Sheridan Archbold Truly Talented Twelve Year Old Musical Marvel

“I believe God made me for a purpose, and when I sing, I feel that it’s something that I am meant to do.”

SHERIDAN ARCHBOLD Profile Full

 

Discovery of new young talent is always the objective of this site, but rarely are we so fortunate to find a talent like twelve year old Sheridan Archbold. While nearly every genre and style of music has been showcased here, one genre has been sorely neglected. Of course I’m speaking of Classical music and Opera. Not because we don’t recognize the importance and beauty of this style of music, but because finding a youngster who can do it justice is not a simple task.

Sheridan is billed as “The World’s Youngest Soprano Crossover Operatic Singer.”

While I’m not certain he’s the youngest, he certainly is one of if not the most talented I have ever heard. The clarity of his vocals, his perfect pitch and tone, and his use of vocal techniques beyond his years has earned him the right to be respected as a true professional performer.

In fact Sheridan has a most impressive resume for a young man his age!

I think what caught my eye watching him for the first time was his short comedic openings that he has for every music video he creates.  It’s in these short openers that you can catch a glimpse of this young man’s personality and the tool he uses to connect with his viewing audience.

 

Sheridan Archbold Time To Say Goodbye Watch Sheridan Perform “Time To Say Goodbye”

You can also see his Live Standing Ovation Performance of this song where he was named the Grand Award Winner for the 2013 Mid-South Junior Youth Talent Contest.

After recently making contact with Sheridan’s parents through Facebook I found to my delight that Sheridan was willing to share his story with me for today’s publication. I asked him a variety of questions which he answered by providing the following………………….

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Story of my life

“I was born in Chicago. When I was 3 days old, I got very sick. Miraculously I recovered, and my parents were very happy and at that moment they understood, that God had prepared me for something very special.”

“We have lived in Illinois, Missouri, Indiana and Australia. We now live in Yorkville, a small town in Illinois.

I’m a 6th grade student and home schooled.

While I have a love for music, I’ve had trouble with reading and comprehension due to having Dyslexia.I’ve struggled with that for many years and continue to struggle with it today. However, my love for singing and opera music has really pushed me to overcome the many challenges that have come my way.

Archbold Family
Archbold Family

 

With hard work and constant practice, I can now sing in 6 different languages: English, Italian, Russian, French, German, and Tagalog.My dream is to be an opera singer in the future, and sing around the world in the languages of those countries that I perform in.

I have five members in my family: my mom, dad, and two older brothers, Edgeorge and Fulton.

Edgeorge is 13 years old and in the 7th grade. We use to sing together in church. He is an “A” student in school, and has a passion for computers and enjoys programming them!

Fulton is my oldest brother and is 16 years old and is in 9th grade. He tells me, that I am still a baby compared to him, which I highly doubt.

We love playing ball, bicycling, roller skating, running and swimming.

I also enjoy Judo. My brothers, my mom and I attend the local Judo club, and we have fun learning Judo together.

I enjoy going to the YMCA with my mother and do a 1-hour workout almost every day. We also swim there.

My father is a family physician and spends most of his time at work.

My mother is my biggest supporter. She believes that my dream will come true. She is an accomplished musician and an Audio Engineer as well. She is the one who creates those little comedic openings at the beginning of each of my YouTube videos.

Sheridan Archbold The PrayerWatch Sheridan perform “The Prayer”

She also assists me with every aspect of my carrier including: My daily voice lessons, Stage Clothing and Costumes, the editing of my YouTube videos, and the setting up my performing schedules. You could say that she is my personal PR manager.”

“I believe God made me for a purpose. When I sing, I feel that it’s something that I am meant to do. I really believe that my dream will come to full fruition and show other kids with Dyslexia that they can do anything they desire if they work really hard and never give up.”

Sheridan’s Talent Discovery 

Sheridan made his first tune when he was just 3 months old. His brother Edgeorge had a beautiful voice and he recalled listening to him when he sang. He said to himself,

“If my brother sings so well, I also should sing the same.”

He began to perfect his singing voice little by little: in the car, at home, and while he was playing. He wanted to do everything like his brother Edgeorge, including being called by his brother’s name. When someone would ask him his name, he would reply, “My name is Edgeorge!” “Everyone thought it was so funny”, Sheridan exclaimed. At the age of 3, he was actively singing in church with his brother.

When Sheridan turned 9, his mother was asked to conduct an Elementary School’s Choir where Sheridan sang together with his brother. His voice was very loud, even when accompanied by a piano. One day, an assistant teacher told Sheridan that he had a voice that was suitable for opera. Soon after that is when he began thinking about taking opera training lessons.

Janice Pantazelos and Sheridan Archbold
Professor Janice Pantazelos and Sheridan Archbold

Sheridan practices everyday with his mother. They do a 30 minute warm up that includes breathing exercises. After the warm-up he begins singing which Sheridan stated was his favorite part of the day. It’s obvious that Sheridan has a lot of natural talent but honing those skills has taken much dedication and practice. Sheridan has been honored to be guided and trained under the tutelage of a very distinguished and highly talented vocal coach. Professor Janice Pantazelos is a well-known award winning Mezzo-Soprano, who has received multiple awards for her performances all around the world. She has performed in Spain Germany, Austria, Italy, and Switzerland just to name a few places.

She is currently the Director of “Chicago Studio of Professional singing“. Her students are all adult opera singers. Many of her students are well known award winning professional singers, some of them have toured and continue touring around the world. Professor Pantazelos made an exception only for Sheridan to take him as her youngest student. She made this exception saying that “Sheridan is incredibly talented and has great potential.”

In addition to his vocal training, Sheridan also receives acting lessons where he is taught how to use gestures while he performs. Sheridan has a natural ability to feel the emotion in every song he sings and the techniques taught though these lessons has proven to strengthen his professionalism to an even greater degree.

Sheridan Archbold AMOR TI VIETASheridan Performs “Amor Ti Vieta”

Sheridan began participating in different talent competitions where he surprised the audiences with his age, voice, unique timbre, as well as his stage presence. He has won awards in four singing and talent competitions regionally and nationally, including Peoria, Illinois 2012, Brown County talent Show 2012, Kendal County talent Show 2013, and the Grand Award at the Junior Youth Talent Contest in Memphis, Tennessee in September 2013.

Sheridan Archbold Chicago 4th July 2014
Sheridan Archbold Chicago 4th July 2014

In addition to talent shows and contests Sheridan is also an outstanding performer of patriotic songs. While Sheridan was born here in the US, his Mother came from Russia 15 years ago to make a life here in the states. Sheridan has been brought up to appreciate and love his homeland and because of this, he has become a very loyal and patriotic young man who not only loves his country but enjoys performing patriotic songs. He has earned a good reputation as a National Anthem and Patriotic Song Performer. His mother even made a special costume, (George Washington Style) for him to wear during these occasions. Sheridan is a frequent guest performer for American Leagons, 4th of July Parades, Brookfield Zoo Summer Nights, Grand Marshal Receptions, Chicago Bulls Games, Memorial Day Celebrations and Festivals and Conventions where a patriotic song is desired.

Sheridan recently participated in America’s Got Talent, Season 9. All four Judges and the entire audience gave him a standing ovation for his performance of the song “Time To Say Goodbye.” *Note  (While this audition has not yet aired, I will do my best to add it to this article once it has been made public.)

Sheridan also appeared in a Promo for a Brookfield Zoo “Summer Nights Show”, on Eyewitness News, ABC Channel 7, was recently interviewed on on Comcast Channel 100 and can now be seen on Xfinity ‘On Demand.

He continues to stay busy doing guest appearances for a variety of  other venues including performances for The Chicago Bulls at the United Center (Chicago), Festa Italiana (Chicago), with Yorkville Big Band, Montgomery Fest, Chicago Botanical Garden, for FAME in Chicago, different charities, and at Madison Square Garden Theatre in NYC.

His performances always include the little comedic openings before singing the song. Audiences seem to always enjoy this part of the act says Sheridan.

“I use the elements of acting and dancing while performing the classical repertoire. I also use my comedic skills if it fits into the song. Each song I perform is a complete little show in itself with its own special story and costume.”

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Although I was personally introduced to classical music as a child in school, I was never a big fan of Opera.   However, after my introduction to Sheridan through his YouTube Channel I became an immediate follower, subscribing to his site and watching for new videos to appear. Sheridan immediately brings every video to life showing a little of his own personality along with exhibiting an extraordinary musical performance.

While one cannot predict exactly what the future will hold for Sheridan, it is clear that music will continue to be a big part of his life. I have no doubt that he will continue to appear at prestigious venues around the world amazing and astounding audiences for years to come.

To learn more about Sheridan Archbold visit: