voce, voce, voce
“I think that there will be an increased desire in the future to hear great singing again. Certain operas rise and fall on having the requisite vocal chops, and no degree of theatrical energy or physical glamor can replace this.” So says is IMG Artists Vice President and Artist Manager Matthew A. Horner (known affectionately around these parts as “Little Matthew”) in an interview just published on the arts marketing blog Life’s a Pitch.
Touchy Mr Holland, I don’t think it’s pedantic to say that a far smaller percentage of the population can afford, or get into, Garsington than they now can to Glyndebourne (where you can stand for a tenner, I think it is, if you’re so keen to see something).
I’d travel to Leeds or Edinburgh to see something vital. But I’d be lucky to get a look-in at Garsington. Not only that, but they have a ridiculously small number of performances. And the coverage is usually rather limited (though the Garsington Rake WAS constantly invoked in the press as a model of what they thought the Lepage Royal Opera/Everywhere Else production wasn’t).
Oh, and Cocky, could we assume you aim to be a Budd-ing singer (assuming you’re a baritone)? Of a more presentable kind than that Plug-on-a-Rope La Cieca so wickedly portrayed recently?
It is an intriguing nom de plume. I assume because someone once said, ‘he’s bloody cocky if he reckons he can sing Kurwenal’?
I sympathise with SilvestriWoman and these ‘young artists programs’ that seem to take precedence over considering a developing ‘late bloomer’ singer on their actual present merits. May I put forward an a couple of open questions for people to consider and comment upon.(1) “Is part of the problem the mindset for these modern matter of fact ‘university type’ singing training programs?” Everything all cut and dried, as people say. The teachers not reliant on fluctuating fees from pupils, but a guaranteed University contract. If in the past, a singer was not happy with a teacher they personally paid – they left and went to another, simple as that.(2) Have we lost out in the present era by the dying out of teachers – training in the thorough ‘Europeon technique’ long term mode,over a course of say 6 or 7 years before a singer went public, entered competitions or being put up for auditions. I have maintained that the flight of some many people from Europe because of WW2, injected a large dose of cultural expertise and ‘old world values’ into say the U.s, England and elsewhere. This generation with its musical disciplines are unfortuately know dying out. Today, we have a generation of ‘fast cooked, ill prepared pushers and belters’ streching those two elastic but fragile vocal chords they possess to the limits.
As far as Arndres Schmidt is concerned, go back yonks and listen to say recordings he made of Mahler songs. The faults in his singing technique was already waiting to burst ‘on the scene’.
Callas had an unusual Cathedral Arch in the roof of her mouth.It allowed her to produce the unique sounds she did. As far as slimming wrecking a voice,if the weight is too quick, without proper diet, sleep, life style, and physical exercise as a replacement: singers lose diaphagmatic muscle tone to correctly support their voice as they knew it.
You then have a scenario where there are contracts to fulfill in the meantime. Too many compensate with the old horrible trick…’use the throat muscles’. Before long the voice is worn, shot to pieces and on the way down.
It’s is only in the modern age (the age of the director/producer) that body image has become important in opera. That’s why, historically speaking, so many old (and yes fat) women have been cast as Isolda, Juliette, Melisan etc. No one saw the incongruity of middle aged women sing the role of a 16 year old girl.
Scaramuccio, actually I’m a bass, which is why I’m still budding rather than flowering, and definitely not Budd-ing at all.
The nom de plume was come up with rather hastily…
SilvestriWoman, I share your frustrations. The age limit of the Kathleen Ferrier award here in the UK is 28. As a bass, my chances of convincing at 28 are pretty slight. But there it is – there are other ways to a career as your story proves, so thank you for sharing it.
This is such a complex subject that it couldn’t possibly be resovled in one thread. Perhaps La Cieca would like to make this a running subject? If I can declare my hand, I am part of a family that has been involved in the professional side of opera for a long, long time. There are three main problems that I can see:
Firstly, at some point the conservatoires decided to abandon the classical Italian technique that had served singers so well for more than two hundred years. Very few singers now use such staples as the Marchese and Concone exercises, for example. I have met singers who have been through 6 years of Conservatoire who cannot tell me where their Impostso is, who do not knwo how to raise their soft pallete. The traditional Italian technique protects singers (there is less need for muscular aid to the singing process), allows them to sing for longer and allows them to take on a range of roles throughout their career, as the voice changes.
Secondly, very few administrators in the modern operatic world have a professional background in singing. Very few agents have trained to sing, so basically they might (depending on the agent) be busking it when they speak to a singer about the direction they should be taking. Both my parents trained with highly regarded professional singers (Dino Borgioli and Givanni Valdi, respectively) and sang professionally before becoming agents. This allows the agent or administrator to have an insight into the stresses and challenges that the singer faces. You don’t take a risk with a singer that you would not have taken with yourself.
Thirdly: We allow opera to be run by marketing people. A large section of opera budgets are spent on marketing. Unnuccessarily. About the same number of people still turn up. If attendances are dropping, it is more likely to be because the standard of singing is falling. The search for physically appealing singers means that careers start too early and end prematurely.
A soft pallet is easily raised with a fork-lift truck. A soft palate, now…much harder.
Not enough time and typing too fast!
Sorry – cheap shot!