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Or highly improvable. My favorite is "Accla Taqui" Chant of the Chosen Maidens, which I attempt to sing to amuse myself every chance I get.
I ordered it first back in 1962. Yma's range is unbelievable but it's real.
I can't tell you how many people I have impressed by playing them this album. Listen to the samples.
And flawless. This is a must for anyone with ears as far as I'm concerned.
It's impossible. I'm a bass-baritone.
Miss Sumac passed away recently, God rest her soul. I don't know; they heard her live, and I didn't. Maybe that IS the point. Maybe I'm missing the point. Maybe.Now here's my point: some singers are just as great on record as in person.Sinatra and Ella come to mind. Apparently she had quite a following in the 50s, could put on a heck of a show, and sold a ton of records, before disappearing from view.
The "Incan Princess" [maybe] was a self-proclaimed and perpetuated legend. She was said to be a Brooklyn housewife named Amy Camus. .and I have no earthly idea of how many stars to give. That this record has value as an historical document is beyond dispute. Some said she belonged in Opera. For me, this album is reminescent of a bunch of wild animals screeching in a jungle. Make up your own mind.
No names for that category, but I'm sure you can supply your own. I researched her, and did her bio for Find a Grave. She did other recordings that are said to be quite different. Some, Opera and pop, are so wooden, or off-putting, live that recordings are the only enjoyable way to listen to them. But with a few you have to have the total package, or you just won't "get it".Miss Sumac seems to personify that.There is no doubt that she had a heck of a voice, and a near-inhuman range. I'll give four stars for the voice with a miracle range. RIP, Dear Lady.
About 55 years ago, I bought this Voice of the Xtabay LP and loved the range of octaves that she had. Also, enjoyed the controversy of whether or not she was really Amy Camus, from Brooklyn. It is an excellent transfer to CD and has to be heard to be believed, if one is a lot younger than I.After reading of her passing in the NY Times obituary recently, I felt I had to have this, mostly for the wonderful memories it has brought. Thanks to Amazon I had no trouble finding it.
This is one of my favorite Yma Sumac's albums but with her passing this month, it makes it even more special to me. If you're just starting a collection of her marvelous songs, I highly recommend this CD as the first purchase. It really shows her delightfully hypnotic and eerily beautiful voice in full splendor.
This music brought me back to my youth when my parents would play Ima Sumac on the stereo. She has the only voice that I have ever heard with such range in both high and low octaves.
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