Still a Disbeliever... Almost

It's slowly sinking in that I was in a room of opera singers yesterday and I WAS ONE OF THEM! I wasn't the super waiting for my turn to walk silently onstage. It's crazy! When I started voice lessons I never imagined that I'd one day be able to get up and sing with other singers. OTHER, because I am one of them. It's so cool.

I spoke with the woman I mentioned yesterday, the one who will be giving me a free lesson tomorrow. Again she was so so sweet! She told me that some of the other singers yesterday had the same problem I had - a lack of fullness on certain vowels at certain pitches. I kept thanking her and she told me that she LIKES doing it, that it gives her joy to help a singer improve. The way she kept telling me the good things - my breath control, the sound for most of the song, how relaxed and natural I seemed, and then how when she told me what needed improvement she said that other people have the same problems - it shows me what a good teacher she is. She didn't just get up and tell me what I had to fix - she told me what was good and made me feel like I wasn't the only one needing to fix something. The psychiatry behind teaching is so important!

I can't wait to see what happens tomorrow. Just keep thinking, Julia Child. It's funny because when I was a kid my mom and I would watch her show together and at the end when she said, "Bon Appetit!" and then the music would start, we'd just burst out laughing like it was the silliest thing we'd ever heard. And that image comes to mind every time I remember yesterday's advice. But the important thing is, it works! I put some Julia into my singing and voila! The dish had added flavor. Another reason it made me laugh was because I used to pretend to be an opera singer as a kid and that's how I'd sing. Who knew that all that pretending would come in handy 35 years later.

So slowly, slowly, I'm starting to believe.

Yummy Day!

Wow wow wow! Fabulous day.

Voice lesson this morning went pretty well. I warmed up beforehand so we'd have more time to work. Learned a new vocalise with triplets going up and down, then went over parts of Batti Batti.

This afternoon I had a rehearsal for the recital in two weeks. I was nervous but excited. I sang Una Donna. They cut me off near the end - they being, the man and woman in charge of the group. They wanted to give me advice on how to get through a certain part - they kept apologizing for offering advice!! I'm like, pour in on! As much as you want!! It was this one part of the song near the end where the woman said I was getting off pitch because I was losing ... I can't remember her exact words... but that I needed to use my entire head as my instrument and bring the sound up to keep it at the right pitch. She said to think of how Julia Child spoke, and use that sort of tone or practice or whatever to maintain the loftiness in the sound. So I tried it again and it did sound better. THEN she asked if I'd be willing to come see her one day this week for a quick coaching FREE OF CHARGE!!!! She's a retired opera singer - she has sung with some Very Famous People. She was super sweet. Both she and the man in charge kept telling me that I have a beautiful instrument and how easy it is to fix what it is I'm doing wrong. I was like, "Beautiful instrument? Me? ME?" Ohmygod. I couldn't believe it. She and I spoke for a while. She said that even after 62 years of singing she still has to think about it to produce that lofty "Julia Child" sound, but once you get there, it feels natural and it feels so good it's like an orgasm. Yes, that's what she told me. She was telling all sorts of great stories about people she's sung with (like one Famous and Handsome tenor whose wife was always around and wouldn't let any women near him!). So we exchanged phone numbers and we'll talk about me coming for a quick lesson/coaching. How friggin cool is that? And as I was leaving the guy in charge told me that my Despina was "cute as hell." Cute as hell. Love that!

Alex and Husband came to retrieve me so they got to see the place and meet everyone too.

Wow. Professional opera singers and teachers told me I have a beautiful instrument and that my singing was "cute as hell." Does it get any better?

Of course it does, because it's Saturday, which means that after my and Alex's music lessons this morning we went to the farmers' market and got those mouth-watering tamales, which we had for dinner. And also on the way to the car after the rehearsal we passed a chocolate shop where I bought a few uber-fancy chocolates at $1.50 a pop, including one with cayenne and one with cardamom, cayenne and other yummy things mixed in.

AND my super comfy old-lady nightgown came in the mail today and is in the dryer as I type this.

So this day has left me all giggly and happy. A yummy day. I was long due.

Fun and Profit

I posted the Batti Batti video to my Facebook profile, where someone who doesn't know me (Yeah, I know, a friend who I don't really know...) suggested I make it private or take it down. I explained my situation - I'm in it for fun, not profit. So I figured I post that here too: I have no aspirations of becoming a professional opera singer. I'm not going to quit my (half) day job. Of course you all know, especially if you've been reading for several months. (And I thank you all for that!)

I'm in it for fun. I love learning the music. I love learning what I can do. I love how important the mental aspect is- almost more than the physical aspect. For me, it's much easier to learn the physical steps than it is to relax my brain enough to incorporate it all and create music. Even if I never took another lesson I'll never be the same - I'll never go "back" to my pre-lesson ways of listening to, understanding and creating music. Same with supering - even if I never super in another opera, I'll never watch an opera the same way, knowing what little I know about what goes into a production.

So if I had to choose, lessons or supering, which would I choose? That's a tough one, but I think I'd go for the lessons. Luckily I don't have to choose.

Go to the Mirror!

I was chatting with one of my professional opera singer friends yesterday. I told him what the reviewers said and asked him if he had any idea what the whole "locked registration" thing means. He said it was very vague and therefore, in his opinion, not very helpful. He suggested that perhaps it means she thought I was using my throat to make some of the notes? He was so cute because he became not exactly outraged but annoyed on my behalf because of the vagueness of the comments from that particular reviewer. Regarding the head/neck out of alignment thing, he suggested that I… yes… sing in front of the mirror to see what my head is doing. He reminded me that it's all about the breath, and that once you get that down, you can sing in any position.
So what it comes down to is… as much as I dislike it… I will go to the mirror… and sing.

Changing My Mind (again)

I retract my previous post. [so much so that I've deleted a chunk of it] I'm not asking for anything except, what? My money's worth from any performance I attend, anywhere. From anyone, really. Hm what does that mean for the free ones? After all, you get what you pay for and all that? But either way I'll get my own pink girl-drink and will say some variation of, "Why, you're welcome, it was my pleasure" if I ever hear a thank you. And that's to anyone who thanks me for anything. After all, my mother raised me that way. That reminds me -the experiment is still running. I will report the results, maybe, one day. Maybe.

Vowels: Followed Johnny O's advice and sang Una Donna, vowels only. In the shower. Ok that's irrelevant, but not really. The bathroom has great acoustics! So I did it a few times, then added the consonants back in, and I can feel the difference more than I can hear it. Although I can hear it too. Thanks Johnny! BTW, I Puritani opens this week. I think it's this week. For some reason I can't keep numbers in my head these days. That includes dates, addresses, telephone numbers, driving directions, whatever. These days? Ok it's been forever. I'm good at math though, go figure. Heh unintended pun.

Okayyyyy I am going off the deep end here. Rambling about nothing, boring everyone to tears. Stop crying and go read a more interesting blog from the list on the right.