Judy,
My connection with Lieder perhaps started because, even before I learned
German, I was drawn to German poetry. Opera, with the peculiar exception of
Wagner, came later for me - but I was many years a listener and chorister
and only recently am I daring to sing solo. Because of my sensitivity to
the poetry there are a lot of things I just don't want to sing, but
sometimes the poetry is good and the music too, as in Schumann/Heine
Dichterliebe, which I now need a new accompanist for, and thus am
concentrating on my other, more gargantuan project, for which I still have
a brave accompanist: Winterreise, the poetry of which is OK, in that it
shows an imaginative grasp of a range of early romantic poetical and metric
devices, but the music of which plumbs the depths and soars to the heights.
It's the best thing.
It's an even tougher project than I had imagined. One must either have
been blessed with a natural sense of placement or must, as I must,
carefully sculpt each word, finding the right vowel shade and proportion
for each dipthong, in melodies that snake across my passaggio. I must find
tempi that allow phrasing and breathing, and manage the whole within a
scale that will still allow a pp to project over a piano accompaniment in a
moderately large room. I must have spent 20 hours on 'die Wetterfahne' alone.
Despite all this, I am enjoying this project, and I *will* succeed, and I
hope the final result will be able to conceal the labour that has gone into
it.
I agree that one is (I paraphrase you) under the microscope in Lieder.
With an orchestra or a dramatic situation to distract the senses of the
audience it's somehow easier, though by no means a pushover. I think of
performing on stage as like surfing (I've never surfed): the audience, the
material, the interaction with the other performers, the technique - all of
these are like the wave and the wind - some slips are forgiven, others sink
you, and the whole business is so absorbing that while you are doing it
there is room for nothing else, not even: 'Ah, this is the life!'
I must now confess that despite a lot of recent stage work and concert
work, I've never given a full song recital! A reason I may be jumping in at
the deep end, is: I'm almost 44! I feel slightly embarrassed to mention all
this in this company, since, among the people who might realise the
magnitude of the undertaking or the risk of failure, only singers and voice
teachers could really appreciate, and perhaps shake their heads. In defence
I can only say, I've got to do this. I just have to.
What's long, sad, and in German? :o) john
At 06:53 PM 6/6/00 -0400, you wrote:
...>John--
>
>Many people just never seem to develop a taste for lieder, although I
>personally can hardly imagine why. I love the intimacy of the form, the
>challenge of creating an entire story--or even a world--with no props, no
>costumes or scenery . It's just me and my accompanist!
>
>I think that, for the audience as well, lieder requires a greater
"suspension
>of disbelief" and receptivity of imagination than opera, which can simply
>engulf the listener and sweep him or her away on tidal waves of sound.
Lieder
>is more like the "still, small voice""--more internal and personal. When I
>hear a good lieder singer in concert, I usually feel that I've learned a
>great deal about him/her personally. That's less true with opera--which I
>also love--but which gives the singers a lot of "shrubbery" to hide behind.
>Lieder singing is the ultimate in exposure.
>
>I'd be interested to know what sort of program you are planning!
>
>Judy
>
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>Old school buds here:
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John Blyth
Baritono robusto e lirico
Brandon, Manitoba, Canada
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