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From:  Dre de Man <dredeman@y...>
Date:  Thu Jun 15, 2000  11:42 am
Subject:  Re: [vocalist-temporary] Wetterfahne (was: lieder)


Dear John,

I hope you don't mind me writing these sentences to
you, but I got the feeling you were needlessly
complicating your own life. I also did not send them
to vocalist, because it might sound a bit arrogant, to
give you advices, while I am still learning a lot
myself. But if this helps, feel free to forward it to
the list.

Anyway: my own experience with 'Die Wetterfahne', and
the knowledge about how to say this sentence in German
in the situation where the poor guy is in, gave me the
feeling that maybe you're making the 'eine' much too
heavy.

If you would say the sentence, you would emphasise the
'reiche' (rich). The word 'eine' (which means both a
and one) is not important, nobody is thinking, is she
one, or two brides?

So in my feeling the embellisment (that's what it is,
is not it?) on the 'eine' is there, to postpone the
word 'reiche' (rich), and to emphasise it extra in
this way. In my opinion it is absolutely not necessary
and even slightly ugly to make it as loud as or even
louder as the 'reiche'.

Finally I would make the word 'Braut' also loud,
because it is here that we learn that the girl he
love(s?d) has married another, and give the 't' extra
attention, after all the guy is angry.

Apart from that (but maybe it is not necessary
anymore)I would change the vowels a bit different: I
would put in a slight (unaudible) a (US pron.) before
the n, just after the 'i' (e) so the a (US pron.)
after the n will be easy. So: a a a a i (e) n e e
(vowels as in German). The e (a in US pron.) at the
end cannot be changed too much, esecially not towards
the english e (Italian i), otherwise it does not sound
German anymore. Changing it to the German 'oe' (o
Umlaut) is possible though.

It is just my 2 Pf, I just had the feeling, that if
you have difficulties with those notes that i.m.o. are
easy, you might be doing something Schubert did not
expect you to do. The second possibility is, that the
key you're singing it in is too high. Maybe I am
completely wrong, and am I just missing the
understanding for the way heavier voices have to work
on those notes, then just ignore it, but the idea that
you were investing a lot of time trying to emphasise a
word, that should not be emphasised, so making your
life too complicated, somehow forced me to write these
lines.

I would be glad if it helps,

Best greetings,
Dre

--- John Alexander Blyth <BLYTHE@B...> wrote:
> Well, list, I think I've passed the 40 hour mark,
> working on 'die
> Wetterfahne', over the last couple of months, and I
> *still* don't have it
> right!
> I could just leave it there, but natural prolixity
> causes me to add:
> The other day I spent a half hour on on just two
> melismata on the word
> 'eine' (as in 'Ihr Kind ist eine reiche Braut') for
> future singers of this
> song I submit this - a-a-a-ih-nih-ih as the solution
> I decided to go with
> and 'practice in'. Each note is a fairly full chest
> voice with an
> individual appoggio for each to keep the pitch from
> sagging.
> But for some people my prima vista zip through this
> piece would probably
> have been quite beautiful and exciting, and for
> those people I am also
> grateful!
> john
> John Blyth
> Baritono robusto e lirico
> Brandon, Manitoba, Canada
>




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  Replies Name/Email Yahoo! ID Date Size
2480 Re: Wetterfahne (was: lieder) John Alexander Blyth   Thu  6/15/2000   7 KB

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