弗洛倫斯·福斯特·詹金斯：荒誕的歌者，無畏的熱愛

By+Clemency+Burton-Hill+汪亞群

一個人要成為歌手，最起碼要有唱歌的天賦。但歷史上偏偏就出了一個唱功極爛卻極成功的歌唱家——弗洛倫斯·福斯特·詹金斯。盡管五音不全，弗洛倫斯卻憑著超凡的自信、絕佳的表演才能和對歌唱的執著與熱愛在音樂界獲得一席之地。雖然她那完全不著調的唱法令人捧腹，但她對音樂的一腔熱愛卻令人感動。你可以說她的表演荒誕，卻不能否認她對音樂的真愛和因愛而生的勇氣。她的故事不僅成就了《跑調天后》這部有望奪得奧斯卡獎的影片，更在音樂史上留下了別致、生動的一筆。

Florence Foster Jenkins was a 20th-Century US socialite and music-lover who styled herself as an operatic coloratura1） soprano2） and became a sensation. One of the most famous singers of her day， she was incredibly rich， a generous philanthropist， and garnered legions of fans including celebrities such as No?l Coward3）. Florences fame， however， rested not on her musical talent， but rather its opposite. Her astonishingly bad voice and abject4） inability—seemingly unbeknownst to her—to pitch correctly became the stuff of legend as she worked hard to lovingly massacre her way through gems by Mozart， Strauss and other leading composers.

Having previously only been seen in private at New York womens clubs or in her own establishment， the Verdi Club， such was the demand for her performances that she went on to sell out5） Carnegie Hall in a 1944 concert that has entered the annals of music history. While her public performances also raised millions of dollars （in todays terms） for charity， the abiding6） image is that of polite society guffawing7）， jaws clenched， trying not to roll down the aisles with laughter as they showered her with thunderous applause.

Florence Foster Jenkins remains， it is widely agreed， “the worst opera singer in the world.” But the most incredible thing of all is that she had no idea. The illusion that she was a truly great artist was maintained， thanks in no small part to her second husband St. Clair Bayfield， throughout her life. She loved what she did and she believed she was bringing great pleasure to her adoring audiences—which， in a way， she was.

Her extraordinary story has long held a fascination for writers， directors and musicians. Works based on Florences life include the US plays Precious Few and Souvenir， which ran on Broadway； Goddess of Song， by the South African playwright Charles J. Fourie； Viva La Diva， which appeared at the Edinburgh Fringe8）； and Glorious！ by Peter Quilter， which opened in 2005 in Londons West End and was nominated for the Olivier Award9） for Best New Comedy. （It has since been translated into 27 languages and performed in more than 40 countries worldwide， such is the international nature of her appeal.）

“Bad with Heart”

More recently， Florences life has been the subject of two major feature films： Marguerite， a French-language offering from late 2015， and now the utterly fabulous Florence Foster Jenkins， directed by Stephen Frears10）. It stars Meryl Streep11） and Hugh Grant12） and is already being tipped13） for Oscar glory. When I asked Frears why he was drawn to make this film， he told me： “I loved the script Id been sent， and I then listened to the real Florence on YouTube. She was ridiculous—and touching.” Streep herself has described Florence as “aspirational and terrible， moving and amusing.” Florence was not just bad， she points out： “She was bad with heart.” And its this heartstring-tugging combination of hilarity14） and pathos15） that proves so winning， especially in Frearss brilliant film.

This year also sees the publication of the first full biography of Foster Jenkins， by Darryl W. Bullock， whose blog about bad music inevitably led him to “Madame，” as she was sometimes known. “Florence is one of my favourite bad singers，” he tells me； like Frears he is clearly brimful16） of warmth towards his complicated subject. For Bullock， her notoriety boils down to17） much more than her being perhaps the ultimate example of the “its so bad， its good” phenomenon that we still see in television talent shows today.

“Most people probably went to see her in order to scoff，” he says， “but its clear that they were won over by her charm and the sheer joy she got from performing. Florence loved music and wanted others to love it too. She was absolutely sincere， and she was a ‘good sort： Its said of her that she never had a bad word to say about anyone. People genuinely liked her.”

Thats important： her likability and her absolute， authentic passion for the music she sung. “The idea of finding joy in what youre doing … [is] something everybody can understand，” says Streep. Florences story raises questions that must resonate for any amateur whos ever worked hard at doing something they truly love； whos ever tried to will themselves into becoming something， anything， regardless of their levels of talent.

Florence is the opposite of， say， Susan Boyle18）. Foster Jenkins is rather closer to someone like Donald Bell-Gam， whose own audition for that show， with its screeching19） hack of Amy Winehouse20）s Valerie or incredible stab at Whitney Houston21）s I Will Always Love You made excellent TV and defies description22） other than： “so bad he was brilliant.”

Murder on the High Cs

“Florences story is about self-belief，” notes Bullock. “Its about the idea that anyone can achieve their goals so long as they believe in themselves. Obviously it helped that she was massively wealthy， but thats not everything. She immersed herself in her art from a very young age： For her music was a calling， not something she did for fame. Like all true artists she was compelled to practice her art. Of course people laughed at this ridiculous old lady， her ludicrous costumes and terrible singing； in these instances you either find the fun in what the artist is offering up or you feel revulsion23） at the ineptitude24）. With Florence most people see the enjoyment she got and gave， not the wretchedness of the performance itself.”

He explains that Florences audience “was usually split between people who genuinely cared for her and forgave her eccentricities， people who came to laugh and others who treated the whole thing like some sort of perverted25）， absurd cabaret26）. Most of her performances were given to forgiving audiences—friends， other clubwomen， musicians she patronised and so on. People came to have fun but not to be spiteful. The Carnegie Hall show was her only proper public performance， and happened at a time （1944， in the midst of war） when people were desperate for a laugh and a distraction from the horrors of real life.”

Even those of us who never heard Florence in the flesh can be grateful to her legacy for one perhaps unexpected reason. The late David Bowie27） described her legendary self-titled 1962 LP28） as one of his favourite records of all time； indeed one that “changed his life.”

“She is an inspiration，” agrees Bullock. “She would have loved that. Shes the patron saint of artists who have to create， and will create， despite the criticisms. She knew what she wanted and she knew how to get it； she didnt let anyone get in her way. She was single-minded and utterly determined to perform， no matter what brickbats29） were thrown at her. She was aware of her critics but rose above30） them.” He adds： “And hey， were still listening to—and discussing—her more than seventy years after she died. I defy 99% of the public to name one other opera singer from the 1940s！ If theres a lesson to be learned from Florences life it is simply to live your life to the fullest， and enjoy every opportunity that comes your way.”

弗洛倫斯·福斯特·詹金斯是20世紀美國的社交名流和音樂愛好者。她自稱是歌劇花腔女高音歌唱家，并名噪一時。作為她那個時代最出名的歌唱家之一，她非常富有，慷慨大方，熱衷慈善，擁有大批粉絲，其中不乏一些像諾埃爾·科沃德這樣的名人。不過，弗洛倫斯有名并不是因為她有音樂天賦，反而是因為沒有音樂天賦。她賣力而又充滿愛意地摧殘著莫扎特、施特勞斯以及其他杰出作曲家的珍貴作品，她的嗓音出奇的難聽，總是悲催地找不著調——對此她似乎全然不知，不過這反而成就了她的傳奇。

先前，人們只能在紐約的女子俱樂部或弗洛倫斯自己創辦的威爾第俱樂部里私下見到她，所以人們對她的表演有很強烈的需求，以至于1944年她在卡內基音樂廳的演唱會門票一售而空，這次演唱會也因此而載入音樂史冊。雖然她的公演也籌集到了（相當于今天）數百萬美元的善款，但永遠定格在人們心中的畫面卻是文雅的社會名流們捧腹不已，卻使勁兒忍著，努力不讓自己笑得滾下過道，同時向她獻上雷鳴般的掌聲。

人們迄今普遍認為，弗洛倫斯·福斯特·詹金斯仍是“世界上最差勁的歌劇演員”。但最不可思議的是，她自己對此毫不知情。她終生沉浸在錯覺中，以為自己是一位真正偉大的藝術家，這在很大程度上應歸功于她的第二任丈夫圣克萊爾·貝菲爾德。她熱愛自己的歌唱事業，并相信自己為愛慕她的觀眾帶去了極大的快樂——從某種程度上說，的確如此。

長期以來，弗洛倫斯非同尋常的經歷令眾多作家、導演以及音樂家們癡迷。根據弗洛倫斯的生平創作的作品包括：曾在美國百老匯上演的戲劇《奇珍異寶》和《紀念品》，南非劇作家查爾斯·J·福里創作的《歌之女神》，愛丁堡邊緣藝術節上演出過的《女主角萬歲》，以及彼得·奎爾特創作的《榮耀！》。2005年，《榮耀！》在倫敦西區首演，后被提名奧利弗獎最佳新喜劇獎。（該劇此后被翻譯成27種語言，在全球40多個國家演出，由此可見弗洛倫斯在全世界的魅力。）

“難聽但用心”

最近，有兩部重要的故事片都以弗洛倫斯的生平為主題：一部是2015年末上映的法語電影《瑪格麗特》；另一部是如今這部精彩絕倫的《跑調天后》?！杜苷{天后》由斯蒂芬·弗里爾斯執導，由梅麗爾·斯特里普和休·格蘭特主演，已經有人預測該片有望獲得奧斯卡的殊榮。當我問弗里爾斯是什么吸引了他，讓他拍這部電影時，他告訴我：“我很喜歡送來的這個劇本，然后就到YouTube上聽了弗洛倫斯的原聲。她很滑稽——也很感人。”斯特里普本人對弗洛倫斯的描述是“勵志又糟糕，動人又逗人”。弗洛倫斯并不只是唱歌難聽那么簡單，斯特里普指出：“她唱歌難聽但用心?！闭沁@種歡笑和感傷的交融才動人心弦，才最終贏得了人們的喜愛，這一點在弗里爾斯的精彩影片中體現得尤為明顯。

由達里爾·W·布洛克執筆的首部福斯特·詹金斯的完整傳記也在今年出版。布洛克在博客上評論的都是糟糕的音樂，這讓他不可避免地關注到了“夫人”——人們有時這樣稱呼弗洛倫斯。“弗洛倫斯是我最喜歡的差勁歌手之一?！辈悸蹇藢ξ艺f。他跟弗里爾斯一樣，對自己復雜的寫作對象顯然充滿了熱情。如今，在才藝表演類電視節目中，我們仍然能發現“很爛，但很好”這樣的現象。對布洛克而言，弗洛倫斯的“聲名遠播”可以歸結為此種現象的終極案例，但又不僅僅是因為這一點。

“大部分人去看她表演可能是為了嘲笑她，”布洛克說，“但顯然，他們被她的魅力以及她從表演中得到的純粹的快樂所征服了。弗洛倫斯熱愛音樂，也希望別人熱愛音樂。她非常真誠，‘人品又好。據說她從不說任何人壞話。人們是真心喜歡她?！?/p>

她很招人喜歡，她對自己所唱的歌有著十足的、發自內心的激情——這些都很重要?！皬哪阏谧龅氖虑橹袑ふ铱鞓贰@[是]每個人都能理解的。”斯特里普說。無論天賦如何，業余愛好者們都曾為自己真正喜歡做的事努力奮斗過，都曾試圖立志要有所成就，而弗洛倫斯的故事所提出的問題一定會引發這些人的共鳴。

弗洛倫斯與蘇珊·波伊爾這樣的人恰恰相反。福斯特·詹金斯更像唐納德·貝爾-加姆。貝爾-加姆在參加《英國達人秀》試演時尖叫著吼完了艾米·懷恩豪斯的《瓦萊麗》，又以不可思議的方式嘗試了惠特妮·休斯頓的《我永遠愛你》，但卻都取得了很好的收視效果，對此人們不知該如何形容，只能說：“糟透了，但他太有才了。”

高音C殺手

“弗洛倫斯的故事關乎自信?！辈悸蹇酥赋?，“它告訴我們，只要相信自己，人人都可以實現目標。弗洛倫斯非常有錢，這顯然對她有所幫助，但這并非事情的全部。她從小就沉浸在自己喜歡的藝術中，對她來說，音樂是一種召喚，而不是追逐名望的工具。像所有真正的藝術家一樣，她情不自禁地練習歌唱。人們當然會嘲笑這位滑稽的老太太，她的服裝那么可笑，唱功還很糟糕。在這樣的情況下，你要么從這位藝術家的表演中找到樂趣，要么對這種拙劣的表演感到厭惡。但就弗洛倫斯而言，大部分人看到的都是她從表演中獲得的樂趣以及她給大家帶來的歡樂，而不是表演本身的拙劣。”

布洛克解釋說，弗洛倫斯的觀眾“通常分為幾類：一類是真心喜歡弗洛倫斯，能包容她的古怪之處；一類來看表演就是為了放聲大笑；還有一類則把整件事都看作是某種錯亂、荒謬的卡巴萊滑稽劇表演。她的大多數演出都是表演給那些滿懷包容心的觀眾看的——她的朋友、其他常逛俱樂部的女士以及她資助的音樂家等等。人們是來尋開心的，不是要鄙視她。在卡內基音樂廳的那次演出是弗洛倫斯唯一一次正式的公開演出，那時（即1944年，二戰期間）人們正亟須開懷大笑，亟須將注意力從現實的恐怖中轉移開來”。

我們當中有人即使從沒聽過弗洛倫斯親自演唱，也會因為一個可能意想不到的原因而對她留下的音樂心存感激。已故的大衛·鮑威稱，弗洛倫斯于1962年發行的那張傳奇的同名密紋唱片是他一生最愛的唱片之一。事實上，那張唱片“改變了他的一生”。

“她激勵著我們，”布洛克對此表示贊同，“她會喜歡這種說法的。她是藝術家們的守護神，她守護著那些不顧批評必須創作并能有所創作的人。她清楚自己想要什么并且知道如何得到。她不會讓任何人阻擋自己。她一心一意，不管人們對她的批評有多尖銳，她都鐵了心要表演。她知道有人在批評自己，但她不為所動?！辈悸蹇诉€說：“瞧，她都去世70多年了，我們還在聽她的歌，談論她。我敢說普通大眾中99%的人都說不出第二個像弗洛倫斯這樣的20世紀40年代的歌劇演員！如果說要從弗洛倫斯的生平中學到什么的話，那就是要把人生活到極致，享受你能碰到的每一次機會?！?