Back to Normal Life?

Wow, I cannot believe the response I have had with all of the ceremonial videos and my Olympic Ceremony Database www.olympicceremony.org.  These last couple months, I have left my typical Monday routine and posted videos and information about all of the Olympic Opening Ceremonies.  I intend to put all the Winter Olympic ones up in the future, but it is certainly a labor of love as one blogger wrote.  In the meantime, I've had up to 100,000 readers every day - causing my blog to crash momentarily.  Amazingly, this blog has been featured on public television and radio in the Netherlands for my coverage of the 1928 games in Amsterdam!

So, what have I been doing in the meantime.  Well, I have been relaxing for one, but I am the kind of personality that doesn't do well with time off - mentally, I must keep active and these Olympic posts have been doing that.  After I returned from my opera in Pennsylvania, I honestly was completely drained.  I had a packed school schedule last year and the most rigorous performance schedule of my life - I needed a break. So, I did what any opera singer would do.  I helped to start two off-shoot companies of my own Kansas City Vocal Institute - www.kcvocalinstitute.com.  Last month, the Philadelphia Vocal Institute - www.philadelphiavocalinstitute.com - got off the ground running and this month we will be launching the Boston Vocal Institute.  These other companies were started by several good friends of mine who are great musicians with super intelligence and big hearts, trying to give folks in these communities affordable opportunities in music education.

Surely that wasn't enough work, so I have also been exercising.  Now, I am completely self-conscious about my image and HATE taking my shirt off.  So maybe this will help me not be so afraid in the future.  In my professional opinion, opera singers don't necessarily exercise enough, and I surely fall into that category.  I have known about different workout programs and it just so happens that a friend of mine started p90x and I have had other friends and musicians who were currently doing p90x.  They look to be in great shape.  If you don't know, p90x is an extreme workout program that is only 90 days long, but it takes a lot of drive, mental strength, and loud operatic screams to get through it.  So, I started, but I couldn't keep up the routine during two of my week-long gigs and I likely won't be able to next week, but I'll get to that in a second.  So instead of 90 days of extreme workouts, I had to push that a little longer and I'll have the pictures to prove it when I'm done at the beginning of September.  Already, I feel great and wanted to push myself further, so I decided to start running again...and not just any kind of running but long distance timed runs.  Last month I ran about 150 miles and this month I should be around 200 miles!  It's been a lot of fun and I've never felt better.

Next week, I'm off to Yale!  If you don't remember, I was awarded a fellowship from Yale back in April to sing at their Norfolk Music Festival.  I am super excited and have been studying the music - it should be a great experience.

I also have several exciting announcements about my upcoming gigs.  I am singing the National Anthem on TV nation-wide on GolTV for the US Open Cup Final (soccer's national championship) featuring Sporting KC and Seattle Sounders FC.  It's likely that few reading this purchased the extra fourth-tier sports channel package from their cable provider, and if that's the case I suppose you'll just have to imagine a loud packed stadium with lots of fireworks, while I try not to forget the words.  Last week, I was able to sing the National Anthem at a Sporting KC vs. Stoke City (from the UK) and sang both the Star-Spangled Banner and God Save the Queen.  I don't get "jittery" nervous that often, but for some reason, I was completely off my game with the UK's anthem - I sang it just fine, but was extremely nervous about it for whatever reason.

I am also scheduled to be a soloist in Beethoven's Mass in C with the Village Symphony and Choir on October 28.  I also have several great professional choir gigs as well.  I am planning to sing with the Conservatory Singers again and be the Evangelist in a Bach Passion next April (which makes me super excited) and I will be singing with Te Deum and be the tenor soloist in Bach's B Minor Mass at the Kauffman Center on my birthday (April 28).

In addition to all of that, I am finally scheduled to take my Doctoral Comprehensive Exams this Semester - for that I am terrified and horribly anxious.  And, I will be performing in a solo recital likely at the end of the semester.

Believe it or not, I have much more to talk about in the coming weeks and there are some other gigs still up in the air, but I will let you know as soon as I get the go-ahead.  Until then, enjoy the Olympics and my next update will be from beautiful New Haven, Connecticut on the campus of Yale University.

May Days

Oh beautiful May!  For two decades you have ushered in the highest levels of anxiety, looming ever so devilishly amid a procrastinated school work-load; But this year, I will relax!

School ended for me on April 30!  This is the first time in my life that I have not had school into May, and not just any school - May is a time that teachers and students alike procrastinate the biggest assignments and tests, making one last push to cram-memorize/cram-teach all that one physically can with as minimal sleep as possible.


Amazingly, my schedule in May consists of teaching voice lessons and a few awesome gigs.  First, I will be a tenor soloist with Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass at Washburn University in Topeka.  If you are in the area, you should definitely come - large choir, orchestra, awesome soloists!  Downbeat is 7:30 on Friday at White Hall on the campus of Washburn University in Topeka.

Also, I will be singing the National Anthem and Alma Mater for a graduation on Saturday, but my Sporting KC gig has been moved to June 16 - right before I leave for Pennsylvania.  If you don't know, I will be singing the Canadian National Anthem at that televised soccer match.

Next week, I will be singing with the Kansas City Symphony at Helzberg Hall in their Education Series concerts.  I am a very lucky person in that my first day (May 8), Aretha Franklin and I, share the same practice time at the Kauffman Center, so I am very excited to see if I can get an autograph, hug, photo, anything...

Then, I will be singing with the Simon Carrington Chamber Singers at the end of May.  We will be recording an album and we are hoping to submit it for some awards (possibly a Grammy!).  I've never been a part of a process like that, so I am very curious to see the workings of a professional choir and a professional recording.


Last weekend, I was able to sing a recital in Salina, KS at the grand opening of the new sanctuary at the church I used to work at.  I was met with great memories and the smiles from many friends.  I miss those folks very much, and I was honored and excited to sing for them all in their incredible new sanctuary.  In fact, if you are in Salina, KS and you are a musician, you must find a time to make some music in the sanctuary of University United Methodist Church.  It is certainly the best music venue in town - I truly mean that.  It is live but doesn't dampen the resonance, and even with a domed ceiling, performs very clean.

Also, last week, the 2012 Kansas City Vocal Institute Celebrity Auction ended.  It was very successful, and I want to publicly thank my mother for all of her help, and thank all of the bidders as well.  We are now able to provide over 100 more free lessons this year for underprivileged children and families in the Kansas City metro area!

Next time, I will be posting some pictures of the various events of this week as well as give you more info on the KC Symphony gig!

CLICK HERE TO SEE MY PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

Too Much Excitement!

I have some great news to share with the world!   First, I just found out yesterday, that I have been awarded the Ellen Battell Stoeckel Fellowship from Yale University!  With recommendations from some amazing people and through a rigorous application process, I was selected to be one of the singers performing at the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, which is held at Yale University in August.  The Festival is North America's oldest music festival and attracts many of the world's leading composers and musicians.  Essentially, I will be performing - and rehearsing - the whole time.  This fellowship is a prestigious honor to me, since it recognizes academic achievement in a real way - one that collaboratively makes music with the world's leading musicians.  Plus, I've never been able to be of interest to an Ivy league school, so now I can gratuitously flaunt my new-found Connecticut accent - obviously in boat shoes and fluffy cravat!  I am very excited and I hope that this will help me in many ways.  http://music.yale.edu/norfolk/

Second, I was asked early last week by the Kansas City Symphony to sing as a soloist on their upcoming Education Series concerts.  These concerts have been sold-out since sometime in November.  I will be singing at Helzberg Hall in a unique situation.  If you are old enough to remember, Leonard Bernstein offered Young People's Concerts on national television from the Symphony Hall at Lincoln Center.  He had the New York Philharmonic play famous music for children who would come and learn about what a whole-tone scale was, or what instruments played a duck or hunter in Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf.  Bernstein would begin each piece by (passionately) describing what was going to happen, and then the Symphony would play the piece.  Kansas City is doing the same thing, and it is a great way to teach music, inspiring many children to dream big, and dream to play in a symphony and in one of the most magnificent halls in the world.

Not only that, it is almost completely free.  The children and teachers get books, a semester-long curriculum, instruments, a concert ticket, busing to the hall, for only $5 per child.  Also, the orchestral scores are all free and the kids participate in the concert in various ways.  It's an amazing program produced and provided by both the Kansas City Symphony and Carnegie Hall - the children have spent all semester learning many pieces including pop music, Brazilian dances, classical music like Beethoven's Fifth, The Blue Danube, The Toreador Song, even an Arvo Pärt piece.

Helzberg Hall - Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts
Home of the Kansas City Symphony

With all that said, I was honored and excited to be asked.  I had a meeting this afternoon to find out exactly what I will be doing, and IT IS INTERESTING - some of it is kind of funny too...but, I will keep you on pins and needles in the meantime.  Soon, I will be providing more information, details, and perhaps video, but since it is at the Kauffman Center, you never know who might have a dressing room nearby - one time it was Placido Domingo, another time Itzahk Perlman, then Yo-Yo Ma, and Juan Diego Florez, but as luck would have it, this time it'll be with royalty - a certain Queen of Soul.  Well, I'll leave you hangin' but I'm excited to give you some video and pictures of everything going on in the coming weeks!

A Famous Hat

Third, the 34th Summer Choral Institute (sponsored by the Master Teacher Institute for the Arts) ended its application process and we completely shattered all of our applicant records.  I am the Administrative Director of the Institute and it is one of the most amazing weeks of my year. More students applied this year than ever before - students representing 12 states and many, many schools.  I am so excited to bring together some of the nation's most talented high school singers and some of the most amazing conductors and musicians that I've had the high privilege to know for a week of awesome, life-changing music.

Fourth, the Kansas City Vocal Institute is holding it's online auction through Monday.  Items include an autograph of a Star Wars score by John Williams, and lots of other autographed items by Melissa Etheridge, Chanticleer, Norah Jones, Betty White, the Kronos Quartet, Donald Trump, Joyce DiDonato, Juan Diego Florez, Zubin Mehta, Martina McBride, and Yo-Yo Ma.

Finally, I have an intense upcoming schedule.  Tomorrow, I will attend the Barber of Seville at the Kauffman Center with the KC Lyric Opera, then perform in the other hall at the Kauffman Center on my birthday (Saturday) with the Conservatory Orchestra and Singers - performing the famous Rite of Spring and Chen Yi's new Chinese Myths Cantata, which features me in the fourth balcony singing whole-tone scales in complete darkness, in Mandarin (Chinese) no less, with eleven other singers!  And, on Sunday I will be in Salina, KS singing in a church service and an afternoon concert to commemorate the new sanctuary at University United Methodist Church.  The following week, I will be the tenor soloist for Haydn's Lord Nelson Mass at Washburn University in Topeka, sing at a UMKC graduation in Kansas City, and sing the Canadian National Anthem at a Sporting KC game.  (not to mention that the KC Symphony stuff begins in earnest after that!)

So, it's a busy and exciting time!!!  I will try to bring you videos and pictures of all the excitement.

Muriel Kauffman Theater - Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts
Home of the Lyric Opera of Kansas City

Livestrong Sporting Park
Home of Sporting KC

Auction, "Imagine", and Proper Hat Etiquette

Happy New Year to you all!

Yesterday, was the first day of the KCVI Charity Auction.  We just started our silent auction and every two weeks we will have 4 more items up for bid.  This silent auction is a great way to get items for cheaper than what our more public, ebay auction, will run.  Also, it will feature some very unique items.  It is very easy to bid: go to www.kcvocalinstitute.com, click the auction button, click on the item, give your bid and contact info, and you will get an email if someone has outbid you.

Our first four items are:
Lyric Opera of Kansas City Ticket Package - bid starting at $20
Stephen Flaherty Autographed CD "Seussical" - bid starting at $1
Gregory Porter Autographed CD "Water" - bid starting at $1
Eric Whitacre Handwritten & Autographed Score - bid starting at $100

The item from Eric Whitacre is very unique in that the winning bidder can select any of his pieces and he will hand-write the piece or a segment of it, dedicate it to whomever they choose, and autograph it.

CLICK HERE TO SEE OUR AUCTIONS

All of the proceeds will go to the items' respective scholarship fund.  Also, I will always update on this blog with more information about any new items.  Other items will be up for auction on eBay beginning in the middle of the month.

As to the New Year, I can't help myself from commenting on Cee Lo Green's version of John Lennon's immortal song "Imagine" at Times Square on New Year's Eve.  If you missed it, just listen.

I only have two thoughts for everyone on this, (1) he messed up the words and (2) listen to it again with your eyes closed and tell me that he isn't related to Roseanne Barr!  Seriously Cee Lo, it's a simple song. You didn't have to sing the last half up an octave.

Oddly enough, bad performances don't just bother me alone.  Evidently, the State of Indiana has some issues with people singing the National Anthem all crazy-like.  They are introducing a bill making specific performance standards for performing the National Anthem, which will be decided by their State Board of Education.  They will also enforce a $25 fine on any performer who violates the law.  I know I love to critique public National Anthem gaffes, but even I think that laws like this go a little too far.  It's certainly our American culture to have artistic freedom with such things; I don't think a law will change that.

Amazingly, other states have passed similar laws.  Little did I know that Michigan has made it illegal to sing the National Anthem with embellishments - good luck attracting the Super Bowl to Ford Field again!  Igor Stravinsky was warned not to play his arrangement of the Star-Spangled Banner while in Massachusetts in 1940 when a police officer told him that he would be arrested for playing an embellished version of it within the state.  Stravinsky didn't perform the piece.  And on a further note, I found out that it is a Federal Law for men who aren't in the military to remove their hats and place it over their left shoulder during the National Anthem.  

Perhaps I'm a nut, but isn't it quite strange that only men are required to do this?  And why do we do it in the first place?  Obviously, anyone would say that it is the right thing to do because of "respect".  In all seriousness, does anyone really know why that is respectful?  "It's respectful because it's respectful" as one internet source so logically put it.  Circular arguments are not good enough for me, so I found a very interesting article on the history of donning and doffing (putting-on and taking-off) one's hat.  Evidently it extends to a Dark Age ritual of Knights lifting their visors to show that they were friendly.  If people have the freedom to scream the National Anthem any way they want, shouldn't men be able to don and doff their hats during the National Anthem with freedom?

EVIL SWEDE'S GUIDE TO PROPER HAT ETIQUETTE

So, if you get angry when people wear their hat during the National Anthem, I fully expect you to take your hat off when speaking about your late great-grandparents, leave your hat on while eating at a diner or cafe, and tip your hat when asking an elderly man for directions as any respectful person would do. As for women, from what I have "researched", they have the freedom to wear a hat in almost any situation!  Good grief!

That's all for now, I'm off to Dallas this week to watch my Alma Mater in the Cotton Bowl.  Go State!!

KCVI Charity Auction - Gregory Porter Autographed CD "Water"

http://kcvimagazine.blogspot.com/2012/01/kcvi-charity-auction-gregory-porter.html

KCVI Charity Auction - Stephen Flaherty Autographed CD "Seussical: The Musical"

http://kcvimagazine.blogspot.com/2012/01/kcvi-charity-auction-stephen-flaherty.html

KCVI Charity Auction - Lyric Opera of Kansas City Ticket Package

http://kcvimagazine.blogspot.com/2012/01/kcvi-charity-auction-lyric-opera-of.html

KCVI Charity Auction - Eric Whitacre Handwritten & Autographed Score

http://kcvimagazine.blogspot.com/2012/01/kcvi-charity-auction-eric-whitacre.html

SHH!!! Silent Auction!!! & My "Hollywood" Debut

I hope you all have had a wonderful holiday season, and the best of luck to you all during the new year.

I had an interesting last few days with my family.  A girl caught her hair on fire while singing on stage at the Christmas church service I went to.  I sang Schubert's Ave Maria after that but abruptly following me was the congregational hymn Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer.  How's that for church?

Also, this coming Monday, I will share some great news about a new gig I got with film director and Senior Vice President of Talent for MTV, Randy Sosin.  He is casting something for the NFL that will involve me and we will be filming early next week!  I'll let you in on some secret info then, so be sure to check back.  Amazingly, I will be paid as part of the Screen Actors' Guild!

Anyway, this is the final blog entry for 2011 and I wanted to give you a peak at the KCVI Celebrity Auction that will begin next month!  If you don't already know, one of my biggest passions is the Kansas City Vocal Institute.  We provide free or greatly discounted music education to children and families in Kansas City.  Also, it is a free service for all of our teachers to use to acquire students during this tough economic time.  We have 19 teachers and all are either earning or have earned a graduate degree in Music.

I am so very proud of everyone who have given their time and talents to this, and part of keeping the price of lessons at significantly low or free of cost is with the use of our scholarships.  Last year, we had 24 scholarships created and sponsored by some of the world's greatest artists and musicians including: Angelina Jolie, Maya Angelou, David Cook, Melissa Etheridge, Yo-Yo Ma, Randy Newman, Stephen Sondheim, John Williams, and many more.

Last year, I asked our donors if they would provide any autographed items that we could auction and have all the proceeds go to their respective scholarships.  Because of how successful it was, we again asked our donors to do the same.  Many donated items once again toward their scholarships and we created several new scholarships as well.

This year, we will have a private and public auction.  The private auction will be a special silent auction for some items and the public auction will be utilized with ebay.  More information will be made available on New Year's Day at www.kcvocalinstitute.com.

So, here is a list of items for our second annual KCVI Celebrity Auction.  Some of these items may only be available in our silent auction, so if you are interested in any of these, be sure to apply for our silent auction online starting January 1.

List of current donors entering items into this year's auction:

John Williams (5 Oscars, 4 Golden Globes, 21 Grammies) once again has graciously donated the front page of the Star Wars orchestral score!

Eric Whitacre (world-renown composer, Grammy Award nominee) is donating a handwritten, autographed manuscript of one of his pieces to be selected by the highest bidder

Morten Lauridsen (National Medal of Arts recipient) donated an autographed score of "O Magnum Mysterium" and autographed CD of "Sure on this Shining Night" and a "Lux Aeterna" score

Zubin Mehta (former Director of the New York Philharmonic) donated an autographed baton.

Stephen Flaherty (Tony Award winner) donated autographed CDs of "Suessical: the Musical" and "New York Pops"

List of new donors and their items entered into this year's auction:

Joyce DiDonato (world-renown operatic soprano) donated two autographed posters from her production of "La Donna del Lago" at La Scala.  It is signed along with others in the production including Juan Diego Florez, one of the most famous opera singers in the world, as well as, John Osborn, Daniela Barcelona, and Roberto Abbado.

Kronos Quartet (Grammy Award winner) donated an autographed photo and an autographed CD "Rainbow"

The Kansas City Royals (Major League Baseball) donated four premium tickets to any game during the upcoming season.

The Lyric Opera of Kansas City donated 2 redeemable certificates for two seats to any upcoming operas this season or next season in the new Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts.

Esperanza Spalding (Grammy Award winner) donated an autographed CD of her album "Chamber Music Society"

Chanticleer (Grammy Award winner) donated an autographed CD of their album "A Portrait"

Betty White (7-time Emmy Award winner) donated two different personalized autographed photos 

Donald Trump (business magnate) donated an autographed photo

Martina McBride (4-time CMA "Female Vocalist of the Year") donated an autographed photo

George Porter (Grammy Award nominee) donated an autographed CD of his album "Water"

Neil Armstrong (First Man on the Moon) donated a photo

Stanley Clarke (Grammy Award winner) donated an autographed photo

And there's still more to come! So, be sure to visit www.kcvocalinstitute.com on January 1.

Flibbertigibbets and Bananas

Both myself and my computer were sick last week, the latter having an awful problem in that whenever I pressed the "b" or the "n" on the keyboard, a million Windows Help screens would pop up and freeze my computer.  Finally, after two days, I rewrote the registry (a difficult process!) and disabled the part that was causing all the trouble.  And, I am so excited to write a lot of B's and N's once again!

Unfortunately, that has taken up so much time, that I will have to postpone the first post describing my audition process, but until then I will get you caught up on everything from this crazy week.  On Wednesday, I sang in a masterclass for Diana Soviero, a very famous opera singer.

I was asked to sing Questa o quella from Rigoletto. I had to wait silently for an entire hour before I went on, but when I sang, I completely botched the ending.  I had to wait for so long that my voice wasn't warmed-up right.  But,  we worked on my highest notes for the entire time.  It turned out to be a great thing because those notes ended up having great space and ring.  She was teaching me to do some bad habits that in the end cured some of my other bad habits.  Whatever the case, I will have to find a way to replicate that sound in performance (because it was awesome) without looking too crazy.  For instance, she had me cover my teeth with my lips, which gave some extra cover to my high notes, kind of like this picture:

Who knew they made pictures like this?  Anyway, then she had me sing out of the side of my mouth, like Bryn Terfel, or in this case, Jerry Springer:

It doesn't look pretty, but it sounds awesome.  Later on Wednesday, after being told several times that the opera Turandot would be sold out at the new Kauffman Center here in Kansas City, I took a chance and went there in person to see if I could buy an unused ticket or get a standing room ticket.  Well, I got there and asked, but right when I was doing that, their computer system broke down.  During the 20 minutes that I was waiting, I talked to the manager and we talked about the grand opening and how amazing it was to sing on stage that night, and by the end of our talk, he just decided to give me a comp ticket!  And, I could pick a seat from either the middle of the 2nd row or a seat in a suite - one of the boxes that overlooks the stage!  I chose the suite so I could hear and see everything well.

It was amazing - an enormous production.  The singers were great, Liu (Elizabeth Caballero) soared above the orchestra with her delicate high notes, Turandot (Lise Lindstrom) was powerful, dark but beautiful, Timur (Samuel Ramey) was obviously a great dramatic voice and certainly an honor to see live, and Calaf (Arnold Rawls) made it through - he is the tenor (and if you don't know Turandot, it is the opera that Nessun Dorma is from).  I hate to be critical of a tenor, but he had a tough night at my showing, in that it took him an enormous amount of energy and heft to get through the high notes, but he did - it just looked very painful at times.  The most exciting part of the show for me was the dramatic staging.  Before scene 2 of Act 2, the stage transforms into the King's Palace, and a gigantic set moved forward from the back of the stage silently, enormous 100 ft. tall statues descended from the ceiling; it was so well done that it could have been a movie camera effect if I forgot that I was in an opera house.  The finale was also a great explosion of color that was gorgeous to watch.  The opera began with snow falling on stage and ended with thousands of flower petals falling like confetti during the final chorus number.  The costuming was very elaborate as well, especially for the Princess Turandot.

On the downside, the sets were a little too minimalist - a lot like the Met's new production of Tosca.  The orchestra, as great as it was, overplayed the treble heavy instruments like the piccolo among other things - perhaps higher pitches bother me more than most, but it was almost painful at times.  Also, and this has nothing to do with the production, but at my showing I think everyone was suffering from whooping cough.  I think coughing is very distracting, because I am intently listening to the quality of the sound.  Every cough disrupts that.  Sound is sacred to musicians, we respond to it and absorb it in every sense.  Coughing is as annoying to musicians as instant replay commercial breaks are to football fans - one or two are ok, but after five or six we want to throw something.

Finally, I have some new KVCI donors to tell you about.  We will again be having our celebrity auction this winter, and I have already announced some participants in that.  This year, new to our charity event and along with new scholarships in their names, I am happy to announce that Donald Trump is wanting to contribute and we will support a scholarship and have items from him in our auction.  Also, Eric Whitacre is renewing his scholarship and this year for the auction, he has graciously offered to compose, by hand, a one page music manuscript signed and dedicated at the request of the winning bidder.  This is a really exciting and unique offer!  Also, I have been talking with the famous soprano, Joyce DiDonato, and she has shown great interest as well.  Nothing has been "set in stone" yet, but I expect that we will incorporate a scholarship in her name in the very near future.

In the meantime, it is offer to opera rehearsal for a production of Le nozze di Figaro (the Marriage of Figaro) in November.

To see my performance schedule, please visit www.bryanpinkall.com

The Art of Singing (for tenors) Part 1

Last week was incredibly exciting on many levels: I sang the Canadian National Anthem at the Sporting KC game (video to come), I was able to go to the Populous Architecture Firm and see the designing of several stadiums including the Houston Dynamo's new stadium and the 2014 Olympic Skating Center; and besides playing tennis and golf a few times, yet another exciting thing has happened as well.  I won't say the name of the person to protect their privacy, but at the Kansas City Vocal Institute - the school of voice studios that I started here in Kansas City - a very special person has applied for lessons with one of our studios.

Now contrary to the many responses I get about these kinds of things, KCVI does provide legitimate professional music education for professional singers and performers.  I started KCVI with the idea to provide the most affordable music lessons in the area and helped to raise scholarship money for children living in poverty to take lessons with our teachers.  It also provides our teachers, all of whom have received a Master's or Doctorate degree in music, with a livelihood all during such a tough economic time.

Anyway, I can't really say much about the "special person" other than that they are an Emmy Award winner and they were in a movie that was nominated for an Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Picture in 2010.  Good luck guessing!

I have been memorizing like mad for my Chicago trip.  But in the meantime, and to keep my promise from last week, I would like to dive into the Art of Singing - for tenors that is.

I posted this video last week:

The obvious "good singer" is Alfredo Kraus and I have no idea who the bad one is, however this was kind of mean for Kraus to do to him.  They are singing the very end of "Celeste Aida", one of the most famous arias from Verdi's opera Aida.  Of course this singer has no shot of singing this well - because he has a lot of technical issues to work out first - but let's use this to bring up some problematic issues that effect tenors all around the world.

Being a Tenor in Three Arias


Aria #1 - Celeste Aida

This is one of the greatest recordings of this aria - if you love music, you MUST listen to the entire thing.  Even for Pavarotti it is an incredibly difficult aria.  It is so difficult that one of the greatest singers of today, Roberto Alagna, had trouble with it at La Scala (one of the world's most famous opera houses).  The audience actually booed and he "flipped them the bird" and walked off stage.  Shortly thereafter, the understudy came on to finish the role.  Watch the Italian news coverage below of the incident.



What can we learn from this?  Audiences LOVE to cheer for the singers, just like a sporting event.  Opera audiences know what the hardest arias are going into an opera and wait anxiously for them to see how their favorite singers will perform.  However, it certainly gives classical music a bad reputation when an audience boos.  That was very unfortunate and thankfully, you will almost never see that kind of reaction in America.

However, the tenor must perform the hardest arias well, or of course, they will probably not be hired to perform it again.  When tenors try to sing this aria, they must be very conscious about the placement of their resonance.  This is what Alfredo Kraus was showing in the Masterclass when he pretended with his hand to pull an imaginary string from between the singers eyes.  By focusing the resonance up high in the face, it will make it easier for the singer to sing.

Resonance in laymen's terms refers to the rattle that you feel when the air that you use in making a sound vibrates in your pharynx, mouth, nose, and sinuses (you can especially feel it when you have a cold or sinus congestion).  If you talk like a ghost, you are not maximizing your resonance - however if you imitate the sound of your alarm clock going off, you are likely resonating well.

For tenors (and classical singers), they need to effectively resonate, because it actually makes it easier to sing, and easier to hear as it cuts through an entire orchestra.  You don't have to woof out a sound, like what a basset hound would make, instead it is a much smaller but poignant sound - kind of like a duck's quack.  All of this exaggerates the feeling of course.

Difficult? Well, just wait...we don't want to sound nasal either; instead it should have depth (some space in the mouth to give it a more mature sound).  If you have the "quack" thing down, combine that with the voice of an umpire calling a "strike", and you're close to feeling what it is like to be a tenor.  Opera singers rely heavily on how their singing feels, not on how it sounds.  We're too dang loud to hear ourselves anyway!

So how do you make it easy so you don't get red in the face and run the risk of pooping yourself?...come back tomorrow for more...

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE

July 21-August 7 - Sugar Creek Opera - Daughter of the Regiment - August 4, 5, 7 - Watseka, IL (near Chicago)

August 8 - Audition - Kansas City Symphony Chorus

much, much more to come!...soon, I promise!

TODAY IN OPERA HISTORY - May 25

On this date in 1878, the Gilbert and Sullivan opera H.M.S. Pinafore made its world premiere at the Opera Comique in London.  This was the first big hit for Gilbert and Sullivan and spurned the creation of more comic operas.  This style of music later developed into what we now know as the musical.



On this date last year, the South African tenor, Siphiwo Ntshebe died of meningitis just days before he was to sing his pop-opera single, Hope, in the opening ceremony for the 2010 World Cup.  I know pop-opera hits always send shivers up the spines of opera singers - and this one is no different - but his music was inspiring and certainly opened the ears of many to the art of the voice.



The great impressionist composer, Gustav Holst, died on this date in 1934.  His operas were certainly unique, as two are inspired by Hindu mysticism and Sanskrit texts. However, I cannot express how much I revere Holst.  Please, if you have some free time, listen to the following clip below.  It is the "Jupiter: the Bringer of Jollity" movement from his orchestral suite, The Planets.  It is one of the most exciting and emotional pieces of music that I know of.  Just watch how crazy the conductor gets...I would probably do the same.




On this date in 1953, KUHT in Houston became the first public television station to broadcast in the US.  Public TV exposed me to opera for the first time, as well as some awesome kids shows.  Anyone remember David the Gnome?



Did anyone notice that they spelled "medicine" wrong?

Today is the 50th Anniversary of President Kennedy announcing our intent to land a man on the moon before the end of the decade.  Believe it or not, there is an opera called Man on the Moon by Johnathan Dove.  I haven't looked at the music at all, but it is very obviously a Minimalist composition. (click here to read a past blog post describing Minimalism - skip to the "Nixon in China" part.) Here are some clips...it's actually pretty entertaining.







And on a similar note, on this day in 1977, Star Wars was released.  Its actual description is a "space opera" and on a special note, the composer who wrote the music to Star Wars, John Williams, sponsors a scholarship through the Kansas City Vocal Institute.  There is a currently a touring show called "Star Wars: In Concert", that is essentially an orchestral concert of the Star Wars music.  Watch the exciting opening "movement" of the concert.

TODAY IN OPERA HISTORY - May 24

Happy Birthday to the late, great Duke Ellington.  Take a listen at one of my favorite recordings of his - the Duke is on the piano, but the bass is the best part.  It is simple and clean, but a lot more interesting (musically that is) than most of his Big Band stuff.



With that said, the Big Band stuff sure is a lot of fun though.  I'm sure everyone out there knows this piece.



But what does the Duke have to do with opera history?  Well, his father was an operatic singer.  And, relatively recently, opera houses have performed his unfinished opera Queenie Pie.  I couldn't find a recording of it, and I think only one is in existence, but I did find a flip video of the recording session of one of the movements, "New York, New York" (no, it's not the one you're thinking of).  I found it on a Turkish video site - CLICK HERE TO WATCH - but on the screen before you watch it, it asks some simple poll questions in Turkish.  Just randomly click an answer and it will play the video.

Today marks the 155th anniversary of the Pottawatomie Massacre.  If you have already forgotten your U.S. history from High School, this was when John Brown killed five settlers near Pottawatomie Creek in Kansas for participating in William Quantrill's burning of Lawrence.  John Brown was an abolitionist and tried to make "Bleeding Kansas" a free state when it entered the Union.  Of course all of this lead to the American Civil War.  But this has opera connections as well with Kirke Mechem's opera John Brown, which made its world premiere at the Kansas City Lyric Opera a few years ago.  This is a video of the Texas All-State Choir performing a rendition of one of the movements "Dan-u-el".  Beware, there are many annoying choral crescendos and sforzandos, where the choir begins loud, then immediately drops to a hush and follows by making a massive crescendo.  When will conductors realize that this sounds corny?



The first telegraph message was sent on this day in 1844, "WHAT HATH GOD WROUGHT" (quoting Numbers 23:23) from the old Supreme Court room at the US Capitol in Washington to the train depot in Baltimore.  Almost unrelated is the British news journal, the Telegraph, which has a great opera twitter feed http://twitter.com/#!/telegraphopera

The Brooklyn Bridge was opened on this day in 1883.  It was the muse for Arthur Miller's Play "A view from the Bridge", which was turned into an opera by William Bolcom - who is a donor and sponsor of several scholarships for my music organization, the Kansas City Vocal Institute.  The opera has played in many of the world's most acclaimed houses including the Chicago Lyric, the Metropolitan Opera, and Teatro dell'Opera di Roma.

And finally, continuing on a week honoring many great German singers, one of the greatest German sopranos, Anneliese Rothenberger, died on this day last year.