The Chorus Line

I just read Susan Eichorn-Young's latest blog entry about how annoying it can be when people find out someone is a singer and ask them why they're not singing on Broadway or at the Met. It reminded me of a conversation I had a while back, which I wrote about here.

To recap, at a friend's art opening she for some reason was introducing me to everyone as an opera singer. I think it was because everyone had some sort of thing that they did, some sort of art, and she was showing me off as her opera singer friend, even though it wasn't true. I wasn't even studying voice yet at the time. So after explaining, again and again, what I did as a super, this one woman started in with these odd questions. Go ahead and read the post. It's short. I'll wait. You need to read only the first part of the post.

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Ok, done?

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People definitely have this odd attitude that the Met is the highest level of success. But how bizarre is it that the Met chorus was something that this woman looked down upon. To me, it's so high up that I get a neck strain thinking about it.

And this may sound odd, but, perhaps not everyone wants to be the star? It can be fun and fulfilling to be in the chorus. And hey, it's steady work. You get to be in almost everything the opera company does. You can live in one place, which seems like a big deal to me as a parent. It can't be easy to run off from your family several times a year for weeks or months at a time to perform somewhere away from home. It can't be fun living out of suitcases, in hotels, in other people's houses or apartments and so on. And for some people the chorus is where they're comfortable, where they're at their best. It's a skill to sing with others as a unit. You can't go off on your own ornamentation. You shouldn't sing louder than anyone else. I'm sure there's even more to it, but since the last time I was in any sort of chorus it was high school, I don't really know what else could be involved that makes the chorus for an opera different from singing solo.

That said, I'd love to be in any opera chorus. I have to keep working hard, and keep studying, so maybe by the time I retire I can audition. And the economy being what it is, I won't be retiring for quite some time.

Waxing and Waning and Five Minutes and... Phineas McBoof?

I've been listening to Juan Diego Florez a lot lately. I used to listen constantly, then I took a break... not on purpose... but now... I'm back. I'm back to the place where I'd do anything he asked, if he sang it to me.

I took break from that Other Guy too. I must have had Pretty Voice Overload or something. Yeah, or something. But he's slowly creeping back under my skin too. And if you don't know who I mean, then you must be a new reader.

Those two have gone back and forth between my number 1 and 2 spots for a few years now.

The women, I never tire of listening to them.

I wish Elizabeth Caballero would put out a CD. I'm guessing that the Carmen she's in at the Met will be broadcast on the radio, so I'll be able to get a copy, but I'm talking about her very own CD of just her. Ok a duet is allowed. One duet.

Speaking of CDs, I just purchased Taking My Turn, Susan Eichhorn Young's new CD. I've only had a chance to listen to the first two tracks and I'm blown away. Beautiful, beautiful voice! You can hear the emotion as she sings, she really brings you along for the ride. Next time I have 5 minutes in a row to myself I'll listen to another. I hope to hear the entire CD before the end of the summer...And anyone who doesn't know what I'm talking about should go here and watch the video. I wasn't sure how I'd like the songs, but they're fun! I did track through it quickly - that means I listened to the beginning of each song for about 10 seconds - enough to get an idea of where the songs are going. One of the tracks sounded familiar... that's because I've heard it before. Yes I'm going to make you read the track listings for both CDs to see which one.

BUT while I was searching that, I found THIS. Oh my. And what do you know, Alex is smack in the middle of the suggested age range. Hahaha I guess I'm not done CD shopping this month...