FCS: Working Mom Gets No Sleep!

FCS 1 :Yes, that's right. This blog has gotten a new make-over. One more time. I guess every once in a while yours truly gets tired of the same blog look. Besides, she wants you to never know what to expect from this blog both post-wise and image-wise. So there - the new look is on.

FSC 2: What do you all think a working mom should do on a Thursday night at 11:00 p.m.? How many of you did just say "call it a day and go to bed"? I bet quite a few.

However, that was not what I did last night.

Because this arrived in the mail: Gluck's Orphee et Eurydice, the 1774 French version.

First, I have to say: get it. Anyone who considers themselves into music, be it classical or contemporary, has to have this particular CD in their collection.Or even if you do not believe in music, but you believe in love - get it!

The story is simple and beautiful. Orphee embarks on a journey to the dark kingdom of shadows to search and bring back the love of his life, his dead wife Eurydice. So sweet is his music, so amazing is his voice that furies, ghosts and demons give in and return Eurydice to him. There is but one catch though. If he turns around and looks at his wife on their way home, he will lose her forever. And he does. And she is gone. But the ever-kind and fair Gods, swept by the power of Orphee's love, return Eurydice to him. At the end Love triumphs.

How beautiful is that?

And now of course, there is Gluck's music of unmatched harmony and beauty.

And Juan Diego Florez, as Orphee.

The real Orphee. You hear that voice and you believe that it could really make the shadows weep and bring the dead to life.

Of course, there is the beautiful and famous Objet de mon amour, and even a much more famous J'ai perdu mon Eurydice that he sings even more beautifully that on his earlier CD, even though you probably wonder how that can be possible. His voice reaches incredible sheerness and subtlty on the one hand, and on the other hand embelishes the aria with the deepness of lower notes and darker tones.

This is Orphee who loves like a boy, but fights for his love like a man.

However, my biggest discovery last night was Laissez-vous toucher! My God, has anything ever written about love been more about love?

Orphee plays his lyre and sings this aria, imploring the furies, ghosts and demons to let him through to his beloved. Of course, they say no at the beginning, but as he sings and plays, their no grows softer and quiter and finally, they allow him in. This is an amazing aria and I swear to you all, it sounds like Juan Diego sings every possible and impossible note in the world there. He sings his heart out, and before you know it, together with the most overpowering music, his voice brings tears into your eyes.

I went to bed at 1:00 and do not regret it. Those tears were the tears of joy that only good music can bring. Now I am very inspired to learn more about Gluck and this opera in particular.

P.S. If you listen to the opening of Laissez-vous toucher, let me know if the beginning of the Moonlight Sonata comes to mind. I was a bit struck. Beethoven must have listened to a lot of Gluck. But who could blame him for doing that? Once you discover Gluck, you are officially hooked!

Breaking News: Diana-less Hamlet

Just learned that Diana Damrau is pregnant and has withdrawn from all the Hamlet performances at WNO and will be replaced by Elizabeth Futral.
Carlos Alvarez and Placido Domingo have also withdrawn from those performances for reasons of their own.
But guess what? I'll go to Hamlet anyway. The music will still be there, right?

Early Music and Toddlers

Now my son really got into Handel's music.
The other night I was reading him his bedtime story with (as usual) very soft, hardly audible Handel's Largos in the background. As a rule, he is very interested in the story, but this time he turned towards the player, pointed to it and with a huge smile on his face started clapping.
He kept looking up at me to check if I was enjoying it as much as he was.
Next morning while driving in the car we were listening to Handel's Water Music. There is this Minuet 2 with a very pretty melody and distinct rhythm. Suddenly, I heard Troy clapping right along with the music, exactly in its rhythm. I am not sure if it was a coincidence or he really got the rhythm and clapped along, but it was really cool to hear it. If he does it again, I will certainly write about it.
The way my 15-month-old responds to early music, such as Handel's or Gluck's, pushed me into thinking :what is it about early music that can be so attractive for a toddler?

• Beauty
• Harmony
• Peace (not always, but in most cases even anger and insanity are pretty harmonious and kind of happy???)
• Good predictability (the music flows the way it should, the way you expect it to)
• Overall rightness (every note just sounds so right and so much in its place)

I would like to hear your thoughts about toddlers and early music. What do you all think about its attaction for toddlers?

It's really funny that as I type these words our receptionist has her 91.5 FM on with Handel's Water Music Overture!!! Do I know that music well or what? LOL!

The Best Birthday Gift

On the first night of 2010, PBS showed Andre Rieu's Vienna Concert. Some of my readers probably read my post about how my son loved it and with how much attention and joy he watched it.
On that night my note to self read: Take him to that concert. He'll love it.
Then I got more encouragement from one of my readers, who wrote about Andre Rieu welcoming little ones to his shows.
I checked out Mr. Rieu's schedule and realized he is to perform in Baltimore on June 20th this year. The ticket prices were way over the top. $350+!!!
Never mind, I said to myself.
However, every once in a while mentally I went back to the idea of taking Troy to that show. Just mentally.
Last week, spontaneously, I checked out the prices again. The most human price was $87.00 per ticket. For a back seat on the top of the stadium.
Anyway, even though 87x3 did not look too human, I asked my husband this morning if he had already gotten me my birthday gift ( my birthday is coming up at the end of next month).
He said he had not, even though he knew what he wanted to get me. So, I told him about Andre Rieu and about how much Troy would enjoy it, to which my husband said that it sounds like a nice idea for a birthday gift.
So he went online and found an unbelievable deal: Orchestra seats, Row J: Buy 1,get 1free for the total of $75.00. Plus, children under 2 go for free. How incredible is that???
I have mentioned earlier that I personally consider Andre Rieu a beautiful musician, but a bit too much of a showman. He has come to Baltimore many times and I never really wanted to go. But now, with Troy, it's all different. I think it will be a perfect show for him, considering he is so much into music and dancing. Andre Arieu works his magic on kids. He shows them all the beautiful colors that music has to offer. And what music...waltzes, polkas, mazurkas, chardashes, operetta arias!..
Can there possibly be a better birthday gift than seeing your kid truly enjoying music? Not for me. Stay tuned: details are coming up in almost 2 months.

FCS: Opera Valmont

If you question the title of this post, here is the clue: it's about me. I am an Opera Valmont. My opera history resembles his love history. There is hardly an opera that I've been ever interested in and have not seen or heard, be it live or recorded. I've almost seen them all and most of them several or multiple times.
Have I been bored? No.
Have I grown tired? Definitely not.
However, when I hear something new that captures my attention, I get really inspired and want to see it no matter what.
Months ago a 2009/2010 WNO Season preview CD found way into my hands. And of course, I knew all the operas, except for one.
Hamlet by Ambroise Thomas.
The preview sounds like a bunch of catchy melodies, French and gorgeous, a bit Offenbach-ish to my ears, but hei - so much the better.
The production presents quite a stellar team: Diana Damrau as Ophelia, Samuel Ramey as Claudius and Carlos Alvarez as Hamlet. On a certain day there will be a free post-performance Q&A Session with the artists and a CD signing by Diana Damrau.
So here I am, planning another trip to Kennedy Center. Stay tuned for details. Hamlet opens May 19th.

Instrumental? Hard to Handle? Not with Handel!

It’s pretty normal for a kid even much older than mine to be more into vocal rather than instrumental music. Of course! You can hardly blame a kid for liking illustrated books more than plain-text ones, right? Looking at pictures is always more fascinating.
Thus, seeing that my son is really into vocal music and much less so into instrumental music, I started thinking of a way to make instrumental music more attractive and understandable for him.
It’s no secret that teaching toddlers (and some adults) has to be through fun stuff.
So, let me just share a game that I made up several days ago and that actually works.

Once he was sitting in his high chair while I was warming his dinner.
I sat down across from him, so he could see me very well, and started singing music( in this case it was the gorgeous Handel’s Water Music 10 Alla Hornpipe) imitating with my voice and my hands playing different instruments: the violin, the clavichord, the French horn, and even the drum.
If you are familiar with that particular piece, you know that it’s very lively and happy: allegro of all allegros. Troy loved it. He started laughing and tried to do same things with his hands. His drum and violin imitations were hilarious. We had a blast!
Next morning, I played the same music in the car and sang along with it too. One of the most amazing things about Handel’s instrumental music is that you can actually sing it!
Now, every time I start singing that piece, Troy gets so excited and waves his hands together with me. Now, through that game, all that music makes more sense to him and kind of falls into place. I guess, I can safely assume we are very much on our way to appreciating instrumental music. Of course, there is no rush and I could have done this same thing a year later. But I never think: maybe my kid can’t. On the contrary, I always think: maybe my kid can?! And if so, why wait?
P.S. We have also been reading this book (meaning I tell him what it says in simpler and fewer words). I know he loves the pictures and hope he understands some of the story. In any case, he gets extremely excited every time he sees it. It’s a wonderful book for kids. It reads like a fairy tale, except that it’s a true story.
What can I say, my friends?
A teacher once is a teacher forever, and yours truly was in teaching business for so many years before taking a break.
(the picture is the courtesy of amazon.com)

The Big 5 and the Phantom

This weekend my husband and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary and it was one musical weekend in every meaning of the word.

Friday night we watched (oh, readers, please don't laugh) La Boheme, the movie.

Again? you would ask.

Yes, again for me, but first time for my husband, who could not be there for my La Boheme night and consequently missed the movie.

Don't think I am such a big fan of that movie. It's beautiful, but has its flaws, that I am well aware of. However, apparently, everyone around me wants to watch that movie with me and I am always happy to oblige.

So there - by now I watched La Boheme the total of 7 times and with different people too!

Anyway, it was worth it, because my husband really liked it. He did not mind fake snow, Anna's red lipstick, or a bed scene. Not at all.

We previously saw La Boheme twice: once at the Met with Ruth Ann Swenson as Mimi and Ramon Vargas as Rodolfo and once at Baltimore Lyric. Both productions were very good. However, my husband thought the movie was even more fun to watch than either of those productions. After the movie, we reflected on how sometimes people reveal their true virtues under critical circumstances, like Musetta or Colline. It was nice.

On Saturday we went to Hippodrome Theater to catch The Phantom of the Opera, brought to Baltimore straight from Broadway.

First,before the show, we had a very nice dinner at Cazbar, an authentic Turkish restaurant in Downtown Baltimore.

The place was really small, but cozy. The food was exceptionally good and tasted almost homemade. We went family-style, meaning we shared everything we ordered. That way, we got to try Manti (lamb dumplings minus the dough) in yogurt sauce, Moussaka (an eggplant lasagna minus the pasta part), mushrooms roasted in special Turkish cheese, spicy olives and something else spicy and flavorful. Except that we could not figure out what was in it.

Once you come to a Turkish restaurant, you learn that you are supposed to stay there for a long time. Eat, drink, relax, be merry, order more, take your shoes off, rest on the pillows head to foot, order again, wait for the belly dancing, enjoy the belly dancing, order again, etc, etc - till sunrise.

Nobody leaves after they finish their dinner, unless something is wrong with the food or the service.

Therefore, when we asked for a check, our server looked really concerned and asked: "Why? What happened?"

We explained that nothing really happened, everything was great and that we just had a show to catch at 8:00, but concern in the server's eyes was replaced by a silent question : Why go to a show, if we are having belly dancing in a couple of hours? What show can be better?

We arrived at the theater by 7:40. We had excellent seats - 10th row in the orchestra.

Many women were walking around the foyer with fake oversized red roses pinned to their shoulders. A little later I saw a souvenir stand with those roses for sale. I was not interested. My husband filled my day with roses already having gotten twenty five red long stems that morning.

The show was just great. Everybody sang ridiculously well, except for the guy who sang Raol. His voice was mostly a muffled roar. Almost an oxymoron, I know, but I hope it still makes sense .

Just before the show started, I noticed a small insert in the program stating that the role of the Phantom would be sung by Greg Mills. A cover. Some people were disappointed: Oh, so we are not even getting the main guy?

However, as soon as Mr. Mills sang the first note, the last trace of disappointment was gone for good.

He was amazing - a voice of rare power and beauty. I won't say anything else. You get the message: rare power and beauty.

Maybe (who knows) his career launched on that night. You know how it sometimes happens to covers? The star falls sick, the cover jumps in, and before you know it - a new star is born. That's what the musical is about too, right?

The show had multiple special effects. There were several explosions. The famous chandelier traveled up and down over the audience, who was pretending not to be afraid. Phantom was traveling over the audience, standing inside this sculpture group on the right, which I first thought to be the original part of the theater design, as it had been placed high above the stage.

The scenery was very impressive, especially the Phantom's dungeon, with fog, goth candelabras and a mirror with a bride falling out of it.

The masquerade scene was very beautiful and intense, as well as the prima donna scene.

The music is an absolute magic. Almost everything in the score is Mr. Weber's gift to the audience. Beautiful, catchy, gorgeous music.

Last time we saw Phantom in Hippodrome, about 6 years ago, the Phantom himself was more of a romantic hero and you could not but feel so sorry for him, realizing his inner beauty.

In this production, the Phantom was pitiful in an ugly way. He was miserable, but also way too pushy and persistent. That's how the director obviously saw it all. All in all, it was a really good performance.

During the intermission I went to the souvenir stand and got some Phantom mementos: a Prima Donna fitted T-shirt, which looks like this, a Phantom refrigerator magnet and a picture book of this very production, all to remember our Big Five by.

FCS: A Page Scroller

Some of you have probably noticed a couple of new blogs, which recently appeared on my blog roll. One of them is a blog by my favorite conductor ever - Leonard Slatkin.
If you like music, and even if you don't, I am pretty sure you know the name.
I personally consider Mr. Slatkin one of the most brilliant conductors of our time.
A couple of years ago, my husband and I had a conversation about orchestral music and he said that the role of conductor is majorly exaggerated and that a good orchestra can very well play by themselves and do just fine.
Instead of making my point right there and then, I took my husband to BSO to see Leonard Slatkin conducting a concert of Rossini, Sibelius and his own music to Edgar Alan Poe's Raven. The evening was a blast.
Mr. Slatkin was at his best, conducting brilliantly, like an artist, an actor, a musician and a manager - all in one.
I will never forget how, while conducting the Overture to Rossini's La gazza ladra he all of a sudden put both his arms behind his back and conducted for just a little hands-free! And yet, I never heard BSO playing better.
Once the concert was over, the audience exploded with "Bravo Maestro", and there was a long standing ovation.
My husband liked the concert very much and started seeing the significance of conductor's figure.
And now, it turns out, Maestro Slatkin has a blog!
And what a blog!
I have to say he conducts and writes the same way: his entries are clever, funny, very interesting and very professional in the most entertaining way.
I really recommend it to you all for reading.
If you are into music, you'll be addicted to this page scroller (can't say page turner about a blog, right?)
And just to give you a sample of what you can expect, a quote that I will print out and hang someplace, once I pick that place:
It seemed better just to say what I wanted and sometimes explain why.

On a Mission

Almost a month ago, after my La Boheme Opera Night, one of the seniors left this comment on my blog:

Do you think we could all go see a live opera one day? I don't say New York - we have too many people with walkers. How about a local opera? That would be so wonderful!Thank you again from the bottom of my heart.

It was right there and then that I made a mental note to self: explore the possibilities.

Of course, it would be ideal to bring the artists right here, to the buildings. WPAS ( Washington Performing Art Society) actually sends free performers to senior centers, BUT - only in DC area.

So I kept digging and here is what I found.

Er...actually here is the actual correspondence between Jenny Kelly, the Director of Baltimore Opera Theater and myself.

Isn't that great? How wonderful would it be to make a small Madama Butterfly talk and then take seniors to a free opera at the gorgeous Hippodrome Theater???!!!

Dear Raisa,

It would be difficult to have artists go there and perform for no fee because these days...no one does that anymore...and the pianist fee for the singerswould be greater than what they would charge...BUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can offer FREE tickets to our performances to your interested seniors. You would need to provide transportation for your folks but that is all.

Jenny Kelly, Director

Dear Jenny:
Thank you very much for your reply.
I work in an apartment complex, which is not a nursing home. We have quite a few mobile seniors who still drive.
I am teaching an Opera Appreciation class, and the focus of our last session was Puccini and the Netrebko/Villazon movie "La Boheme".
Several seniors expressed interest to learn more about Puccini and his operas, and it would be terrific if they could see Madama Butterfly for free in October.
How many tickets do you think you will be able to donate?
When do I need to get in touch with you about that?
Thanks so much.
Raisa

We will be VERY VERY happy to have them.They can all 15 have FREE tix and they will be THE BEST seats....Tix for BUTTERFLY will be ready next month. PLEASE stay in touch with me.We can even get together if you want.
Jenny Kelly, DirectorWORLD

I feel just a tiny bit like an opera missionary on a mission and I have to confess: I like it.

Going Back to Handel

I have mentioned earlier that my son has been listening to classical music almost from Day 1. His first CD was Handel’s Largos which he used to fall asleep to with a huge smile on his face. Here it is.
We had this tradition almost until he turned 1. Then he started having trouble falling asleep, so in search of new strategies, we switched to stroller walks and bedtime stories. Temporarily. Now, with joy I report that as of last night, we added Handel back to our bedtime menu and he seems to remember that music. So now our evening looks like this:
Stroller walk – Dinner – Bedtime story – Lights out and quiet Handel’s Music.
For those of you who wonder, lullabies aren’t working any longer: Troy listens to the words, which keeps him wide awake.

FCS: Officially a Mom

Where on Earth did I find all that patience to wait for the whole week to report that -

last Sunday,
April 4th,
my son, Troy Alexander,
started walking at the age of 14 months.
Independently.
For a long time.
Pushing us away to show us that he can.
When I told my co-workers on Monday, our receptionist said:
'Congratulations - now you're officially a mom!'
And we all know why, don't we?
It's a big step forward and we are all very proud of our big guy.

On another, music-related note, we have been listening to a lot of new (for my son) good music this week.
I played some Dmitri Hvorostovsky's CDs for him. Just to see his reaction. When he was very young, he did not like lower voices.
Now he does.
It came as a surprise that he really likes "Uzhel' ta samaya Tatiana?" ( Ужель та самая Татьяна?)
He tries to sing together with the CD and claps through almost the whole aria. Especially at the end, when there is this absolutely crazy and majestic music that is supposed to depict the tempest in Onegin's heart, Troy claps with most enthusiasm and energy. I am surprised that this music does not suppress him. Beautiful as it is, it's grand and very dramatic. However, apparently, he is able to stand up to it. Interesting...

Opera-Friendly Dessert

We, opera lovers, know better than anyone else how important it is to be able to fit in those gorgeous opera outfits hanging in our closets.

Every opera outing is a special event for us and we always try to look our very best for the opera. I guess looking great is a big part of an opera night. However, between those operas and recitals we have normal routine lives. Just like everyone else we get stressed out, nervous, hungry, sweet toothie...


Here comes the important question.


Can there be an ultimate guilt-free, opera friendly dessert that we could eat and fit in our gorgeous outfits no problem?


I do know quite a bit about healthy nutrition and carb-balanced diets, however, I won't bore you with too much unnecessary information. I'll just say : yes, there is a dessert that is absolutely amazing, variable and guilt-free.

First, you need to decide what kind of person you are: fruit or chocolate (just like with wedding cakes, remember?)

If you are both (like myself), both variations will be awesome for you.


So, our dessert is called... um... let's call it ...Opera Mousse?

You only need to mix 2 ingredients to make it:

1. Fat Free Reddi Whip
2. Sugar Free cocoa powder( preferably dark) for chocolate people or

Sugar Free jam of any flavor for fruit people.

Make sure that the Reddi Whip you buy is fat free, 1 carb and 5 cals per 2 tbl spoons.
This dessert has no specific proportions.

Add cocoa powder to taste. If you are a coffee lover, you can add just a hint of flavored coffee to it as well.
Be more careful with sugar-free jams. Do not overdo on them. Just a hint of cherry or strawberry jam will be plenty.
Enjoy and remember: life is about enjoying, not suffering!
If you try it, let me now what you think. Works fine for me.

Please disregard that pink, most likely opera UN-friendly stuff in the cup in the picture - it has nothing to do with this post.

FCS: Something to Smile About

Still remembering my recent fabulous trip to Kennedy Center, I found this hilarious duo interview online.
Please enjoy and have a wonderful smily weekend!


Conversation: Daffy Divas
Sassy soprano Sondra Radvanovsky and smoldering Siberian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky—opera’s best friends forever—talk to Rebecca Milzoff.
By Rebecca Milzoff
Published Mar 28, 2010

(Photo: Pavel Antonov)

It helps that they’re not romantically involved. Still, in the ego-inflated opera world, Radvanovsky and Hvorostovsky are remarkably simpatico, and, what’s more, refreshingly down-to-earth. Devotees of both will no doubt storm Carnegie Hall April 1, their final stop of a North American tour.


How did the two of you meet?

S.R.: He met me first, and I was very un-nice, apparently.

D.H.: I saw Sondra singing in Il Trovatore at the Met, and I was so overwhelmed. I went backstage and showered her with compliments. And she was kind of … cold. I understand. Sometimes you feel your brains, your imagination is still onstage, and you can’t communicate with anyone after the show.

S.R.: Dmitri didn’t know that he was my opera boyfriend! I was completely in love with his voice. I was very shy, so I just said thank you and walked away, because I thought I might start crying. And he thought I hated him!

You two are now close enough to—according to one story—share pants.

S.R.: Dmitri showed up to a photo shoot in jeans, thinking it was just going to be a headshot. Now, Dmitri had a pair of pants I really liked that were my size, which is embarrassing, but there you go, it’s out there. I had brought my tuxedo so I told him to put those pants on. And I swear to you, I have not worn them since, because they look better on him.

D.H.: The length was fine. They were very good to me.

Any other startling secrets you’d like to share?

S.R.: We are both goofballs. Every show of Trovatore, he’s done something to me onstage.

D.H.: Anything, you know, to make her laugh in front of the audience.

S.R.: He blacked out a tooth. He painted a devil the size of a fist on his chest—and right when I’m singing to him, he pulls his shirt open and shows it. I lost it.

D.H.: Eyeballs!

S.R.: Oh, yes, he drew eyeballs on his eyelids. I mean, seriously.
Your fans are quite rabid. Dmitri, you’re on a site called Barihunks, with the nickname “the Siberian Hunky.” Sondra, you have a Canadian wine named after you.

S.R.: Yes, but Dmitri has a frickin’ planet. You have to understand, he is like Britney Spears in Russia. You are very, very famous.

D.H.: Scientists named the planet after me at the end of the nineties. [Fame] is a bit of a problem. I do not dare walk outside alone in Moscow and St. Petersburg.

S.R.: When we went to Brighton Beach, a lady came up to my husband and asked, “Is that Dmitri Hvorostovsky?” He said yes, and she started weeping and fell to her knees. I kid you not. He is an icon.

Letting the Word Out

Today I have pre-ordered this DVD (which is only to be released on April 20th) and look what else I stumbled into!!!It's also to be released on April 20th. Needless to say, I pre-ordered it as well.

If you are a reader of Joyce DiDonato's blog, you already know about the DVD, but this CD is so new, it has not even been advertised on Juan Diego Florez's web site.

Can't wait to listen to that Orphee together with Troy, especially to his favorite J'ai perdu mon Euridice.
Look forward to playing for him my favorite Object de mon amour!

On another, but a very relevant note, just learned that Joyce DiDonato (with David Zobel at the piano) will give recitals

• at Vocal Arts Society in DC on February 15th, 2011 (time TBA)
• at Perelman Theater in Philly on February 28th, 2011 at 8:00 p.m. and
• at Carnegie Hall on March 6th 2011 at 2:00 p.m.

VAS certainly looks the best to me, a Metropolitan Area resident. I guess, it's time to mark my 2011 calendar already!