You have to be pretty ambitious to cover a song originally recorded by Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli – and even more confident to post it online.
Then there’s the seeming insanity of trying to sing both parts of “The Prayer” all on your own! A male voice (and Italian lyrics) AND a female voice? A love song to yourself?
That’s just what Chris Mann managed to accomplish!
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Who is this man, Chris Mann?
Christopher Mann is originally from Wichita, Kansas.
If you recognize him, it’s likely because he came in 4th place on the 2012 season of The Voice, and pulled off a stunning duet with vocal powerhouse Christina Aguilera in the final round.
His style is operatic pop and classical crossover.
He’s a talented man, but his vocal skills didn’t come without hard work.
He earned a degree in vocal performance from Vanderbilt’s Blair School of Music. Then he moved to LA and got cast in an Italian opera and did studio vocals for shows and films such as Avatar, Letters to Juliet, Tangled, and Sex and the City 2.
Mann has starred in his own holiday special for PBS, toured to sold-out audiences across America, Mexico, and Asia, and was personally cast by Sir Cameron Mackintosh and Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber as The Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera’s 25th Anniversary Tour!
He managed over 700 demanding performances in the mask!
Why “The Prayer”?
Ok, so he can take a challenge. But performing both sides of a duet seems like a strange goal.
In his video’s caption, Mann explained:
“I love singing this song so much…I decided to just sing the whole dang thing myself…”
“The Prayer” was written by David Foster and recorded in two solo versions for the 1998 film, Quest for Camelot. The recordings in English were done by Celine Dion and Italian by Bocelli.
The duet was included in both Dion and Bocelli’s albums.
A pretty good Celine Dion impression
We have to admit, while Dion’s vocals are hard to replicate, Mann certainly has the range.
He starts off singing her part:
“I pray you’ll be our eyes
And watch us where we go
And help us to be wise
In times when we don’t know
Let this be our prayer
When we lose our way”
Italian tenor
But the best part is when he not only sings Boccelli’s part in Italian but does Dion’s backing vocals!
“La luce che tu hai
(I pray we’ll find your light)
Nel cuore resterà
(And hold it in our hearts)
A ricordarci che
(When stars go out each night)
L’eterna stella sei
(Whoa)
Nella mia preghiera
(Let this be our prayer)
Quanta fede c’è
(When shadows fill our day)”
It’s amazing to hear him do this and it’s truly worthy of a listen!
https://www.instagram.com/p/CI6DuBfHR1Z/
If there was no video of his solo duet, you would swear it was really two singers.
Luckily, we have the video down below so you can have a listen!
Please SHARE this with your friends and family.
