A second-season finalist on the television show Britain's Got Talent,
Faryl Smith made her full-length debut at the remarkable age of 13 with
Faryl, a 12-song album of classical crossover favorites. Produced by
Jon Cohen, whose recent work includes albums with classical crossover stars
Vanessa-Mae and
Opera Babes,
Faryl finds the opera sensation accompanied by a 60-piece orchestra. Starting rather predictably with "Amazing Grace,"
Smith sings with power and perfection, showcasing right away the vocal talent that was praised effusively by
Simon Cowell on Britain's Got Talent. "Ave Maria," one of the songs that
Smith performed so memorably on television, shows up soon afterward as expected. The Welsh hymn "Calon Lân" also gets a nice airing here. Fortunately, there are a few curiosities sequenced intermittently amid all the classical crossover favorites on
Faryl, most notably "River of Light," a new version of "The Blue Danube" with original lyrics. Other surprises include opera versions of
ABBA's "The Way Old Friends Do" and
John Denver's "Annie's Song." The 60-piece orchestra gets to be a bit overwhelming by the time
Faryl reaches its 40-minute conclusion. Classical crossover fans oriented toward popular music rather than classical might find themselves hoping that her next album is more varied in musical style. For sure,
Smith is an exceptional mezzo-soprano whose young age makes her vocal talent all the more awe-inspiring, and
Faryl is produced with fine precision by
Cohen, who is good at giving classical music a pop crossover twist. It's too bad that she isn't given more creative material to sing. One hopes her next album is more adventurous. ~ Jason Birchmeier