Simon Says...

I have certainly had the most amazing week so far.  Last Saturday, I began singing with the Simon Carrington Chamber Singers - for most of the world, that's a big "so what!"

Well, it has been one of the most interesting music experiences of my life.  First, this is a small professional choir.  Its purpose is to record an album this week with singers from all over the nation and world.  Boy am I lucky, they just happen to record in Kansas City - the group is as diverse as possible, but the sound is incredible.  It certainly is amazing.

From the get go, it is clearly apparent that this recording is ultimately important - I expect that they will want to submit it for recording awards and such.  But, Simon Carrington is a sweet genius.  He is an amazing person with a great attitude and bright English accent, but he is to the point - his rehearsals are premeditated and intense in all the best ways.  We begin with careful but difficult warm-ups challenging perfect intervals - to any Joe Schmo, most wouldn't be able to tell the difference between perfect and horrible, but pitch accuracy is vital and just the slightest problems will be noticed in a group like this.

Our rehearsals are long, and frankly, I was not in the least bit pleased with myself after the first rehearsal.  It was apparent that the other singers, all super-professional singers and choristers, were better prepared for the situation than I was - I spent hours Saturday night practicing; ironing out my problems.  Yesterday and today have been a blast however and I don't think many singers would believe the detail that has been discussed such as:

A group of perfectly tuned 4ths and 5ths descending and ascending in parallel motion were not staying in tune with a held high G by the sopranos in a John Corigliano piece.  The problem is that descending perfectly tuned 4ths and 5ths will be flatter than equal temperament because of physics - so we have to purposefully tweak the 4ths and 5ths in very precise ways to make it sound correct.  One person described the problem as "we're singing a B sharp instead of a C" - let that screw with your mind.

Other problematic details include finding your note in a piece opening in a cluster chord, without an opening pitch; which ethnic dialect of Latin to use; the precise length and intensity of a breath, the letter "f", a crescendo, the glottal mechanism for beginning on a vowel, and even our facial reactions (which effect the brightness of the sound).  All of these are controlled to a precise detail and it is incredible to work with such amazing musicians who can pull off the most impressive tasks.

We even have sound technicians in the room yelling at us, even personally at times, what we did wrong and why, all to a very small detail.  If you are a singer, these experiences will teach you so much about discipline in making art - if perfection is ideal, it takes people like this to at least attempt it convincingly.  So, with that said, we will soon have an album to release, and we will have a concert on Friday at the beautiful Episcopal Cathedral in KC (at 7:30) as well as a concert on Saturday at Corpus Christi Church in Lawrence (at 7:30).  We are also recording for NPR today, and Simon will be in a live interview on Kansas Public Radio at 11:00am on Thursday.  I hope you are able to hear us live!

On a different topic, I was able to get a private hearing of the organ at Helzberg Hall at the Kauffman Center from a good friend, Jan Kraybill, who is its caretaker.  It was amazing, an elevator takes you right up into the middle of the organ pipes.  You must walk through the pipes and wood planks winding their way out to the console which overlooks the beautiful hall.  And the sound was startling - I was so excited I laughed uncontrollably through Saint-Saens.  Thank you Jan for the amazing opportunity!

Eclipsed

If you missed it last night, there was a magnificent solar eclipse across much of the US.  My wife and I went out to watch it at sunset and it was amazing.  My dad captured some of these amazing images.  Pictures are incredible, but it is such an amazing sight in person!

Since my last update - I have been "vacationing" at home, learning TONS of music.  Some of it will be amazing music, and some of it is really frustrating and annoying to learn, but that is the life of a musician.

But before I get to that I must first mention that last week one of the most significant classical singers in history died: Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau. He was a baritone who is universally recognized as the greatest lieder singer in history. For those who don't know, "lied" is German for "song", and in classical music, lieder are German art songs. Here is one of the most glorious songs in music history - Der Erlkönig - music by Schubert, poem by Goethe about a sick boy being carried by his father on horseback as they race home. During the ride, the boy sees and experiences images and sounds that the father does not. In the end the boy screams that he's being attacked by an Elf King.  When the father reaches home he finds that the boy is dead. The song is very exciting, you hear the horse galloping in the piano, and the singer must play the part of the boy, father, and narrator - at times quickly going between the three.

This week, as I have mentioned, I have a lot of music to learn! I am preparing to make a recording with the Simon Carrington Chamber Singers next week, and we will have several live performances in the area as well. If you don't know, Simon Carrington is one of the most influential choral conductors in the world, and I am THRILLED to be part of his professional choir - a handful of singers have flown in from all across the US to do this, and we have high hopes for the recording!

I am also planning the 34th Summer Choral Institute which begins June 3 at Kansas State University. It will certainly be the best Institute ever, and the students and staff are absolutely incredible. SCI is a summer program for gifted high school Sophomore and Junior singers. They come from across the US to make music, sing in concerts and recitals, and train at the highest professional level for one week every summer. Students who were accepted received a full scholarship to attend, courtesy of K-State and The Master Teacher Institute for the Arts. It is one of the most amazing weeks of my year!

I am also learning my role for an opera in Pennsylvania late next month. I will have much more about that as the time nears, however this weekend is the annual Celebration at the Station here in KC. Last year, I was SHOCKED that 60,000 people attended this outdoor symphony concert of Americana, fireworks, canons, etc. in the area between the National World War I Memorial and Union Station in KC. If you are in the area and decide to come, you will find me and wife and some friends on the lawn with a cooler full of beer, watching the events - classical music would be more popular if tailgating were a vital part of its tradition.

Finally, last week I surprised my mom for Mother's Day by driving 4.5 hours to their home. They were renovating their house, so I helped move all kinds of furniture. While I was there, I filmed my puppy Kiah doing her tricks.