Hayley Dee Westenra (born 10 April 1987) is a classical crossover singer from New Zealand. She started performing at 6 years old; had her first professional album cut at 12; and released an international CD (Pure) at 16. The rest of her recording career mainly consists of the words "gold", "platinum", "award" and "fundraiser" repeated over and over.
Apart from her voice - a description of which usually includes the words "clear", "bell" and "angel" - Hayley is notable for her near-constant touring/gigging (according to her calendar, she now has enough air-miles to buy Bolivia), and her charity work: A UNICEF ambassador since before she could vote, she tends to gravitate towards children and returned servicemen but is liable to veer off towards Welsh air-ambulances and earthquake victims at the drop of a hat (Or the drop of a chimney, if you live in Christchurch).
Initially focusing on covers, she has started developing as a lyricist (many of the Paradiso lyrics were penned by Hayley) and full-on songsmith (The Treasure tracks "Let Me Lie" and "Summer Rain" and all hers).
Several of her earlier songs were licensed for use in the Wii game Endless Ocean including the Maori "Pokarekare Ana" as well as her own version of "Amazing Grace." Her song "Prayer" became the unofficial theme of the game.
During 2006 to 2007, Hayley became a Sixth Ranger of Celtic Woman: Tropes from there may also be applicable. If discussing Hayley with a Celtic Woman fan, be sure to have either running shoes or an asbestos suit handy, as her involvement may lead to heated discussion.
During the 2011 Rugby World Cup, Hayley recorded covers of "World in Union" (in English
and in Maori). At the World Cup Final between the New Zealand All Blacks and France, Hayley sang the New Zealand National Anthem.
Selected Discography:
- Walking In The Air (2000)
- Hayley Westenra (2001)
- My Gift to You (2001)
- Pure (2003)
- Odyssey (2005)
- Treasure (2007)
- Hayley Sings Japanese Songs (2008)
- River of Dreams (2008)
- Hayley Sings Japanese Songs 2 (2009)
- Winter Magic (2009)
- The Best Of Pure Voice (2010)
- Paradiso (2011)
- Hushabye (2013)
Provides examples of:
- She publicly thanked Game Grumps for their... unique take on her song "Prayer" which earned her dozens of new Twitter followers from the show's fans, although she admits performing the song from now on will be weird.
- Amazing Freaking Grace: And often. Thankfully without the usual Melismatic Vocals.
- Christmas Songs: Winter Magic.
- Greatest Hits Album: Somewhat subverted - River of Dreams was only released in the UK and NZ, and The Best Of Pure Voice only in Japan and Taiwan.
- Hey, Let's Put on a Show: Her default reaction to anything bad. Follows it up by putting on a show and collecting a fat wad of cash.
- Lyrical Dissonance: Seems to be quite fond of this.
- "Whispers in a Dream" takes Morricone's haunting "Gabriel's Oboe" and adds Westenra's optimistic, uplifting lyrics. The effect is stunning.
- "Summer Rain" mixes a melancholy melody, an up-beat tempo and uplifting lyrics.
- Her choice of covers often reflects the more usual happy tune/sad lyrics combination: "Wuthering Heights", "Summer Fly" and "Metti Una Sera A Cena" are all perfectly cheerful until you discover what fate has befallen the protagonist.
- Motor Mouth: "Lezione di Musica".
- also from that video, "Did you see the shinny moon?"
- Non Sequitur: on Paradiso, sitting happily between "Amália Por Amor" and "Malena", you'll find Joan Baez's anarchist anthem "Nicola and Bart", stroking its moustache and daring anyone to ask: Dafuq?
- Older Than Steam: "Melancoly Interlude" on Treasure is based on a 1600-ish piece by John Dowland called "Melancholy Galliard".
- Old Master: Refers to Morricone as "The Maestro" for some reason.
- Omniglot: Songs in English, Māori, Gaelic, Welsh, German, Portuguese, French, Italian, Latin, Japanese, Mandarin, Taiwanese and a pinch of Quenya. So far...
- Snow Means Love: "Snowflowers", an English cover of the Japanese romantic classic "Yuki no Hana".
- With Lyrics: The basis of Paradiso.
