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Jul 30
2010
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Reviewing the Christina Rovics Vocal Studio's Classical Program: Summer 2010Posted by: Horovi on Jul 30, 2010 Tagged in: performance experience
 
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The Christina Rovics Vocal Studio presented A Classical Program on July 28, 2010 at the Danbury Music Centre comprising seven students of Christina Rovics with Howard Rovics accompanying at the piano and synthesizer. It was an unusually long program (almost 2 hours) simply because we wanted to allow everyone a chance to sing as much as they wanted just as long as they were thoroughly prepared. It was really not intended to be a public event, but rather a chance to hear each other and enjoy the master composers that we had been studying all year. Most of the music was either Baroque or Romantic. The evening included a premiere of a new suite of piano pieces by a local composer, Stephen Becroft who had been studying composition with Howard, a nice reminder that in every era, when it came to the classics, people composed the music in all of its detail, precisely notating their intentions.
The two youngest singers were Mira Zylali (age 10), singing a Handel aria and a Stravinsky vocalise and Maria LoStocco (age 13), who sang two early Italian arias. Their young voices project a purity of tone that is best achieved by transposing their songs upward to place the voice where they resonate best, quite high and effortless. They are both eager performers who won us over immediately.
Sharon McCarthy, a teacher by profession, in her late twenties opened with a 16th century song by John Dowland followed by her first performance of a blockbuster aria from the Romantic era, The Laughing Song of Johan Strauss. It was a challenge of the first order and a very respectable first performance of a work that required grace, humor and personality. Her group of songs ended with Vivaldi’s Laudamus te ,which she sang with Christina. It was a hint of many more duets to follow in the latter part of the evening.
After Howard played Becroft’s Short Suite (Summer) the program moved on to feature the older performers. Meg Stoop sang the famous song Music For A While by Purcell to a synthesized guitar accompaniment transposed into her optimal key. Her otherwise soprano voice took on a countertenor quality appropriate to the refined nature of this early Baroque work. Meg then sang two arias, one by Handel and another by Leonard Bernstein. Meg is an accomplished musician by profession, a composer, flutist, teacher and choral director, who has been finding her voice as a soloist this year under Christina’s guidance.
Tony Bruno, a retired computer specialist who loves acting and never seriously sang until this year, revealed to himself and the rest of us an unusually appealing tenor voice. He sang two arias in Italian, one by Donizetti and the favorite Nessun dorma by Puccini. Once Christina had worked with Tony’s voice enough to prepare him to sing his first aria she recognized that he had a sweet lyricism evocative of the great tenor Beniamino Gigli (1890 - 1957). This gave Tony a point of focus. In an email soon after the concert he told us how challenging it was to sing such imposing music in public but his courage paid off: “Several people were very complimentary to me and Annie said I had an ‘amazing voice’. Something you have been telling me for a long time.”
We were over the one hour mark at this point, a good length for a normal sized program. it was Nancy Brant’s turn to take the stage, singing the exquisite Sposa, son disprezzata by Vivaldi. Then Nancy was joined by Meg and Christina in a group of duets by Handel, Schumann, Saint-Saens, and Faure. Duets add a dimension to the art of the song that challenges the performer as much as it thrills the audience when well executed. It’s a skill that is not easily mastered since it requires learning to hold to ones part while letting the awareness of the partner in. The two singers strive to find that magical resonance together. There’s less room for error and sometimes a lot more that has to be worked out with the pianist until the piece is mastered. Nancy, Meg and Christina joined each other in every duo combination, treating us to some virtuoso moments of ensemble coloratura, as in Faure’s wild Tarantelle, a practically unknown manuscript that lay dormant in our music collection waiting for this moment to come to life.
To end the program Annie Smith sang her blockbuster Bernstein aria from Candide, Glitter and Be Gay. We promised ourselves that we would treat A Classical Program as an informal get together -- no recording, no video -- but this was one time when I wished the camera had been rolling. She dramatized Bernstein’s comic diva spoof masterfully, displaying her wide range of acting and vocal ability, bringing the evening to a joyous end.
We were over the one hour mark at this point, a good length for a normal sized program. it was Nancy Brant’s turn to take the stage, singing the exquisite Sposa, son disprezzata by Vivaldi. Then Nancy was joined by Meg and Christina in a group of duets by Handel, Schumann, Saint-Saens, and Faure. Duets add a dimension to the art of the song that challenges the performer as much as it thrills the audience when well executed. It’s a skill that is not easily mastered since it requires learning to hold to ones part while letting the awareness of the partner in. The two singers strive to find that magical resonance together. There’s less room for error and sometimes a lot more that has to be worked out with the pianist until the piece is mastered. Nancy, Meg and Christina joined each other in every duo combination, treating us to some virtuoso moments of ensemble coloratura, as in Faure’s wild Tarantelle, a practically unknown manuscript that lay dormant in our music collection waiting for this moment to come to life.
To end the program Annie Smith sang her blockbuster Bernstein aria from Candide, Glitter and Be Gay. We promised ourselves that we would treat A Classical Program as an informal get together -- no recording, no video -- but this was one time when I wished the camera had been rolling. She dramatized Bernstein’s comic diva spoof masterfully, displaying her wide range of acting and vocal ability, bringing the evening to a joyous end.
Developing as a singer takes training and practice but it also takes the act of performing in order to grow and consolidate the gains of lots of study and practice. Now that all of this material has been tested in private and we feel so encouraged we plan to incorporate parts of this program in a series of carefully planned public events during the 2010-2011 season to which the public is welcome.
Here is the program given at the Danbury Music Centre
Vivaldi’s Rain Arranged by David Downes
Lascia ch’io pianga Handel
Pastorale Stravinsky
Mira Zylali
Lascia ch’io pianga Handel
Pastorale Stravinsky
Mira Zylali
Alma del core Caldara
Amarilli Cacinni
Maria LoStocco
Come Again, Sweet Love Dowland
The Laughing Song Johan Strauss
Laudamus te (duet) with Christina Vivaldi
Sharon McCarthy
Short Suite (Summer) Stephen Becroft
By the Stream / Forest Scene /
Simple Song / Big Trees /
Waltz for a Rainy Day / Squirrel Games
Howard Rovics, Pianist
Amarilli Cacinni
Maria LoStocco
Come Again, Sweet Love Dowland
The Laughing Song Johan Strauss
Laudamus te (duet) with Christina Vivaldi
Sharon McCarthy
Short Suite (Summer) Stephen Becroft
By the Stream / Forest Scene /
Simple Song / Big Trees /
Waltz for a Rainy Day / Squirrel Games
Howard Rovics, Pianist
INTERMISSION
Music For A While Purcell
Sleep, Why Dost Thou Leave Me? Handel
Simple Song Leonard Bernstein
Meg Stoop
Una furtiva lagrima Donizetti
Nessun dorma Puccini
Tony Bruno
Sposa, son disprezzata Nancy Brant Vivaldi
Fruhlingslied Meg & Nancy Robert Schumann
Mailied Meg & Christina Robert Schumann
Ave Maria Meg & Christina Saint-Saens
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