A Bit at Loose Ends

Well, it turns out that asking to use the venue that I had wanted to use for my concert probably isn't a good idea.

The Spanish woman I have written about has done something that put me off a bit (although I don't for a minute blame her for doing it - I think it's a great idea).  She has kicked off a fundraising campaign asking everyone she knows to promote her one woman show and ask people to contribute.  This is a great idea.  If you want to fundraise you need to cast a wide net.  On the other hand I can't get caught up in it.  I earn less than $40k a year and any money I spend on altruism goes to taking care of my partner or making small donations to outfits that will help the needy.  If I spend any money on art, it's gonna be in my own backyard.

So I would feel a bit funny asking her to sponsor me (this doesn't cost money - she just has to think a concert or performance I'm putting on is worth her putting her name behind) if I am not participating in this campaign.  If all she wanted was a letter of reference of some kind, I would be happy to write one (in fact I did, last year), but  money, or asking friends for money, no.  In all likelihood the day may come when I will have to ask friends for money to help my partner pay her rent.  So I will save my cajoling and persuading talents for that eventuality.

I do want to stay on good terms with her, though, and hope to get to her one woman show and sing in another of her September 11 or Christmas concerts if she has them.

So the only other venue I can think of is that space I used for the Verdi concert over a year ago, where the air quality was so poor I felt I was choking.  On the other hand, that happened only after someone turned on the air conditioner, which probably hadn't been cleaned. So if I want to sing there I can make it a stipulation that they clean it, I guess.

The good news is I am coming along with Werther. The big high As are mostly in the middle of arpeggio-like passages which for me are the easiest.  And I really love the "Letter Scene"!

Maybe I will try to do a concert version of Werther.  I don't really see this scene being in a pastiche type concert.  And I can do the opera with only three other people.