Levine

This is hardly the Jimmy I knew. Full of life. Teaching me my scores in The Cleveland Institute of Music Coffee Room. However, Jimmy 70, me 65. Both ill.

Comeback review.

 http://tinyurl.com/mogkzvt

Financial Times / Arts / May 21, 2013
MET Orchestra / Levine
Carnegie Hall, New York
MARTIN BERNHEIMER

It was hardly business as usual when the MET Orchestra visited Carnegie Hall on Sunday afternoon. James Levine was back.

The beloved overachiever, now nearing his 70th birthday, has conducted 2,441 performances (an unprecedented record) with the Metropolitan Opera – essentially /his/ Metropolitan Opera. Still, he has been missing from action since May, 2011, and many  observers sadly feared New York had seen the last of him. After all, he has endured an alarming series of ailments, illnesses, accidents and surgeries. For most impractical purposes, he is now confined to a wheelchair.

It is, however, no ordinary wheelchair. It is a customised, motorised wheelchair. On this happy – OK, delirious – occasion, he drove it slowly from the wings to a special podium equipped with an elevator. Two aides helped him ascend. The capacity audience greeted him, of course, with a standing ovation, and for once the mass gesture was genuinely appropriate.

If all goes as hoped, Levine will preside over three operas next season at Lincoln Center plus three more Carnegie Hall programmes. Hope springs internal.

He has never been a particularly histrionic maestro and, it is said, he usually reserves his essential emoting for rehearsals. But here he seemed remarkably agitated, leading his devoted followers with sweeping gestures and generous cues. The results, despite a few pardonably rough ensemble edges, were often rousing, always poignant.

The festivities began with a shimmering performance of the Lohengrin prelude, a nice nod to Wagner on the occasion of his 200th birthday. The festivities ended with the massive stresses and heroic sprawl of Schubert’s 9th Symphony, played with taut propulsion, abiding grace and dynamic flair.

In between, Levine served as a sensitive partner for Evgeny Kissin in Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4. The poetic firebrand, impetuous yet introspective, received, and deserved, a standing ovation of his own. He responded with a lengthy encore, raging through the riotous Beethoven rondo best known as Rage Over a Lost Penny.

This was a celebration.

2. 

   Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau

   Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau was a German lyric baritone and conductor of classical music, one of the most famous Lieder performers of the post-war period, described as "one of the supreme vocal artists of ...

   Born: May 28, 1925, Berlin Died: May 18, 2012, Bavaria Last album: Winterreise (feat. baritone: Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, piano: Alfred Brendel) Albums: Schubert: Winterreise, Op.89 (D911),More Movies: Schubert: Winterreise, More Spouse: Julia Varady (m. 1978), More

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

   

A Voice Apart

It Could Be, Very Much So, A Life Altering Experience.

For the almost three decades of the Royans Professional Vocal School's existence, I've been attending to people of all walks of life -- all heights, weights, colours and genders.
Needless to say, some of them had more vocal talents than others; and some did not have any at all.
But all of them, evidently, wanted to express themselves through music.
Some of them came purely for singing lessons; some of them had other agendas.
A lot of them were trying to find themselves through the means of music and singing, as some of them were lacking their own identity.

The voice is an expression of a person's being. It is also an identification of who that person is.
Throughout my practice, I have sometimes pictured the person completely differently while talking to them on the phone.
Sometimes, for example, I wasn't quite sure if I was speaking with a woman or a man.
Those people, have been experiencing the most problems.

The women with extremely low and raspy voices, were sounding like males with a cold.
The men, with high soprano-like voices, were sounding like teenage girls.
I found that especially the above-decribed people, were extremely shy and timid, and needless to say, were lacking a great deal of confidence.
Interestingly enough, all of them thought that singing lessons would solve their problems, while in reality, they needed in depth speech development which would bring their voices, and their body in general, into much more balance.

By the way, by my observation, the above-described people usually do not possess an outstanding singing talent.
It does not however, mean that they will never be able to sing. But it means that their priority should be the proper speech and the proper conduct of their body and its posture.
They need to learn how to speak with conviction, clearly, and coherently.

My extensive experience shows that when I apply the Vocal Science™ method on one's voice, the total balance does occur.
Those who spoke with higher voices developed a bass underneath that voice. And yes, it may still be a little on the higher side, but it will sound like a male with a little bit higher voice, and not like a female.
Females on the other hand, will sound much more feminine, and will also be identified immediately as women with a little bit of a lower voice, which sometimes could pass for a desirable, sexy voice.

Now that the identity crisis is over, it is time to learn how to sing if it is so desired.
Now it will be so much easier, as the solid foundation has been laid via specially designed speech exercises and scripts.
The wholesome mechanism, which allows the voice to work in the fullest capacity possible, and with no pain or strain on the vocal anatomy, has been instilled in one's mind, body and soul.
The voice has been built and now is ready to soar, speaking and singing.
The instrument -- and the player -- are both transformed and ready.

BSO

The Boston Symphony Orchestra announced Thursday morning Andris Nelsons would become the 15th music director in the BSO’s 132-year history.

The long-awaited announcement came more than three years after James Levine last took the podium. The renowned conductor’s tenure with the BSO was marred by injuries and health problems that forced him to step down officially in September 2011.

Nelsons, speaking by phone from Amsterdam, where he’s conducting the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, said he hopes to look for an apartment later this summer and is thrilled to be coming to Boston. “Of course, I’m very obsessed with music most,” he said. “I think it’s very important to be part of the Boston society and the people who live in Boston. I always feel that music is food for our souls and they will be hungry and continue to be part of the Boston Symphony Orchestra family.”

News of the appointment was given by chairman of the BSO Board of Trustees Ted Kelly, BSO Board of Trustees Vice Chairs Stephen B. Kay and Robert O’Block, and BSO Managing Director Mark. A statement released by the BSO noted that at 34 years old, Andris Nelsons is the youngest music director to lead the Boston Symphony Orchestra in over 100 years; he is also the first Latvian-born conductor to take on the post.

Nelsons was quoted in the statement: “I am deeply honored and touched that the Boston Symphony Orchestra has appointed me its next music director, as it is one of the highest achievements a conductor could hope for in his lifetime. Each time I have worked with the BSO I have been inspired by how effectively it gets to the heart of the music, always leaving its audience with a great wealth of emotions. So it is with great joy that I truly look forward to joining this wonderful musical family and getting to know the beautiful city of Boston and the community that so clearly loves its great orchestra. As I consider my future with the Boston Symphony, I imagine us working closely together to bring the deepest passion and love that we all share for music to ever greater numbers of music fans in Boston, at Tanglewood, and throughout the world.”

Nelsons will step in as BSO music director designate for the BSO’s 2013-14 season, making his first appearance in that official capacity Oct. 17-19. The program will include Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll, Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 25 in C, with soloist Paul Lewis, and Brahms’s Symphony No. 3; he returns to the BSO podium on March 6, 2014 to lead a performance of Strauss’s Salome.

This summer, Nelsons will conduct at the Tanglewood Music Center, leading the BSO and Tanglewood Festival Chorus in a performance of Verdi’s monumental Requiem on July 27. His wife, Kristīne Opolais, will sing the solo soprano role.

Nelsons is the third youngest conductor to be appointed BSO music director since the orchestra’s founding in 1881: Georg Henschel was 31 when he became the orchestra’s first music director in 1881, and Arthur Nikisch was 33 when he opened his first season with the orchestra in 1889.

What is Verismo?

The topic of "what is verismo" has been discussed from time to time on this forum. It's a subject that has fascinated me for more than 60 years. Re-reading "The Puccini Companion" edited by William Weaver and Simonetta Puccini, I find this most interesting explanation (p.269): "Since the first successes by … Mascagni ('Cavalleria rusticana,' 1890), … Leoncavallo ('Pagliacci,' 1890), and Puccini ('Manon Lescaut,' 1893), the dramatic code of so-called verismo was fixed An almost unilinear musical structure that accompanied the action by way of psychological comment corresponded to the direct expression of the characters' emotions. The characters were psychologically differentiated, the temporal structure of the action followed the natural flow of time as closely as possible, and all the scenic apparatus was aimed at the maximum identification of the audience with the characters onstage and with their actions and reactions. There were many examples of this kind of theater - which Puccini managed to develop, diminishing the directness of its scenic effects and the immediacy of its hold on the audience …; but a libretto as early as that for 'La fanciulla del west' also reveals the cracks in a musical dramaturgy that no longer corresponded directly to contemporary straight theater."

I hope that some of my Opera L colleagues have some comments of their own on the topic. Do you agree or disagree with the above? Do you believe that the explanation goes far enough? Or too far?

Kurt Youngmann - eagerly awaiting some opinions

"Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'” -

A Voice Apart

Vocal Science™ Technique: Challenges and Tips for Rock Singers

Evidently, Rock style singing requires more precise vocal technique than any other style.

The fact is, that Rock singers are using much more aggressive sounds and, in the majority of cases, they are almost forcing their voices to perform the high level of what I call, "Vocabatics".
I compare it to the "Snowbirds" airplane show here in Toronto at the CNE, where they do all kinds of aerobatics which indeed, are very fascinating to watch.
No doubt, that the pilots have to be very experienced and have a lot of flown hours under their belts, to perform a high intensity and synchronized show like that, in the air.

The Rock singing style is a very honest genre in my opinion.
You either can sing and put your voice almost through the ringer, or you can't.
You can not fake it.

Like figure skating, you can either jump a triple axel or acquire a serious injury if you don't know how.
It takes a lot of hours of training and proper technique to be able to survive five minutes for a long-program performing 3 or 4 triples and quads.

Similarly, to survive a rock show of at least four sets of 45 minutes each, you have to be mentally, physically, emotionally, and vocally fit.
Some of the Rock genres require high and raspy screams.
 If the singer is just experimenting and trying to do it by ear, he also can acquire a serious voice injury.

In my book, Vocal Science - Flight to the Universe, I have two related chapters, one of which is called "Born Free, Vocally Yours, Within the Structure".
The other one is called, "Born Free, Vocally Yours, Playing it by Ear".
The latter describes a danger which the singer could be exposed to if he does not really comply with standards of professional singing, thus not utilizing the wholesome mechanism which allows the human voice to work in its fullest capacity possible and with no pain or strain on the vocal anatomy.

Attempting to sing the Rock style, it's very easy to strain the vocal cords, or even damage them.
It's also not too difficult to acquire what's called "Muscle Tension Dysphonia".
In the latter instance, the neck becomes so strained and tight that it holds the vocal cords within its muscles, and thus the voice becomes "trapped".
The vocal performer just built for him/herself, their own "vocal prison".

The key for him/her to come out, is to learn how to bypass his/her vocal anatomy, eliminating the use of it almost altogether, and then instead, employ the different muscles of his/her body, which are not only safe to use, but also very efficient to use.
The facial muscles will play the role of a natural amplifier or resonator, and will amplify the singing voice at least quadruple times over.
In this instance, the voice will be soaring up and over the vocal anatomy and will be supported by the abdominal muscles which will secure the structure, placement, and projection of the singing voice to its aimed destination.
The moral of this blog is: do not attempt to do something which you love, but evidently have no idea how to approach safely.

Learn the proper tips and techniques, and employ them as designed, and thereby ensure a safe and successful arrival to your Rock vocal destination.