It's been an interesting past couple of days:
Yesterday I ate well (except for a little chocolate at the end) and I took a great fat-burning pilates class as well. I also laid rehearsal tracks for the girl who's lip syncing my voice in the movie. And today is the day we do the professional recording of the arias I'll be singing. It's kind of exciting and I will do my best to sing accurately and beautifully. I may not have the biggest honkin' voice in the world, but I've been told I cut tape well. If only I had gigs like this one all the time, I could actually live off of the income. Well that's the goal I guess. To make a living with my craft. Funny thing is, I have my hand it all the pots...you want an actress...ok..you want a singer...ok...dancing?...sure...you need me to do hair, make-up, wardrobe, build a set?...anytime...I'm a jack of all trades...however, I need to become a master of my opera singing. I've been riding on my laurels too long and I have really got to hunker down and train train train and practice practice practice. There's no excuse, except the "not enough hours in the day" one. How do I balance a full-time job, side gigs, and my resident artist work at the opera? I've been doing it, but it hasn't left much time for actual practice on my part. I learn what I have to learn for the next big thing and rarely work on the other things that will give me the competitive edge that will sling-shot me to bigger houses. I guess it all goes back to the Structure blog from the other day. I just have to schedule it in somehow...and be dedicated to the venture. I'm also insecure about my abilities to practice correctly on my own because I don't hear myself. I mean REALLY hear myself. Most opera singers can't you know...hear themselves. The voice seems to materialize 40 feet out and it sounds completely different from what your own ears are hearing, so you must rely on teachers, coaches, peers and recordings until your ear adjusts to the sound you make when correctly singing and you learn the sensation of it. In musical theatre and pop singing you can rely on your ear and inner voice, but that's just not the case with Opera...if you're hearing it in your head, then more than likely it's not projecting past the 1st row of the theatre...and that's the long and short of it. Ok, so enough talking about it and on to the actual doing of it! Why waste my breath on wishing? Only I can make it happen. That's the moral of the story kids, if you want something, then go after it. Only you can make it happen for yourself...you are in control of your own choices. And I will do it, NO, I am doing it!
Have a great day.
1 comment:
Sounds like you're doing a lot of good thinking and reasoning through some things. You've done what you need to do to be able to spend as much time as possible in the business, by cultivating a lot of different skills, and I think that's important. It keeps you close to the action even when you're not, so to speak, center stage. :-) But you're also right in that at some point, you do have to narrow your focus to what you're truly passionate about.
I noticed on Saturday that when Ti heard the recording of her aria, she was shocked - she really had no concept of what she sounded like. It's interesting to hear you explain exactly why that is. It would make it hard to really evaluate your own performance though...I wonder what you can do about it? Other than have someone there to listen when you're practicing, but...then you're limited to their availability.
I'd love to come listen to you practice...I have a pretty good ear by now, but I'm definitely not educated about what's right or wrong - I can probably tell if it is right or wrong, but not why.
:-) So I wouldn't be much help even if I were close by.
There's probably no chance I will ever get to see the movie but it would be wonderful to watch it and nudge DH and say, "Hey, I know that girl! No, not her, the real voice." :-) Anyway, I know you'll do beautifully.
As to the structure and making time to practice and train...it is really hard. It's the main reason I haven't gotten serious about getting published - it seems that the one thing you really want to be doing is always the one thing you can never build in time for. It's something that really should be a priority but somehow never is. I am, however, completely confident that you will find a way to arrange things so that it is, because you're a rock star like that, and I will then take that as my inspiration to do so as well. (No pressure or anything!) :-)
V.
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