How To Appreciate Sarah Brightman

Fans of Sarah Brightman never know where to look for her albums. Some music stores file her under "Easy Listening," others under "Classical." Occasionally, she can be found in the "Pop/Rock" section. I have even been to one store that seems to randomly sprinkle her albums among all three categories. But why? Is she really so hard to categorize? The answer, as known to all Sarah Brightman fans, is yes, she is. Her sound is truly unique, featuring hints of classical, electronica, pop and even R&B. It seems that anyone can listen to her music and find something they like, right?

Wrong, apparently. Sarah's fans know there are a great many people out there who dislike her. Perhaps the most vocal are those who belong to the classical music community. These are the people who criticize Sarah's work, writing it off as being "fake" or "fluffy." While I disagree, I realize that not everyone in the whole world is going to like her and I fully respect everyone's entitlement to their own opinion.

So why am I writing this article? Is everyone not allowed to have their own feelings? Well, yes, of course they are, but those feelings are worth much more if they are actually formed with the help of evidence and experience. Many are not as I learned one day, talking to a friend of mine.

Our conversation found its way to the topic of Sarah Brightman and her music. My friend was not a fan and I knew it. We were playfully arguing when, suddenly she made an intriguing confession.

"Honestly," she said, "Some of my snootiness is feigned. I only say I hate Sarah Brightman because my professors tell me not to listen to her."

I found this very interesting. If this was the reason behind my friend's opinion, then surely she could not have been the only one. There must be many more people out there whose professors seek to pass their prejudice on to their students. It was clear to me that these people feel the way they do for one reason: they view Sarah through a classical lens in which she does not fit. They do not understand that if they listen to her for classical music, they listen for the wrong reason and miss the point entirely. I decided that, in order to form a worthwhile opinion, people need to know how to listen to and appreciate Sarah Brightman.

This is easy when we follow Sarah's career. Her first hit was a disco song, "I Lost My Heart to a Starship Trooper" in 1978 with the dance group, Hot Gossip. In the 80's, her focus turned to classical singing and musical theatre. She appeared in such shows as Cats, The Pirates of Penzance and, of course, The Phantom of the Opera, where she created the role of "Christine." In 1988, she decided once more to try something new when she released The Trees They Grow So High (later re-released as Early One Morning), a collection of traditional folks songs. Featuring just Sarah's vocals and Geoffrey Parsons on the piano, its pure unadulterated sound was unlike anything she had done before. In the two years following Trees' release, Sarah recorded The Songs that Got Away, a musical theatre album, and As I Came of Age. The latter, released in 1990, featured a sound reminiscent of the hippie folk-rock of the 1960's. From there, it was easy to make the transition to her pop/rock albums of the mid 1990's. The first was Dive, in 1993. Fly followed, in 1995, which, even though it was mainly an electronica-rock album, featured the classically-inspired hits "Time to Say Goodbye" and "A Question of Honour." Thus, it had begun. Sarah's experience with various genres was beginning to show itself. Anyone who has listened to Eden (1998) or La Luna (2000) can attest to this. Even after infusing her sound with Middle Eastern influences for 2003's Harem, Sarah still managed to keep the eclectic feeling in her sound. She continues to inventively bring together elements of disco, folk, classic rock, opera, and now metal, as can be heard on her new album, Symphony. All of these elements combine to give her a completely unique sound and makes the prospect of her future work all the more exciting.

But, of course, the classical genre hounds will not be satisfied. To them, Sarah Brightman is either a poser or a traitor. Their favorite argument to make is: "She's not a real classical singer. She's just trying to pass herself off as one." This could not be farther from the truth. Sarah is indeed a classical singer, but that is not all. She can belt and riff like a pop singer. She can ululate like a belly dancer. She plays the piano, writes lyrics, dances, co-produces her own music. The list goes on and on. She is a true musical artist. She knows that if she were to "pass herself off" as a classical singer, she would be selling her own talents criminally short.

So, to all the classical music lovers who claim to dislike Sarah Brightman, I ask, have you ever actually given her a chance? Certainly, there are many other classical singers out there to satisfy your appetite. I just think that, if you are going to have a pet hate for something, you should at least know what it really is.