Jackie Evancho

Jacqueline Marie "Jackie" Evancho,

(born April 9, 2000) is a young soprano from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Early life

Evancho (pronounced ee-VAN-ko) was born to Michael and Lisa Evancho and has an older brother, a younger brother, and a younger sister.She started singing when she was eight years old, after going to see the stage show Phantom of the Opera. Her mother heard Evancho singing songs from the movie and allowed her to enter a local talent contest just for fun. She finished as the runner-up and was voted the audience favorite. Eventually she participated in other talent contests and started a YouTube channel.

Career

Evancho has performed onstage with producer David Foster, was an invited performer on the PBS Special "Celebrate America" with conductor/composer Tim Janis, sang the National Anthem at an event honoring aviation pioneer General Chuck Yeager,and has performed many times at the invitation of Pennsylvania Senator Jane Orie. Jackie also performs at numerous events and charity functions in and around her hometown.

Jackie Evancho sings in the "classical crossover" style of singers such as Hayley Westenra and Sarah Brightman. She studies singing with a voice coach,and also plays the violin and piano.

On November 1, 2009, Evancho released her debut album called Prelude to a Dream.The album features mainly covers of songs such as Andrea Bocelli's "Con Te Partiro" and "The Prayer", Josh Groban's "To Where You Are", Martina McBride's "Concrete Angel", and a cover of "Amazing Grace" among others. Schubert's "Ave Maria" heard on the album is not the original song, which is set to a secular text in German; instead, it's an arrangement of the Roman Catholic setting of the "Hail Mary" prayer in Latin.

"She is just truly blessed with a voice that's phenomenal," says classical-crossover composer/conductor Tim Janis, who is including Evancho in his American Christmas Carol show (Dec. 2, 2010) at Carnegie Hall in New York City. She will be the youngest female vocal soloist ever to have performed there.

America's Got Talent

Overview

On August 10, 2010, on America's Got Talent, Evancho performed O Mio Babbino Caro by Giacomo Puccini. The aria is also on her debut album. She received a standing ovation after her performance, and was awarded a trip to Universal Studios in Florida for receiving the most fan votes from the submissions to the show from YouTube. She was then voted into the semifinals by viewers.

Performances and results

Week Theme Song choice Original artist Performance order Result

Quarterfinals YouTube "O Mio Babbino Caro" Giacomo Puccini 12 Safe

Semifinals TBA TBA TBA TBA TBA

(source:wikipedia)