Opera Singing in Germany and other adventures....

This evening I saw a very thought-provoking film called "Farming in the Millstone Valley" which was about the Farm-to-Table movement and how it helps farming in this region of New Jersey to be sustainable. This means that the farmers who are farming here are making enough money to live on, so that they can offer healthy and organic alternatives, even when their largest competitors are large grocery store chains. Afterward I got to thinking about how this same concept might apply to living life as a singer and I had some realizations that I'd like to share with you. There are many ways that singers can live their lives more sustainably, which in turn will help their wallets, time management, and overall productivity. The following is a list that I came up with as a starting point, though I am sure that there are many ways which I'm not yet aware of that you can boost your productivity while still caring for the earth, your community, and your bottom line. Theref...

I write to you all after having just finished watching the movie titled "Awake: the Life of Yogananda". I have been profoundly impacted by this film and its interconnectedness to singing. More specifically, I was delighted, although somehow not surprised, to see that Amelita Galli-Curci, a very famous Italian opera singer in the early 1900's, was a visitor to Swami Yogananda's school in Los Angeles, California. The film shows that his teachings completely changed her approach to her own singing and benefited her not only psychologically but also heightened and improved her vocal abilities. This doesn't surprise me because I believe, as a singer, that we are drawn to discovering life's deep truths. We singers are called to tell stories that can uncover pathways into opening the hearts and minds of our listeners in order to positively change them and their views on life and their fellow human beings. When you sing for a living, you are inextricably bound to del...

So I was lucky enough to recently have had vocal troubles. I know, I know- sounds not so lucky. But, behold! It was. Because my vocal troubles were really minimal, actually. It started rather slowly and then got worse; I was often a bit hoarse after singing (either after an hour-long coaching of Opera Arias, or after 2 hours of private practice at home) and I knew that that wasn't normal. So off to the ENT Doctor (Ear, Nose and Throat, or in Germany they are called HNO which stands for Hals, Nasen, Ohren- the same as in English, just "auf Deutsch") I went. And luckily for me, here in Munich there is a ENT that works in the Klinikum Rechts der Isar, which is run by the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (for those non-German speakers- the Hospital on the right side of the Isar [River], which is run by the Technical University of Munich) who works in a department of the hospital which was specifically designed to treat Musicians' injuries. Cool, right? They often deal wi...

For the New Year I wanted to offer you all some of my 'essential' products for a singer's life, so I've made a list of some things that I simply cannot live without. And no, in case you were wondering, I'm not being paid or compensated in any way to endorse these products. I merely like them enough to want to share their awesomeness with the world, and with you, dear Reader. Although I wouldn't mind having a lifetime supply of some of these things...and neither will you, once you try them! So, happy reading and happy finding new favorite go-to products for yourself or the singer who is dear to you. 1.) Burt's Bees Lozenges ( http://www.burtsbees.com/product/natural-throat-drops%3A-honey/01441-00.html ) Especially when Winter is in full force and we are plagued by dry air from indoor heating on full blast, having a lozenge in my purse or coat pocket at all times is essential. I especially like these because they don't have any high fructose corn syr...

Dear fellow singing friends and professionals, I was awakened a few weeks ago by a few very unsavory experiences to the fact that it might be a good thing for me to talk about the Ethics of being a Professional Opera Singer. Before I start, I would like to say that I welcome all of your thoughts about this topic, so if after you've read my post you feel there's something to add, please do share it in the comments section below! It's certainly possible that these principles of professional ethics apply equally well to other industries, but I'll forge ahead with their relevance to being a singer, specifically. As a professional Opera singer who hasn't yet had her "big break" (a.k.a. a contract singing at an 'A-level' Opera house OR really any job which would allow me to actually earn a living wage from my singing in a year's time), I still feel it of the utmost importance for me to be "ethically professional" because I believe that...

Well, hello all! Welcome to another Thursday morning, just like any other really, except for the nagging guilt of my taking time off of cadenza research and instead writing this blog post for you! Why do I write today, you ask? Does it have to do with the cacophonous collision of c's in the title of this blog post? Why yes, yes it does. My, aren't you awake this morning! Currently I find myself in a 'Groundhog Day' of sorts. One which was created by the dreaded task that faces all singers sooner or later, and especially those of my particular voice type: Coloratura Sopranos. Ha!- as if it wasn't enough that we have to sing the dang things, someone still decided to rub it in by naming our variety of Soprano by the very thing that is currently making me look for excuses to clean the house, namely, coloratura cadenzas. Coming up with cadenzas with coloratura passages that ultimately show off your voice but also 'fit' the style of the music is something that ...

As a singer, I try to avoid getting sick. I'm not talking about life-threatening illnesses, I'm talking about your everyday colds that turn into sinus infections, Bronchitis, the Flu, Strep Throat, Laryngitis, and those sorts of sicknesses. Of course you probably try to avoid it too, since we all know that being sick and singing don't really mix well, plus it's generally not fun. In the best case your voice will sound a bit strange and it will be uncomfortable to sing, and in the worse case you won't be able to produce a proper singing tone sometimes for days or even weeks! That's why we as singers all DO NOT want to get sick. Though, there are certainly ways to try to avoid getting sick in the first place, I'd like to use this blog post to talk about what you can do when you're already sick and have to sing (for a rehearsal or a performance) and how to make the best of a bad situation, AND what tricks of the trade can help you to recover quicker. ...

So earlier today I read this article  titled "So You Want to Be An Opera Singer" on Huffington Post, which I saw advertised in Opera America's Newsletter.  Even though I had never heard of the article's author, I thought to myself, "That's no big deal- this field is huge! Maybe he has something really helpful to say." Well, I was way off!  And utterly disappointed after reading the article, I might add. The reason why I am taking up your time and mine right now to write a post about said article must make you wonder though, right? Of course. The answer as to why I'd choose to examine such a generalized piece of journalism such as this is because I simply can no longer stand idly by and do nothing as I have in the past. Previously I may have believed that because I was "still a student" or "hadn't gotten my first meaningful and noteworthy professional gig yet" meant that I wasn't qualified to talk about these subjects wi...

This past Tuesday I had my first German Opera House audition!  I was asked at the last minute by a colleague who worked there to audition for a role they're looking to cast next season and which I sing, and have sung for this colleague in an audition before.  (Sorry, I can't be any more specific with names because I don't want to jinx it.)  Honestly, I was really lucky to have been asked to audition since normally these sorts of things don't happen unless you have an agent who knows about the vacancy which the theater is looking to fill, and then sends you there, and actually, all of the other singers who were there to audition had agencies.  So, I was quite overjoyed to have been invited, to say the least. However, sticking to the point- I'd like to relate what the experience was like. I heard of the audition on a Friday and the audition itself was taking place on Tuesday of the following week, so in four days.  That really didn't give me a whole lot of tim...

I recently auditioned for a medium-sized Opera house here in Germany for a position in the chorus (simply because I thought- well, at least then during my search for some professional solo work, I could have some money, and perhaps also an introduction to important people in the Opera house, e.g. the Stage Director, Conductor, etc...).  Contrary to my perceptions about chorus auditions, it seemed like the theater had made many preparations and considered this audition just as important as any solo auditions would be (as they organized everything really effectively and kept strict tabs on whether or not everyone was able to meet with the pianist to rehearse and also had private time to warm-up).  Therefore, I felt confident that I would be chosen (to put it honestly) because I figured, well if you're working on a solo career, then you'd certainly be good enough for the opera chorus (don't hate me Opera chorus members!) just by sheer technical skill and experience. I arrive...

I think that it's about time that I get to the nitty-gritty of what things were like for me in terms of rehearsal schedule and working environment for the 5 weeks that I spent in Bad Orb, don't you?  And for those of you who have insatiable curiosity about these sorts of things, if I haven't answered all of your questions by the end of this post, feel free to leave your questions below in the comments section.  Therefore, on to the crux of the matter! The rehearsal schedule that I experienced in Bad Orb, Germany while I was working on the role of Rosine in Der Barbier von Sevilla  was quite unlike anything that I had heretofore experienced in America.  Of course we did the same sorts of things during rehearsals (staging, musical rehearsing, tightening up ensemble singing, acting, etc..) but we did it at totally different times than what I am used to from the programs in which I had previously take part in the states.  To be more specific, here was a normal day...

This past weekend my colleagues and I sang in a concert located in the neighboring town of Gelnhausen  The concert served to promote the upcoming Opernakademie performance of Rossini's Barber of Seville, and to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the founding of the Opernakademie Bad Orb, and all the hard work and dedication that has gone into producing successful summer Opera performances year after year.  Since 1986 in July and August international emerging artists come to Bad Orb specifically because of its wonderful reputation for putting on quality performances, allowing younger singers to sing important roles for future use in developing their career, and its well-known capacity for acting as a platform from which these emerging artists receive opportunities to take on larger projects at important opera houses in Germany and internationally. Therefore, there was quite a lot to celebrate at this past Saturday's concert, and we all had a wonderful time, however, as is no...