Deadline Approaches - Monday 9/24

Yes, the first deadline for Filene Young Artist and Fellowship applications - for auditions and interviews requested for Houston, LA, Seattle, Chicago, and New York.

For basic information: www.wolftrapopera.org/audition

To start the online application: www.wolftrapopera.org/audition/fyafellowshipinstructions

All upcoming deadlines:

• September 24 - Filene Young Artists & Fellowships (Houston, LA, Seattle, Chicago, NYC)


• October 1 - all Wolf Trap Opera Studio applications (www.wolftrapopera.org/audition/studioinstructions)
  
• October 8 - Filene Young Artists and Fellowships (Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Vienna VA)

I'm Back

I've been reminded a few times in this last week that my month-long blog sabbatical is up. Today. Sigh. I won't lie. It's been refreshing to keep my thoughts to myself for a while.

I've also been asked how my month-long vacation was. Sadly, it was only a vacation from blogging. I did take a handful of days off from work, but it fell dramatically short of a month. Instead, there was mythic-proportion budget wrestling, repertoire research, chamber music series bookings, and the general cleaning-up of detritus from the summer.

So we're back into audition season mode, and if you're joining back up with us for that purpose, I'll try not to disappoint.

First, An Overdue Response

A comment to my end-of-season post asked about auditioning during a big Fach change:

I recently graduated from my Master's program and moved to Los Angeles and my new teacher has decided that I am a soprano. So, I'm going through a fach change. Should someone who's just changing fach's do an audition for summer young artist programs? All the roles I have done on my resume are mezzo roles, will people expect me to explain that?

Yes, you will certainly need to explain. Not at great length, but a note on the rep list or the application that explains that you are moving to soprano will be helpful. I see this at least a half-dozen times a season.

The bigger question is whether or not you have enough audition rep to offer that you feel represents you well. If you're moving from high lyric mezzo, you might be able to represent yourself fairly with the highest arias you've sung. Anyone who's used to listening to developing voices will be able to fill in the blanks. But if it's a huge switch, and there are technical gears to change that haven't yet been addressed, then best to stay out of circulation momentarily until you feel it's well in hand.

If you're looking at a program where you'll be singing chorus parts on a daily basis, be clear about how you want to be considered. Most lyric mezzos are perfectly fine in the typical soprano chorister tessitura. But I doubt that your teacher would be happy with you spending a summer singing in the chorus "alto" range.

If you're looking at a program that will actually cast you in substantial scene work or full-length roles, then it's a little scarier to know if you'd be ready in time. There are zwischenfach roles that will help you bridge the gap, but it's not a given that they will be available.

More to Come

Enough for now... trying to ease back in.

Back tomorrow with a discussion about recommendation letters:)