Karen wrote:
> Here's the situation: Competition season is coming 'round again,
includingthose stupid competitions that make you sing repertoire that never
otherwise in 100 years would you perform. For me, that repertoire is art song.>>
<<Grieg: Jeg elsker dig - possibly the shortest art song ever written,
although gorgeous and expressive.>>
<<I know it's very short - but frankly my other pieces are rather ambitious>>
<<So my inclination is to go with the Grieg - short and sweet as it is -because
I'll be showing off 10 ways from Sunday in my other pieces; the very simplicity
of the Grieg in contrast with my other selections may, indeed, be the strongest
argument for including in my competition package. Plus it's a song I could sing
after running the marathon - which I may well be doing the vocal equivalent of
if they ask for the Verdi, Britten, AND Berlioz in succession.>>
<<Thoughts?>>
Karen, I guess I'm a little unclear as to the competition requirement you're
trying to meet. It's for an art song, any language, but overall you need four
languages, so the Grieg you really want to do would make your fourth language
Danish rather than the more common German? And you're also concerned because
the song is so short?
If so, I guess my answer is go with the song you relate to, since you say you
have little interest in art song. And if this competition wants a singer to
demonstrate a traditional understanding and feeling for art song (i.e. for
poetry and its relationship to the music and communicating same in a manner
that's unlike what one does with an opera aria), you may just lower marks in
that portion of the competition. But if you blow them away with the other
stuff it doesn't matter, so you just want to demonstrate basic competency.
In that case, I say play to your strengths and don't try to be everything to
everyone and go with the Grieg, which will put all your eggs in the aria
basket. And if those are as impressively performed as the Consul aria I heard
you sing, and the adjudicators are any good, you should do well!
In the long run, you might want to check out programs of recitals given by Ewa
Podles (The Opera-L archives at http://listserv.cuny.edu/archives/opera-l.html
should have some, as I know her recitals have gotten rave reveiews there).
Perhaps you'll find some German lieder you can relate to AND that would work
well considering your voice and your dramatic tempermant the next time out.
Peggy
---
Margaret Harrison, Alexandria, Virginia, USA
"Music for a While Shall All Your Cares Beguile"
mailto:peggyh@i...
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