u/obliviousandtired

Lately I’ve been listening to Michael Crawford’s vocals across the eras (I’m new to the PotO fandom and been going through ALW’s different phantom actors to see who I like best.)

At first when I listened to the old, on-stage recordings as well as a performance or two for tv, I can’t say I really cared much for his voice at first. I think I was kinda put off a little by the makeup but also the pitch of his voice in some parts and the over pronunciation of his “ooo” vowels (like when he says you, knew, music, etc). This is just a matter of personal opinion, I’m not sure if it was a combination of accent, technique, style choice or what was up with that. Just not my personal cup of tea that made him distinct from other versions since then.

Then recently I struck gold and found videos of him in concert (not the theatre role) and finally understood why people like him so much. Maybe seeing his full face free of makeup helped, but also the quality of his voice for some reason is much more ethereal. The more soft blend of the notes, the theatrical aspects toned down and giving way to more clarity especially in the contrast between his chest register and higher, more delicate notes.

I saw the new anniversary clips people have put out of him with Sarah Brightman doing the lip sync with the Phantom of the Opera main song for their performance. Comparing Sarah’s vocals, for example, on her performance with Antonio Banderas vs. her voice in the 80s obviously a LOT has changed. It’s apparent she was lip syncing the old track in the anniversary performance, I didn’t see a mic on her in the videos. It’s fair, she doesn’t sound bad at this time in her life of course, but it makes sense for the nostalgia.

I noticed that Michael did have a mic on. I know it’s probably just for the part where he tells her to sing for him in the end bit of the song. However, listening back to the specific line “that man and mystery” sounded just the slightest bit different than the original and revamped tracks. The way he partially draws out “mystery” and the notes he hits in just the one word makes it sound more like a live vocal. I’ve listened back to the two versions of the released track and the clip from the recent performance with Sarah. I’m not sure if it’s additional reverb, some kind of editing or just the room making it sound drawn out a bit more.

Is there any possibility that he may not have lip synced the entirety of the song or actually singing along with the instrumental? Maybe I’m just losing my mind a little, but every clip from the show sounds the same and not 100% like how I hear him saying that line in the official tracks.

Either way, I think he’s great! I prefer his concert versions more than stage performance vocals but I understand why he’s so iconic! It’s nice to see him an old man still rockin’ it out. It’s truly a timeless role.

Extra bit: who else loved Anthony Crivello’s performance as the phantom? I’ve only seen the bootleg version but the things I’d give to have seen it for myself!

Edit: Definitely all a lip sync but still a lovely nostalgic throwback!

Last one got archived for some reason.

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Happy gaming!

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