Canadian Connections

There is an amazing reaction that occurs when two professional choirs come together on stage. It's like combining the right musical components in the optimum conditions for an amazing musical explosion. It has been a long time since I've been swaddled by so much amazing sound and supported by so many sensitive and experienced musicians. As well, whenever you pair together two like entities, there is a human tendency one cannot resist: comparison.

Whether we admit it or not, we all do it. I approached the inevitable aspect of choral comparison between Pro Coro and the Vancouver Chamber Choir, not from a perspective of competition, but with an air of objective curiosity.

What makes these two professional choirs in Canada different?

Multiple factors come to mind but an important area to consider is the Artistic Directors of each of these respective groups. The Artistic Director of the Vancouver Chamber Choir, Jon Washburn, is actually the founding conductor. The choir formed in 1971. Michael Zaugg is currently in his first season with Pro Coro Canada. If we had to compare groups on overall choral sound, the Artistic Director's gestural voice and vision really distinguish the sound of these two professional groups.

The Vancouver Chamber Choir during their dress rehearsal

As I watched the Vancouver Chamber Choir sing from the balcony of All Saints Cathedral, I was just in awe of their cohesive sense of ensemble. They perform with an impermeable sense of familiarity and you can sense that they can finish each other's musical phrases if they needed to. They executed their pieces with precision, professionalism, and cheeky wit when required, echoing the gestural voice of Washburn.

Due to the fact that Zaugg is in his first season with Pro Coro, we're still in the getting-to-know-each-other phase. Our sense of ensemble isn't the same because we're experimenting with our sound and how to interpret different gestures. It's such subtle detail work but it makes so much difference in our sound as a group. Depending on the gestural attack Zaugg signals to us, we either go with a hard glottal, easy glottal onset, or breathy onset in the beginning our Uģis Prauliņš "Hallelujah" section of "Laudibus In Sanctis." It allows me to speechie geek-out as I consider the different diacritics to apply to the "Hallelujah."

A Pro Coro Quartet running a section from "Laudibus In Sanctis."

Sunday's "Canadian Connections" performance resulted in many musical reunions, new choral friendships, and a chance to do what we all love together: sing. It is a rare opportunity and luxury that I do not overlook. I wish the Vancouver Chamber Choir all the best as they continue their tour to Humboldt, Regina, and Calgary this upcoming week. You can read along in their touring adventures on their blog.

Here I am with Tom, a Choir Blog reader and chorister from the VCC

Strangely enough, as the Vancouver Chamber Choir heads to the prairies, this Choir Girl is headed to Vancouver! Though I am traveling there for my Speechie interests, I have a choral project lined up, such as a visit to the Vancouver Canata Singers rehearsal on Wednesday night to chat with Missy, creator of the viral "Sh*t Choristers Say" video. Stay tuned for more posts and follow me on Twitter for travel updates.

A Yeggies Thanks

Dear readers,

If you didn't already know, this blog is nominated in the category of Arts & Culture for the first annual Yeggies Awards. From the bottom of my Choir Girl heart, thank-you to those who nominated this blog!

My goal is not to write for profit, benefits, or recognition. I write because I want to. When I initially contemplated a public blog, I knew I needed a topic that would provide continuous content. I could think of nothing better than my own passion for choral music and performance. As long as I keep singing, I will have things to write. My blog has inspired me to audition more, make recordings, challenge me to think of voice science and habilitation critically, interview people I admire, and connect with lovers of music. As well, it makes me accountable for the goals that I set for myself as a musician because I document my projects and process to you, my readers.

There is such a diverse array of social media forms in the Arts & Culture category that it is humbling to be considered next to them. We all do something unique for the Arts & Culture scene here in Edmonton: a diverse Arts & Culture reviews site, a podcast discussing photography, two are podcasts focused on discussing films, one for Canadian music, and mine, for choral music and performance.

I recognize the fact that choir blogging is a niche blogging genre. I am only discussing one subset of a larger musical unit. However, my blog content is true to me, my passions, and my voice of opinion in this domain. There is such an amazing choral community here in Edmonton. If my blog has some role to play in highlighting that fact for local, as well as international audiences, my work is done.

What I am most excited about is the discussion these awards are going to generate in the city. Everybody is going to have an opinion. Everybody is going to be curious about the nominees. It is exactly the type of discourse social media should generate, especially within the area of Arts & Culture. It makes me smile to know that choral music is represented on that very list. I consider this nomination a win already.


So thank-you again to you all. I will be excited to watch my Twitter Newsfeed for the @yeggies awards winners on May 4, 2013. Unfortunately, I will be in Camrose performing with Pro Coro, but then again, I think that is a very fitting reason for me to not be at the awards ceremony.

Until next time readers, take care!

Epilogue: Life After the Circus

As the dust settles on the stage of the Jubilee Auditorium, the stage stripped of all of its rough striped canvas, and the gritty floors detached from the foundation that formed the temporary on-stage Dustbowl Circus over the past week, it just makes me wonder:

Was any of it real?

Or was the world I was a part of for the last few weeks another reflection of the drunken haze of Hoffmann's tale which separated the world between reality and spectacle?

Automaton Olympia, Teiya Kasahara

Chorus Carnies

Clowns

Hoochie Coochie Tent Girls

The assimilation process was so gradual from a chorister into a opera chorus girl. I remember feeling like I was in sensory overload the first time I was wearing my costume while the chorus was warming up in the dance rehearsal room. I couldn't help but turn to give wary glances at the stranger staring back at me in the room surrounded by mirrors. A fellow chorister noticed, smiled, and teased me by stating that I was looking at myself a lot during the warm-up. His assessment was accurate. However, it was due to an uncomfortable visual disconnect with my reflection. Even though I looked the part, I didn't feel like the character. The next couple of tech week rehearsals on the actual Jubilee stage allowed me to rediscover the character confidence I had developed during staging rehearsals. What I didn't notice was the fact that I had gradually become an opera freak myself, until I caught a glimpse of my reflection from a fellow choristers' lens on closing night. Gazing back at myself in my vanity, I could barely recognize the amplified stage version of myself that had developed over the past few weeks. The photo really embodies my transformation from the choir girl to the glamour of my opera chorus persona.

Being a part of the Opera Chorus allowed me the freedom to explore different parts of my performer persona. I felt comfortable because everything I did was still true to my own personal character; however, I had to heighten certain aspects to come across on stage. I embraced my role as a flirtatious gypsy wife. My approach was to think about what I would have wanted my character to do on stage or what it would look like if I was watching in the audience. I have minimal experience with acting. I have had much more experience as a member of an audience. It made sense for me to use what I know. Using these guiding principles, I let the stage become a social experiment in human interaction. Strangely enough, even though the stage is so exposed, because one is on physical display, there was something so supportive and receptive about the energy of the ensemble that made me brave enough to experiment. It is rare to experience moments like this in daily life, but on stage, the interconnected energy you generate with those around you makes this imaginary world come to life.

The real magic is not just what occurs on stage but how this onstage energy transitions off-stage. There is a gradual level of familiarity that develops between all of the chorus, supers, and principal's in the backstage as we pass one another in the halls, stand around the plentiful snack tables in the Green Room, or reminisce at the post-performance parties. The experience is so intense that people who were strangers to me mere days ago were quickly becoming my second family. This is so different than a choral ensemble since one can slow-burn for an entire choral season from Fall to Spring. As well, true choir bonding opportunities rarely occur unless there's some kind of retreat or tour. The Opera time-frame is much more compressed with rehearsals and performances all within a few weeks. There is a sense of urgency in the off-stage energy of Opera; an unspoken understanding that the experience is fleeting, and if you don't seize the moment... it will be gone.

Just as quickly as the circus arrived onto the Jubilee stage, it disappeared, taking with it the opera freaks and chorus carnies that populated this world. All I have now are my memories of my circus experience, a string of favorited tweets, and a catalogue of photos that serve as a reminder that I was a member of this temporary spectacle. I was surprised that I didn't plummet into a post-Opera depression with the knowledge that there will never be another Tales of Hoffmann in this exact setting with these exact performers. Life after the circus isn't so bad because I recognize that the process was about personal self-reflection and embracing my inner performance freak. It's an innate part of my true character. As a result, my inner choir girl freak will be waiting for the next circus to roll into town.

Olympia's Army

Olympia's Army Robot Kisses

Other Choir Girl Blog  exposure generated from Tales of Hoffmann:
Interview for In a Word with the Charlebois Post
A Choir Girl Blog Mention on Brittney's 5k365 Blog

Act III: It's Showtime

It's almost time for Friday's Opening Night for the Tales of Hoffmann. Each day I see exponential growth in the details of this production coming together: lighting, props, set changes, costumes, wigs, make-up, etc. We said goodbye to the rehearsal hall and greeted the Jubilee Auditorium stage.

Walking through the side slits of the circus tent and onto the stage was like being transported onto a personalized playground. The floor of the stage has a cork crackle, the walls of the tent are weathered and gritty, and lighting gives the stage an extremely moody atmosphere. Suddenly, we were provided context for all of the staging we had been working through in the past few weeks. It was a sensory overload moment for me. Looking at sketches and pictures of the stage in no way prepared me for what it would feel like to walk on the stage. We had an opportunity to explore, take note of possible hazards like the ropes that anchor into the floor from the tent edges, and orient ourselves on the different ways to enter the stage.

Stage Walk-Through

Then we had the started the cue-to-cue which entailed running through entrances, exits, set transitions, costume quick-changes etc. The cue-to-cue is where I saw the stage managers take control to execute Director, Joel Ivany's, vision with technical precision. Watching the inner mechanics of executing a professional production is just fascinating. Stage manager assistants use a stopwatch to time the duration of these events, our props are all individually labelled on shelves in the wing with glowing tape, there are lists with our names with the order in which we line up and even where we stand or sit on the stage. The stage managers consult their thick black binders, lit by a stand lamp, and they don't miss any details. They're like stage hawks.

My plan for survival as a chorus newbie was to just to try and follow the traffic flow, listen closely on the backstage intercom as we're paged for our entrances, try to acquaint myself to all this theatre lingo that is foreign to me, and read the notes from the Director taped on our door, which include thoughts on what to do at our next run-through. I also received my first note of specific feedback. In Act I, the chorus mirrors the movements of automaton Olympia, Hoffmann's first love, because she is coolest figure in the freak show tent. It turns out I have an awesome robot dance. My admiration of Star Wars's C-3P0 has paid off.

 

Act I: Olympia

Every day I add a new physical layer to my opera persona. At the first piano run-through I was just wearing my shoes, my costume the next day, then my make-up, and finally my hair to complete the ensemble. However, after a few days of just running through the show in a very detailed manner, everything felt settled by the dress rehearsal. Even though there is stress for some of the quick set changes, it is all a controlled frenzy. There's also a wonderful sense of camaraderie as chorus members help each other with tricky costume changes and participate in these transitions with a smile. I have to say, I've never seen people being stripped out of their costumes while, at the same time, singing off-stage with the Maestro on a video monitor.

Wig Prep

Costume Shoes

This new Edmonton Opera production explores so many interesting themes such as love, art, and women, while all seamlessly fitting within the world of this Dustbowl Circus. Experiencing Opera from the vantage point of the chorus gives me a deeper appreciation of the professional production scale of the Edmonton Opera and allows me to immerse myself in the world of this opulent art form for the first but, hopefully, not last time. The best part now is to share our characters, music, and theatrical perspective with our upcoming circus audiences.

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For more information on performance times and tickets:

Fri 2/1/13 8:00PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase
Sun 2/3/13 2:00PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase
Tue 2/5/13 7:30PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase
Thu 2/7/13 7:30PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase

Act II: The Women of Hoffmann

Photo Credit: Teiya Kasahara

 When I initially contemplated the ending in the Tales of Hoffmann, I found myself a bit heartbroken. He spends the Acts of the opera detailing the three great loves throughout his life, yet, he is alone at the end.

His tales begin with Olympia, the automaton, which everybody sees is a robot except for Hoffmann because he's wearing trippy glasses. This is followed by, Antonia, the singer who has a mysterious illness and dies when she sings. Lastly, Giulietta, the courtesan who steals Hoffman's shadow. There is also Stella, the resident diva and current love interest of Hoffmann. There is something comedic but unsettling in Edmonton Opera's new production of Tales of Hoffmann due to the dark fairytale atmosphere created by director, Joel Ivany, and set designer, Camellia Koo,

The source of my feeling of unrest lies with Offenbach's portrayal of Hoffmann's women: they are all controlled by men. Olympia's inventor, Spalanzani, constructs her to entertain and make money with her Doll's song; however, she is disassembled when her purpose has been served. Antonia, is convinced by Dr. Miracle to sing an aria even though she knows it will be the death of her. The courtesean, Giulietta, carries out the orders of Captain Dapertutto to steal Hoffmann's shadow for jewlery. All these women are disposed of or used in some way or another.

Ivany's staging in this new Hoffmann production further explores the female presence within the Opera. In the second half of Act I, Olympia spectators return to the circus tent after having some supper and Spalanzani's assistant, Cochenille, waltzes with a young girl re-entering the stage. While it appears whimsical and innocent, the atmosphere in which it occurs could suggest alternative meanings. It presents an image of the societal expectations that the young girl will eventually have to fulfill as a man leads her through the appropriate steps. In Act III, when we enter into the circus tent where Giulietta works, a male figure supervises a "carousel of women." Scantily clad chorus girls orbit around a communal axis, while a crowd of male patrons stare on with lust and emotional disconnect. The women of Hoffmann are agents controlled by male intent.

Photo Credit: Teiya Kasahara

It is also important to remember that the stories of these three women are told from drunken Hoffmann's memories. It is entirely plausible that these women don't even exist. Perhaps they are just women Hoffmann has seen in passing or they are all different aspects of the same woman. When Stella goes to greet Hoffmann at the end of the Opera, he does not recognize her because he is drunk on the dream of imaginary women.

A person can so easily fall in love with a self-constructed ideal of perfection. The truth lies in choosing to see the flaws and assessing whether love still remains after the illumination of that fact. In order to start creating relationships based on transparency and equality, I think we can benefit from taking off the lenses that distort our reality and begin viewing the world around us with truth.

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For more information on performance times and tickets:

Fri 2/1/13 8:00PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase
Sun 2/3/13 2:00PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase
Tue 2/5/13 7:30PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase
Thu 2/7/13 7:30PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase

Act I: Opera Staging

This last week of Opera activity has encompassed the staging process for the Prologue and Act I. Suddenly, the rehearsal hall was filled with many new faces containing the Principals and supernumeraries (a.k.a Supers which are extras on stage that don't sing but create the environmental population of the stage). Supers also get the most freaktastic costumes.

The start of the staging process began with a verbal walk-through of the Opera with director, Joel Ivany, explaining his vision to set the opera in a Dustbowl circus. Meanwhile, set designer, Camellia Koo manipulated a miniature diorama of the stage and changed the props to match each act so we could watch the physical transformation of the stage. Many interesting topics arose from the description, such as how the Circus symbolized this group of traveling Otherness that would arrive in a town. There would be a parade of clowns, dancers, contortionists, elephants and circus freaks etc., and for a limited time, they would be the entertainment for the town. Not unlike what the Opera offers in terms of audience entertainment. Ivany emphasized that the world of Opera, in its own right, is like a freak show: vocal athletes singing soaring arias in a world constructed to be a spectacle.

While the staging process does feel like we're herding people sometimes, there is a sense of order to the madness. We are split up into large sections, then smaller orientations, and then we're handed props we are responsible for. Meanwhile, there are stage crew members madly jotting down our names from our name-tags in addition to the prop(s) we're bringing onto stage. As well, before we put anything back, they write our name on red tape, and stick it on the bottom of the prop, so there is an ongoing inventory of personalized items. Any larger prop shift on stage will cause us to change the tape markers on the floor, which will later be transposed onto the Jubilee Stage. Furthermore, whenever certain groups of people are split to exit or enter, the stage crew will be writing down a list of names to chart these movements as well. No detail is missed.

However, most of the individual movements, such as the Prologue, where the circus crew are drinking behind-the-scenes, is given to us to individually dictate. It is a great opportunity to develop a back story and to think about how your character would act given the role, the costume provided to you, and the surrounding stage environment. I have had some experience with staging before but I've never done it on a professional scale before. It is nice to be allowed the freedom of artist expression and the process is extremely organic as Ivany experiments with and suggests different movement details depending on what he sees with each run-through.

I'm constantly experimenting to try and find what is comfortable for me while creating my circus persona. In my first run-through, I wasn't sure what to do with my hands, my props, where I was allowed to move, if I was allowed to touch people... and then I just stopped panicking and started paying attention to what was happening around me. So far it's been going pretty smoothly. For a large part of the opera, I play a "Circus Wife" and my costume gives off a nomadic gypsy vibe. Even though I'm married to one of the roustabouts, I feel like my character would have accepted the open relationship possibilities within a traveling company of artists. I try to keep this in mind as I interact with others on stage.

There are more rehearsals this week so stay tuned for more updates. The Edmonton Opera has been doing a great job on social media with posting pictures and updates about the performance. You can also read more about the inspiration behind Ivany's vision for Les Contes d'Hoffmann.

For more information on performance times and tickets:

Fri 2/1/13 8:00PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase
Sun 2/3/13 2:00PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase
Tue 2/5/13 7:30PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase
Thu 2/7/13 7:30PM:  Jubilee Auditorium
Les Contes d'Hoffmann	More Information    Purchase

Prologue: Choir Turned Opera Girl

Greetings readers,

It's almost a month into the rehearsals for the Edmonton Opera Chorus's production of "Tales of Hoffman." It's been a gradual evolution from choir girl to opera girl but I feel like I'm slowly entering into a world of vocal opulence. In rehearsals, I'm enveloped by rich, vibrato-filled voices singing the sweeping lines of Offenbach and the effervescent energy of French opera. I definitely miss the subtley of vocal colours that I'm used to in Pro Coro, but there are many new experiences I am eager to embrace in this Opera Chorus process. One thing is just witnessing the hierarchy of preparation for a large Opera production.

Never before have I had costumes tailored to fit me or have somebody style my hair with synthetic additions. I think it'll be the closest I will ever come to feeling like a model. Upon entering the Edmonton Opera production facility, I saw rows of long work tables tables laden with fabric, accessories, and sewing materials. The first thing I was offered was a range of footwear in my size to try on. They even had a small square sample of the stage floor so I could check to see if there was adequate friction on the stage to feel comfortable wearing heels. After finding two suitable shoe options, I proceeded to the change room to see both of my costumes laid out for me with accompanying accessories. I tried each one on in turn, impressed, but slightly wary at the same time. They chose, tailored, or made the clothing to closely match my initial measurements taken at the start of the season. Since this was the case, it made me realize that I could not gain any weight over the holidays. I walked out the change room and a team of women adjusted accessories, discussed rolling or unrolling my sleeves, and tugged and tweaked my costume until it met their aesthetic level. Afterwards, the hairstylists pincurled my hair in order to get accurate head measurements for future wig reference; however, for this production, they just decided on a small hair attachment to form my low chignon.



Our first rehearsals were spent working with chorus master, Michael Spassov, who ensured notes, dynamics, text and other overt details of the piece were solidified for the Maestro. This week the Maestro, Christoph Campestrini, arrives to contribute his own artistic voice in the music. We meet with Director, Joel Ivany, later in the week to begin the staging process and occupy the physical realm in which we present the music.

I've been able to witness the transformation of the Jubilee Rehearsal Hall from an audition room into an opera rehearsal space. Initially, it was a bare room with only Spassov and the Edmonton Opera CEO, Sandra Gajic, listening to my audition.

Figure 1. Audition Set-Up

Now it has been transformed into the heart of the Edmonton Opera rehearsal space. There is a office workspace area set up at the front, a rehearsal area with chairs for the chorus and piano, behind this is the floor-taped outline of the Jubilee stage with larger props pieces scattered along the back edges of the room, artist stage illustrations and photo inspiration for this dustbowl circus production form a collage on a portion of the wall. There is even a water cooler. If that doesn't symbolize a work space, I don't know what does.

Figure 2. Rehearsal Set-Up

The music rehearsal process is the most familiar to choral realm to me. I am attempting to maintain my tuning fork use from Pro Coro while in the Opera Chorus to maintain a level of a cappella independence. Spassov makes the evening rehearsals engaging with his ability to create lush metaphors, always providing context for where we are in the piece, and accurate vocal models of what he expects from the chorus. Spassov is challenging us in terms of tempo and dynamics in order to make sure we're pliable and able to accommodate the preferences of the Maestro. He also somehow manages to comedically paraphrase portions of the opera, such at the moment when Hoffman falls in love with the mechanical doll, Olympia. The chorus laughed at the ridiculousness of the situation. Spassov looked pensive at this moment, he glanced up at the ceiling to compose his thoughts, and empathized how there are moments like this in real life. At first, a person can look so ordinarily human... until you realize you can do little to change their pre-programmed routine or warm their emotionless demeanor. It is at this point where you realize: "Holy $*^! I'm in love with a robot!"

Thus far, the Opera Chorus rehearsal process has been in familiar territory for me. However, I'm sure once staging gets started this upcoming week, I'm going to be shaken out of my comfortable choir girl boundaries as I will be given the opportunity to embrace a more dramatic side of my performance persona. I look forward to it.

For more information on the production:

Les Contes d'Hoffmann

 

Date	Time	Buy Tickets
Friday, February 1, 2013	8:00 pm	Purchase online
Sunday, February 3, 2013	2:00 pm	Purchase online
Tuesday, February 5, 2013	7:30 pm	Purchase online
Thursday, February 7, 2013	7:30 pm	Purchase online

A Choral Reflection

There is something to be said for reconnecting with people that put you at complete ease. Yesterday, for the first time in five years, my closest choral companions from my teenage a cappella ensemble, Con Fuoco, reunited for an evening. As we each took turns to provide verbal updates in a round table manner, I just kept thinking how inspiring it was to listen to the paths that some of my friends have chosen. They are diverse and unique but the commonality was that they were completely true to that person's character. Their overall life trajectory appears organic to me as a third-party observer.

It also made me think of what our teenage selves would have thought if they were able to evaluate ten year older versions of themselves. One fellow choir girl remarked how she remembers drafting Plan's A-C and how some of them included aspirations for choral conducting training. She gave a laugh of amusement at how utterly inappropriate that would be for her now. It is amazing to see what predictions form when you're forecasting the future in the formative stages of adulthood. I, too, would be shocked at how I have turned out so far. I had one main career aspiration as an overachieving teen: Medical School.

The desire wasn't motivated by any cultural pressure. My parents watched on in silence as I self-motivated myself through a full courseload of an academically-oriented program. They chose to stay out of my path of academic frenzy when I made conscious choices to forgo Halloween festivities in order to finish a Styrofoam model of a eukaryotic cell or when I started video taping for an English class project when there was a school hiatus from a teacher's strike. In University, I realized that it wasn't so much the actual dream of "Medical School" that had enticed me, but the prospect of helping people. It was difficult to realize that there are multiple options to reach this goal with my limited teenage worldview. In the early years of my undergrad, I had these thoughts when I was still convincing myself of my Medical School aspirations.

"I'm in a perpetual state of stress. I'm not enjoying my courses. I'm not doing that well in them. This sucks."

During this time, I wasn't singing regularly. I was still in Belle Canto, but after a few weeks of missed rehearsal, I was starting to feel the emotional imbalance as I had no outlet for all of these negative feelings.

As I reflected on this last night, I realized that even if I was in Medical School at this very moment in time, I know, for a fact, that I would not be singing as much as I do now. While I understand that sacrifices must be made in order to pursue career aspirations.... I do not wish to compromise doing the things I love. I am also allowed to love doing more than one thing. That includes singing in choir. It is a component of my life that more than just a frivolous leisure activity. At this point in time, my Speech Pathology and choral interests have equal priority.

I've done a mental review of my blogging year; it's staggering to see the creative explosion of content I've generated through the blog this year. I had more opportunities to sing in new ensembles in the city which included my concert with the Scona Singers and the Ordo Collective. The latter providing me the opportunity to tour to Victoria and Vancouver to perform the work. I survived the Pro Coro audition process under the direction of Pro Coro's newly appointed artistic director, Michael Zaugg. I also began writing for Sound + Noise after editor-in-chief, Michael MacDonald, contacted me via Twitter to attend a meeting. There is something to be said for meeting a mentor at the right point in time. MacDonald was the one who encouraged me to do interviews and social media coverage of the Podium 2012 choral conference in Ottawa since I was going there anyway with Belle Canto. This shaped my social media experience at the conference and gave me the confidence to dream big with my blog. As a result, I have a series of Podium posts and interviews with conductors, Heather Johnson, Ivars Taurins, Hilary Apfelstadt, Lydia Adams, and Michael Zaugg to add to my archives. My Podium 2012 coverage also led to my first paper print article in the Fall version of Choral Canada's "Anacrusis" Journal. As well, my blog garnered some local media attention for the first time in an Edmonton Sun article. My studies at the Summer Vocology Institute in Salt Lake City inspired some voice science posts as well.

To say that 2012 has been a great speechie, singing, and blogging year is an understatement. In some ways, I wonder if I have peaked given the burst of opportunity that I have been presented with this past year. No matter what, I am certain if my teenage self had to reevaluate my current path, she would initially be surprised but proud that I have not compromised either my career aspirations or musical passion. I have developed a multi-faceted area of interests such as voice science, rehabilitation, choral singing, and blogging and, by doing the things I enjoy, I have somehow formed a life template that incorporates all of my interests.

Thank-you to all of my readers this past year. I hope to bring you more inspired content in 2013.

Con Fuoco Reunited

My favorite blog posts of 2012:

What do Choristers Do?

My inaugural post for Sound + Noise and my chance to introduce myself to new audiences in a refreshing format.

The Culture of Fear

A post that challenged me to evaluate what I find fulfilling in past choral relationships and my personal feelings on how this has shaped me into the performer I am today.

A Vocal Diagnosis

A post incorporating my approach to voice rehabilitation and how this extends to vocal pedagogy.

Painting the Nightingale

This post resulted after I came home from Pro Coro rehearsal and could not sleep because I was too buzzed. The rehearsal process for Praulin's "The Nightingale" was utterly consuming and rewarding. I have been waiting a long time to sing music like this. As well, receiving a personal message from Praulins himself in response to my post was a choir girl highlight.

A Christmas Update

Greetings readers,

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

It's hard to keep this in mind when I find myself becoming a bit of a hypochondriac. Every cough or sniffle reminds me of my proximity to sickness. With a calendar filled with singing commitments, I know this is definitely NOT the time to be sick.

So far so good.

Pro Coro had a Christmas concert in Sherwood Park at the start of this month where we resurrected some familiar songs from our 'Once Upon a Time' concert (by the way, that concert is available for your streaming pleasure on CBC Music at this link). Our Sherwood Park concert was a good chance to sing through our Christmas repertoire for our larger Christmas concert at the Winspear Centre this Sunday. Some of the works on the programme is Benjamin Britten's "Ceremony of Carols," which is a choral favorite of mine from my treble choir years, Chilcott's "Rose in the Middle of Winter," Whitacre's "Lux Aurumque," and Nickel's "Creator Alme Siderum." Nickel's piece was premiered by Pro Coro two seasons ago. The Pro Coro concert out in Sherwood park was intimate and the audience was extremely appreciative. While it was a draining process to prepare with consecutive rehearsals from Sunday to Wednesday and braving the snowy commute to Sherwood Park, it was nice to share our music with a different audience.

Backstage at Festival Place in Sherwood Park

This is also my first Christmas where I don't have any academic obligations. No Master's thesis defense, no thesis edits, no final exam studying, no scrambling to finish up paperwork for clinical placements... it actually has resulted in a really manageable season. I only sing when I want to sing. It's a luxury I haven't had in the past. I was able to pick up a few caroling gigs with my previous women's choir, Belle Canto, which included singing at some lovely venues, such as Fort Edmonton Park. There's something about caroling inside while the snow softly drifts outside upon historical Edmonton houses from 1905. I sang with some ladies which I haven't seen since Ottawa when we were at the Podium choir conference in May. There is just something so comforting when you are singing amongst familiar voices. I even saw some friendly audience faces: a fellow Pro Coro chorister singing at the historical church down the street and a friend from University who was working at Fort Edmonton. During my break, she tried to convince me to sit on "Father Christmas'" lap, I declined once I learned that Father Christmas was actually younger than me.

I even had the time to take in some Christmas concerts. One being the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra performance of Handel's "Messiah" with the University of Alberta Madrigal Singers, Alumni, and members of Richard Eaton Singers. The other concert was the Cantilon Choirs' "Dancing Day" concert. It was my first time ever watching a Cantilon Christmas concert and not singing in it. I was surprised at how relaxing it is was being on the other side of the stage as an audience member. The first half was structured more like a Christmas pageant highlighting carols from around the world and the second half included Rutter's "Dancing Day" performed by Belle Canto and the Cantilon Chamber Choir. It was fitting since the Chamber Choir just released their Christmas c.d. "The Time of Snow," where they recorded "Dancing Day." One of my favorite parts was the audience carols since it meant that I got to be conducted by Heather Johnson once again. When she gestures... I sing. I don't think that my programmed chorister discipline will ever escape me.

Cantilon Choirs' Dancing Day Concert

My Christmas singing obligations come to a close this Sunday for Pro Coro's Family Christmas concert. If you are in town, I recommend you come out to hear the harp playing of Keri Lynn Zwicker, Jeremy Spurgeon at the organ, Tommy Banks narrating "The Little Match Girl," and the voices of my fellow Pro Coro singers filling the hall with Christmas cheer.

Until next time readers, have a happy holidays!

Sunday, December 16, 2012 at 2:30 PM
Tickets available at the Winspear Box Office (780-428-1414)

The Start of Christmas

I am certain that everybody has their own poignant memories associated with Handel’s “Messiah.” Perhaps it is the “Hallelujah” chorus from a childhood cartoon, or maybe one of the other well-known Air’s such as “How Beautiful Are the Feet of Them,” often heard on classical music stations. I am sure many of the performers and audience members either formed or reminisced about their own experiences on Friday night.

As a result, I could not suppress thoughts of my very first "Messiah" performance four years ago. I remember my first performance vividly. I had spent a whole afternoon studying in the library for final exams. It was a particularly emotional week since I was coping with the passing of a family member at the time. I showed up at the call time of the performance and when I went to the bathroom to change, I noticed that everybody was wearing concert black. I had brought my Madrigal Singers uniform, which was a black and white gown. There was clearly a breakdown in the chain of communication for me.

“Uh-oh,” I thought to myself.

I knew I couldn’t walk out on the stage with my two-toned uniform. What was I going to do? Did I have enough time to go to a store to buy black clothing? The downtown shopping center was not far. Perhaps my parents hadn’t left home yet and they could bring me black clothes. I phoned them. No answer. I left a voicemail. I was being summoned to get on stage for the warm-up. I quickly change back into my street clothes, to reinforce the illusion that everything was under control, and went to warm-up on stage with the rest of the singers… who were all dressed in their concert black. The conductor expressed verbal displeasure at a tenor for wearing white sneakers with his tux. The tenor quickly assured him that somebody from home was bringing black shoes to remedy the mistake. Meanwhile, I was quivering with fear on my riser.

As soon as the warm-up was done, I ran back to the dressing room to find my cellphone to call once again. My parents had already left home and were at supper. An emotion I don’t often feel began to rise: panic. I spoke to my mother about my uniform crisis. She relayed this information to my father. I heard him state that he just happened to be wearing two long-sleeved cashmere polo shirts that night… one of them happened to be black. My mother wears black as her daily uniform. She said I could wear her pants. I closed my eyes in silent horror. Between my sister and I, my mother’s black pants, to this day, are the creative inspiration for our loving mom criticism. These pants are somehow baggy, yet tapered, at the same time. The pants zip up on the side, the leg tapers downward with a baggy silhouette to the ankles, and there is ample rise to accommodate babies I haven’t birthed. In short, they are mom-pants.

This was no time to be picky. I heartily agreed to this makeshift concert black. My mother arrived at the Winspear and I rushed her backstage to do a clothing swap in the dressing room. The pants zipped up easily enough, but I had to hold the waist to keep them up, and my father’s long-sleeve polo draped over my shoulders. I was swimming in clothing. I handed my mother my low-rise skinny jeans. To this day, I’m still not sure what was worse: the fact that I had to walk out on stage, clutching my waist so that my pants wouldn’t fall off… or the fact that my mother was able to fit into my skinny jeans.

This moment is seared into my “Messiah” memory.

I was glad to see that there appeared to be no uniform crises on stage during the Friday "Messiah" performance. It was quite a sight to actually listen to the “Messiah” live for the first time and not be singing it. Furthermore, it was so lovely to see so many familiar faces in the chorus. It is quite amazing to see a wide array of community singers, joining together, and donating their time to collectively indulge in the sheer joy of singing. For being a recently assembled group of 80, they had a cohesive sound, especially the women sections. I felt that the chorus sound didn’t settle until the “For Unto Us a Child is Born” chorus in Part I and I could tell that diction was something they were working hard to convey throughout the performance. Some of the trilling subtlety that Leonard Ratzlaff described to me in the preview was only audible to me in “His Yoke is Easy.” Unfortunately, as soon as everybody was singing and playing, all the vocal detail work was lost.

Also noteworthy was the lyricism of tenor, Colin Balzer. There was such vibrant energy behind his words such as “laugh,” “scorn,” and “dash.” Female soloists, Noah and Giunta, approached their sections with more operatic flare. Bass-baritone, Bintner, had a lovely moment in “Why Do the Nations so Furiously Rage Together” when the chorus rose with such unison passion behind him that they looked like a mob gang as they broke out into “Let Us Break Their Bonds Asunder.”

It was a refreshing evening out to hear familiar music. While the baroque detail work was lost within the Winspear space, the performance still was successful in achieving its goal: it signaled the start of Christmas for many audience members. 

If you have a Messiah memory to share, feel free to post it in the comments section below!

Conductor: Stephen Stubbs

Musicians: Edmonton Symphony Orchestra
U of A Madrigal Singers (Leonard Ratzlaff, conductor), MAD’s alumni, volunteer Richard Eaton Singers
Yannick-Muriel Noah, soprano
Wallis Guinta, mezzo-soprano
Colin Balzer, tenor
Gordon Bintner, baritone