was she just a pawn in a game of, “Let’s draw as much attention to the Youth Rally we can get”? Well, Cardinals, you already had the Pope there. If you really think you needed more publicity you are doing it for all of the wrong reasons.
One end note to all of the people out there threatening us Classical Musicians who didn’t like the performance, what ever happened to freedom of speech?
This had to be the most distinguished honor of Kelly Clarkson’s career. Although I am not a fan of Kelly Clarkson’s voice I believe she did a credible job in singing the Ave Maria. She has a lovely voice when she sings “straight” without the trills, screaming or gravelly R&B styled vocals, however, the Ave Maria is a Catholic classic. It has been sung by the world’s greatest operatic and pop vocalists over the years: Artists like Mario Lanza, Lucianno Pavarotti, Bing Crosby, Perry Como , Jerry Vale, Andrea Bocelli and Charlotte Church, just to name a few, have brilliantly performed the classic composition but it must be performed in the style and form that gives honor to the subject matter, the Blessed Virgin Mary. I believe Kelly did give honor and form to the piece although it was too fast in tempo and her Latin was abysmal. That being said it was probably the best “pure” vocal I have ever heard Clarkson perform. Her only other error was she forgot to kiss the Pope’s ring. However, if she is not Catholic that formality is not required.
People who are criticizing the performance are missing the point. The Catholic church is in a state of crisis with more and more people choosing not to follow. This was a youth rally…an opera singer wouldn’t have been the right choice. You take a hugely successful international star with major youth appeal, Kelly Clarkson, and have them sing for the Pope and you garner the interest of 10-25 yr olds. Those are the people the church needs in order to survive. Kelly did a great job! This was a youth rally. Celine Dion would have been appropriate if it was a benefit for adults in their 40s-60s.
A sublimely beautiful performance. She sang this song as Kelly Clarkson, and did not take a rigid approach to a song that should be heartfeld. Her voice was exquisitely suited to this song.
I loved it!!
What a beautiful and emotional performance.
Kelly thank you for the beautiful song.
I am sure that Jesus is so pleased as well as His Mother Mary.
Thank you for being so respectful to the Pope, he, as well as the audience were blessed by your singing.
the problem you guys.. you annoying music experts/critics is that.. you guys would always want to compare a performance to another.
Just stop it.
The performance was unique in it’s own way. So is celine’s rendition and josh grobin’s etc…
it’s like you guys are saying that the holy bible should only be in latin or in english.. but no.. the holy bible is also in arabic, afrikaan, malay, tagalog just like my Quran.
she sang from her heart.. that is what should counts.. i loved the performance… and i have always loved this song.. no matter who is singing it.
a muslim.
p/s - sorry if my english is bad…..
What’s with all the haters in here?
For one thing, Kelly isn’t Catholic… so she wasn’t a “last resort”. Secondly, the Pope likes this version of the song, so she sang it. Also, she is familiar with the song, because before the performance she talked about past experiences singing that TRADITIONAL version of the song. So what if you don’t like her pronunciation of latin? I can’t speak latin either! You know why? BECAUSE I’M FROM AMERICA AND I’M NOT CATHOLIC… just like she’s not. Why the heck would i speak a dead language? lol
And I’d also like to set the record straight for the bashers claiming they don’t like her because she stood up to Clive Davis. She did stand up to Clive, yes, but she wasn’t disrespectful to him at all. She apologized for anything that could have sounded harsh, so what’s the problem? She wanted to make an album she could call her own, and she did. I commend her for that. She isn’t a hypocrite for making a pop album right now, she’s smart. She finally has a compromise with her label, because obviously if she weren’t to do a pop album, she could end up in danger of losing her record deal… and where would that get her? Nowhere. Stop bashing and use logic. Kelly’s not as dimwitted as so many people think she is.
Who cares about being polished or whatever. You “professional opera singers” are lame. I love classical music and understand how it “should” sound. But this is Kelly Clarkson. She was there for a YOUTH GATHERING. I don’t think the catholic youth wanted to hear from an Opera singer. And Kelly by far has the best voice of any YOUNG popular singer. Think about it.
I thought it was one of the worst renditions of the hymn I’ve ever heard. Her voice is not right for the song, and her style was terrible. the composer is rolling in his grave.
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