Not all Welsh are born to sing, laughs tenor star Aled

The Welsh are known for their marvellous singers just don’t get the idea they can all sing!

Aled Hall, one of the Three Welsh Tenors, has performed across the globe and knows that his nationality means the audience expects some wonderful singing.

But he warns that not everyone in the Valleys can let rip as tunefully as he does!

“Believe me, not everyone in Wales was born to be a singer!” laughs Aled.

“There is pressure that if you come from here, then you’ll be a bit of a singer, but I know a lot of Welshmen who aren’t!

“So if it puts any pressure on us, that is quite nice, really.

“It’s important for the three of us to carry the flag for Wales and give people a taste of our music and culture.

“But we also like to have a mix of other kinds of music, Italian, French, a real mixed bag.

“After all, tenors like Pavarotti made this style of music more accessible to more people, so it’s only right.

“We’ve sung at Wales football matches, we performed for a huge Welsh audience in Canada, all over the place, really.

“And now we have interest for concerts in Singapore and elsewhere, and our second CD coming out, so it’s great.”

Having sung more than 150 times at the Royal Albert Hall, there aren’t many concerts to make Aled nervous, but he admits that the iconic London venue can be a real culture shock for singers.

“When I first performed there, they warned me you have to make use of your backside, not just your face!” he laughs.

“When you sing at the Royal Albert Hall, of course, it’s ‘in the round’, so you have audience in front, on either side and behind you. I had to learn how to make myself interesting from the back.

“But they told me: ‘Watch the boxing matches at the same venue, and see if the boxers do anything differently.’ It was a good point, to learn how to project yourself front and back.

“It’s a big venue, but you have to avoid trying to make big gestures.

“Actually, once I just treated it like other venues, it suddenly seemed a surprisingly-small, intimate place to sing.”

Aled admits he’s kept busy enough when he isn’t singing, but perhaps can pass on his skills to a couple of very special people.

“We have twins, a boy and a girl, who are 12 now, so they keep me busy, too!” he laughs.

“There wasn’t a lot of sleep when they were little, which isn’t ideal before concerts. But they are great now.”

And, if Dad has anything to do with it, they’ll grow up with wonderful Welsh singing voices!

The Three Welsh Tenors’ new album, Tarentella, is out now on Sain Records, featuring such songs as O Sole Mio, My Way and Bridge Over Troubled Water.

You can see them on September 27 at Venue Cymru, Llandudno.