parterre box

44 comments

• Kashania says:

  sugarmezzo: I think Pape said that he starts with the music and Racette said that she starts with the text.

  on April 24, 2007 at 3:26 PM
• sugarmezzo says:

  Yes, they did say that, but if I remember correctly (and, admittedly, I may not – I was driving while I listened to it), it went deeper than that. They were talking about character development, and how they motivate the character. Pape basically said it starts from what’s in the score and what the music tells him, and Racette said she makes musical decisions based upon the character.

  Anyway, WHAT3VZ – it was interesting to me that they came from such different places – and actually, I think Racette said that she was so surprised to hear Pape’s process in that regard because she thought of him as such a great ACTOR, and would have thought he started from a place of dramatic instead of musical inspiration.

  on April 25, 2007 at 2:48 PM
• NYCOQ says:

  I must say again that I am a HUGE Racette fan, but she suffers from that American bland sound if she is not dramatically engaged on stage. I blame that on the influence of her vocal teacher (and we all know who she is) who in my opinion creates a homogenized sound in her singer. When Ms. Racette is not hamstrung in a production she can be quite riveting. The problem is that the voice just isn’t Italianate. She KICKS ASS singing in English. I don’t think that there is another American soprano in her fach (singing at the moment that is)that has a way with contemporary American works like she does. She is a smart, intelligent and focused singer. Her Ellen Orford will blow your socks off next season. The Butterfly will certainly be better than what we got last year.

  on April 26, 2007 at 5:56 PM
• NYCOQ says:

  And yes, I know that Peter Grimes is not an American work.

  on April 26, 2007 at 5:57 PM