For many of us singers, the first sing-thru is like the first day of school—a milestone that is anticipated, maybe even a bit scary. Armed with backpacks, we trade our books and school supplies for our scores, water bottles, pencils, and tabs.
Sometimes you are the new kid in town, stepping quietly into a rehearsal filled with faces that seem familiar only from their black and white head shots, and you stand back and watch as others hug, talk, and exchange stories about their lives. Other times, it is class reunion time, and you meet and greet old friends, hug and kiss, and start right where you left off.
Tonight was a mix for me-although this is my first time to sing with TLO, I already had a sense of belonging from the warm responses I received during my audition and in dealing with contracts, rehearsal schedules, and the handling of the 'business side' of it all.
It was great seeing old friends, and the sense of excitement that together, you are going to 'create' something with this group of people. As we all sat in a semi-circle around the Maestro and the pianist, the conductor told us three things to remember for this show: 1) to roll our r's 2) not to accent unaccented syllables 3) to not hold on to the last syllable in a phrase. All things we have been told countless times before by diction teachers, coaches, and conductors. However, speaking from the experience of doing ALL of the aforementioned when I shouldn't have—always a good reminder. J
The sing-thru is a great chance to establish tempos, see if the conductor is going to beat a certain number in 2 or 4, work out cadenzas, and hear all of your colleagues. But really, it's the first time you are putting together the PIECE as it is….and afterwards, you are exhausted! Tonight, the time flew as finished duet after sextet, and I was inspired by my fellow singers, and revved up at the thought of taking this awesome music and staging it. You could tell moments that were going to just be hilarious (the character voice Elizabeth, our Despina, used in the marriage scene was just one of them), and we finally got to hear (live!) moments that were so gorgeous.
Some things were skipped over, a few tempos debated, others left to figure out when we see the staging. At the end of the night, we decided to stay longer and go through some of our recits (arguably one of the most difficult things about this opera), and then chatted awhile before we went our separate ways.
One might say that this is the hardest step—the mere act of just singing it for the first time, usually with people you have never met before in your life, matching your vowels, and adjusting to hearing your colleagues' voices in your ear as you lend your own unique sound. Now comes the staging--which of course, is hard work in its own right--perfecting the music, and getting the timing together. However, this is the work I consider play. Now that we have begun this journey, it's time for recess.
Class dismissed.
-Christina Hager
"Dorabella"
Cosi fan tutte: The School for Lovers
