Crossover music - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.
org/wiki/Crossover_music
Crossover music
Crossover is a term applied to musical works or performers who appeal to different types of
audiences. This can be seen, for example, when a song appears on two or more of the record charts,
which track differing musical styles or genres.[1]
In some contexts, the term "crossover" can have negative connotations associated with cultural
appropriation, implying the dilution of a music's distinctive qualities to appeal to mass tastes. For
example, in the early years of rock and roll, many songs originally recorded by African-American
musicians were re-recorded by white artists such as Pat Boone in a more toned-down style, often
with changed lyrics, that lacked the hard edge of the original versions. These covers were popular
with a much broader audience.[2]
Crossover frequently results from the appearance of the music in a film soundtrack. For instance,
Sacred Harp music experienced a spurt of crossover popularity as a result of its appearance in the
2003 film Cold Mountain, and bluegrass music experienced a revival due to the reception of
2000's O Brother, Where Art Thou?.
Classical crossover
Classical crossover broadly encompasses both classical music that has become popularized and a
wide variety of popular music forms performed in a classical manner or by classical artists. It can
also refer to collaborations between classical and popular performers, as well as music that blends
elements of classical music (including operatic and symphonic) with popular music (including pop,
rock, middle of the road, and Latin, among other types). Pop vocalists and musicians, opera
singers, classical instrumentalists, and occasionally rock groups primarily perform classical
crossover. Although the phenomenon has long been widespread in the music industry, record
companies first used the term "classical crossover" in the 1980s.[3] It has gained in popularity since
the 1990s and has acquired its own Billboard chart.[3]
Popular classics
A means of generating vast popularity for the classics has been through their use as inspirational
anthems in sports settings. The aria "Nessun Dorma" from Puccini's Turandot, especially Luciano
Pavarotti's version, has become indissolubly linked with soccer.[4]
Classical performers
Within the classical recording industry, the term "crossover" is applied particularly to classical
artists' recordings of popular repertoire such as Broadway show tunes. Two examples of this are
1 of 4 30/08/2025, 15:36
Crossover music - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossover_music
Lesley Garrett's excursions into musical comedy and José
Carreras's recording West Side Story, as well as Teresa
Stratas' recording Showboat. Soprano Eileen Farrell is
generally considered to be one of the first classical singers
to have a successful crossover recording with her 1960
album I've Got a Right to Sing the Blues.[5]
The first Three Tenors concert in 1990 was a landmark in
which Luciano Pavarotti, José Carreras and Plácido
Domingo brought a combination of opera, Neapolitan
folksong, musical theatre and pop to a vast television
audience. This laid the foundations for the modern
flourishing of classical crossover.[6]
Collaborations between classical and popular performers
have included Sting and Edin Karamazov's album Songs
from the Labyrinth. A collaboration between Freddie
Mercury and soprano Montserrat Caballé resulted in the
Four-piece musical group Il Divo, a noted
worldwide hit "Barcelona". R&B singer Mariah Carey
classical crossover act, performs in
performed a live duet with her mother Patricia, who is an
February 2012 at the Sydney Opera
opera singer, of the Christmas song "O Come, All Ye House.
Faithful". Welsh mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins
performed a duet with rock singer Michael Bolton
of O Holy Night. Singers and instrumentalists from Canon and Gigue in D
the classical tradition, Andreas Dorschel has 6:27
argued, run the risk of losing the sophistication of
Performed and realized on
the genre(s) they were trained in, when they try to synthesizers by Jeffrey Hall.
perform rock music, without coming up to the often
rough and wild qualities of the latter.[7] Problems playing this file? See media help.
Italian pop tenor Andrea Bocelli, who is the biggest-selling singer in the history of classical music,
[8][9][10][11] has been described as the king of classical crossover.[12][13] British soprano Sarah
Brightman is also considered a crossover classical artist,[14] having released albums of classical,
folk, pop and musical-theatre music. Brightman dislikes the classical crossover label, though she
has said she understands the need to categorize music.[15] In the 2008 Polish release of her
Symphony album she sings "I Will Be with You (Where the Lost Ones Go)" with Polish tenor
Andrzej Lampert, another artist who has performed in both classical and non-classical styles, as
well as having actually obtained full musical training and academic degrees in both (though
operatic singing is his main professional focus[16][17]).[18]
See also
▪ Jazz fusion ▪ Folk music
▪ World music ▪ Eclecticism in art
2 of 4 30/08/2025, 15:36
Crossover music - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossover_music
▪ Polystylism ▪ Standard (music)
References
1. Lonergan, Hit Records, 1950–1975, p. vi: "These [Country & Western and Rhythm & Blues],
and the somewhat newer Adult Contemporary charts, occasionally exhibited what are called
'crossover' hits, when a Pop, C&W, or R&B star would have a hit that also charted on one or
more of the other lists.
2. Gilliland 1969, show 4, track 5; show 6, track 4.
3. "Música Classical Crossover" (https://web.archive.org/web/20150925105512/http://es.artdance
movies.com/music/music-genres/1008035810.html). artdancemovies.com (in Spanish). 24
August 2015. Archived from the original on 25 September 2015.
4. "Nessun Dorma put football back on map" (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/15624
71/Nessun-Dorma-put-football-back-on-map.html), The Telegraph, 7 September 2007
(accessed 24 September 2015).
5. Tommasini, Anthony (25 March 2002). "Eileen Farrell, Soprano With a Populist Bent, Dies at
82" (https://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/25/arts/eileen-farrell-soprano-with-a-populist-bent-dies-
at-82.html). The New York Times.
6. Fryer, Paul (2014). Opera in the Media Age: Essays on Art, Technology and Popular Culture.
Jefferson: McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. p. 128. ISBN 978-1476616209. "[O]pera-
pop crossovers as a phenomenon truly took off in the 1990s, from the Three Tenors concert
onwards."
7. Andreas Dorschel, 'Entgrenzung der klassischen Musik?', grazkunst 04.2017, pp. 24−25.
8. "Operation Bocelli: the making of a superstar" (http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2003/02/25/1
046064026608.html). The Age. Melbourne. 26 February 2003.
9. "Andrea Bocelli in Abu Dhabi" (http://www.timeoutdubai.com/art/features/6754-andrea-bocelli-i
n-abu-dhabi). 2 March 2009.
10. "REVIEW: Classical music star Andrea Bocelli at Liverpool arena" (http://www.liverpooldailypos
t.co.uk/liverpool-news/regional-news/2009/11/07/review-classical-music-star-andrea-bocelli-at-li
verpool-arena-92534-25114619). Liverpool Daily Post. 7 November 2009.
11. "Andrea Bocelli Announces November 2010 UK Arena Dates" (https://www.allgigs.co.uk/view/a
rticle/2263/Andrea_Bocelli_Announces_November_2010_UK_Arena_Dates.html). Allgigs.
12. "The king of Operatic pop" (http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/08/27/1093518069667.html).
The Sydney Morning Herald. 28 August 2004. Retrieved 19 January 2008.
13. Domingo And Bocelli: Keeping Opera Relevant (https://www.npr.org/templates/player/mediaPla
yer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=97289203&m=97327740), National Public Radio radio
interview, 21 November 2008.
14. "Sarah Brightman" (https://web.archive.org/web/20101129042216/http://www.sarahbrightmantic
kets.org/sarah-brightman-info). Sarah Brightman Tickets. 14 August 1960. Archived from the
original (http://www.sarahbrightmantickets.org/sarah-brightman-info) on 29 November 2010.
Retrieved 25 June 2010.
15. "Sarah Brightman fan site" (https://web.archive.org/web/20100107020417/http://www.123allcel
ebs.com/biography_of_sarah_brightman-718_eng.html). 123allcelebs.com. Archived from the
original on 7 January 2010. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
16. "Polish Tenor Impresses Salzburg" (http://culture.pl/en/article/polish-tenor-impresses-salzburg).
13 September 2013. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
17. "Andrzej Lampert, XVIII Ludwik van Beethoven Easter Festival" (https://web.archive.org/web/2
0160106234800/http://www.beethoven.org.pl/en/festiwalewielkanocne/xviiiwielkanocnyfestiwall
vb/artists/andrzejlampert). Archived from the original (http://www.beethoven.org.pl/en/festiwale
wielkanocne/xviiiwielkanocnyfestiwallvb/artists/andrzejlampert) on 6 January 2016. Retrieved
3 January 2016.
3 of 4 30/08/2025, 15:36
Crossover music - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crossover_music
18. "Andrzej Lampert, tenor: Schedule" (http://operabase.com/a/Andrzej_Lampert/21124).
Retrieved 3 January 2016.
Bibliography
▪ Gilliland, John (1969). "The Tribal Drum: The rise of rhythm and blues" (https://digital.library.un
t.edu/search/?fq=str_title_serial%3A%22The+Pop+Chronicles+%28John+Gilliland+Collectio
n%29%22&sort=date_a&start=2) (audio). Pop Chronicles. University of North Texas Libraries.
▪ Lonergan, David F. Hit Records, 1950–1975. Scarecrow Press, 2004. ISBN 0-8108-5129-6
Further reading
▪ Szwed, John F. (2005). Crossovers: Essays on Race, Music, And American Culture.
ISBN 0-8122-3882-6.
▪ Brackett, David (Winter 1994). "The Politics and Practice of 'Crossover' in American Popular
Music, 1963–65" The Musical Quarterly 78:4.
▪ George, Nelson. (1988). The Death of Rhythm & Blues. New York: Pantheon Books.
External links
▪ Article on the definition of Classical Crossover (http://www.classical-crossover.co.uk/index.php?
option=com_content&view=article&id=142&Itemid=126)
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Crossover_music&oldid=1304728132"
4 of 4 30/08/2025, 15:36