The Holy City is a religious Victorian ballad dating from 1892. The song is mentioned in James Joyce's Ulysses (1922). It gained renewed popularity when it was sung by Jeanette MacDonald in the 1936 hit film San Francisco. The melody formed the basis of a Spiritual titled Hosanna, which in turn was the basis for the opening of Duke Ellington's "Black and Tan Fantasy". In the 1970s it was also translated into Afrikaans and sung by South African baritone Gé Korsten under the title 'Jerusalem'. That version is still popular in South Africa today.

The Holy City

I am a professional singer who grew up in western Pennsylvania.  

I developed my voice imitating all my heroes and then honed it performing myriad musical genres all over the world. My singing style is probably an accidental amalgamation of all the various types of singers I grew up admiring combined with learning what I consistently liked in my singing and consistently didn’t like in my singing throughout my travels.  I’m still learning this - as I believe, like martial arts, it is a lifelong study (unless you want to be washed up vocally at 50). 

I enjoy sports, movies, coffee shops, books, traveling and pizza. Last but not least, I hope my recordings bring you enjoyment.

The Holy City

Aaron Shaw