It Just Feels Like a New Decade

The happiest of new years to one and all!  Strictly speaking, I know it's not a new decade, but it feels like it is.  And that's good.

I'm back at my desk after a miraculously restful 11 days away from work.  (Thank, you Wolf Trap Foundation, for the immensely sane and merciful act of shutting down between Christmas and New Year's!)   By last night, I was calm, centered, and full of hope and energy for a fresh start.  This morning, just a few hours chipping away at the mountain of pre-season tasks has rendered me slightly panicked.  (I completely forget to breathe when I'm at my desk. Does that happen to anyone else?  What's that about?!?)

It didn't help that I spent my lunch break digging through the NEA's 2008 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts.  (Go ahead, click through, but not on an empty stomach.)  I don't believe that the sky is falling, but this news is complicated.  We're embarking on a new business plan for 2011-2015, and I'm trying to spend more time than usual wrestling with these facts and figures.

As we move out of the audition season, I welcome back my casual readers whose eyes glazed over while reading endless aria lists and other technical jargon.  Over these next few months, the focus will be slightly broader and more varied.  There will be another Met audition trip (North Carolina) and a trip to LA (for the GRAMMYs!), and I keep posts short to give you more time to keep those New Year's resolutions. :)

January is WTOC Alumni Month!

A shout-out to WTOC alum Michael Maniaci and his new recording of Mozart Arias - releasing in a few weeks and available now for pre-order.  (Do it - you won't be sorry!)  Michael sang Nero in Poppea and the title role in Xerxes at Wolf Trap, and he is a truly amazing artist.