Thoughts on 9/11/01

On September 11, 2001 it was a gorgeous and sunny day. I was a grad student at Peabody. I went to the Peabody bookstore to get my Starbucks coffee. I noticed that the woman who worked there who was such a sweetheart looked very distressed. I acted happy to see her. After all, life was good, I was a grad student where I wanted to be. She told me that one of the twin towers had been hit. I just didn't believe it. I had heard about threats of an attack, but the twin towers? No fucking way! Then the other tower got hit. It was real. Holy shit! I watched these events unfold on the tv in the Peabody lounge. My best friend Patrick Durek was there, so I stood next to him. My mouth just hung over. I couldn't believe it. Was I really seeing this? Thousands of people were killed who were just going about their lives. My teacher the late Wayne Conner, and my studio mate and friend Amy Bonn were standing by the tv as well. Of course the students were sent home. I wanted to cry for these people, but was too stunned to react. I went back to my apartment and asked my roommate if he had seen the news lately. I told him to turn it on. He was in disbelief. I called my parents to talk to them. My mom remembered that my sister was right near the attack. She could see it. Imagine seeing it live. I'm glad I didn't. What a tragedy, and what the hell for? Why people have to harm people is something I cannot grasp. I miss seeing those buildings. I still can't believe they're not there. They were such beautiful buildings. I have gone into NY a ton of times. I went in with Pat and my dad a whole bunch of times. I used to love seeing those buildings. I went inside once back in 1990 and sang with the American Boychoir. It was so exquisitely beautiful inside the building. Ten years have passed already. My heart goes out to those who have lost people in these attacks. I sincerely hope that no other tragedy of this magnitude ever happens again. Especially ones that were done on purpose like this one.

A Canvas of Colors from Jonas Kaufmann

Verismo is a style of Italian opera which depicts real life situations often associated with the lower classes in society. Verismo operas most often end in tragedy. Don't most operas? These operas get violent though. What is unique to me about this style is that each line of music and text gets inside the hearts of the characters and the audience. A singer must know how to spill their guts out if they want to sing this repertoire. Jonas Kaufmann knows how to sing from his gut, that is for sure. He has created a sensation over the past couple of years all over the world, and deserves the recognition he is getting. This cd of him singing verismo arias accompanied by Maestro Antonio Pappano and the famous Accademia Nazionale Di Santa Cecilia is incredibly well done. As a singer, Kaufmann has a canvas of paints that he uses to act with his voice. His vocal colors come straight from his heart. He is extremely versatile, and he makes every word mean something. Verismo repertoire fits his voice extremely well, and he knows how to sell these arias. A lot of these arias have been performed by tenors from Caruso, through Pavarotti, so selling them is a daunting task. Kaufmann makes each aria his own. His rendition of "Amor ti vieta" is really unbelievable. This aria is a famous crash and burn aria for tenors because of the difficult tessitura. Kaufmann makes it sound easy, and does the first phrase in one breath. Federico's Lament, is one of my favorite pieces for tenor. Kaufmann's dynamic range is impressive and well thought out, making his interpretation absolutely heart drenching. I was blown away by the performances on this disc. Maestro Pappano does an outstanding job as an accompanist for Kaufmann. This is one of the greatest aria recital CDs I have ever heard. Do not let the popularity of these arias, and number of tenors who have sung them turn you away from these great interpretations.

Salvatore Licitra

As I am sure most people in the opera world know by now, operatic tenor Salvatore Licitra has died at age 43. Unfortunately, Licitra crashed his scooter into a wall on August 27 and sustained severe head and chest injuries. He was in a coma for nine days, but was pronounced dead today. This is tragic news for anyone who knew this man, not just for the opera world. Based on what I have heard from people who knew him, he was a good friend and colleague. This was not my first impression of him, although I never met him personally. I only saw one interaction with him as a person. I remember seeing him on the Today Show in an appearance with Marcello Alvarez to promote their duet album. The two of them were flirting with the host of the show. I do not remember who the host was. I remember she did not look pleased, so I do not think this was a staged thing. I thought, man what a jerk at the time. I was completely wrong. Truthfully, I knew nothing about Licitra as a person except that until I saw this moving youtube video which sent prayers for the people of Japan during the tragic tsunami which hit there. I searched his name on youtube, because I wanted to pay tribute to him. I was going to put something up with him singing, but I think this is even better. I will post this video on facebook for those who want to watch it. Salvatore Licitra was a man in society, first and foremost. The fact that he was famous is secondary to the fact that he is dead way too young. Life is a fragile thing. This tragedy could have been avoided. Mr. Licitra was not wearing a helmet at the time of the crash. I'm not here to make a corny plea to people to wear a helmet. I will just end by saying that self care is critically important. We only live once and we are fragile emotionally and physically. My heart goes out to Licitra's family, friends, colleagues and fans.

US Open Final Set Tiebreak

For those who do not know about tennis scoring and want to, please ask. However, if you want to know why it is scored that way, call the inventor and ask him. The US Open is the only grand slam tournament that has a final set tiebreak. That is the fifth set for the guys and the third for the women. Is this fair? Well, I am undecided. However, I think it should be the same at all four slams. If any match reaches 6-6 in the decisive match, it is a mighty impressive match. It is sad that a player has to lose in that situation. But, why does the US Open have a tiebreak, and the other tournaments not? Are there no roosters in Flushing Meadows? Do people need to go home and walk their dogs? I don't understand why only this slam has a different policy. Anyway, let me explain the pros and cons of having a tiebreak final set, versus not having it. The tiebreak benefits the winner of the watch. This point is obvious. Isner and Mahut played for over 11 hours in the first round of Wimbledon last year. Isner ended up winning and got his ass kicked the next match because he was so tired. He had to play the next day, I believe. The tiebreak has a definite winner. The winner is the winner. End of story. Poor Andy Roddick in the 2009 Wimbledon final had to lose. I think it was either 17-15 or 19-17 in the fifth. Federer deserves full credit, but the tiebreak would have been less of a heartbreak for either guy. I'm sure losing a final is devastating without a doubt. Perhaps it is less so if there is no overtime. Plus if it is not a final, the winner can gather up his or her energy for the next round. Plus at the US Open there is a day session, and there is a night session. Having a day match go on forever on Ash Stadium is not fair to the night crowd of the match takes place during the day. Although, the night crowd folks as a general statement are too busy talking on their cell phones to know the difference. Alright onto the cons. On the other hand, if a player screws up the tiebreak, they have another chance. That means they are down 7-6, and can tie it at 7 to force more overtime. The crowd always wants to see more tennis. I'll watch a long drawn out match as long as there is coffee. It is overtime, like in basketball, or extra innings in baseball. However the kicker is that if there is no final set tiebreak, a player must win by two games. It is cool for the spectators to watch final sets with no tiebreaks. They could go on forever. People at the Wimbledon first round match in 2010, witnessed history. I'm referring to Isner-Mahut playing that epic match at Wimbledon. Although, that match was all serve. Boooring! What if the Nadal-Federer 08 Wimbledon final had kept going? That would have been pretty awesome. Well, back to the question of whether there should be a tiebreak at the US Open. Not, if the other slams don't have it. The fans in NYC are getting screwed on chances to witness history. Not fair. People must investigate why there is a tiebreak in the final set at the open. I think the answer may be that the players up next on the respective court can get a chance to play that day. The players who followed Isner and Mahut must have opened a cigar shop with all the time they had. I vote yes on the tiebreak in the final set. Every other sport breaks the tie. The winner doesn't have to win by two. But, it should be the rule at all four majors. The US Open should not be exclusively unique.

Federer too old?

Roger Federer is past his prime. He is still great though, and could win another major. I've developed more respect for the guy lately. He helped the legendary opera great Caballe onto the stage. I thought he was arrogant before I saw that. I'll make this quick. He's 30, he's 3 in the world, and still in the mix. He can stay with Nadal and Dvokovic physically, but can he mentally? The media won't help him. Once a lengendary athlete gets older, they face a lot of questions from the media about retirement. Whether Federer wins another major or not, he is still great. I think he can win the US Open, but has he slipped mentally? He may have, and could beat himself. Any human being can relate to that. If they say otherwise, they are lying. Anyhow, I don't want to ramble here. He can steal another title. If his serve is on, he is an ace machine. I think to be 3 in the world at age 30 is pretty amazing. Federer's level of fitness is astounding. He can stay competitive for a few more years. He is not favored to win the 2011 US Open, but he can. Pete Sampras did in 2002. I sure as hell didn't expect that.

Jonas Kaufmann

Jonas Kaufmann can freaking sing baby. This tenor is a freak of nature because he is so versatile. How on earth can a tenor with this kind of vocal weight sing Tamino's arias? He certainly can sing them. Spinto tenor, Tamino? Well, in this case, ja wohl! This man sings with passion. Oh yeah, and he has a masterful technique, too. Listen to him sing the flower song from Carmen. He not only sings the high b flat piano, but also decrescendos it. But, yeah, what's so special about thus guy aside from his handsome looks and lion mane? His lion mane is more curly than Hvorostovsky's. What's special is that he is a genuine artist who sings from his gut. When he sings, he means it. Every word and note means something to him, and boy does it come across to the audience. I'll tell you, that kind of artistry is not found just anywhere. This man has special gifts. Since he is German, he naturally sounds Germanic. He lacks the forward Italian sound of Italian tenors. I don't give a rats behind because he can sell any aria. Plus he has an insanely easy upper range. As a singer myself, I am envious of this guy, but hey, people like him are around because God gave them a special gift. That gift is artistic abilities that can save the world. I was watching some youtubes of this guy and I got inspired to write something. He does have a baritonal quality in his timbre which is an acquired taste. I dig it.

Latest listening.

Alright here comes another blog. I have been listening to a two disc set of Jose Van Dam singing various operatic excerpts. Well, it is a mixed bag. I tend to like Van Dam in French, some German, and some Italian repertoire. In French rep he is awesome because of his elegance. There are excerpts from The Flying Dutchman, Parsifal, Die Meistersinger, Salome, Boris Godunov, Don Carlo, Simon Boccanegra, Don Giovanni, Damanation of Faust, Pelleas and The Tales of Hoffmann.
The French excerpts are all exquisite. Van Dam's portrayal of the troubled Golaud in Pelleas is a work of art. Here we have a live recording from Opera Brussels of the hair pulling scene. Golaud becomes so jealous of the idea of his wife Mellisande and his half brother Pelleas having an affair, that he completely falls a part mentally as the opera goes on. He sings the two excerpts from Damnation of Faust and The Tales of Hoffmann like they were written for his voice. He was wonderful at portraying all four of Hoffmann's alter egos.
I am pretty happy with the German excerpts also. Van Dam's Dutchman is a little light vocally for me. There is something missing. This is a live performance. The same thing is true on the studio recording with Von Karajan conducting. Van Dam also sings Amfortas from Parsifal in a live excerpt. This is an heart drenching lament, sung exquisitely. I feel the pain of the wounded king. Amfortas sits higher vocally than Dutchman, so it works much better for Van Dam. Van Dam is a little light vocally for Hans Sachs. I do like his singing in both the monologues though. Works for me because he still sells the music through his expressive singing. Van Dam has always impressed me as John the Baptist in Salome. He continues to do so in this cd. I remember when I first heard him singing that role on the emi set for Karajan. I was in Tower Records in NYC. I thought to myself, wow, I didn't know or even think he could sing that. He sang it really well as a matter of fact. The two Boris Godunov excerpts after that simply do not cut it. His voice sounds way too light and the lower notes are too weak.
The Italian rep is a mixed bag. I think he does nice things with Fillippo's monologue in Don Carlo. However, the lower notes are simply not there. Phillip should be more of a bass than Van Dam is. The excerpt from Simon Boccanegra features Van Dam singing the title role. Very interesting, since that part is a high verdi baritone. Van Dam sings it pretty damn well. Although, I prefer his recording of Paolo under Claudio Abbado from the late 1970s. The Falstaff excerpts are sung very well, but lack the comic flare of Taddei, Gobbi, or Terfel, to name a few. The Rossini is just kind of a boring duet, so I didn't pay much attention. The Don Giovanni excerpts are well sung, but I feel like Van Dam does not fit that opera. Overall, this is a descent two disc set, but there is better Van Dam out there. For example, check out his disc of Duparc songs if you can find it. It is a gem. Both his recordings of Golaud in Pelleas are awesome too. Especially the EMI set with Von Karajan. The last one I will mention is his recording of Amfortas under Von Karajan in Parsifal. Unbelievably sung and expressive account of Amfortas. That is all for now.