Intermezzo

NATS issues call for proposals at 2014 national conference in Boston

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

NATS members and friends are invited to submit proposals for special sessions to be presented at the 53rd NATS National Conference in Boston, which will be held July 5-9, 2014, at the Boston Marriott Copley Place. Proposals related to the following topics are encouraged: American song/American song composers; private studio/teaching technology; opera/voice repertoire/the ear and hearing; traditional and commercial voice pedagogy; choral and solo voice techniques; and contemporary commercial singing/voice science.

Moms in opera: Women on the edge

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

People love mothers for all the hallmark reasons: for their compassion and patience, not to mention giving birth. But some moms aren't exactly greeting card friendly — and none less so than those who live in the opera house.

Survey: Medical referrals and vocal care

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

Teachers College, Columbia University, has circulated a survey concerning whether or not singers are receiving referrals for any necessary vocal care. The purpose of the project is to allow participants from the singing voice community to review audio examples of healthy and disordered phonation, to determine whether singers and teachers are able to aurally recognize potentially problematic qualities in the singing voice. The survey will take between 15-20 minutes and has eight very brief listening examples. It is completely anonymous.

NATS issues call for poster papers at national conference in Boston

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

NATS members and friends are invited to submit abstracts for presentation consideration in poster paper format at the 53rd NATS National Conference in Boston, which will be held July 5-9, 2014, at the Boston Marriott Copley Place. Topics for post papers may include voice pedagogy, the private studio, voice science, technology and teaching, vocal repertoire, performance practice, commercial styles, musicological studies or any other topic related to the art and science of singing and teaching singing. The deadline for submission is June 1.

Experiments in venue: Take me out to the ... opera?

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

San Francisco Opera wanted to fling open its doors and find a new audience. The plan it came up with involved the Giants's stadium — and you could say they hit it out of the park. People from all walks of life huddle on the field in sleeping bags, having a picnic under the stars and watching, for many of them, their first opera, simulcast in high definition on a 31-meter-high video screen — all for free. The Opera at the Ballpark events have attracted as many as 32,000 people a night.

Singing Proust

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

Kelli O'Hara sings the love song "If It Is True," accompanied on piano by composer Ricky Ian Gordon. Gordon's music was inspired by the work of Marcel Proust.

Adapting 'The Great Gatsby': Film or opera?

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

The return of "The Great Gatsby" to cinemas comes just as composer John Harbison's opera adaptation from a decade ago is getting some fresh attention in concert halls. Coincidence? It's hard to say if the film begot the opera revivals, but here's a cheat sheet on what to listen for in each version.

Make your advertisement reservation for volume 70 of the Journal of Singing

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

The Journal of Singing, volume 70, will begin distribution with the September-October issue and will be followed by printings in November-December 2013, January-February 2014, March-April 2014 and May-June 2014. The Journal of Singing is the only nationally distributed magazine devoted exclusively to the art of singing, vocal function, vocal literature, care of the professional voice and the teaching of singing. It reaches more than 7,000 NATS members, along with numerous libraries and students. NATS is offering a 25 percent discount for all volume 70 advertisement orders placed and prepaid before June 1.

The 1st jukebox musical

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

The opening-night audience at John Gay's "The Beggar's Opera" — first performed on Jan. 29, 1728, at the Theatre Royal, Lincoln in Lincoln, England — can't fully have known what sort of theatrical experience awaited them. The play's title, for a start, must have struck them as nonsensical. What could a beggar have to do with an opera?

NATS summer workshop — Register for July 21-23 event

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

The 2013 NATS summer workshop will be held in Spokane, Wash. Whitworth University will host the event July 21-23. The workshop is titled Starting the Journey: Creative Teaching Tools for Teens and Preteens. Registration for NATS members is $250. Presenters include Robert Loewen, Barbara Wilson Arboleda and Patrick K. Freer. Lodging options are available on and off campus. Click here to learn more or to register.

National Opera Association announces 29th Scholarly Papers Competition

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

When the NATS winter workshop, the National Opera Association and Opera America join forces for events in New York City on Jan. 9-12, NOA will sponsor an outstanding scholarship opportunity for convention and workshop attendees. NOA is pleased to announce its 29th Scholarly Papers Competition for outstanding scholarly papers on operatic subjects. The winner will be invited to read his or her paper at the New York convention, will receive the Leland Fox Scholarly Paper Stipend of $500 and will have his or her paper published in The Opera Journal. Papers must be submitted electronically with a completed application form found at noa.org. Send materials and inquiries to NOA Research Committee Chairwoman Kay Payn at cpayn@bucknell.edu by the deadline of May 30.

Where classical music and jazz collaborate

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

Derek Bermel recalled the moment things went awry in 2006 during rehearsals for his composition "The Migration Series." Trumpeter Wynton Marsalis had commissioned the piece, which paired the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and the American Composers Orchestra. All seemed well until the musicians reached a section marked by contrapuntal rhythms.

How Broadway has changed

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

As written by Alec Baldwin, "The Broadway production of Lyle Kessler's "Orphans" will close on Sunday, May 19, well in advance of its scheduled end-of-run on June 30. Broadway has changed in the past 21 years, and I wanted take a moment to look at that."

Why Harry Connick Jr. couldn't sit idle during 'American Idol'

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

Those who grew up in the 1950s and 1960s got to constantly hear — on radio, TV and vinyl — songs by the likes of Bobby Darin, Tony Bennett, Frank Sinatra, Mel Tormé, Rosemary Clooney, Ella Fitzgerald, Doris Day, Sarah Vaughan ... the list goes on. These were singers who belonged to our parents more than to us.

Survey: High-belt singing in music theater and contemporary female singers

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

The female belt voice continues to be a challenge to understand. Is it a resonance or registration phenomenon or both? How can formant tracking and closed/open quotients help us to understand the function of the belt voice? Are there differences among the current belters?

Content marketing: Are you sharing your best stuff?

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

You have a blog. You have a website. You may even have a content marketing plan and marketing strategy being executed. Are you sharing your best stuff? Are you really, really sharing your best stuff?

The No. 1 secret for social media success

13 May 2013 16:04:31 CDT

Over 1 billion people in the world are on Facebook, including more than 175 million Americans. Twitter recently surpassed 400 million accounts. LinkedIn boasts over 200 million users. Small business owners are trying to take advantage of these trends, but few are fully reaping the rewards.