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Adele Addison

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Vocalist

The Resume

    (July 24, 1925- )
    Born in Springfield, Massachusetts
    Lyric soprano, playback singer
    Studied at Princeton University and later at the Berkshire Music School at Tanglewood
    Made her debut in Mozart's 'Idomeneo, King of Crete,' with The New England Opera Company (1949)
    Performed with The New York City Opera, The Philadelphia Lyric Opera Company, and The Boston Symphony Orchestra
    Sang vocals for several original Aaron Copland compositions
    Notable roles included Pensieroso in Handel's 'L'Allegro,' Gilda in Verdi's 'Rigoletto,' Mimi in Puccini's ‘La Boheme,’ Micaela in Bizet's 'Carmen,' and the title roles in Handel's ‘Esther' and 'Acis and Galatea'
    Best known for dubbing Dorothy Dandridge in the role of Bess, in the movie version of 'Porgy and Bess' (1959)
    Also performed in the world premiere of Lester Trimble's 'Canterbury Tales' and her interpretation of Debussy's 'L'Enfant prodigue'
    Later taught vocals for State University of NY (SUNY) at Stony Brook, Eastman School of Music, and Aspen Music Festival & School

Why she might be annoying:

    She is overshadowed by Leontyne Price.
    Google searches for her name tend to turn up topics related to the better-known Adele.
    She turned down roles with several prominent opera companies because she preferred in recital/concert stage venues.
    She was actually the second choice to dub Dorothy Dandridge, as the previous singer (a white soprano) was deemed 'too shrill.'
    Life Magazine assessed the change as follows: 'The studio decided that [her voice] sounded as though it could come out of Miss Dandridge's throat - an appraisal Miss Addison might not have found flattering. It was like Renata Tebaldi being told her voice was a suitable dub for Sophie Tucker.'
    Not only did she barely interact with Dorothy, whom she met but once, but she sang separately from Porgy's 'voice,' Robert McFerrin - with each performing at different times to pre-recorded instrumentals.
    Samuel Goldwyn assured them it would 'work out fine,' in spite of their misgivings, but the final result was a mess, with both voices out of sync and sounding nothing like the actors they were supposed to be dubbing.

Why she might not be annoying:

    Dawn Upshaw was one of her students.
    She won a scholarship, as a teenager, to study at Westminster Choir College.
    She performed with the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, on several occasions.
    Jet Magazine listed her in their 'Ten Best Girl Singers' piece for their 7th issue (Dec. 1951).
    She is world renowned for her renderings of Bach with the Boston Symphony and Robert Shaw ('B Minor Mass,' 'Symphony No. 9').
    She awarded an honorary doctorate by serving for a time as Chair, of the Voice Department at the Manhattan School of Music, where she had briefly held tenure in the Voice Department, in 2001.
    She was a favorite of Leonard Bernstein's, who invited her to sing a soprano solo in the world premiere of Lukas Foss' Time Cycle' with the New York Philharmonic.
    She was chosen by Charles Münch to be the soprano soloist for the World premiere of Francis Poulenc's 'Gloria' (1961).
    She stirred controversy by marrying a white NYU Orthotics Researcher in 1958; the marriage lasted nearly 50 years, until his death in 2005.
    She said: 'Today, young singers are almost forced to make a choice, because they are counseled that becoming established in opera is the way to make a career in music. I never had to make a choice .... My curiosity, joy and love for song never changed. It still has not.'

Credit: BoyWiththeGreenHair


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 28 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 3 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 32 Votes: 59.38% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 16 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 29 Votes: 65.52% Annoying