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It’s the Little Things I’m reluctant to mention this, for I’m sure it will reveal the depth of my compulsiveness. When we arrive at our various venues (usually large rehearsal rooms of some sort), we expect to spend the first ten minutes doing basic setup. Pushing pianos, finding chairs and tables, locating electrical outlets. Thomas

Auditions yesterday at The Barns. Nice to be on home turf. The warm and inviting acoustics of our home theatre are both a boon and a challenge. Each audition city seems to have its own personality, and it seems to require a different set of ears to get what we need from each site. We

My plans for an opera-free Sunday were dashed by the front page of this morning’s New York Times Arts section. Anne Midgette’s feature on the shortcomings of America’s opera “farm teams” has my head spinning. For what it’s worth, here’s a response – argumentative, sympathetic, and defensive all at once. Stephanie Blythe in 2005.(Richard Termine

Report from the Road You know you’re getting tired when forgetfulness sets in. Left my purse in Starbucks this morning. Checked out of the hotel; was carrying a suitcase, a bag of computer and audio gear, a bunch of books and CDs; had a meeting scheduled before auditions, and afterwards walked down Columbus Avenue schlepping

Report from the Road Getting into the rhythm. Every 10-minute interval is filled with about 7 -8 minutes of singing, a minute of chatting/welcoming, and a minute of documentation. The database is an amazingly helpful thing, for it allows us to hear singers’ performances in context. What’s on the database? This is a simplification, of

Report from the Road Today’s entry is long. Treat it like a Chinese menu. Sad amateur photo at the right was taken as I and a few thousand of my closest friends were leaving the Met after tonight’s performance of Lucia di Lammermoor. (I really do need to get a better camera or learn how

Statistics for this year. Skip entirely if this kind of thing irritates, confuses or demoralizes you. Read and use if you are curious or you find it useful. What’s to be learned?Fach: Sopranos represent about half of all aspiring singers. (Don’t despair, soprani; just acknowledge that the competition is stiff. It just means that you

Extracurriculars Even though we just started auditions last Friday, we’re taking this week off. I’m staying in town for personal reasons – I’m in charge of the pit band for my son’s high school production of Urinetown, the Musical. We’re one of the first high schools in the country to get the rights to this