Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the Rudolfina-Redoute, a traditional masked ball, accompanied by a couple of fellow musician friends. We coincidentally reserved a table in a room where there was a jazz quartet playing. During one of their set breaks we struck up a conversation with the drummer, and he suggested that I do a song with the group. So after consulting with the pianist, we decided on "Somewhere over the rainbow". Here's how it turned out:
Jamming at the Hofburg
"Jamming" doesn't really exist in the classical music world. So it's a thrill when I get the chance to spontaneously collaborate with complete strangers: no fear, no expectations, no pressure - just fun.
Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the Rudolfina-Redoute, a traditional masked ball, accompanied by a couple of fellow musician friends. We coincidentally reserved a table in a room where there was a jazz quartet playing. During one of their set breaks we struck up a conversation with the drummer, and he suggested that I do a song with the group. So after consulting with the pianist, we decided on "Somewhere over the rainbow". Here's how it turned out:
Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the Rudolfina-Redoute, a traditional masked ball, accompanied by a couple of fellow musician friends. We coincidentally reserved a table in a room where there was a jazz quartet playing. During one of their set breaks we struck up a conversation with the drummer, and he suggested that I do a song with the group. So after consulting with the pianist, we decided on "Somewhere over the rainbow". Here's how it turned out:
Just an observation....
Disclaimer: Generalizations and (perhaps pretentious) philosophizing to follow.
European musician: Do you speak Spanish?
Me: Not a word.
European musician:
So why are you doing this Spanish song masterclass?
Me: Because I’m curious about Spanish music and I want to
learn?!?! (Baffled, thinking to
myself “Is it so strange that I want to learn about Spanish music even though I
don’t speak Spanish?)
This question really caught me off-guard, as did the context
of the situation: I was the only participant in this masterclass who didn’t
speak Spanish. Back home it’s
totally normal for singers to intensively study repertoire in a language they
don’t speak. I think this is
partly due to the fact that North American anglophones generally don’t speak other
languages (study yes, but don’t speak), but also because North Americans value
a broad musical education. Do
Europeans consider it inauthentic to perform song repertoire in a language they
don’t speak, or are they not interested, or are they just too busy paying homage to their own country's musical legacy? I'll let you know when I find out.
Canción Española Wien
I'm very excited to be performing in a concert of Spanish vocal music accompanied by piano and guitar, as part of the Canción Española Wien Spanish Music Festival. The concert is on Friday February 8 at 18.30 in the Anton Dermota Saal at the Konservatorium at Johannesgasse 4, 1010 Wien. Bienvenidos a todos!
Here's "Llámale con el pañuelo" from Guridi's Seis canciones castellanas, which I will be performing at the final concert.
Wave to him with your scarf, receive him with honor and pride.
Toss your rosette over the side of his shoulder.
Tease him, entice him.
Torero, cast your cloak, fling your cape:
Do not let the bull seize you, do not let the bull catch you
Young men, if you go to the bulls do not take a cape to harass them,
because the bulls are very brave and many Toreros
get killed by them.
Marcellina and Susanna duke it out
Mozart at his cattiest! Here's a clip from one of our Piano Dress Rehearsals :)
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