David Foster Defends Andrea Bocelli and Jackie Evancho

Tenor Bocelli & star-maker Foster (Photo: Giovanni De Sandre)

"Pop, opera, it's a moving target, You have to dissect what's going on there, on a daily basis. With Jackie, I wasn't sure about her capabilities in either arena. One of the reasons I love Andrea Bocelli so much is that he truly is the only artist, who I know of, who walks in both worlds. He truly walks in the classical world and the pop world. Classical people don't love him because he doesn't project, but I say, 'Screw that.' He knows the repertoire inside out. To me, he is an opera singer."

10-year old Jackie Evancho

"After working with (Evancho) for two weeks, I may have discovered something about her that people may not realize. She is 100 per cent an opera singer, without a shadow of a doubt. She is not Charlotte Church. She is not Sarah Brightman. She is not Hayley Westenra. She is a real opera singer. And it's scary. It's scary, the depth of her knowledge and how deep she runs at 10 years old. It's just phenomenal."

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