I am happy to share that I have received live auditions at all the of schools I applied to this year. This is an improvement from last year and I think that the hard work and fantastic voice lessons is paying off!
I am now at the critical, nail biting stage of pre-audition. Most people may think it's between the audition and the results, but there is not a thing I can do once my audition is over--it's already been decided for me. The task ahead is to master the parts of the audition that are in my control.
The good news is that there is life outside of academia, and I am determined to be successful whether or not I have a master's degree behind me. This being said, there are certainly valuable experiences to be gained attending a master's program, and that is my goal for next year.
Another nice thing--I'm covering Giulietta with New York Lyric Opera Theater. This works out well for me, as the performance is in three weeks and I'm in the middle of traveling for grad school and preparing auditions. I get to learn the role without having to sing it for five hours a day, and I will perform a few arias in a concert at Symphony Space on W 96th Street, the morning after my audition at New England Conservatory.
These past few months are proof--or least evidence--that perseverance pays off! (I'll say "proof" when or if I actually get into grad school.) This is my third time applying for grad school! I am determined to go to one of the best schools in the country, and hopefully I'll start next September in such a school. It has been emotional, difficult, and expensive, to say the least, but it is all worth it. I can't wait to sing!
One piece of proof of the results of perseverance: one of the conductors for NYLOT came into rehearsal as we were finishing up. I recognized him from my auditions, but seeing as they hear hundreds of people each year, I didn't think he would recognize me. "Hello! Oh, Miss Bird! So good to see you!" (I thought I was in trouble, but asked if he remembered me.) "Of course I do! You auditioned for us twice and I played for both of them! I see you're covering Giulietta. That's fantastic. Let's talk soon."
Yes, I auditioned for them twice, even when they told me I didn't have to, but I know it was the second audition that made the difference. It was definitely worth two audition fees.
Perhaps I'm not at the stage where I can succeed on the first try, but who ever is? I'm willing to pay my dues.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
New York as a Paradox
New York is becoming mundane. Of course, I realize that this is mostly because Matt is in Colorado, snow is in Colorado, cold weather is in Colorado, and none of these things are in New York City. Anyway, on Monday I realized that every week is the same for me. Every Tuesday is hell, despite being lesson day (traditionally my favorite day of the week) due to getting home at 11pm, every Wednesday is wonderful (especially tonight--will explain later) and every weekend I walk down the Upper West Side with Emily and go out to dinner with friends. (Weekends are a blast actually, there's nothing wrong with them! Oh, and SO excited for Harry Potter this weekend!
Still, even though I don't work 40 hours a week, I have fallen into a routine. Routine can be great, but I guess I'm a little surprised by how consistent it is for me, being in New York City and all. This place is like a whole other country, but I never go anywhere except home and work and the frequently attended audition sites.
Up until two weeks ago, I hadn't been outside of the city for three months. I finally took the train to Pleasantville to get some head shots and hang out with some great new friends, Courtney and Tyler LeCompte. Courtney has a great website for her handmade, one-of-a-kind jewelry found at this link: courtneyorillion.com She is a wonderful artist and did a great job with the photography and helping me look good! It was so fun to model her jewelry as a part of the head shots. Courtney and Tyler are great friends and I'm so glad to have found them in the Big Apple!
Back to the mundane (what a horrible way to start a paragraph...my apologies...it gets better...): tonight I decided to get down to business with grad school applications. So I did what every Bohemian starving young artist does: I bought an expensive bottle of German Riesling and a $1.29 wine glass from the dollar store (one thing I love about NYC!) and got quietly bombed while chipping away at essays, fees, bio info, and getting letters of recommendation in order. It definitely worked, because I'm satisfied enough with my progress to be able to blog tonight! I wrote a cracker-jack essay in 20 minutes and celebrated by walking down to the corner bakery for a piece of chocolate cake. And ice cream. And cookies. (Again--it is my goal and duty, as an opera singer, to eat as much sugar and become as fat as possible.)
The catch: I just remembered I have a meeting downtown at 10:30am tomorrow for my church job (not a big deal) and (whoops) I do have to sing tomorrow--Morgana and Zdenka in opera scenes. I may be making a temporary appearance as a mezzo-soprano thanks to the vino.
I am looking forward to next weekend in Tampa for Thanksgiving. It's going to be great getting out of The City, not to mention seeing Matt and family. No singing engagements for two weeks! That usually means less stress and more wine, but then I can't wait to get back in the swing of things! What a great life! I wouldn't trade it for anything.
Still, even though I don't work 40 hours a week, I have fallen into a routine. Routine can be great, but I guess I'm a little surprised by how consistent it is for me, being in New York City and all. This place is like a whole other country, but I never go anywhere except home and work and the frequently attended audition sites.
Up until two weeks ago, I hadn't been outside of the city for three months. I finally took the train to Pleasantville to get some head shots and hang out with some great new friends, Courtney and Tyler LeCompte. Courtney has a great website for her handmade, one-of-a-kind jewelry found at this link: courtneyorillion.com She is a wonderful artist and did a great job with the photography and helping me look good! It was so fun to model her jewelry as a part of the head shots. Courtney and Tyler are great friends and I'm so glad to have found them in the Big Apple!
Back to the mundane (what a horrible way to start a paragraph...my apologies...it gets better...): tonight I decided to get down to business with grad school applications. So I did what every Bohemian starving young artist does: I bought an expensive bottle of German Riesling and a $1.29 wine glass from the dollar store (one thing I love about NYC!) and got quietly bombed while chipping away at essays, fees, bio info, and getting letters of recommendation in order. It definitely worked, because I'm satisfied enough with my progress to be able to blog tonight! I wrote a cracker-jack essay in 20 minutes and celebrated by walking down to the corner bakery for a piece of chocolate cake. And ice cream. And cookies. (Again--it is my goal and duty, as an opera singer, to eat as much sugar and become as fat as possible.)
The catch: I just remembered I have a meeting downtown at 10:30am tomorrow for my church job (not a big deal) and (whoops) I do have to sing tomorrow--Morgana and Zdenka in opera scenes. I may be making a temporary appearance as a mezzo-soprano thanks to the vino.
I am looking forward to next weekend in Tampa for Thanksgiving. It's going to be great getting out of The City, not to mention seeing Matt and family. No singing engagements for two weeks! That usually means less stress and more wine, but then I can't wait to get back in the swing of things! What a great life! I wouldn't trade it for anything.
Monday, November 1, 2010
On Becoming a Better Non-Singer
I did a great workshop this past weekend with a program called Operaworks. It's run by Anne Baltz, who is a highly esteemed coach in the opera world, and who has created this program for young singers and educators.
I went into the weekend with one objective: figure out what is wrong with my auditioning, and learn how to fix it.
I expected to get very concrete feedback. "Your dress is wrong." "Your voice is wrong." "Your diction is poor." "You aren't confident when you enter the room." Contrary to what I expected, I received praise for most of these things! Needless to say, there are still many, many things I need to work on. Some of them I was aware of, and some of them I only just became aware of.
For the past year or two, I've entered almost every audition as though it's completely out of my control. I enter with resume and head shot in hand, looking my best, hopefully sounding my best, greet the judges, do my sing thing, and then leave with a "bye, hope to hear from you if the fates are in my favor" attitude. This strategy has not served me well. It is time to change--to grow. It is time for me to leave "Elena the singer" behind, and become "Elena, the organic human being with a soul filled with music and depth and excitement and compassion and every other human emotion." It is no longer about how well I sing. It is about who I sing. Everything that happens when I'm singing a character--whether in a song or an aria--needs to be that person. Every gesture, every thought, every movement, every bit of imagination I can scrape together needs to form a character that is visible and audible to the audience. After all, isn't that why I love this in the first place?
This is going to take me a while to figure out. I'll never have it completely perfected. It was an emotional breakthrough for me when I realized how much I have to change--things that are abstract and from within, rather than fixing something technical. But now I know what I need to do, and I know that I am more than capable moving the hearts of those around me. It is not because I am special or more talented than others, but because I have realized the depth of the human soul. I believe that this ability to relate to others is embedded in our beings, and it has become my job to translate that, with the beauty of music, for others.
It is no longer about the beauty of the music.
It is about the beauty of humanity.
The beauty of the soul.
I went into the weekend with one objective: figure out what is wrong with my auditioning, and learn how to fix it.
I expected to get very concrete feedback. "Your dress is wrong." "Your voice is wrong." "Your diction is poor." "You aren't confident when you enter the room." Contrary to what I expected, I received praise for most of these things! Needless to say, there are still many, many things I need to work on. Some of them I was aware of, and some of them I only just became aware of.
For the past year or two, I've entered almost every audition as though it's completely out of my control. I enter with resume and head shot in hand, looking my best, hopefully sounding my best, greet the judges, do my sing thing, and then leave with a "bye, hope to hear from you if the fates are in my favor" attitude. This strategy has not served me well. It is time to change--to grow. It is time for me to leave "Elena the singer" behind, and become "Elena, the organic human being with a soul filled with music and depth and excitement and compassion and every other human emotion." It is no longer about how well I sing. It is about who I sing. Everything that happens when I'm singing a character--whether in a song or an aria--needs to be that person. Every gesture, every thought, every movement, every bit of imagination I can scrape together needs to form a character that is visible and audible to the audience. After all, isn't that why I love this in the first place?
This is going to take me a while to figure out. I'll never have it completely perfected. It was an emotional breakthrough for me when I realized how much I have to change--things that are abstract and from within, rather than fixing something technical. But now I know what I need to do, and I know that I am more than capable moving the hearts of those around me. It is not because I am special or more talented than others, but because I have realized the depth of the human soul. I believe that this ability to relate to others is embedded in our beings, and it has become my job to translate that, with the beauty of music, for others.
It is no longer about the beauty of the music.
It is about the beauty of humanity.
The beauty of the soul.
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