Blurry

Today has been a blurry day. In fact, it's been a blurry week.

I was up quite late last night finishing various odds and ends that seem to be cropping up at every turn. I feel a little like this officer on horseback; if you look closely, you can see him carefully cradling his cup of coffee. Not only was I cradling my own caffeinated brew today; I also feel like I'm trying to keep moving without spilling any drops of my cup of to-dos.

But that's neither here nor there. Overall, the week has been exciting, if a bit treadmill-ish. Yesterday evening, I attended a wonderful lecture recital where a fabulous accompanist, GM, performed Poulenc's Le Bestiare and Ravel's Histoires Naturelles. He was complemented by QP, a gorgeous mezzo who is in my classes. She thrillingly illustrated the vocal line over top of the colorful accompaniments. Both of these sets are about animals, with often-whimsical poetry depicting their various flavors.

Because it was a lecture recital, the first half of the program was just like a class. GM, the accompanist, talked about many facets of the pieces, complete with musical excerpts both played/sang and visually illustrated in our programs. He informed us about the composers and the poets, the musical qualities of the accompaniment (much of which "paints" the animalian characteristics, like the rolling of a caravan across a desert for the camel's piece, or the high chirp of a grasshopper.) He also spoke about the different ways the pieces debuted. (Poulenc's cycle was first performed at an art gallery before a small audience gathered to pay homage to Guillaume Apollinaire, the poet. In contrast, Ravel's was debuted at a large hall to a very hostile audience who were especially threatened by his decision to shatter the "rules" of classical sung French in favor of fidelity to the way it is spoken. The key difference is the little "e" at the end of French words like "Comme". In spoken French, this e is mute. In sung French, it is traditionally articulated and given its own note. But not in Ravel's Histoires Naturelles!)

Afterwards, there were refreshments, as is typical for the recitals here. But these included - what else? - animal crackers. :)

It was a tremendous recital.

Today, I also got to hear performances, this time in class. In Advanced Opera Seminar (where we prepare our audition arias), everyone sang one piece for the class. One person did Mozart's "In Uomini" from Cosi fan tutte with impish glee. Another sang a gorgeous rendition of "Porgi Amor" from Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro. A third did a piece from a Strauss opera that I didn't know. And I performed the "Bester Jungling", also by Mozart from his little-known opera, The Impresario. I need as much performance practice as I can get on it because that is the main piece for me in the upcoming winter opera.

After Advanced Opera Seminar, I had a coaching on the "Bester Jungling", where we talked about a few questions of pronunciation as well as dynamics and tempo. It makes such a difference to pull back dynamically in various sections of the piece, to be a bit gentler. Not only is it easier on my voice; it also feels more "right" when the vocal line swells again. Sometimes a well-placed decrescendo or mezzo-piano or piano can be more impactful than the largest high-note forte. This piece is such a high, showy work that it needs a little contrast, a "break for the ears" in a way to save it from sounding angry or forced.

It's about time I dive into learning more German...Hopefully I'll get some time this weekend to tie up the remaining odds and ends so that I can start studying that language regularly. And investigating my recital repertoire. And learning more of the Impresario music. And getting that new Strauss lieder into my voice. And refreshing my Italian. And and and...

~Hope