My Dear Blog, I miss you. It would be hubris to believe that you miss me, with all of the other fantastical things going on out there in the internet. But ’tis true that I am poorer without you. My recent silence is almost unprecedented, and it’s past time to break it. The perennial dilemma is
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Yes, Let the Kid Study Music
My two children grew up with two musician parents. They became who they are through music, theatre and art, and they are carving out their adult lives in completely different arenas. Relieved? You bet I am. But had they chosen to live the artist’s life, I would’ve said the same thing I say to anyone
Read MoreRant: In Defense of the Creative Life
Thanks to my colleague Lee Anne for pointing me to this article – Seven Rules for Managing Creative-But-Difficult People – in the Harvard Business Review. It’s not long; linking through should only cost you a minute or two. (And if you have more time, don’t forget to read the hundreds of comments…) What the What???
Read MoreA Slice of a Life in Opera
This fine Monday morning, I point you to Unfinished No More – a recent blog post by bass-baritone Alan Held. If you’re curious about what a career in opera is like on the ground level, it’s a must-read. (And I mean you, voice students out there.) Alan and I started out together at Wolf Trap
Read MoreLife Cycle of an Opera
Permit me an analogy. Watching a show grow from a glimmer in our eyes during the audition tour to a fully fleshed-out world the next summer has to be one of the most exciting things I can think of. (And yes, I know I need to get out more, but all the same…) The life
Read MoreTired & Timid
Vince Lombardi famously said, “Fatigue makes cowards of us all.” Making music – in real time, in front of real people, without a net – takes many things. Skill, preparation, natural talent, dedication. But one thing might trump all those. Courage. There are more difficult jobs, to be sure. We who traffic in the world
Read MoreCome on Inside
I taught an intro-to-opera class here at Wolf Trap five years ago, and I was surprised and gratified by the enthusiastic response from my “students” (many of whom were as knowledgeable as I!) I’ve been asked frequently since then if I’d teach again, and I’ve hesitated. But, for better or worse, the wait is over…
Read MoreComfort: The Enemy?
I’m obsessed with podcasts and besotted with Radio Lab. Their recent Speedy Beet episode really churned up my mind. If you don’t have time to listen now, here’s the summary. Beethoven’s metronome markings (indicating the speed at which the composer indicated his music should be played) are freakishly fast. And as you might suspect, musicologists
Read MoreSong
I adore the magnificent many-headed monster that is opera. It’s a beautiful and messy example of how a hastily assembled group of opinionated people can somehow manage to work as a team to create a functional (and sometimes magnificent) thing in a short time. But while it can be exciting being a cog in a
Read MoreIncubation
This one is for you performing artist introverts out there. Extroverts, you can just keep on surfing. Move along now. Nothing to see here. Just a minute… OK, I think they’re gone. It’s safe. Not that there’s anything wrong with our friends who wake up every day craving all eyes and ears turned on them.
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