Great Singers

I feel like devoting this post to the baritones that I love and how their music affects my life as a performer. I am a firm believer in knowing the singers past and present in your specific voice type and how they sang or still sing while still finding your own voice to fit in with theirs. It is so important to be familiar with the great singers especially, of the past. So much can be learned by a student of voice of how to sing well by simply researching the old styles of singing. Singing seems to be progressing slowly away from Bel Canto and relying more on the pure presentation. All of my favorite singers are in some way both scholars of their art form but also could definitely be described as Bel Canto singers. Here are my top 5:
5: Hermann Prey
I rarely hear a performance by Hermann that I don't like. He is the definition of a singing actor. His characterizations come out even in recordings but he was well known for having a strong ability for acting. He performed many operas in German that made well known operas more accessible to the general populace. He has such an ease of production in his voice from high Gs all the way down to low Fs. He's just someone that you can listen to all day long.
4: Titta Ruffo
This is more than just a great voice. This is a tremendous intsrument. Titta Ruffo was certainly one of the finest Verdian singers of all time. If you can get past the many imperfections in the recording quality of his records, there is much to be learned. He has many of the finest recordings of Meyerbeer. He is simply a singer that one has to experience first hand. It is hard to explain the ability that Titta Ruffo possessed.
3: Thomas Hampson
This is a man who is truly a scholar. He always gives a well thought-out performance. He has recorded and performed every type of classical music in many languages. My favorite part about him however, is his love for the music of America. He has set out to record some of the lost favorites of the American musical tradition, especially the works of Stephen Foster, Aaron Copland and others who have shaped American music. Also, I could sit and listen to his voice all day long. He has taught me to love the American musical tradition.
2: Leonard Warren
Like Titta Ruffo, Leonard Warren is one of the greatest voices of all time. His huge voice was well suited to the great works of Verdi, but his voice was also well suited for the concert stage singing the songs of Tosti and Donaudi. His voice was definitely a gift from God which only comes along once in a long while. Unfortunately, he was taken from the world too soon singing of all things "Morrir una tremenda cosa". His recordings only remain to document the wonder of his great talent.
1: Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
One of the greatest and most profoundly important singers of the 20th century. There is no denying the great contribution that he has made to the world of classical singing. He is the most prolific recording artist in history. That's easy to see since the Dieskau-graphy includes over 60 operatic roles and recordings of the complete songs of Schubert, Schumann, and Brahms. He also recorded under the direction of Karl Richter the complete cantatas and Passions of J.S. Bach. Almost every recording of Fischer-Dieskau shows an in-depth and well thought-out presentation of the music which he is singing. He remains the preeminent authority on the interpretation of German lieder. He has taught me to be a student of every aspect of songs. Everything from the melody to the accompaniment to the poetry must be taken into consideration. He is and will remain my favorite singer of all time with his enchanting ability to present music as the work of art that it is.
I hope that this can inspire some people to get out there and find their own favorites in their own field and to experience the work of the masters for themselves. It has certainly help me tremendously.