Friday, April 23, 2010

Bewildering conversations with a 40-year old Protestant minister's wife

In my college days (this was years before I took my first voice lesson), I was a fan of a female pop quartet from Arkadelphia, Arkansas, where the entire quartet was from a college in the town, and one of the members had been a Metropolitan Opera contest regional finalist (just like my voice teacher). Recently, I shared an intriguing thought with her and after reading our discussion, she has a mind of classical music that she hasn't used that voice, but I wish she had done that instead, considering that female pop group has become a country trio since she left, and my musical tastes have leaned classical since my affiliation with my voice teacher.

Me: “I learned my voice teacher is singing in Mozart's The Impresario from Greenville (SC) Light Operaworks next week, and have ordered my ticket. What led me to a life of the wonderful classics and sacred song?”

Heather Payne: “Will she be Madame Goldentrill or Silverpeal? I was Madame Goldentrill in college. Fun times.”

Me: “Heather, it's Madame Silverpeal. The company lost theirs because of illness three weeks ago, and so (my voice teacher) stepped in to fill that role. The show is April 30. May 1 marks twenty years to my Encounter with Mary Lou, thirteen years to POG II, and seven years since my first singing in a recital!”

If I had not been pulled from the parochial school after sixth grade and lost years of development from severe attacks, maybe I would not have lost my love of singing I learned from school those years. But it took me until my junior year in college to relearn singing, and years after college I picked up formal lessons for the first time, at 26. And yes, it was that Lass from Laurel. And if you remember, she was the soprano soloist in Die Jahreszeiten that I sang last year. Sadly, it was too late to sing in opera choruses, and even in school choirs. It's hard to even find good choral gigs to sing at times.

“Honour and laud, and praise to thee. Infinite, merciful God! God of life, God of love, Infinite God!”

*If you're not familiar with this title, it was inspired by the blog of one man whose response is Who is Kenneth William Jennings III?

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