4 tips for when there are too many notes

How-to

When it comes to singing coloratura, it's easy to imagine that there are those who can, and those who cannot. "She's always been able to move her voice," we say, as if it's a skill one is born with. That may be true, but it doesn't mean the rest of you will never sing fast notes.

In review: Death & Desire

Review

Death & Desire is a blending of two art song cycles. One, Die schöne Müllerin by the art song emperor, Franz Schubert and the second by France's master of the bird call, Olivier Messiaen, called Harawi. It's not an opera in the traditional sense, as per usual with AtG. It is, however, one of the most coherent, artistic and thrilling examples of lyric theatre to date.

Breeches, trousers, and pants

Editorial

The value of the male soprano voice comes from an aesthetic of another time. It's a curiously stubborn aesthetic, too. There was obvious value placed on a high voice with agility and expression, and yet turning to women to provide that kind of sound was bluntly off the table. The castration of promising young singers was, according to history, a better option than training women and letting them perform.

Harawi? What's that?

Editorial

It's not hard to see why Harawi is a good partner to Die Schöne Müllerin. Love, seemingly one-sided. results in the complete spectrum between ecstasy and death. I was curious to know more, so I sat down with pianist, Messaien enthusiast, and Against the Grain Theatre Music Director, Topher Mokrzewski.

And I Know Things Now

Editorial

Nice is indeed diff'rent than Good! These words came to mind recently again when a person who I'm sure thinks of themselves as a good person was causing another person to suffer greatly. They did it nicely and that's why I think they thought they were still doing good. Nope, not good at all.

Kristin Hoff's Love Songs

Review

As part of Sing! - The Toronto Vocal Arts Festival, I heard mezzo Kristin Hoff perform the one-woman vocal feat by Ana Sokolovic, Love Songs. The work was commissioned by Queen of Puddings Music Theatre (premiered in 2009 by Lauren Phillips), and it's a compilation of love poetry in over 100 hundred languages, all sung a cappella.

The rainy-day opera pick

Humour

It's a rainy day in Toronto, making me crave one of those good opera storms. I'm a bit overloaded on The Barber of Seville, so turn back now if you hoped for Rossini cleverness. but Italian storms are the good ones.

Want to be a Schmopera contributor?

Editorial

Readers, we want you! Here at Schmopera, we're proud that we can write about the opera industry from within it. We want as big a slice as possible of the current artists, teachers, and fans, so we can keep bringing you the most relevant and important topics.

Native speakers & their operatic advantage

Editorial

I can't vouch for native speakers of German, Italian, French, Russian, etc., but for singers whose first language is English, the idea of "singing in one's native tongue" is a frightful one. English can be a tricky language to sing, especially if you're born in North America.

3 things to learn from Joni

Editorial

With the scary news that Joni Mitchell is currently recovering from a brain aneurysm, I went on a mini rediscovery of her music. No one doubts that Joni is one of the best songwriters of the 20th century, and I think the way she delivers her songs is a universal lesson in storytelling. Here are a few things that singers, operatic or otherwise, can learn from Joni.