STUDIO NEWS
Carson Dorsey (UNT - MM) is Associate Director of Business Development for Publicis Groupe, the second largest marketing holding company in the world. She is also Board President Emeritus of Verdigris Ensemble, a Dallas-based vocal ensemble that challenges traditional performance practice focusing solely on new music and commissions and the incorporation of technology into interdisciplinary experiences.
Sara Kennedy (UNT - BM, MM, GAC) was featured in the world premiere of Beyond the Horizon by Nicolas Flagello with Teatro Grattacielo as well as making her return to Florida Grand Opera as Pamina in Die Zauberflöte. Sara is currently performing the role of Lola in Cavalleria Rusticana and covering Lina in Stiffelio with Sarasota Opera.
Camille Ortiz (UNT - DMA) sings the role of Pamina in Die Zauberflöte with Seattle Opera in February/March 2025, and was in residence at Arkansas State University to perform and teach Latin American song. She also performs as a soloist with Ars Lyrica Houston and Houston Early Music this season.
Judy Pagryzinski (MSU - BMEd) is an entrepreneur and fitness expert with her own gym (Core LP Fitness) in the Detroit metropolitan area.
Shelby VanNordstrand (MSU - MM) was appointed to the faculty of her undergraduate alma mater, Iowa State University and, along with Molly, is a featured singer on an upcoming album of Regency-era songs distributed on the Blue Griffin label. Shelby also serves as the Vice President of Conferences for the National Opera Association.
Yuhui Yang (UNT - current student) is performing the role of Adele in UNT Opera's upcoming production of Die Fledermaus. She also has a leading role in the Dallas Opera Outreach Program, and will sing the role of Musetta with the Sherman Symphony in April.
MSU = Michigan State University, UNT = University of North Texas
STUDIO MEMBER SPOTLIGHT
Chia-Wen Chen graduated from the University of North Texas in 2022 with a DMA in vocal performance. She earned her MM degree from the Manhattan School of Music, and entered UNT as a soprano. However, we realized that the soprano territory was not her true home, and she transformed into a wonderful mezzo-soprano! At UNT, she performed the roles of Bianca (The Rape of Lucretia) and Dido (Dido and Aeneas). Back at home in Taiwan, she recently made her debut with the Taiwan Symphony Orchestra. In March, she will give a lecture recital on French vocal music at the Chung Yuan Christian University, and in May, she will perform Frauenliebe und Leben in a concert at the National Taiwan Normal University. Later this year, she is giving a vocal recital in Miaoli, and Chia-Wen will collaborate on the global composer project "Emocean" to premiere contemporary music. Further opera performances await, with details to be announced later this year.
We miss you, Chia-Wen, but are happy for your most deserved successes!
REFLECTION
A student at Michigan State once said to me, "I can't sing that aria in Voice Recital Hour because everyone knows that's (another singer's) aria". The impression that the student had - and they were not alone - is that if one of their peers had performed an aria well, and it was part of that person's 'aria package', then no one else should sing it among the same group of people. This reminds me of a similar kind of comment that I heard from a student later on: "I was going to start with (name of aria) at the audition, which is my favorite starter piece, but then I heard a person before me sing it, so I didn't".
When I was living in Germany as a soloist with the Cologne Opera, I had an audition not long after I had given birth to my daughter. The audition was for the role of Octavian. I wasn't really back to full strength following the pregnancy, but I went anyway, thinking it would be a good way for me to re-establish my practicing and performing routines.
I arrived at the theater and discovered that there were 18 of us who had been invited to sing for the same role! We were all forced to wait on the side of the stage until it was our turn (meaning we heard everyone before us sing), and we all sang the same piece, "Wie du warst", which is Octavian's opening music. It was one of the most futile-feeling auditions I had ever done. Singers frenetically whispered about how 'everyone already knows who is going to get it!' and the general atmosphere, with 18 mezzos crammed on the side of the stage, was less-than-pleasant. I sang, didn't get the role, didn't think I was going to get the role, but I learned from the experience.
Going back to my students' comments about 'aria ownership', I think about that Octavian audition. I invite you to do the following: the next time you sing one of your audition pieces, or jury pieces, imagine you are in that situation of having to perform that piece after 17 people went on stage before you and sang the same piece. What would you bring to your performance that would make you the memorable singer? How would you phrase the piece? What accents, or what inflection would make yours be the one that they would want to hire? How would you project the character in such a way that it was both sincere and captivating?
No one 'owns' an aria. No one singing an aria before you in an audition should prevent you from starting with your signature, best piece. But one does need to think about those things that will make our performance the one that stands out, while always keeping it about the music and the character, and not about ourselves. A wonderful aspect about being in a creative field, music or otherwise, is that you have an ongoing opportunity to express your wonderful uniqueness - don't be afraid to trust that which is you, and no one else.
FEATURED FRIEND
Nova is the first cat who came into my life in Texas. I like to say I am his "kahu", which is a beautiful Hawai'ian word worth googling, if you are not familiar with it! Nova was a stray, so we are not sure of his age, but he is likely 12, at this writing. Nova is the alpha cat, and rather large, about 17 lbs. He is also the most vocal. His other name that we use (the writer T. S. Eliot wrote that every cat has 3 names, the third of which is only known to the cat!) is Nova Scotia.
Let me know!
If you are a studio alum or current member and have news to share (music-related or otherwise!), or would like to be featured (or would like your cat, dog, et al. to be featured), click here!
With gratitude for my students and for the craft of teaching,
Commenti