Dreamland

With appealing charm, unaffected innocence, and a voice as pretty as the young Wayne Newton's, 13-year-old Michael Verschuere (hence the "Junior") performs a collection of European popular music and classical standards sweetly and unpretentiously. The Belgian wunderkind sings proficiently in five languages; the kid must learn one each year! His enjoyable voice is full-throated and punctuated by a mature vibrato, as he captures the casual swagger of the Italian popular style in "Il Mondo," and croons the French standards with joie de vivre. Most of the selections are interpreted in a simple and straightforward manner, with a one-dimensional emotional range, not surprising for an adolescent. This is particularly problematic, however, when the boy tackles such classics as "Ave Maria," and "Panis Angelicus," which demand interpretive embellishment to be musically satisfying. If optimistic and kind-hearted teenage boys with pretty voices are your thing, or if you swoon at the thought of Sarah Brightman, Charlotte Church, and Andrea Bocelli sharing a stage together, you will adore this disc. --Barbara Eisner Bayer