I've been busy these past few weeks with many things...my studio is growing (up to 15 students now!) I've gotten a few new gigs, some new headshots, and some new audition rep polished.
But what has been occupying most of my time is my recital. It will be performed in Chicago next Monday and Cincinnati next Friday, and I've been shuttling back and forth to Chi a lot to practice with Kyra, my cellist. We are trying to do a more intense preparation and concentrated performance than we did last year. Part of this preparation includes writing and speaking about each of our pieces. The only problem is, some of the repertoire we are doing is so obscure that I am having trouble finding any previous analysis or notation! That means I have to devote some actual insight and thought into what I am performing.
This is what our professors and predecessors have always told us to do: "Be a THINKING singer!" and it is also why I like performing with instrumentalists - sometimes even more than with other singers. There is much more unspoken communication between instrumentalist and vocalist onstage. Kyra and I have worked together for several years now, and have developed a keen intuitive relationship with each other. Having that sort of bond makes performing a much more powerful and enjoyable experience.
Now, for the particulars of the recital:
Monday, September 12, 8pm
Dixon Strings Studio
4636 N. Ravenswood Ave.
Chicago, IL
Friday, September 16, 7:30pm
Northeast Community Church
12079 Lebanon Rd.
Loveland, OH
Program:
"Se Pari O La Tua Fe" - G. F. Handel
"Vocalise" - A. Previn
"What Lips My Lips Have Kissed" and "My True Love Hath My Heart" - J. Heggie
intermission
"Zwei Gesange" - J. Brahms
"Six Poems of Marichiko" - L. Latiman
"Dream With Me Tonight" - L. Bernstein
Hope to see you there!
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Even on Vacation, Work Happens
Yesterday I had a lovely rehearsal in Hopewell, NJ, with my cellist. I was reminded of how it feels to WORK - not just to sing. To delve, to translate, to search for meaning and connection between text and music and instruments and composer. It has inspired me to write program notes, work harder then ever to memorize EVERYTHING on EVERY page, and prepare more for this recital than I have for any other in my career.
Today I was reminded of the other side of work, as I try to schedule my 20 students for the year into a congruent schedule that allows me time to practice, audition, rehearse and perform. It is VERY nerve-racking, but I think as soon as I settle into a few weeks of routine, I will be calmer and a better teacher for it.
Now I'm off to finish the Brahms translations (that's right, the Brahms viola/contralto songs, performed by cello and soprano!). This will be an unusual recital.....
Today I was reminded of the other side of work, as I try to schedule my 20 students for the year into a congruent schedule that allows me time to practice, audition, rehearse and perform. It is VERY nerve-racking, but I think as soon as I settle into a few weeks of routine, I will be calmer and a better teacher for it.
Now I'm off to finish the Brahms translations (that's right, the Brahms viola/contralto songs, performed by cello and soprano!). This will be an unusual recital.....
Sunday, August 21, 2011
I'm on Vacation
And have been without internet for several days. It's been LOVELY (though a nagging voice in my head keeps telling me to check my emails and hunt for students and learn that music). I will write a more detailed post soon. I've been visiting with friends and family members everywhere from OH to MA to NY to NJ and have a recital coming up in a few weeks, which will surely trigger some insightful tidbits I can share here.
Night!
Night!
Sunday, August 7, 2011
And All of A Sudden I'm A Singer Again
This week, I:
-almost doubled my teaching studio size
-was offered one of the most awesome church jobs in the city
-found (potential, probable) venues for a chamber recital
-found (potential) venue for opera to be performed in October.
All the week before I go on an awesome vacation!
More detailed posts to follow.
-almost doubled my teaching studio size
-was offered one of the most awesome church jobs in the city
-found (potential, probable) venues for a chamber recital
-found (potential) venue for opera to be performed in October.
All the week before I go on an awesome vacation!
More detailed posts to follow.
Monday, July 18, 2011
Misconceptions of My Youth
When I was a senior in high school, I came up with all of these justifications for going to school as a music major rather than a theater major. Here's 17-year-old Sammi's list, and 25-year-old Sammi's older, wiser corrections.
Misconception #1: I want to sing opera rather than musical theater because in MT I'll do 500 shows of the same thing, whereas in opera I'll be doing different shows every time I get to perform.
REALITY: ....I'd be LUCKY to do a 500 show run of anything, because then I'd be employed as a performer. I got cast with OFY and sang Mabel 70+ times. And opera companies do the same 10 operas over and over, with some exceptions. I've done 3 Figaros and 3 Magic Flutes.
Misconception #2: I'd be bored doing the same show over and over again....and opera's get 1-10 performances, whereas MT does a million.
REALITY: As dispelled above, I perform the same role in multiple shows, regardless of the genre, and I do between 1 and 75 performances for opera OR MT.
Misconception #3: Opera music is more challenging than Musical theater, and MT music is boring.
REALITY: The show I've been preparing over the past 8 weeks is some of the hardest ensemble music I've ever learned. More difficult than Mozart (not the language, although the words are hard to remember because they subtly change all the time in a Sondheim-esque way). It's also very emotional, and evokes the Romantic period of music. Both are schmaltzy, but so what.
I'm starting to enjoy musical theater and opera equally, and am realizing that careers in each are not mutually exclusive. Which is thrilling. Basically, I'm going to start auditioning for whatever I want and think I'd be good at. Let's hope I don't make a total ass of myself in the process.
Misconception #1: I want to sing opera rather than musical theater because in MT I'll do 500 shows of the same thing, whereas in opera I'll be doing different shows every time I get to perform.
REALITY: ....I'd be LUCKY to do a 500 show run of anything, because then I'd be employed as a performer. I got cast with OFY and sang Mabel 70+ times. And opera companies do the same 10 operas over and over, with some exceptions. I've done 3 Figaros and 3 Magic Flutes.
Misconception #2: I'd be bored doing the same show over and over again....and opera's get 1-10 performances, whereas MT does a million.
REALITY: As dispelled above, I perform the same role in multiple shows, regardless of the genre, and I do between 1 and 75 performances for opera OR MT.
Misconception #3: Opera music is more challenging than Musical theater, and MT music is boring.
REALITY: The show I've been preparing over the past 8 weeks is some of the hardest ensemble music I've ever learned. More difficult than Mozart (not the language, although the words are hard to remember because they subtly change all the time in a Sondheim-esque way). It's also very emotional, and evokes the Romantic period of music. Both are schmaltzy, but so what.
I'm starting to enjoy musical theater and opera equally, and am realizing that careers in each are not mutually exclusive. Which is thrilling. Basically, I'm going to start auditioning for whatever I want and think I'd be good at. Let's hope I don't make a total ass of myself in the process.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Baaaaad Blogger. Very Bad.
I've been neglecting this. I'm not going to make excuses.
Well, yes I am. Here they are:
1. I went straight from ending one show to doing 5 days/week of rehearsal on another! The Secret Garden is going to be fabulous. All tickets and info can be found Here:
2. I've been WRITING more. Up to 2 articles per issue of David's Voice, media output for the nanny office, and translations for a version of The Impresario, to be performed this October.
3. I am working 4 jobs right now: babysitting regularly for a family, working at the nanny office, writing, and FINALLY teaching! I have 6 students so far but am hoping to have a full week's load by this fall. I'm hoping to focus on teaching, writing and singing. It's been an uphill battle to be patient, and keep at the other jobs while my student roster builds. Some days I leave at 7:30am and don't return home until 10:30pm, after working 7 hours babysitting, 2 of teaching, and 3 of rehearsal...with driving in between.
Still, that's no excuse for not keeping up with the blog. I will do better...especially with upcoming opera and recital work, which is sure to bring some new discovery begging to be blogged about.
Well, yes I am. Here they are:
1. I went straight from ending one show to doing 5 days/week of rehearsal on another! The Secret Garden is going to be fabulous. All tickets and info can be found Here:
2. I've been WRITING more. Up to 2 articles per issue of David's Voice, media output for the nanny office, and translations for a version of The Impresario, to be performed this October.
3. I am working 4 jobs right now: babysitting regularly for a family, working at the nanny office, writing, and FINALLY teaching! I have 6 students so far but am hoping to have a full week's load by this fall. I'm hoping to focus on teaching, writing and singing. It's been an uphill battle to be patient, and keep at the other jobs while my student roster builds. Some days I leave at 7:30am and don't return home until 10:30pm, after working 7 hours babysitting, 2 of teaching, and 3 of rehearsal...with driving in between.
Still, that's no excuse for not keeping up with the blog. I will do better...especially with upcoming opera and recital work, which is sure to bring some new discovery begging to be blogged about.
Saturday, June 25, 2011
God and Art
This post is going to be far less eloquent than a post entitled "God and Art" should be. It is rambling but I hope to reach some sort of conclusion by stream-of-consciousness thought on this matter, so bear with me.
Throughout history, art and religion have crossed paths - a lot. It's been a love-hate relationship. In every music history class we learn how music was extolled as having healing properties in ancient Greece, banished as the work of the devil during the Dark Ages, and then brought back in the Renaissance and Reformation. Luther thought it was the best way to convey religious ideas to children. Bach, Mozart, Schubert, Beethoven, and every other fantastic composer in history have written liturgical music. Almost every religion in the world employs the arts in some form.
Many opera singers start off singing in a religious choir. I sang in synagogue choir from 6th grade on. Judaism has a rich history in music, but it is one that a lot of American non-Jews seem unaware of, while Jewish musicians are schooled in the history of Christian music for as long as they are in a music history class. A lot of the people in my conservatory class were "discovered" when they began singing in church. Classical music itself seems to many people like a wholesome art form that wholesome people practice. And it's true, there are quite a few people in the opera world who value a God in their lives.
BUT
There is another side to the arts. One that has had religious persona insisting for years that music leads to dancing, dancing leads to sex, and sex leads to hell. While I have many friends in this business who value having religion in their lives, I have just as many who reject it. There's something about creating a character or interpreting a song that is deeply personal and sometimes lonely...it makes me simultaneously doubt and confirm that God exists. It seems to push every artist to one extreme or the other.
The basis for the thoughts that inspired this post was the show I did this weekend. I just finished the show with a company that is based in "Christian fellowship through theater." This is where religion starts to seem as though it is forcing itself upon the arts, instead of the art enhancing the religion. Before every rehearsal or show, we had to pray. In a Catholic manner. No sensitivity or regard for other's religions. Apparently Jesus was the only way to transcend that company's love of theater. Not that this isn't ALLOWED to happen - it's a free country and a private theater company. They also accepted and cast me despite the fact that I am not Christian. But it seemed sneaky to bill the show to the public as one thing and then have a religious agenda that was forced upon the cast. It was a learning experience, to say the least. I know I am overly sensitive to my perception of the public's insensitivity to religious diversity. Especially in the midwest. I don't know what about the experience made me so indignant, but I feel as though religion is so intensely personal, and to foist it upon a cast who might have disagreed with the ideals goes completely against what art should promote.
Throughout history, art and religion have crossed paths - a lot. It's been a love-hate relationship. In every music history class we learn how music was extolled as having healing properties in ancient Greece, banished as the work of the devil during the Dark Ages, and then brought back in the Renaissance and Reformation. Luther thought it was the best way to convey religious ideas to children. Bach, Mozart, Schubert, Beethoven, and every other fantastic composer in history have written liturgical music. Almost every religion in the world employs the arts in some form.
Many opera singers start off singing in a religious choir. I sang in synagogue choir from 6th grade on. Judaism has a rich history in music, but it is one that a lot of American non-Jews seem unaware of, while Jewish musicians are schooled in the history of Christian music for as long as they are in a music history class. A lot of the people in my conservatory class were "discovered" when they began singing in church. Classical music itself seems to many people like a wholesome art form that wholesome people practice. And it's true, there are quite a few people in the opera world who value a God in their lives.
BUT
There is another side to the arts. One that has had religious persona insisting for years that music leads to dancing, dancing leads to sex, and sex leads to hell. While I have many friends in this business who value having religion in their lives, I have just as many who reject it. There's something about creating a character or interpreting a song that is deeply personal and sometimes lonely...it makes me simultaneously doubt and confirm that God exists. It seems to push every artist to one extreme or the other.
The basis for the thoughts that inspired this post was the show I did this weekend. I just finished the show with a company that is based in "Christian fellowship through theater." This is where religion starts to seem as though it is forcing itself upon the arts, instead of the art enhancing the religion. Before every rehearsal or show, we had to pray. In a Catholic manner. No sensitivity or regard for other's religions. Apparently Jesus was the only way to transcend that company's love of theater. Not that this isn't ALLOWED to happen - it's a free country and a private theater company. They also accepted and cast me despite the fact that I am not Christian. But it seemed sneaky to bill the show to the public as one thing and then have a religious agenda that was forced upon the cast. It was a learning experience, to say the least. I know I am overly sensitive to my perception of the public's insensitivity to religious diversity. Especially in the midwest. I don't know what about the experience made me so indignant, but I feel as though religion is so intensely personal, and to foist it upon a cast who might have disagreed with the ideals goes completely against what art should promote.
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