Oooh Frisky

The NY Times had an article yesterday about Juan Diego and other frisky young tenors. Could tonight's opening of Fille have anything to do with the timing of that? Mreeeowwww!

Found the link to that at All About Opera. They also linked to the excellent Times review of the ZH thang. Notably absent are links to the snarky reviews from the Other Paper. Good to know that AAO is supportive of the moe-dairn. (I used that word again just for you, Amneris! :) )

Defending and Explaining

Went back and forth about it and decided to post Nathan's latest journal entry in which he explains his philosophy behind the ZH recital and subtley digs at a snarky reviewer. (I admit I corrected a spelling error but I'm not telling where.)

April 20th, 2008

whoa

This has been an incredible week for me. I want to thank Andy and Sonia, David, Laura and Julie for bringing to life the Zankel recital. It was a project that I've been wanting to do for a long time and because the subject matter was so dear to me I'm grateful for their help and their talent. I also must thank Jeremy Geffen for allowing me to do such a program.
Because the performance of the music was most important at the time I decided not to give a pre-concert talk. I thought I'd use this journal entry to touch on a few things that may have confused some people. Though most of the audience that attended got what we were trying to do some did not. I think the opinions of those people were voiced in a review by Jay Nordinger from The Sun. In a nut shell some wondered why I would add dance, lighting and video if I was trying to eliminate distractions. That's a good question and I wish I'd addressed it in the program notes. I see now that by not commenting on it I was actually creating a distraction. Anyway, the answer is that I don't consider visual art a distraction. I see it as something that heightens a person's experience rather than lessen it. All of our senses are involved when attending a vocal recital. We see, hear, smell and taste all the time. I have found that some of those things that tradition has dictated in a recital that are supposed to support the musical and artistic experience do not. For example when one reads along in the program I find that one uses a different part of his or her intelligence to read and that this stifles communication. If the text is part of the art that is happening something changes. Sometimes not knowing when to clap and when not to clap makes an audience member nervous. The lighting and the video were meant to take a person out of Zankel Hall, out of Carnegie, out of New York, out of time and for an hour put you in a different place. That was the intention.
Another question asked was why a dancer and why solo piano music? I was moved by Merton's last line of In Silence, " I will try, like them, to be my own silence: and this is difficult. The whole world is secretly on fire. The stones Burn, even the stones they burn me. How can a man be still or listen to all things burning? How can he dare to sit with them when all their silence is on fire?" I wanted to subtly show that even when we think there is silence and that we are alone we are not. Sometimes there was movement, music from the piano, and voice. Sometimes only one of each. Sometimes none and a variety of combinations. That was my way of expressing the mystery of how we experience life.
So, I hope this helps. Thanks again to everyone involved. It meant a great deal to me.

I'm glad he posted this, to explain that it's virutually impossible to shut out our senses because the world is constantly humming around us, and that's what he was trying to do. I was one of the confused at first but I did sort of settle into it, as I posted, and became emotional during one of the pieces. The snarky reviewer didn't do a review of the content, he simply criticized the format probably because he didn't get it, felt stupid and then got mad for feeling stupid. I think I'm a traditionalist in that I would have preferred a straightforward recital, especially since it was my first time seeing him in recital, but I'm not sorry I went. Well, my feet were sorry, but that was my own fault for walking to and from Penn Station in those shoes.

And on a mostly unrelated note, remember how I posted that I found $2 on my walk back to Penn Station? Well today I was out for a run and I found $1, a crisp new $1 bill. This is opera related in that once I get back down to my tiny former self and can fit into my size 6s again, I'll have new Fashion Options for my various backstage adventures, especially if I keep finding money every time I'm out moving at a brisk pace. Hopefully I'll upgrade to $20s soon...

A Comment on a Comment

So Lindsey left an interesting and insightful comment on my post about Zankel Hall, and I'd like to discuss it here. First, here is her comment:

Lindsey said...

Man, modern classical music is so touch-and-go. I had a feeling the concert would be something like this. Most recent works really are an acquired taste that even the artists have to work at achieving. I know that as a genre, I'm not a huge fan of 20th-21st century vocal rep. Sometimes artists forget that the public hasn't had weeks or months to study and fall in love with the pieces like they have. All the audience has is those three or four minutes that it takes to sing the piece, and most of the time, unless you listen to that sort of genre a lot, that's not enough time to "get" it. I'm not saying that the audience is stupid (far from it), it's just that I don't think that modern classical music is not easy to connect with. So much of it is so dissonant and odd to our ears, that listening to more than a few of those sort of pieces at a time becomes very trying. But anyways, I could go on and on and on, modern classical music (or really any form of modern art in general) is one of my "soapbox" issues (Ha! Understatement much?). Though, I definitely still envy you for getting to go! Yay for having him remember you!

I wonder if historically the public has always reacted this way to new music. I mean, think about what Mozart was doing. It was revolutionary - no one had heard anything like it. They didn't know what to make of it, and many people didn't care for it. I don't know that much about music history, but I imagine that he wasn't alone in puzzling the audience. If my aunt were still alive this is something I'd definitely discuss with her. So I ask the readers to share any historical musical knowledge you all have regarding audience reaction to different composers who tried out different things.

Awkward Moments in Zankel Hall

Curtain Call - Photo courtesy of Bradley via Opera Chic

Before I start this post I want to remind the readers that my review of a recital or opera is not a professional-style review like Opera Chic has done; rather it’s my impressions of the evening, from my point of view.

Next I'd like to apologize for taking so long to get this done. Husband is away, if you recall, so I have been alone with an almost-4-year-old all day. He's now asleep and this is the first 5 minutes in a row I've had to myself, so... Cut me a break! (P. this means you, lol!)

So my review starts at home – had to hit myself with a pretty stick before I left the house, and as I was running out the door I saw a tear in my blouse! Oh the horror!! It’s a double layer gauzy thing and the tear was in the top layer, near the left sleeve. Tried to pin it; tried to tape it; ended up wearing the little cardigan, which turned out fine and prevented the scoop neck from getting too scoopy, if you catch my drift. Then when I was getting out of the car, my rhinestone bling bracelet caught on my hose and made a run! Not a good start…

Fashion emergencies aside… The train ride was loooong – I caught a local. Remind me never to do that again. Arrived at Penn Station at 5:30 – the heart of rush hour. WOW there were LOTS of people coming into the Penn Station when I was trying to get out. And if you’ve ever seen film or video footage of a sidewalk with a sea of people… that’s what it was like out on the street. I clop clop clopped my way up 7th Ave from 34th to 57th and there it was, Zankel Hall.


I trolled about a bit, taking pictures, finding the stage door and just hanging. Finally went into a café across the street from the stage door. As I sat in the window with my smoked salmon sandwich, I looked up to see Nathan and Julie walking down the street and into the stage door. While it vaguely crossed my mind to pop out the door, the words "stalker freak" floated in front of my eyes and I stayed put.

Zankel is beautiful inside - all wooden, very clean and warm. And small! First thing they had a team of security guards checking bags. That was purely for show as they patted the side of my purse - what were they looking for? Guns? (Hey just reread this and realized what a bad pun it is! It wasn't intentional, I swear!) Then I had to go two flights down a narrow escalator. When I got to the bottom, the house wasn't open yet so I wandered around the lobby. I asked the usher about the backstage list. She talked to another usher who went back and talked to the backstage guy. He came back and said that the Artist is the only person who can put people on the list, and they don't have the list yet to check it to see if I'm on it. Okaaayyyy. I had my doubts but I figured I'd check anyway.

Ok, onto the show itself.

Strange. Awkward. Odd. Slightly... boring. People around me fell asleep. First, before it started, the guy behind me said to his companion, "They have a DANCER? A DANCER??? And a LIGHTING SPECIALIST?? What is this, like, some sort of multi-media presentation?" Oy vey.

Ok so the three of them walk out - Nathan, Julie and the dancer whose name escapes me. They're all dressed in black. He's got his hair slicked back and believe it or not I didn't recognize him at first. He looked like a mafioso. He also looked tired and appeared to have rings under his eyes. So they take their positions and there are words and images projected onto the wall, Julie starts playing something tres moe-dairn and the dancer does what I can only describe as break-dancing. Nathan stood there looking sort of morose while the dancer did her strange thing. Finally, finally he began to sing. His voice was the saving grace of the evening - replete with those wonderful warm chocolate tones that I just love. The poetry was ok, much of it from the single digit or tens- centuries, written by monks, with nature and religious themes, which was fine, but the music was dissonant, modern and just not to my taste. The program asked that people hold their applause to the end so there were these strange silent moments in between pieces. When the dancer wasn't dancing she sat on the floor or on a chair upstage. Sometimes she danced when there was no music. She was very graceful but the choreography was just weird - lots of arm gyrations and creeping along the floor. Nathan sang beautifully. At some points the lights glinted off his slicked-back hair, making it flash almost grey for a moment here and there, and he would suddenly, momentarily, look old. It was like getting a flash into the future. The poetry was interesting at times. I especially liked one piece about Mary nursing baby Jesus, (yes, I'm Jewish, and yes, it felt odd to type that, but those were the words) and what that was like, probably because I recently (ok, 5 months ago) stopped nursing Alex. The words must have released some maternal hormones or something because I actually got a bit weepy. Well my eyes got moist. Wouldn't want to do anything to make the mascara run, heh heh. Much of the time though it was just awkward with these dissonant, I don't want to call them melodies, but... sections of music, and then silence, and then the dancer would wiggle her arms around while Nathan watched with this sort of doleful look on his face... I'm sure I wasn't alone as I sat there with my brow furrowed wondering what the hell was going on. There was one piano section during which Nathan sat on the chair and the dancer was on the floor somewhere. Julie was fun to watch - she really gets into playing and wow can she play fast!

So for much of the time I was reminded of some of the pretentious performance art pieces people do in college... Other times my mind just wandered into the strangest of places, places I won't even begin to describe here for a variety of reasons.

As everyone left the auditorium, someone called my name - it was John, the guy who started and runs the Yahoo group. I also saw another woman from the group waving wildly at me from the balcony. Unfortunately I didn't get to meet her in person. Oh but the evening was interesting also because many people, mostly younger people, looked at me, did a double-take and then smiled almost like they knew me... perhaps they visited the Yahoo group and saw my picture with Nathan on the main page there. It was almost like being famous... ok not really but it was interesting.

So afterwards I went to the stage door and you guessed it... I wasn't on the list. There wasn't much of a list - I saw it. The guy said that they were coming out in 5 minutes anyway.

The theater is surround by lobby on three sides. The main lobby is behind, with a bar and some tables, but there is a narrower hallway on either side. The stage door was to the front of one of these narrower sections. Most of the people who were waiting were in the main part, but I stayed in the hallway part closer to the door. When Nathan and Julie came out, the other people in that area all seemed to know them, there were hugs and kisses, etc. And then me. I was closer to Julie so I waited for a break in her conversation with some guy and introduced myself, told her how much I liked her performance, and that I met Nathan in Chicago. She asked if I was from there... I told her I knew John O. Sort of misleading as to why I went out there but it was too complicated to explain ... She asked if I was a singer... I was like, "Uh... not exactly... but I'm a super with xxxx Opera." She said a lot of their students were with said opera company. Yes, I know... I worked with them... I gave her the earrings. Then she went back to the guy she was chatting with and I sidled over to where Nathan was chatting with some older, long-haired, grey-haired dude. That conversation wrapped up and I immediately inserted myself. He was totally like, "Hey!!! Hi! How are you!!" and it was obvious that he just didn't remember my name. D'oh. I didn't remind him either, heh heh. I pulled out the CD from Alex and said, "My son sent you a gift!" and explained what it was, although I left out the part where Alex first said that we should give Nathan a new pair of pants that we decorate ourselves... don't recall if I reported that before... anyway... I also gave him some more live recordings. It was all in a little bag and he said, "Is this all for me?" Yup, here, take the damn bag it's been weighing my purse down all evening. Ok I didn't say that... We also talked about the performance a little. He said, "It's not like Barber, is it?" and I said that I had a hard time getting into it at first but then I sort of got into the flow. He said they were really excited to be doing something different, and to be trying out different things. Well, it certainly was different. (I didn't say that out loud...) Then he was looking with that eye contact again and I had a mini-internal freak out and said, "Well, I better run, I have to get back to New Jersey," and I put my hand out and we shook hands. Didn't have the nerve to reach out and hug him. Sounds dumb since I have the nerve to cut into conversations and call to him down hallways (in Chicago). It was kind of dorky to shake hands but whatever... meanwhile there were a bunch of people wanting a piece of him out in the main lobby and I didn't want to "hog" him so I gave my NJ excuse and skeddalded myself outta there.

Then I made the mistake of walking back to Penn Station in those shoes... ouch my aching feet. However, I did find $2 on the street. Does that make up for the blisters? Uh... no way.

I'm writing on a laptop right now so I'll edit this later to stick pictures in.

Ushering in Zankel

Tomorrow's recital should be interesting. A few people from Nathan's Yahoo Fan group are going to be there. I wonder if they'll find me? They have my picture...

As far as getting backstage... well... one avenue fell through... and the man himself never replied to my email... so I'm down to the usher. The Unknown Usher.

Alex had me make a gift for Nathan and I know he (Alex) will be disappointed if I don't give it to him. That's enough reason for me to get myself backstage.

This is fun - puzzling out how to get behind Closed Doors. I just might make a hobby of it.

On an unrelated note, I made myself a pair of earrings to go with the outfit.

Clarification

Ok it has come up that perhaps Zankel has an area where people can wait for the performers to come out, and that's what the woman on the phone was talking about. So let me clarify.

I asked her if I needed a press pass or needed to know someone to get on the guest list to go backstage. Not wait at the stage door.... go backstage.

She said to talk to an usher before the performance and they would take care of it. Not, ask the usher afterwards where the stage door was. Talk to them before.

Of course that's no guarantee of anything. However, lest my previous post seem ambiguous due to a lack of precise details of the conversation... there was no talk of a place to wait for people to come out. It was all about going in.

Of course it will probably be a madhouse back there and I'll just stand against the wall lookin' purty. But I have a feeling I'll get another 2 minutes. Ok maybe a minute and a half, but who's counting?

All Ya Gotta Do Is Caaaallllll

Thanks for the idea, Opera Chic!

I just called Carnegie Hall and said, "I'm coming to a performance at Zankel Hall next week. Can you tell me your backstage policy, like if I wanted to go backstage to meet one of the performers?"

"Oh, sure. Just talk to one of the ushers before the performance and they'll take care of it for you."

Easy peasy.

Fashion Advice Please!

What to wear to Zankel Hall next week?

I think the "My Eyes Are Up Here" shirt is a go. So the flowery purple skirt and black pumps, or the slightly longer, slightly more flowy black skirt with black knee-high boots? The boots have a chunky heel.

Sorry, shoes are not pictured. Use your imagination and Hey! Stop looking at my unmade bed and frizzed-out hair.

I have a preference for which outfit but I'm interested to hear what You, The Reader, think.

Phase 3 in Progress

Preparing for next week's trip to Zankel Hall.

Phase 1: Obtain ticket. Check.
Phase 2: Obtain childcare. Check.
Phase 3: Obtain backstage pass. In progress. Will report back if/when there's anything to report.

Over and out.

Bad review, Good Review, Nice Email, Can I Go Backstage?

NJ Opera Young Artist Program recital today. The truth is we stayed only for about half the program. On the way there, as usual, Alex asked or should I say demanded to hear Barbiere again, Una Voce Poco Fa. Ok, fine. Let's warm up our ears for the performance. Well funny thing is, the mezzo whose name I don't recall did that very aria. Her bio was in the program: prestigious schools, famous teachers, honors, contests, etc. Bottom line: I sing it better when I'm doing laundry, and I have none of the special training, background or experience. I wasn't going to say anything but then Husband brought it up. Why I sing it while doing laundry... well that's another post entirely.

The tenor, on the other hand, was fabu. He sang Una Furtiva Lagrima. You can tell that he'll be going places while the mezzo will be left behind.

Maybe she was just having a bad day.

Changed my mind about the Zankel backstage pass. Thinking about sending a short email with a request to come back and say hi afterwards...

This isn't totally out of context. One juicy bit of information I've kept from you all is that a few days after I got home (Sunday night), I sent Nathan a short email (yes I have his email address and I'm not telling what it is or how I got it) listing the live shows I have. I included a few lines about my opera-loving Alex and I attached the pictures John took. Tuesday morning he sent a nice reply, apologized for having to run, thanks for the CD, keep that little boy of yours singing, blah blah blah. Oh and he said it was lovely meeting me. Well he didn't use italics but I just love using them at every opportunity here on the blog. Signed his full name, very formal, unlike the emails I've gotten from him in the past which had 1st name only. Obviously I have too much time on my hands if I'm noticing things like that... So anyway I might reply to his email closer to the date of the recital with a short and sweet, I'm coming, I'd love to say hi, any chance of getting on the list? Yadda yadda blah blah blah. He'll either do it or he won't, but if I don't ask, he definitely won't. (There's that chutzpah someone recently "accused" me of having, heh heh.)

Well I've posted enough that the Pictures are no longer on the page. Vaguely considering reposting... nah, I'm not that nuts. Or... am I?

Thanks to All Who Applied, The Position Has Been Filled

That was surprisingly easy. One of my friends has a son Alex's age and they're buddies. She agreed to keep Alex OVERNIGHT so I can go to the Zankel Hall Recital. I didn't hesitate to get a ticket - Row CC, Seat 6.

Ooh I just went here to follow the links to get to Zankel Hall to put a link here and there's a description of the event! Thanks Nathan, perfect timing. (By the way, it's effects, not affects. There's my job coming through my blog aaaarrrrhhhhh)

If only I had the nerve to email and ask for a backstage visit... but I don't and I won't.

I'm not a stalker, I swear!

Who Wants to Babysit???

Nathan Gunn is doing a recital at Zankel Hall on April 15. I can get a ticket for $46 which means I could do the entire evening for like $60 including the train. Woo hoo, I thought... I'm gonna go!

Then, reality: When is Husband going to that conference in Boston? Oh yeah... April 15 - 18. And he's not even going to see Nathan there on the 17th. Wait a sec why aren't Alex and I going to Boston too?

So... anyway... anyone want to babysit on April 15th? Play trains with a rambunctious 3 year old, read him a bunch of stories and put him to bed? We have cable, on-demand, high-speed Internet, unlimited long-distance calling and I'd get a pizza and fill the house with snacks. Anyone?