We kicked off the fall audition tour with a strong start in Los Angeles, and as I was emptying my portable office of its seemingly endless gear, I was reminded of this NY Times article from last summer. I bookmarked it with a reminder to revisit this topic during the audition tour, and this seems
Read MorePosts Categorized: Auditions
Sweating Small Stuff… Seeing Forests for Trees… Wholes Being Greater than Sums of Parts …
As we prepare for our California auditions, I thought this would be a great opportunity for a guest post. Joshua Winograde, Artistic Planning Manager for LA Opera, is a great friend and colleague of the WTOC, and he spent several chunks of his career so far with us – as a Filene Young Artist, as
Read MoreAudition Room Protocol
Don’t spend a lot of time obsessing about how to relate to the audition panel. Auditions aren’t cocktail parties, and other than avoiding the appearance of being extraordinarily grumpy and crank, there’s not a lot to worry about. Greetings First of all, there’s no reason to walk to the opposite end of the room to
Read MoreHiatus
It’s a good thing I’m not getting graded on the audition season mini-course, for I’ve fallen off the wagon in a big way this week. It was delusional to believe that we could process and review 1,000 audition applications and keep up with the blog at the same time. In spite of (and somewhat because
Read MoreExpert Friday: Chicago
It’s a good thing it’s Expert Friday, because I have been rendered completely inarticulate by the last 50 hours of application processing. Can’t even hold a simple phone conversation. Have no English. David Holloway is the Director of the Apprentice Singers Program for Santa Fe Opera and Head of the Voice Department at the Chicago
Read MoreDon’t Pace & Don’t Land the Plane
What does your audition aria look like from behind the table? Singers worry endlessly about the extent to which they can move in an audition situation. Should You “Block” Your Aria? Well strictly speaking, no. You shouldn’t perform your audition in the same way you would approach a staged performance. But the exercise of staging
Read MoreExpert Friday: East & West Coast
Part of a weekly series, in which my colleagues responsed to an email request for anything (or 2 or 3 things…) in the way of advice they would like to give to auditionees. First, Don Marrazzo, Director of Casting & Artistic Operations at Glimmerglass Opera. I have always felt that audition “do’s and don’ts” can
Read MorePutting Yourself in the Fach Box
This week, I’ve been warming up with posts about simple, childish things like rare arias and versatility. Now we get to the really adult stuff. Fach Such a difficult subject for so many singers. Kind of ranks right up there with sex and money in its untouchability. A very personal, complicated decision – really best
Read MoreThe Forest before the Trees
Some food for thought this weekend before we get into the nitty-gritty. A few seasons ago on the blog I tried to quantify what we listen for in auditions. I ended up with a list modeled on one in Joanna Merlin’s book “Auditioning.” (It’s intended for actors, but its wisdom easily extends to the singing
Read MoreYou Never Really Enjoy It; You Just Get Better at It
I was watching TV the other night and saw an ad for an upcoming fall series. One of the characters was talking about coming to terms with something distasteful. (How’s that for specificity? I can’t remember the show or the subject material…) Anyway, she said, “You never really enjoy it; you just get better at
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