Off topic but; I do wonder why these 'fully-fledged opera singers' ( ) would need to mime. I worked for English National Opera for 10 years as a member of the children's chorus and, in that time, (a LOT of rehearsals) I never saw a singer mime. Mark, yes (marking is singing in a 'half' voice), if they had a big performance and were saving their voices.

Wonder what Il Divo are saving themselves for?

As for the Il Divo - G4 comparison, please, they couldn't be more different.[/quote]

a lot of TV studios arn't set up for live performances. I'd betthe only ones who could go on that show and do it live owuld be G4 if they could do it without the backing track and just sing live. Anyone requiring any kind of accompanyment would probably have to mime.

I remember seeing Steve Balsamo (sp?) performing Gethsemane from Jesuc christ Superstar on This Morning and he was obviously miming despite being famous for being able to sing great.

I'd probably have to mime though if I was performing on a GMTV show and had been up since half four in the morning

DOn't you have to warm your voice up properly before you use it? Not that easy if you've been up since the crack of dawn and rushing about to get to a TV studio.

Yes you do, but I don't think 'didn't have time to warm up' is a credible reason, whatever time one has to get up. Besides, the Paul O'Grady show is on at 5pm....

However, I hadn't considered cgbrannigan's very good point about the tv studio's not being set up for live performances.

It still doesn't alter the fact that G4 are entirely different to Il Divo.

A lot of tv studios can't cater for live performance.... look how small for example the paul o'grady set is.

I think Il Divo are fantastic and make G4 look and sound very amateur.

Il Divo are, as a group, of a different generation to G4. A manufactured 'band', put together primarily with image in mind and with less emphasis on vocal blending. All have had careers in the classical music world, with one member having sung over 45 leading roles on stage in a 10 year period.

G4, on the other hand, are a group of remarkably established singers for their respective ages, with not one of them older than 24. Essentially music students, they are not 'manufactured', they formed the group themselves, clearly based on the compatability of their voices.

This, and the fact that the sound they produce is totally different, is why I don't see how the two groups can be compared. It's like saying Mariah Carey makes Cassie sound amateurish.

Yes his latest stuff is fantastic but he murdered Sweetest Feeling on the show and sorry but I hated Light my Fire. I have started to admire Will as an artist since his latest album where I find he is singing great songs that suit his voice, which is very pure and a throw back to the fifties where the voice mattered not the image. He also seems to be a very nice bloke which is refreshing. My point I suppose is that Will loves to sing soul music but his voice is better suited to what he is doing now. No doubt SC will take credit for it but I happen to believe Will has made his point with the latest album and SC is now his biggest fan. Ironic isn;t it, he has dissed Gareth now because he didn;t listen to him and wanted to try something new which he claimed didn;t work but most fans prefer the newer stuff

VWS got a great reaction. The boos you heard were infact her supporters going "Boom" in support.

Gareth Gates is very talented. Simon knows real talent when he sees it and he knows what he is talking about, unlike that fool Louis Walsh!

Thank you for that, SC may have slipped up with Will and Michelle (indifferent ways) but as Nick Rhodes said "he had a young guy who could sing, play instruments and was good looking and SC has sabotaged his career". That for me describes Gareth, that and the hostility of some Will fans who will never forgive him because SC favoured him. My point is that SC doesn;t always know everything, but he seems to spot someone early doors and goes with them. So far in the UK he is 100% wrong but I would still value his opinion over Louis who I really despise

I never used to respect Simons opinion until the last Season of American Idol when I think he finally started to spot real talent. This time around he has tried to cover all his options with Rowetta ( raw talent) and public appeal (Steve)