Duet of the Divas

摘要

The "American Idol" Star Clay Aiken and the lyric soprano Renee Fleming must have heard each other's names: in the 2003 World Series they each sang the national anthem, he in Game 1, she in Game 2. And that's probably the sum of what they know of each other. About all they have in common, besides their fame, is the near-simultaneous publication of their new memoirs. In "Learning to Sing: Hearing the Music in Your Life," Aiken says he quit the Raleigh (N.C.) Boy-choir because "I hated sing-ing opera." In "The Inner Voice: The Making of a Singer," Fleming admits an early fondness for such pop performers as Joni Mitchell, but her idea of a good time now seems to be studying Maria Callas's and Ileana Contrubas's interpretations of Violetta in "La Traviata": "I listen to these recordings and analyze the performances to see what secrets I can cull."