Rehearsalish Time

That recital I'm singing in is next week. Of course the rehearsal with the accompanist is next Thursday, when I'm going to see Carmen at the Met. So instead I'm meeting the accompanist in my teacher's studio tonight for a quick run-through. We were joking that I couldn't make the original rehearsal date because I'm making an appearance at the Met... in the audience! Yuk yuk yuk what a jokester. Haha sorry.

Breaking news unrelated to the title of the post:

Billy Budd at the Met the year after next. A friend heard from a Very Reliable Source *cough* that Our Favorite Baritone will be singing the title role. Nothing has been officially announced but the source is Very Reliable so odds are that the contracts have been signed. So we have Die Zauberflote this season, Cosi next season and Billy Budd the following year. Keep saving those pennies!

Whew! Done. Sort of. Enough.

Well it took what, three days? But I think we've finished putting the unofficial Gunn fansite together. Sort of. Enough that we're willing to share the link. Check it out, tell your friends, etc. Post a comment if you see typos or have suggestions.

And now, back to my online Scrabble games.

Introductions and Other Subjects

Every now and then someone who wants to learn about opera asks me for recommendations. "What should I listen to first?" or, "I usually don't like opera, although I recognize that the singers are talented." So what is the best thing to recommend? I personally am not into Puccini, so I'd never recommend him as a first listen, although many people recommend Boheme as an easy first opera. I usually recommend Mozart or Rossini. I find it's hard to recommend just one aria, like, just one YouTube clip, because it all has so much meaning within the context of the entire story. So what do you recommend people listen to, either to sit down and read along with, or just view some YouTube clips?

Totally new subject: Back to the "What kind of press is this?" scenario. Meaning, this, from Our Favorite Baritone. Time? Program name? Anyone know? That's sort of important information to include, especially if you take the time to post it in the first place. And look at that list of stations - ABC, NBC, FOX, CBS - all the major commercial networks, all over the country. Other than some sort of political event, what sort of program is shown on several networks at the same time? It's very confusing. Is he running for office? Anyone have any more info about this? There's an entire group of sort of curious people. Post a comment or send me a message at luindriel@gmail.com.

Totally new subject: Was watching La Cenerentola with Alex and I said, "Isn't she cute," referring, of course, to Elina Garanca when she was all dressed up in blue. "No," he replied, "She's beautiful."

Totally new subject: Was listening to Diana Damrau as Lucia today, from the radio broadcast of the performance I saw last October. She is amazing. I'm so glad I'm going to see her in La Fille.

That's all... for now.