Götterdämmerung -- Hagen's Watch (Salminen)

I have a friend who loves Wagner and suggested I watch it. Have been obsessed with this clip ever since!

Night at Carnegie Hall!

A friend of mine called me last minute with tickets for Brahms Requiem at Carnegie Hall tonight! It was the Collegiate choral with Eric Owens as the Bass soloist! I had no idea that I was going to get to see Stephanie Blythe sing The Alto Rhapsody beforehand! Was completely blown away with how effortlessly she is able to fill a hall with her incredibly lush voice.

I had only heard the Requiem on recording a few times so it was definitely a treat to hear it in person! Seeing choruses perform always remind me of the good ole days in High School where I sang in chorus for 4 years. This was also my first time sitting in the orchestra section of Carnegie Hall. I think my friend had been there plenty of times so when I began marveling at how absolutely gorgeous the space is up close, it was pretty funny to him!

Very Musically Yours,

Inspiration: Senza mamma, Veronika Dzhioeva

Yow! I love this woman's voice!! And this aria!

Opera Singers Initiative: Fall Fete

Tonight, I sang in a concert put on by Opera Singers Initiative . It was held at The Van Alen Mansion on the Eastside. About a year ago, I joined Twitter and started following someone named "Opera Singers". This person (who I now know and love) is the volunteer coordinator and asked if anyone wanted to help out at a benefit for young opera singers featuring chocolate. I love opera and I love chocolate so it was a no brainer that I take her up on the opportunity to volunteer. Once I arrived, I was excited to see the level of talent and professionalism that this unknown (to me) organization held. I immediately looked into auditioning to be part of their year-long program of concerts & mentorship. A year later, here I am performing in the same space that inspired me so much!

We got to meet and greet the guest and snack on some of the delicious food. Afterward, we went upstairs to begin the concert portion of the evening. I sang "Ne poj krasavisca pri mne" by Rachmoninov. Some of the funnier comments that I got afterward were different variations of "I was hoping my wine glass wasn't going to break". HA!

After the concert portion, in a culmination of the entire year's worth of working with them, the organization gave various award to some of us. I WON the Vocal Recording Award!!! I will keep everyone posted on when and where to hear what I end up recording.

It was a fantastic evening. I am so glad to have found this company and look forward to being part of their growing Alumni base.

Check out this wonderful organization here: http://www.operasingersinitiative.org/

Very Musically Yours,

Inspiration: Madama Butterfly 1962 Act I Butterfly's Entrance

Oh, I just about died when I heard this. Brillance! Viva la diva!!

Mother Butterfly

This month, Bleecker St. Opera put on a production of Madam Butterfly. I played her Mother, who, in my opinion, is the glue of the entire opera. Let's face it, if there was no Mother, there would be no Butterfly. End of story.

All jokes aside, this was a very cool opportunity to work with another local NYC company. The small places fascinate me. You get to see all of the behind the scenes work that goes into an opera that you might not see otherwise.

We put this opera together in a very short time with very limited resources. It reminds me of something I heard on the Willy Wonka Documentary where the guy says something like: "We just had a vision that we wanted to portray, not a fancy budget. So we rolled up our sleeves and said 'Let's get some cardboard & some tape and let's put on a show'".

The leads and the production staff were brillant and so fun to work with. I had a fantastic time in this opera. It is a great company.

The above picture was taken with a really crafty person's Iphone. Not the most flattering picture of me, but I thought it was kind of funny to see me looking at the conductor for my cues.

Someday I'll read this blog and laugh at how silly I am. Maybe tomorrow.

Check out Bleecker Street Opera here: http://bleeckerstreetopera.org/

Very Musically Yours,