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Inhalare la voce – inquiries

I received the following email: “My name is Chris Tondreau. I came across your website as a result of Googling ‘inhaling the voice’.
I studied the Bel Canto technique for ten years with a man named Edward L. Johnson, who was a tenor with the Metropolitan Opera many years ago. The key thing that separates what he taught and described as ‘the true Bel Canto’ technique from all the others who claim to be Bel Canto is the whole idea of the inhalation of the voice. I understand and use this aspect of the technique, and it is very, very difficult to find others who know about this as well.
Part of my goal for establishing that website was to connect with people who use this technique – not just any watered-down version of Bel Canto, but as it involves Lamperti’s advice of ‘sing as if continuing to inhale breath’. This really seems to be a dying technique, but has worked miracles for myself and others whom I know.  Could you please tell me a little bit about how you came to learn this ‘inhaling the voice’ and perhaps who you learned it from? Do you call it ‘Bel Canto’ or has it been re-badged and re-worked as something else? Does it sound like what I describe at www.thebelcantotechnique.com? Can you put me in touch with anyone that you might know who uses or teaches the inhalation of the voice?”

Dear Mr. Tondreau,
I visited your “bel canto” website. It is absolutely great!
Your questions:
Do you call it ‘bel canto’ or has it been re-badged and re-worked as something else?
I want to emphasize that this technique is NOT JUST for “bel canto” singers (for example, Bellini). As you mentioned, you also teach pop singers, I myself, am a “hoch-dramatic” singer of Wagner and Richard Strauss repertoire. As you mentioned, I have a very long singing life and have never had any vocal cord problems. Mind you, I sing the heaviest of the heavy roles: Brünnhilde, Isolde, Elektra, etc. This technique also increased the size of my voice without having to use force.
Lamperti was more concerned with the bel canto repertoire because it was the repertoire of his time.
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Hometown happiness

I have been spending some time at my home in Indiana lately, trying to sell my parents’ estate. It is really heart-warming how my home town, Cedar Lake, has received me as a home town girl who is successful on the opera stage.

They are absolutely wonderful people, and so I gladly sing for my home town churches in Lowell, Cedar Lake and Crown Point, giving my thanks not only to these people, but to God, who endowed me with a voice to be developed and nurtured.

Here, as you see, is a photo from Flag Day (June 14th) this year. I sang the Star Spangled Banner and God Bless America. You see me in a red dress on the left and with such political dignitaries as Robert Carnahan, Chamber of Commerce President and member of the Town Council, US Representative Rep. – Peter Visclosky, Indiana State Representative D.- Shelli Van Denburgh, State Representative Don Lehe, and State Senator Sue Landske.

It was a beautiful day!

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My new CD of Wagner, Strauss, and Schreker Lieder

I am very happy to announce that my new cd is now on cdbaby for sale and digital distribution. Of course, the great Wesendonck Lieder are well known, but it was my intention to perform and record some rather unknown works of Strauss and early works of Schreker. They are unique and extremely expressive.

One of the very few recordings of the Op. 67, from c. 1918, is the recording of the Ophelia Lieder by Elisabeth Schwarzkopf. The last three songs of the cycle, the Goethe Lieder, are hardly available, at least it does not seem to exist as an entire cycle.

The Schreker songs are very early works (189?) and very difficult to find in the recital scene. I had a great time working on these songs. They are technically difficult – both from the standpoint of vocal technique and co-ordination with the pianist.

Schreker himself was an interesting personality. I would like to quote a couple of lines from his “My character study” which appeared in April 1921 in the “Musikblaetter des Anbruch” by the Viennese Universal Edition.

He calls himself an “impressionist, expressionist, internationalist, futurist”. He says, “I am an idealist (Thank God!), symbolist and stand at the left wing of the modern (Schoenberg, Debussy)…” After a long list of what I am and what I am not, he says, “What in heaven’s name am I not? I am not yet crazy! And I have not yet written a critic!”

I was fortunate to have an excellent pianist. I hope you like the cd!

By the way, I will be singing the Dvorak Biblical Songs, Op. 99, very soon (July 11th) in Chartres, France. (Please see my entry from November, 2008.) I will also be in the Rheingau area of Germany with a church concert on August 1st.

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Auditions continued

A few additions to “Auditions”, my last entry.

Your audition documents should include a complete, well-written resume, a professional photo, a list of engagements (even very small roles), your repertory, and your address, telephone number and email address where you can be reached.

Include every performance no matter how small or insignificant you think it might be. Even small roles show that you have sung on stage and have experience. It should also include any contests you have won and recitals you have sung.

Address your resume to the name of the agent, artistic director, etc. and not just “Dear Sir”. Do your homework and find out with whom you are personally dealing.

It is important in professional life to have an answering machine. Being quickly reachable and available is necessary in the professional world. Please no funny recordings on your answering machine. A “Hallo, not here!”, for example, is not responsible. You want to show that you think in a business manner. A mobile telephone is of utmost importance nowadays when you have to be quickly available.

An email address is indispensable in the modern music world.

If you have any questions, please ask. I want you to be successful and I’ll try to help!!

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Auditions

One can say and write a lot about auditions, but here are a few important tips for a successful audition.

Always remember: you have to show your love for singing. If you are overly nervous and create the impression that you wished you were not there at the audition, you will fail. Love singing!

Be absolutely well-prepared. The first aria you may usually chose yourself. This aria must be, in your opinion, your best aria. You may not get a second chance, so don’t consider your first aria to be a “warm-up”. You have to show right from the very beginning how good you are.

Don’t chose a newly-studied aria, but one that you have sung many times and know very well. You may chose an aria that people don’t know very well, but shows your best qualities. You may chose from various languages, even ones that are not well-known, such as Russian or Czech. The aria should not be too long – 3 to 5 minutes is good, otherwise, make cuts.

Be extremely punctual. Sometimes there are “no-shows” and your appointed time will be moved forward. It is of great advantage that you are there – and ready! The theatre business is dependent upon your punctuality and reliability. Show that you are a professional.
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Careers and children

I know many women opera singers who decide against having children, in order to concentrate entirely on their careers. I agree that having children and, at the same time, leading careers is difficult, but I refused to sacrifice any aspects of my private life to my “career”.

I was born to sing. Lotte Lehmann said to the public when I sang Master Classes with her at Northwestern University: “Brenda, you were born to sing opera.” This was always my belief, but I was thrilled to be mother to my son, Mark. It was often, if not always, very difficult. As an only parent, I either took him with me on my engagements, or, if it was a short engagement, left him at home with an au pair girl. I was well aware of my responsibility as mother and would not cut any financial corners for his care. Mark went with me to Geneva, Switzerland; Gent and Antwerp, Belgium; St. Petersburg and Talinn in Russia; Tokio; Florence, Italy for the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino; Catania, Sicily, etc., etc. He learned to feel comfortable in any country and any environment. He was born in Hamburg, Germany and speaks, fluently, English and German.

I often took Mark with me to opera performances. Mark heard my Kundry in Parsival as a child and after that evening, he always asked (when I wanted to take him to the opera to hear me): “Mommy, is it longer or shorter than Parsival?” Parsival was the ultimate limit for him as far as time went. Everything was measured from that night on according to Parsival!
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More on vocal practicing

I would like to continue my last entry on vocalizing. In my experience, as I said, it is of utmost importance that professional singers continue to practice, even when they have heavy schedules. At the Hamburg State Opera, where I was engaged for 9 years, I noticed that the singers engaged there – either as ensemble members or guest artists – hardly practiced when they had free time. To my knowledge, a perfect example of discipline was James King. I sang the Dyer’s Wife in Frau ohne Schatten with James King as Emperor and was absolutely amazed at how young his voice sounded although he was nearing the end of his career. The voice still sounded brilliant and youthful.

James King and I would meet almost every afternoon in the hallway of the practice rooms. It was really very amusing. He would say, “Brenda, are you here again?” And I would answer, “Are you here again, too?” And we would laugh. Hard work and discipline seemed to be our bond – almost our secret.
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Practice and Vocal Gymnastic

I have been asked so often by students how long they should practice a day. Let us be clear on this issue: vocalizing is vitally important to the health of the vocal mechanism and longevity of the voice.
Through vocalization, singing becomes automatic. Maria Callas said that she practiced 12 hours daily. That may be somewhat exaggerated. However, a singer who is doing an opera production can be rehearsing easily that amount of time per day for 4 to 6 weeks. Therefore, it is important the vocal production be effortless, not difficult and not tiring to the voice. It is of utmost importance that a professional singer continues to practice and adequately warms-up the voice before rehearsals and performances.

I believe that every student must find out for himself how much time he should invest in practice units so that a constant development of his voice and its vocal possibilities result. In any case, at least 2 hours a day – and that is probably too little! One should have a long warm-up phase, adequate work on vocalizations, including work on consonants, vowels and their clarity, range of the voice with the goal of expanding the range and balancing registers, optimal tone resonance, and diverse technical aspects such as mastering ornamentations (trillers, mordents, etc.), coloratura, etc. This requires time, concentration and discipline!
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Ein Handbuch für die Entwicklung einer Ausdrucksvollen Stimme – II. Atemtechnik

Die Muskeln der “epigastrium” (die Muskeln um die Magengegend) müssen nach außen gedehnt werden und, in die andere Richtung, gleichzeitig den Rücken nach außen dehnen, so daß ein Zustand des “Counterpressures” erzeugt wird. Denken Sie, “Pressure” heißt nicht Überspannung in negativem Sinn, sondern eine Stärke wie eine sportliche Aktivität. Diese Aktivität ist mit Leistungssport zu vergleichen – mehr als der normale Mensch auf der Straße für ein normales Leben braucht. Eine starke, aktive Dehnung des Epigastriums und Rückens führt zu einer totalen Entlastung des Hals-, Rachen- und Unterkiefer-Bereiches. Eine starker, korrekt gestützter Körper führt nicht zu einer verspannten Stimme – ganz im Gegenteil – nur dann kann die Stimme total entlastet sein. Je größer die Entfernung vom Epigastrium vorne zu dem Rücken hinten, desto größer und freier die Stimme. Je mehr Körperstärke desto mehr Lockerheit (nicht andersrum wie manche Lehrer glauben). Je mehr Körperstärke, desto größer wird der Ton ohne zu forcieren. Wenn der Körper mit Vitalität und Energie nicht involviert wird, wird der Hals und der Zungengrund diese Aufgabe übernehmen und das bedeutet: die Stimme wird kollabieren und beschädigt werden.

Die “Stütze” ist eine Dehnung nach außen in allen Richtungen (außer Abdomen) – hauptsächlich vorne und hinten. Der Abdomen wird eingezogen, nicht nach außen noch nach unten gedehnt. Der eingezogene Abdomen unterstützt die Rückendehnung und dient einer optimalen Körperhaltung. (Denken Sie wieder an die Ballett-Tänzerin.) Man schöpft Kraft aus dem Rücken. Man erreicht auch einen weichen Stimmansatz dadurch. Man kann keine gute Körperhaltung behalten und den Unterbauch hinausstrecken!
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