I was able to give three premieres in just a months time, which made for a very fulfilling winter. February 16 (the birthday of one of the greatest singers/teachers I'll ever know) was the premiere of David Liptak's beautiful The Eye that Directs a Needle, with Pia Liptak, violin, and Sean Connors, percussion. I then took off for a 2 and a half week jaunt to Germany, the Netherlands, and Spain. It was a terrific trip!!!! In Munich I heard a wonderful rendition of Mahler's Seventh Symphony, with Bernard Haitink conducting the Bayerischer Rundfunk, as well as rehearsals at the Staatsoper (thanks to Kevin Conners!). In Berlin I visited the lovely and very talented Jennifer Lindshield and Priya Palekar-what a wonderful reunion (we all attended graduate school together at Arizona State)!!! In the Netherlands I got to visit/stay with my friend, composer Elizabeth Kelly. I got to take a lesson with Christiane Oelze, one of my favorite singers. I also got to hear her sing Mahler's Fourth Symphony, visit the Escher museum in the Hague (incredible), and wander around Amsterdam with the outstanding cellist Paul Dwyer. Finally an AWESOME visit with my sister Leslie, who I adore!!!!! Seville was many degrees warmer than northern Europe (understandably-but I'm talking about being FREEZING in a wool coat in Berlin, and wearing a tank top in the south of Spain just days later. I only wore tee shirts a couple of days, don't get too jealous). I got to hear Les play with one of her bands, Coraje, at a festival celebrating the independence of Andalucia. It was also great to spend time with Nacho, her 'novio' of many years. I really couldn't have had any more fun on my visit. We even got to go to Cordoba, and I got to go the magnificent Alcazar in downtown Seville. OK-back to music-but I couldn't resist telling you about my first ever trips to Germany/the Netherlands, and my wonderful visit with my sis. 6 planes, 4 cancelled flights and an extra day of travel later, I returned to Rochester (at least I had a good book with me!). I gave back-to-back premieres of electro acoustic works by John Liberatore and Allan Schindler on March 14 and 15. Both pieces are fantastic and so much fun to learn; I hope to sing them again! |
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October 2012
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