Money & manners: one critic's observations from her really great opera seats

Op-ed

There's a funny catch, though, because when you're sitting in those pricey sections of the opera house, your neighbours are likely of a certain demographic; basically, they're sitting in those seats because they're good, and they can afford them. The important thing to note here is not that there are wealthy people who go to the opera, but that there's likely a stark difference between their tax bracket, and that of someone who writes about opera for a living.

Opera's sexual assault secret

Op-ed

There are the rumors of programs stockpiled with shockingly handsome young singers, the conductor who trolls dating apps for singers in his production, the director who always has to show singers how to stage a love scene by taking the soprano's place and kissing the male lead.

A singer and her ego

Op-ed

Like I said, this is a stereotype. But even if the opera singer herself is a humble, down-to-earth type, the above scene is still part of her job. She might be a sci-fi nerd and an excellent giver of hugs, but she's still standing up on that stage holding flowers and looking like a cross between a swan and Grecian fresco.

Sung Jin Hong: Seoul searching

Op-ed

If The Rite of Spring "kissed the earth" through a savagely primitive lens, that temple-food-inspired table celebrated our planet's primordial bounty from a more intimate perspective. The meal was prepared using centuries-old methods and crafted with ingredients that shared their origins with the mountains themselves. Traditional Korean cooking has nurtured a patient alchemy, where delicacies, seasoned with time to develop deep undercurrents of flavor, emerge transformed.

Using your voice again: a plan of action

Op-ed

This can be a vulnerable process, and in sharing this writing with you, I do feel quite vulnerable. Who knows how and where I will be compelled to sing more frequently again, but I do know that my voice has power and I can likely use it to improve the situation of my friends, family, communities, fellow humans, and of the earth.

Keeping the thread: moment-to-moment awareness in singing

Op-ed

The body only does what the mind tells it and allows it to do. Intense, almost loving attention to every single note can help realize a tricky passage like this. When it comes to runs and coloratura in general, this approach is useful because it can help give fast singing a real clarity, accuracy and a sense that there is plenty of time to sing all the notes and for them to be heard.

Just in time for fall: Shoperatic!

Op-ed

It's Suzanne Vinnik and Sara Duchovnay of Shoperatic.com! We're excited to announce that after talking about our new online peer-to-peer marketplace for what seems like eons, we are LAUNCHED and open for business! When we ran into a little technical snafu in beta testing, we reached out to our friends at Schmopera who were able to help us figure out the problem and got us back on track!

Body-shaming, product-selling, & knowing the difference

Op-ed

But with a minimal amount of online vetting, a professional musician should be able to tell the difference between an organization which is about presenting concerts that put their artists in the spotlight, and one that offers "background wallpaper" in a variety of patterns and colours. There's nothing wrong with either, but each come with their own set of expectations.

Getting vexed over Wagner & other narcissisms

Op-ed

The appalled opera goers make claims about wasted money and travel time, and they take a strange stance of half-defending, half-blaming the performers onstage. But the main objections seem to be the apparent "desecration" of Wagner's work. "Yes, I naively assumed that Wagner’s family had obeyed his very exacting wishes, and that Bayreuth was the place to see his operas as he intended them," writes Peacock.

The value of creating new work for singers

Op-ed

"I appreciated that we weren't the focus of the project; we were the vessel for it. Everything in the experience was about making the art better and it was our job to the best performance possible. In any opera, the music comes from the libretto and every note means something. To have that be the full focus of the project meant that was a different musical experience for me."