Back to Work - Learning Life

Upon returning to the states, I had an overwhelming media schedule from newspaper reports, to radio interviews, television appearances, speaking engagements, but most of all, I had to catch up on all the lessons that I missed while in Russia.  As I write this (February of 2015), reflecting on the events of 2014, I can't help but also mention all that I missed writing about in 2013.

Partly due to my own insecurities, it was a difficult two years to be a public person.  I dealt with severe depression, divorce, the rather violent death of a friend, coming out of the closet (while afraid to be "out" in Russia - a notoriously horrible location for LGBT folk), and several rounds of discriminatory actions against me that left me quite helpless to address.   All the while, I had a crazy international performance schedule, trips to the Emmy's and Grammy's, being offered a professorship (at the age of 27!), the Olympic experience, and other surprises like being named Distinguished Kansan of the Year last year by the Topeka Capital Journal.  It was a strange time to describe and live, and I was terrified of dealing with some of these issues in the public light.  It was impossible to avoid being a public person.

So, having settled into a "new normal"  I want to take you through some of the moments that have dotted the last few months.

These balloons greeted me upon my arrival back at K-State on my office door - "Welcome Home Dr. Pinkall"

My new boyfriend Patrick and I visit the Varsity Donut food truck in Manhattan, KS (a foodie's dream!)

Patrick and I take little vacations nearly every week.  Here we are at the top of the Liberty Memorial at the National World War I Museum overlooking Kansas City.

A visit to Kansas City's Union Station

My rather successful attempt at making my Volga German family's favorite dessert - Kuchen - pronounced by them as "Kooguh"

An hilarious hate mail letter sent to me from a pro-Russian person obviously angry that I commented on my poor treatment while in Sochi

A day in the park in Kansas City

On a trip to Western Kansas to teach a masterclass, I stopped in Victoria, KS at the Basilica of the Plains

A purple evening sky in Spring overlooking Anderson Hall at K-State

Celebration at the Station LIVE

Watch the outdoor concert at Union Station in Kansas City tonight (Sunday, May 27) at 7:30pm CT.  Tens of thousands of people gather for this special Symphony concert of Americana, fireworks, and cannons.  This PBS broadcast will be shown nationally on July 4th.  WATCH LIVE TONIGHT 7:30!

An Operatic Christmas Wishlist

I know I am a little late this week, but I wanted to throw some Christmas gift ideas out there for any opera lovers in your lives.  This week and next week, I will have five unique gifts.

1. Renee Fleming's album "Dark Hope".  Renee is one of the world's greatest opera singers, but last year she produced a pop album, singing remakes of famous pop songs.  Here is the closing track, Hallelujah - which was made famous by Leonard Cohen.

Renee Fleming - Hallelujahfound onChillout

There's not much I can say as far as a critique is concerned, because it isn't performed with intent of great vocal virtuosity, as are most pop songs.  Essentially, if you are entertained, then she did a good job in my opinion.  And, I really like this song.  You may remember, and I certainly do, that this song was sung as the "song of peace" at the 2010 Olympic Opening Ceremony.  I cannot play the video from the broadcast, but here is a home video from it.

Anyway, Renee certainly doesn't get as vocally involved as what many pop singers would, but the album is somewhat interesting for those who love and know her voice.  HOWEVER, don't be confused that I am hinting that I want this for Christmas.  I am certainly content with Renee's PBS Christmas specials.

2.  Perhaps I'm biased but these T-Shirts based on Kansas City's Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts are pretty awesome.

3.  Japan has a new trend! - which is great for us in America because we certainly need more things to laugh about in these gloomy times.  Behold - Pro Voice Pills!  They cost about $2.50 and contain Magnesium and Malic Acid - commonly found in Apple Juice.  On the onset, most singers would say, "oh! that makes sense" since many blindly revere Apples as a kind of wonder fruit for singing.  HOWEVER, this sweet-tart-flavored pill also, evidently, makes your throat slightly numb, thereby calming your throat and nourishing your body to create a great singing voice.  Numbing is a big no-no.  Pain is a good thing, because it tells you when you are going too far.  If you can't tell that, you can easily injure your voice.  Nonetheless, I'm sure - as many people often debate against me when it comes to "old wives' tales" - it's all in their heads.  I tend to rely on science when it comes to debating, and I am fairly certain that if anyone has any benefit from this, it must either be from a placebo effect or because they enjoy losing arguments.  This would be a great gift for those in your family who are musically challenged - however, they will likely try to sing if you give it to them...on second thought, be sure you have a glass of wine first so you can bear the torture.

4.  Pavarotti is for sale at the Haven on Earth Animal League in Fort Myers, FL http://capecoral.ebayclassifieds.com/cats-kittens/fort-myers/domestic-short-hair-black-and-white-pavarotti-medium/?ad=14191707

5.  I'm not trying to be pretentious (I just am) but I really want a "no coughing sign" to hold up during performances.  It would be ideal if it would light up so I can just hold it up while an aria is sung, so the old guy hacking in the back that doesn't want to be at the opera anyway would kindly leave so I could at least hear one whole phrase!  

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Last weekend I was privileged  to perform at the Kansas City Southern Railroad's winter ball at the beautiful Union Station in Kansas City.  Here are some pictures from the event.  The place is gigantic, like a capitol building, and echos about as intensely.  I performed some Christmas carols with two other singers, and sang a solo Ave Maria - sadly, the Schubert version...Bach/Gounod is my favorite, but I couldn't find the right key as I was looking for it at the last minute.

The place and event were gorgeous, as you would expect with brass choir, string quintet, opera singers, a red carpet with a bouncer.  The appetizers were set out along an enormous ice train sculpture (as seen below).  They had giant shrimp, crab claws, and oysters.  Oh, and for a plate, a giant seashell...how cool is that?  I only was able to have the appetizers, but it appeared as if they had bottomless wine!  I was jealous.

Busyness Business

Hopefully everyone had a great time looking at my Basilio pictures.  And for your entertainment (and my embarrassment) here is yet another one from my facebook page.

I had several muses for the role, including a friendly drag queen and Jack Sparrow.

Hopefully, I will now be able to retire this character.  Where are all the heroic tenor roles?  I once had to play the role of a Rhinestone Cowboy in a Pasatieri opera.  I suppose I just give off some weird vibes in my opera auditions.

Anyway, I am very thankful to have a week free to celebrate Thanksgiving, watch football, and relax.  I haven't talked very much about my upcoming schedule, but it is packed with all kinds of awesome things.

YOU CAN CLICK HERE TO SEE MY FULL SCHEDULE

Once again, I have several auditions in New York next week.  I am trying to get them all during the same period so I don't have to make too many trips out there.  My schedule is packed as it is.  Anyway, for this trip, the companies that I received invitations from are New Jersey Opera, Saratoga Opera, Pine Mountain Opera, and (tentatively) Opera North.

Following that, I will be the tenor soloist in Messiah at Calvary Bible College on December 2 in Kansas City. I am so lucky to be just the kind of tenor that Messiah was meant for.  I have a feeling that I will have a lifetime of Christmas and Easter Messiah productions.  Luckily, I really enjoying singing the tenor arias, unlike many tenors.  The Baroque period was very unkind to tenors...the castrati ruined everything!

Also at the beginning of December, I will be singing with the Conservatory Choirs in their Christmas festival concert at Visitation Catholic Church on December 3rd.  We will use this unique space to sing some antiphonal pieces.

On the evening of the 10th of December, I have been asked to sing at the holiday party for a major American railroad company at Union Station in Kansas City.  I will sing some classical holiday selections in what will be an incredible venue for music, as the cavernous marble-laden lobby will certainly echo music like an enormous cathedral would.

The following day, December 11, I will be singing a Lessons and Carols concert with the Spire Symphonic Chorus at the Community of Christ Peace Temple, which is one of the most amazing music venues that I know of.  The concert will feature one of my good friends and certainly one of the world's greatest organists, Jan Kraybill.

On December 13, I am very excited for a special audition for the Kansas City Symphony that I was generously offered.  I don't have much to say about it right now other than it requires my Cyrillic Alphabet reading skills.

The following weekend, I will be singing with the Kansas City Symphony and the Kansas City Symphony Chorus in their Christmas Festival.  It will certainly be a blast and DON'T MISS IT IF YOU LIVE IN THE AREA!  There are many performances, and it will get you in the Christmas spirit.  Of course, this concert will be in Helzberg Hall at the beautiful Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts.

Additionally, I will be a soloist for a couple of concerts with the Village Symphony and Chorus on December 18 in their "Tidings of Joy" Christmas festival.  As you can see, if you need to get some extra Christmas spirit in you, just hang out with me!!  Unfortunately, I can get a little grouchy, scroogey, and grinchy with my life being a near endless stream of Christmas music.  (It can become annoying in a way...similar to how I can't ever figure out the words to Wooly Bully, and then it gets stuck in my head because I like the tune, which means I have to whistle it, all the while I still can't figure out the words, and frustration ensues.)  Christmas music so easily gets stuck in my head, partly because it is enjoyable or perhaps it is just simple and catchy, and becomes annoying over a long period of time if that is all that I can think about!  Nevertheless, I hope to see you in the audience, as these concerts will be a lot of fun!

I will soon have a lot more to say about my schedule for next year.  I am performing a recital in January dedicated to the memory of those lost in the Soviet genocide of the Volga Germans 70 years ago, featuring a new song cycle based on Volga German folk tunes written by composer John Mueter especially for this occasion.  I am so thankful for the work that he produced, and the enthusiasm that he had for writing this. And the day before the recital, I will be a soloist in a Bach cantata back at the beautiful Visitation church. 

In February, I will be singing with the Kansas City Symphony Chorus at the Kauffman Center in their production of Mahler's Second and I will be singing with the Conservatory Choirs later that month in a production of Carmina Burana also at the Kauffman Center.  

In March, I will be Don Jose in La tragedie de Carmen at the Conservatory, and then competing at the regional NATSAA competition in Chicago.  

In April, I will be singing with the Conservatory Symphony and Choir in a production of Chen Yi's Chinese Myths at the Kauffman Center and I will be a soloist for a production of the Pulitzer Prize winning composition The Little Match Girl Passion at Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral in Kansas City.

And finally, I will be singing in a world premiere of a new Libby Moyer comic opera in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania for Capitol Opera at the Whitacre Center in June.

Next week, I will have information about the celebrities participating in this year's KCVI Celebrity Auction! I'm so excited to tell you all about it, but I'll hold you in suspense until then.

Remembering...

Last night, my wife and I went to Celebration at the Station in Kansas City.  And it was so incredibly awesome, that we have decided to make it an annual tradition.  Essentially it was a classical patriotic concert, with over 60,000 people packing a quarter-mile swath from the amazing Union Station, to the National WWI Museum.  Plus, the weather was nice!   I really can't describe it, or how big it was, but it was certainly the largest outdoor classical concert that I've ever been to.  And, it made me very proud to be in Kansas City.  The music culture of this place is great.  This was a huge event after all; I only see PBS specials like this from Vienna, New York, or Washington D.C.  The architecture is amazing; we visited Union Station for the first time and it's beautiful - certainly in the same kind of majesty as New York's or D.C.'s Grand Central Stations.  Plus the WWI monument is great as well.

As you watch this, you cannot really tell the distances between the stage and WWI monument because of a small cliff in the middle of the lawn, but they are a quarter-mile away from each other.  Below is the playing of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture.  Some musicians think this piece is corny (the canon firings in this piece are actually written in the music) but I think it is incredibly exciting!  Oddly enough, it is a piece glorifying Napoleon's defeat to the Russians.  It has nothing to do with America.

It is of course Memorial Day.  Please sit up in your chairs, take your Brunhilde horned helmets off, and observe a caesura in remembrance of the opera stars who have been chosen by the Valkyries to spend the afterlife in Operatic Valahalla.

In chronological order beginning Memorial Day of 2010. (Age at death)

Giuseepe Taddei (93), Christine Johnson (98), Giacinto Prandelli (96), Maureen Forrester (79), Peter Sliker (86), Cesare Siepi (87), Luo Pinchao (98), Laszlo Polgar (63), Dolores Wilson (82), Ulrik Cold (71), Richard T. Gill (82), Shirley Verrett (79), Peter Hofmann (66), Gianna Galli (75), Armando Chin Yong (53), Antonin Svorc (77), Robert Tear (72), Donald Shanks (70), Anthony Rolfe Johnson (69), Dame Joan Sutherland (83), Roxana Briban (39), Hugues Cuenod (108), Frances Ginsberg (55), Solange Michel (98), Helen Boatwright (94), Dame Margaret Price (69), Sona Aslanova (86), Vincenzo La Scola (53), Alda Noni (95)

Deaths of note - how appropriate for opera

Roxana Briban (39) - Romanian opera singer, committed suicide.  She was a very famous soprano, who starred on many of the main stages in Europe.  Her death was also a world-famous tragedy that played out on facebook.  On the day of her suicide she posted to her facebook page a disturbing youtube clip of herself singing "Addio del passato" (so closes my sad story) from Traviata. It is Violetta's aria right before she dies from disease. Click Here to Watch.  But that's not the shocking part, her last facebook profile picture was a picture of her bloody hand (from an opera production I'm assuming). Click Here to See.  She died several hours after posting this by cutting her wrists.

Dame Joan Sutherland (83) - Australian soprano, died of heart failure. One of the most celebrated opera singers in history.

Hugues Cuenod (108) - Swiss tenor.  He was the oldest person to debut at the Metropolitan Opera when he sang the role of the Emporer in Turandot in 1987.

Vincenzo La Scola (53) - Italian tenor, died of a heart attack.  He was one of the world's leading operatic tenors who sang at most of the world's most prestigious houses including the Met and La Scala.