Singing for my supper

I love the philosophy of song recitals: just you, your accompanist and the composer fusing to come together as (one hopes!) a coherent, expressive and trascendent musical whole. "Pure" music, without the trappings of costume, the multitude of musical opinions in the orchestra as many strive to become one... it's in many ways the apogee of singing to express at such a simple and heartfelt level. Achieving this, however, has proved elusive. My last few recitals of the recent years have often seemed to be a triumph of will over circumstances, battling everything from externally-imposed repertoire restrictions to less rehearsal than I would have liked to unexpected traffic delays to inadequate pianos, perhaps culminating in the one where I passed out halfway through the performance, scheduling an impromptu intermission! (I'd been struck by a respiratory bug two weeks before and, while my voice was 100% fine and I was for sure fit to sing, somehow the exertion of th

Yes, I know - it's January. It's supposed to be cold. But in the 10 years I've lived in this state, I don't ever remember it being THIS cold THIS consistently for THIS long. Not much snow, just day after day of sub-freezing temperatures and a hefty windchill. Brrrr! But life goes on, however chillily (is that a word?!). The colleges start back next week, so we'll be resuming our routine - I can't say we always like the imposition of an external schedule but by the same token it does gives some structure to our generally hectic lives, and that's not such a bad thing. Now, would somebody please turn the solar heat up and give us a few days of pale sunshine to get ready for the inevitable ice storms of February?!

It feels like the entire world is "on hold" just now. Even the ground is frozen solid as subzero temperatures sweep across the Northern Hemisphere (thankfully, we're merely in the teens rather than below zero, but it's still jolly cold for this part of the world!). The economy is caught in its mudlocked matrix which shows no signs of moving terribly quickly, and the rest of the world is responding to that with a profound wave of... wait and see. Call us again after the election/the holidays/the stock market report/the weather storm/the inaugration/fill in the blank. Oh, it's understandable, but for somebody like me who likes to go and DO things and take action this societally-imposed straightjacket is starting to feel mighty restrictive. Then again, we're still on hiatus from the colleges, and without the imposed deadlines of a semester schedule, we always tend to curl up and hibernate during this particular break. The holidays are over, but there's sti

I think it's feeling neglected. Between the holidays, getting back to school, starting to prep some (small) forthcoming projects, and becoming completely and totally immersed in picture-taking (what can I say? I'm hooked), I've fallen badly behind. More substantial musings to come, Little Blog, I promise! In the meantime, a project I've started for myself, namely the Photo a Day gallery, which can be found here . It may offer glimpses of my life at the moment, although many of them are simply studies as I wrap my head around the technical side of picture-taking. Enjoy! ====================== I recently found several comments which hadn't been published - my apologies to those who responded! I've posted them now.

Started this blog Not only survived, but ENJOYED a substantial and entirely successful home remodel ... even on a (very) tight budget! Enjoyed a full performing calendar, including singing opposite the most famous living exponent of my own voice type in a stupendously received concert - it was a year where I was truly "living the dream" Had it reinforced once again that I am blessed by truly wonderful colleagues who are not only a pleasure to work with and know , but who also inspire Watched my first roses bloom in their first year Discovered a passion for photography that has always lurked in the background but thanks to the digital age I can now indulge and take further... even achieving some (small) recognition along the way Went camping (albeit reluctantly) and lived to tell the tale Elected a new president Watched my local opera company declare bankruptcy , leaving large holes not only in the local arts landscape, but my own pocket and calendar. Was warmed by the