Radio Followup (& Florence Foster Jenkins)

John Schaefer, Drew McManus and I had a good time addressing the proposition: to applaud or not to applaud. It was on WNYC Radio’s Soundcheck program. The discussion included calls from listeners with intelligent observations. If you missed it, you can listen to it by going to the Soundcheck page on WNYC’s website. You’ll be able to hear the whole hour or choose individual segments.
Following our get-together, John brought on Judy Kaye and Donald Corren, stars of the Broadway play Souvenir, which tells the story of the classical diva (ahem) Florence Foster Jenkins, likely the worst singer ever to maintain a career. We hear clips of Jenkins’ caterwauling and a live performance of Judy Kaye approximating it. There is a priceless sketch from the play in which Corren, as accompanist Cosme McMoon, attempts to teach Madame Jenkins to syncopate “Crazy Rhythm.” Florence Foster Jenkins was awful to the point of unintentional comedy, but she loved to sing and her sincerity was touching. All of that is probably why her recordings, including this one, still sell like hotcakes.