I spent 35 years as a church organist, starting as a teenager when I discovered that I could make more money playing Sunday services than I could by babysitting all week. As soon as my feet could reach the pedals, I was off and running. A couple of years ago I hit the wall. Trying
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I Should’ve Been an English Major
It’s that time of year… when a phrase is not a satisfying arc of pitch and dynamic, but a collection of well-chosen words. Seductive adjectives, strong verbs, and lots of punctuation!! January and February bring vast wastelands of nothing but words. Or rather, big ol’ blank computer screens mocking me for lack of words. You
Read MoreThe Audition Game
Today’s guest blogger is Joshua Winograde, head of our own Wolf Trap Opera Studio and Planning Manager of the Domingo-Thornton Young Artist Program at the Los Angeles Opera. This is a wonky time of the blog year for me – I’m working nonstop on the upcoming operas, and because we haven’t announced our season yet,
Read MoreRaw Audition Comments 2008
Not raw in the way you think. Just unedited. Excerpted from the database just the way they were spewed forth during the audition tour. Stream of consciousness and all. The good, the bad, and the ugly, sometimes all within the same aria. Why do I post these, and why would you read them? 1. To
Read MoreThe Blog Survey Summary
Just under 300 of you lovely readers took the time to submit the survey that’s been lurking at the top of the right margin for the last several weeks. I appreciate your willingness to tell me who you are and what you think, and I have indeed learned a few things! Demographic Which of the
Read MoreMaking the Music Backstage
But before the stories… If you’re an aspiring performer, go now to today’s brief and cogent post on Grecchinois. Excerpt: “…apprenticeships are about planning for the future as much as they are about honing one’s craft. The reality is that when it comes down to it, this is a job, just like any other, and
Read MoreMusicians’ Shorthand
This image of a conductor’s abbreviated note to the orchestra (referenced on Arts Addict’s New Year’s Eve post) inspired me to pull one of my Rossini opera scores off the shelf. See, when you get into a Rossini finale, the piano score reduction covers about 2 measures per page. (Once everyone gets singing, and each
Read MoreBut Now What?
“Come, children, gather round my knee;Something is about to be.Tonight’s December Thirty-First,Something is about to burst.The clock is crouching, dark and small,Like a time bomb in the hall.Hark! It’s midnight, children dear.Duck! Here comes another year.” Ogden Nash, “Good Riddance, but Now What?” My family’s 2008 will be full of transitions, with all of their
Read MoreLife in the Pit
Greetings from Fraser, Colorado, the Icebox of the Nation. Yesterday’s high at the top of the mountain was 10 below zero. Cold but breathtakingly beautiful. I just took a few hours to catch up on blog surfing (something I have a lot of trouble keeping up with under normal circumstances) and found Arts Addict’s recent
Read MoreFor the Love of It
I’m reaching the point of dimishing return on this, the Friday before Christmas. I had grand plans for this week – lots of loose ends to tie up, and virtual bows to place on projects. Dreams of taking a guilt-free week off, without too many things undone. Optimism dies hard. Naïveté doesn’t die at all,
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