I was planning to write anyhow, because I now am pretty sure that I will be singing something in both the Hispanic Heritage and the September 11 concerts, which has lifted my spirits.
Wednesday I went back to the concert producer (who had helped me produce Carmen). Interestingly, although it was she who had suggested the Garcia songs to me, after I sang through them (and I am pleased with how I sounded; I nailed the ending to "Contrabandista" to my satisfaction) she said she didn't think they were really "for me" and she suggested another song from the book called "Tirana del Cangrejo", which is quite risque. I can't find a good video of it, or I would link to one. The style of the music is quite old fashioned; the composer is Pablo Esteve and it was written in the late 1700s, but the text is about a crab that a woman is hiding in her bosom. So I can have a ball singing it. I am also going to sing one of the more lyrical Nin songs. I found one called "Canto Andaluz" that has some of the nice melismas that Spanish songs are famous for.
For September 11, I had suggested two churchly songs: "The Call" by Vaughan Williams, and "He that Keepeth Israel" by Schlosser. The latter was totally new to me but it sits in a good part of my voice and will make a nice church solo. The text is similar to the choral piece "He Watches Over Israel" from Elijah. The producer didn't care for either of those; she thought they were "dull". So I have taken a huge leap outside the box. Something I had thought about for September 11 because the text is so perfect was Ruggiero's "Sta nell'Ircana" from Alcina. That is one of the coloratura trouser role arias that I sang in the 1970s (I don't actually recall ever singing it in public) that I have not looked at in decades, but the text is about a tiger who is debating whether to attack her enemy or protect her cubs, and it is full of vocal fireworks (with nothing written above a G). I listened to a few versions, and decided that the one I liked best was the original one I had worked with in the 1970s, sung by Teresa Berganza, who is most famous for Spanish songs (and for Carmen) and whom my choir director has told me I sound like (I had thought of my voice as bigger and more dramatic, on the other hand he does not let me sing that way, although he did hear my Azucena). I no longer see myself as a "dude" (as a younger gay woman who was five foot six 130 pounds I was a shoo in for those parts and they kept me on safe ground in my social circle) but this is an aria that can stand alone on its own merits and once I get back in the groove with my rapid fire coloratura (not something I have focused on recently) I think I can shine in it. It also is in line with my mission to find flashy pieces for lower voices. Like all Handel arias, the reprise has ornamentation, which brings me to the subject of this post. The ornamentation is not written down, because each singer does her own. As I once mentioned, I have a "phonographic" memory, and, after about 10 listens, can sing Berganza's ornaments note perfect (I didn't say vocally perfect, I said note perfect.) There is no way in Hell I would be able to write them down, nor am I going to bother. I may do them a speck differently each time, but so what? I remember my mother of all people telling me that bel canto singing was a lot like jazz - that singers improvised. Since it will all be in rhythm it will not throw off an accompanist, particularly as any variations will be minor. I feel a bit defensive about this, because all singers now have music theory training and talk about chord structure etc. and when I hear that sort of talk my eyes just glaze over because I don't know what they are talking about. But I don't think this is something I need to sing this piece well. I think nontraditional approaches to singing have gotten a bad rap lately. I'm not talking about faulty technique; more about where you start from, or how you learn things.
So here's the aria, for your perusal.
http://youtu.be/93yxE06t1Lw
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