SFO

There's been a slight bit of buzz in San Francisco and online about my next engagement. And it was about time I posted again, so here it goes.

The call came in from SF Opera to inquire about me going to cover Dmitri Hvorostovsky as Count Di Luna in Il Trovatore. He will not be singing the last two performances. And so, I get those last two shows, as well as the opportunity to cover one of the leading opera singers in the world today!! It's a HUGE honor and a privilege to get the call for this job. I can't begin to go into how excited I am to go to San Francisco in the next few weeks!! It's a wonderful town, and the company is a really great place to work. I'm really looking forward to it.

The run begins on September 11th. I will sing the last two performances on Oct. 4th and 6th.

Fourth of July

Been sorta on holiday this whole week. Finally called to rehearsal Friday and today. Both rehearsals were quite short; not longer than an hour half. Maybe it’s because the rehearsal staff know that we know what we’re doing. Maybe it’s just timing or coincidence. It’s been a bit of a chore to find ways to keep myself occupied.

Anywhere else in the US, I feel like I’d have so many more options. So many more things to pique my interest. Bregenz is a cute little town. The wide paths that parallel the lakefront offer lots of peaceful strolling along the water’s edge. The cafés give you that European charm along the cobblestone streets that we don’t really have in the US. But some of the other customs and daily mundane things I really have to work to get used to. One must strike out in the morning or early in the afternoon at the latest to get the day’s shopping done. Most retailers close at 6pm. I love the idea of being able to rush out to the grocery store in Chicago or Honolulu after 10pm. God forbid you have a grocery store that keeps its doors open 24 hours! Or knowing you can count on 7-11 or Walgreens to be open all day, so that you can still get home after work and then head out to do your shopping from there.

I’m just terribly spoiled by these and other simple luxuries. Luxuries like owning a vehicle with which to get yourself to the store and back with all of your purchased items. Or the restaurants that deliver straight to your door. You enjoy the…um…luxury…of walking around in the house all day in pajamas and messy hair, and then you clean up JUST a bit (not too much) when the delivery guy shows up so as not to scare him out of his socks.

I want to drive my car. When colleagues say, “Let go shoot some pool,” I would GLADLY offer to drive. With the car, the pool hall would be a brisk five minute scoot down the main road in Bregenz that follows the train tracks. Instead, it’s a 30 minute walk…one I usually don’t TOTALLY look forward to after hours of standing up in the pool hall/bar. Or…it could just be that I’m THAT much of a lazy slob.

I could have spent another couple hours at the festspielhaus on the computer, surfing the web, watching a movie or show, or corresponding with friends, but then I leave when it’s dark out, and that can be a drag as well.

I’ve made a friend in one of the other baritones also singing Amonasro here at the festival. Iain Paterson is a tall chap with great barrel of a voice that is MORE than built for Verdi’s Ethiopian king. We hit it off rather quickly and have gotten along quite well. Iain lives outside of London, about 40 minutes I think he said. He packed up his motorcycle and rode all the way over to Bregenz. On his days off, Iain will often times hop on the bike, set the route on his GPS, or Sat Nav as it’s called in the U.K., and toddle off on a sightseeing tour of one of the region’s many scenic roads and highways. Now THIS is something I would LOVE to do, being that I enjoy driving so much. Alas; no wheels.

A Quick Festspiele Link

Apparently, I have been added to some sort of flash interview spot on the Festspiele website. Enjoy!

View the video spot here.

the Bregenzerfestspiele

This particular posting will be one of many as the summer progresses.

First entry is from Monday evening, after arriving in Bregenz after almost 9 hours of flying and another 90 minutes of driving from Zurich to Bregenz.

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Lots of traveling yesterday.

Lots of traffic on I-94 coming back to Chicago from Milwaukee.  I had a funny feeling in my gut that the traffic would be there when my manager and I had originally begun planning the whole day.  I’d been misled the first few times I traveled to and from Milwaukee.  The traffic was very minimal.  I arrived on Monday morning in Milwaukee for the start of rehearsals merely an hour & fifteen minutes from the start of my journey in Chicago.  And when I hopped in the car to drive back on Friday night and take advantage of the day off between shows to do some packing and run last minute errands at home, the traffic again proved not a problem at all.

Sunday was a different story altogether.  What had taken not even an hour and a half took almost TWO hours.  Marjorie joined me that morning to see the show.  She’d made plans to have a friend of ours check up on our two Dachshunds for the day as she would be back home by the early evening after dropping me at the airport.

We hit traffic a FEW times.  BOTH ways.  I knew we were in for unfortunate driving.  We started out smoothly, all the way out of Chicago on I-94.  All the way up through Skokie and Highland Park, traffic flowed evenly.  It was after we’d passed thru the first toll booth that things began to look discouraging.  Brake lights.  That was Marjorie, seeing cars’ brake lights far up ahead.  “Uh oh, honey.  Brake lights.”  And then, “Don’t you do it.  STOP BRAKING!!”  The trusty look-out.

What it came down to, I guess, was that there were just too many people on the road that day.  It WAS Sunday, after all.  I feel like I’ve lived in Illinois long enough to know that folks DO tend to drive outta town on the weekends, and return on Sunday afternoon/evening.  Too many people.  Not enough of them paying attention to traffic.  Speeding up too fast.  Then there are those who sit on the inside lane going too slowly.  Or those who drive too slowly in ANY lane for that matter.  Too many who act like they’re all alone on the road.  No one but them, so they’ll just drive as fast or as slow or as badly as they want.

And it was the same coming back to Chicago.  Too many people.  Not enough of them paying attention.  A bunch who didn’t care.  I had a lady in a Jeep Cherokee, riding my rear bumper for a while.  Why do you have to drive so close?  If I have to brake suddenly, you’ll eat my rear bumper for dinner!  And I WAS rushing back, straight to the airport to make my flight to London.  As if I didn’t have ENOUGH stress on me already!

The hardest part was having to jump outta the car, leaving Marjorie behind, a quick kiss and a hug, and rushing to the British Airways counter at O’Hare’s international terminal to see if I was going to be able to make my flight.  I’d had Marjorie find the 800 number for the airline to call ahead and see if I’d be able to get on the plane depending upon when I made it to the airport.  The nice girl on the phone told Marjorie something to the effect that they’d accept passenger check-in at the counter up until 40 minutes before the flight.  There was a part of me that didn’t want to make it in time.  A part of me that wanted to get there, have the counter tell me I was too late, book me on a flight a few hours later, I’d’ve checked my bags, and then we’d’ve driven back home to relax for a couple hours.  The other thing was, they couldn’t totally guarantee my bags making it thru to Zurich with me.  THAT would have been a mess.  I wasn’t ending my travel in Zurich.  I was going to be driven from Zurich, over the border to Austria.  Who KNOWS what would have happened had my bags not made it.  I doubt the airline would have sent my bags all the way out to Bregenz; over the border into another country.

But the hardest part was having to leave Marjorie behind so hastily.  No time to sit and talk.  No time to lean in and share each other’s touch.  No time to do all those mushy little affectations that couples do.  No goofy little baby voices, or meowing and purring as we like to do.  Our Dachshunds make some of the BEST gestures and facial expressions.  We incorporate those bits of communication as well.  It’s just what we do.  But there was no time for ANY of that.  I rushed into the building with my luggage.  She drove away and pulled off somewhere to wait for me to let her know whether or not I’d made it on the flight.  I had.  I called her to let her know, and that was it.  That was goodbye for the summer.  Yeah…not a good way to leave.

Milwaukee Symphony - Mahler's 8th Symphony

Milwaukee Symphony Mahler 8 proved to be quite an enjoyable experience.  This production marked Maestro Andreas Delfs’ finale with the Milwaukee Symphony after which he would be stepping down as Music Director.  One could feel the familiar tugging of heart strings to see and hear the ardent response from those on and off the stage as Delfs took the podium.  It was all too apparent that he had made a lasting impression on the music community of Milwaukee as well as those who enjoyed the fruits of its labors.  And as the maestro brought the finale to a triumphant close at the end of both performances, all in the audience almost immediately rose to their feet, applauding fiercely.  I, for one, enjoyed the tickling sensation of victory washing over me in a calming wash of energy.

I enjoyed sharing the soloist duties with my fellow colleagues.  Each solo voice possessed a character and line that they inhabited fully.  When one reaches a specific level of professionalism, one cannot deny the feeling of accomplishment and excellence that comes with it.  To listen to each voice was to hear a technician work their craft as only one of sufficient stage experience could produce.

The adult and youth choirs offered a comfortable cushion for which both the soloists and the orchestra were able to build on to round out the wonderful, full sound that is required of this of Mahler’s great works.  When all the elements of the entire ensemble are engaged, the result is staggering.  I always wonder how individuals could conceive all that sound…all those different voices and instrumental parts all working as a unit.  Such gifted individuals as Mahler could NOT have possibly been human, for the works they have bestowed on the world surpass mortal abilities, in my humble opinion.  

Preparing for the Summer

Gonna be gone all summer to Austria for a festival gig.  A handful of friends will be among my colleagues there.  But I have to say, I'm feeling some anxiety as the departure approaches.

Thing is, I've got a concert coming up before I leave for Europe.  The concert has nothing to do with it; the immediacy of my departure after the concert is what's bothering me.  It kinda makes me uncomfortable to have to rush to the airport right after the concert is over.  I would've preferred to have had a little more time to relax before such a long trip, as well as my departure from home for the whole summer.  Anxiety begins bubbling up, making me a little edgy about leaving home for so long.  I like traveling and seeing new places.  But I REALLY enjoy being a home body, too!!  I guess that's the thing.  I just wanna enjoy my summer at home.

I know, I know...it'll be GORGEOUS on Lake Constance in Austria.  Aida is the show for the summer and I AM looking forward to my first big European production.  I guess it just seems like time is rolling by a little too fast and I don't wanna lose any of it before I leave.  Don't get me wrong; I'm MORE than appreciative for the opportunities I'm being given.  Just need to get used to this; still not totally comfortable with it all.  But this is just me complaining and whining.

Grand Rapids...

Greetings.  Sorry I've been a little behind.  These last couple weeks have seen some pretty interesting last minute schedule changes.

Carmina Burana - Honolulu Symphony

This was a nice little surprise.  Got the call from the folks at the Honolulu Symphony that they needed someone to fill in on the baritone solos.  My manager got in touch with them as well as the folks at Opera Grand Rapids to release me for a day as the symphony concert was going to force me to cut into their schedule just a bit.  They were nice enough to let me go, and it turns out the opera schedule ended up getting pushed back a week ANYWAY, so that put me in the clear.

Carmina Burana was a great show.  The house at the Blaisdell Concert Hall was nicely full.  I know that ALL of us onstage were more than happy to see that!!  And they were also quite appreciative on both nights.

Shared the stage with the international soprano Sumi Jo, tenor Brian Stucki, and maestro Jean-Marie Zeitouni, as well as the Honolulu Symphony (of course), the symphony chorus, members of the University of Hawaii Chamber Singers, and the Hawaii Youth Opera Chorus.  It was a huge honor and privilege for me to come home and sing for so many who've supported and encouraged me over the years.  The entire ensemble really brought Carl Orff's score to life with an energy and fullness that I knew I could count on once the opening "O Fortuna" roared in.  This is definitely some of the most fun I've had singing at home to date.

Drove from Chicago late in the day on Sunday to Grand Rapids, Michigan to start rehearsals for Opera Grand Rapid's production of Gounod's FAUST.  It's my first time actually performing Valentin.  Before now, I'd only covered the role and sung a handful of rehearsals.  But that was almost 6 years ago in Chicago as a young artist.  I must say, my continued vocal maturity has only made this role more easily accessible since I last sang it.  I'm hoping for great things with this production.  We've got some good folks on this show.  We had a Sing-Thru this afternoon and then did a bunch of stage on into the evening.

Pamela Armstrong is our Marguerite.  Great voice.  She sings like she really knows where the role goes and how it works.  Nice, rounded tones.  I can't wait to hear her onstage.

Bryan Griffin sings Dr. Faust.  He's a colleague of mine from our days at the Lyric Opera Center for American Artists in Chicago.  Bryan is always his harshest critic.  He'll downplay how well he's doing.  He's just humble that way.  ALWAYS nice to catch up to a gig with a friend.

Kirk Eichelberger portrays Mephistofeles in this production.  His is a booming voice with much dexterity and a good feel for the evil that is the devil, himself.

Our Siebel is Marguerite Krull.  She's perfect for this part.  She's very much a woman, but can make you feel like she's a giddy young lad full-on into puberty.  Very much wanting to be a part of the crowd.  TOTALLY crushing for Marguerite, but also as much of one of the guys as possible.

What can I say about Robert Lyall?  Director AND conductor at the same time??!?  Yes he is.  And I've never known anyone like him.  At the very least, you need to be overflowing with energy to be able to keep everyone's attention as WELL as to keep the rehearsal going, both on the stage and in the pit.  And gracious, too.  Very flexible about what you wanna do in your role.  The tempos start out a certain way, and then he's right with you.  I figure it's give and take in opera with the conductor.  And how comforting to find someone who will actually ask YOU what you want.

Looking forward to the show.  I'm sure we'll all want to do more performances just as soon as we're all done.  I know I will.  www.operagr.com for production info.