#FACHYEAHOPERASINGERS

the-voice-leading-nazi: Maurice Ravel and why you should...

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:10:05 -0500

Maurice Ravel and why you should ~~worship~~ love him.

Part II is here: http://the-voice-leading-nazi.tumblr.com/post/45942606200/maurice-ravel-and-why-you-should-worship-love

Yep I did it. Next will be “Igor Stravinsky and why he’s awesomer than you will ever be.”

TWO PART SLIDE SHOW ON RAVEL

SO TRUE

Ravel is my home-boy. If you haven’t listened to some of his stuff before, please do — here are his Piano Concerto in G (x) and his Popular Greek Songs (x). He lived a strange life, created beautiful art, and died tragically.

SOUBRETTE ROLES

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:02:00 -0500

are either like

(or both)

dotseurat: Fake Opera Meme — Blithe Spirit, based on the play...

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:37:41 -0500

dotseurat:

Fake Opera Meme — Blithe Spirit, based on the play by Noël Coward, suggested by feminicolas

Elvira Condomine – Anna Netrebko
Charles Condomine – Stephen Costello
Ruth Condomine – Isabel Leonard
Madame Arcati – Patricia Bardon

So… this would actually make a pretty darn solid opera. Someone want to write me a libretto?

WHENEVER THE MET PLAYER STOPS TO BUFFER

Wed, 22 May 2013 14:01:59 -0500

me:

my internet connection:

WHEN MY VOICE IS TIRED AND I HAVE A HIGH NOTE COMING UP

Tue, 21 May 2013 13:53:43 -0500

my reasonable half:

my self-centered opera singer half:

LULU

Mon, 20 May 2013 15:10:26 -0500

aka, Donna Elvira.

Sun, 19 May 2013 16:39:44 -0500

aka, Donna Elvira.

MAD SCENES

Sun, 19 May 2013 14:02:12 -0500

the soprano:

everyone else:

BALL/PARTY SCENES IN OPERAS

Sat, 18 May 2013 14:01:59 -0500

at the beginning:

then, suddenly:

well, that escalated quickly

WORKING WITH MY PEERS

Fri, 17 May 2013 14:08:45 -0500

then:

now:

WHEN A CHORUS MEMBER STARTS GIVING NOTES TO EVERYONE

Thu, 16 May 2013 14:02:05 -0500

the conductor:

the other chorus members:

WHEN I DRINK HEAVILY AND CAN STILL SING THE NEXT MORNING

Wed, 15 May 2013 18:19:25 -0500

Summer movie line-up: Star Trek: Into Darkness Thor: The Dark World Captain America: The Winter...

Wed, 15 May 2013 06:36:20 -0500

Summer movie line-up:

Star Trek: Into Darkness
Thor: The Dark World
Captain America: The Winter Darkness
The Dark Knight Darkens
Dark Shadows 2: The Darkening
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Zero Dark Thirty
Iron Man 4: Boy is it Fuckin’ Dark
The Dark Crystal
Are You Afraid of the Dark

Soundtrack:

I Believe in a Thing Called Love (perf. by The Darkness) [x]

ursamajorandme: Composers with their kitties…. Stravinsky,...

Tue, 14 May 2013 23:06:32 -0500

ursamajorandme:

Composers with their kitties….

Stravinsky, Cage, Vaughn-Williams, and Ravel

It seems that I’m in good company.

DON GIOVANNI

Tue, 14 May 2013 14:02:07 -0500

parasoul: college; the musical featuring such hits as: the fuck do you mean this textbook is...

Mon, 13 May 2013 19:50:42 -0500

parasoul:

college; the musical

featuring such hits as:

the fuck do you mean this textbook is $250

why am i the only one in the group doing the assignment

final exams more like no

how did my gpa get so low

this ta really needs to stop

i’m never going to finish this 7,000 word essay by tomorrow

how did my gpa get so high (reprise)

as well as those toe-tappers,

Too Many $2 Long Islands on Tuesday Night
Bicycle Thief Blues
If I Have to Eat Cafeteria Food Again, I’m Going to Set Myself on Fire
The Ballad of the Empty Bank Account
My Lab Partner Could Not Possibly Be Smellier
Where Are My Pants and Who Is That (finale of Act 1)
Damn, My Spanish Professor is a Superfox
Coming to This Frat Party is the Worst Decision I’ve Ever Made
When the Fuck am I Ever Going to Need Trigonometry (Please Won’t Someone Tell Me)
Boy Do I Look Fat in this Graduation Robe (finale of Act 2,)
and many, many more!

THE QUEEN OF THE NIGHT

Mon, 13 May 2013 14:02:06 -0500

Graduating with my MM today. It’s all good with the hood.

Sun, 12 May 2013 07:10:49 -0500

Graduating with my MM today. It’s all good with the hood.

WHEN CAMPUS IS A SHIT-SHOW ON GRADUATION WEEKEND

Sat, 11 May 2013 16:04:05 -0500

not music related, but currently too relevant not to post

How Are We To Listen To Contemporary Classical Music?

Sat, 11 May 2013 11:30:16 -0500

How Are We To Listen To Contemporary Classical Music?:

staylorellis:

Recently I went to Carnegie Hall for, I believe, the second time in my life, to see Gabriel Kahane and Orpheus Chamber Orchestra perform Gabriel’s “Guide to the 48 States.” I went to college with Gabe, where our closest contact was probably when I was an assistant stage manager on a musical he co-wrote. Since then he’s established himself as a songwriter, singer and composer, one of the polymath hopes of classical music. The New York Times Magazine called him “a one-man cultural Cuisinart.” He’s composed concert music for himself, string quartets, and orchestras; he wrote the music and lyrics for a musical at the Public Theater; he first attracted attention for a gorgeous art song cycle called “Craigslistlieder,” settings of text from Craigslist posts. But what I have come to love is his, for lack of a better word, pop music. He’s put out two albums of beautiful, lush, interesting songs, simultaneously catchy and complicated. The only way I know to explain it is by analogy to books—on the spectrum from literary to commercial, Gabe’s songs are way at the literary end.

The fact that I don’t know that musical equivalent, that I’m not sufficiently versed in the context, the terminology, really the field as a whole, reared its head and its implications at Carnegie. I went there to see a musician I love do a different kind of his music, and the difference was an obstacle.

I felt like I was missing something. Like I should like this music. Like I should get it. So I’ve asked for help.

This conversation is everything. No conclusions, loads of necessary questions.

I thought about writing an article on this very subject, but this exchange sums it up so nicely. Why is it now the norm to ask audiences to “endure” one’s new music? Why is it now the norm, in short, to completely ignore the needs of an audience? From my experience, a majority of composers (especially in academic settings) are becoming increasingly selfish, writing music for their own satisfaction and jettisoning practicality. Novelty over content leads to nothing.