A holiday full of thanks

Dear wonderful fans (or random stranger who happens upon this blog!),

I wanted to send out a very heartfelt, sincere THANK YOU to each and every one of you who have taken part in my journey over this past year, and throughout the years. I love singing and performing, but there would be no "career" without each of you who fill the seats, buy the discs, spread the word, and most importantly, who derive some bit of statisfaction, insight, or joy from the music I help make. In sum, YOU are the very reason I do what I do.

I cannot begin to express the fortune I feel to do what I love to do and to have the opportunity to share it with each of you. For some reason, things have fallen into a beautiful, miraculous configuration that provides a way for me to make a living in music. This never escapes me, and it continues to fill me with joy.

There is really no proper way to thank you, but I wanted to try! I have bought a LLAMA, which we can call the "Drama Llama" for obvious reasons, via one of my favorite charities, Heifer Interational. In your name, oh fabulous Yankeediva Fans, a llama will be given to a family/village most in need, and as a result it will help bring sustenance, income, and dignity to people who may struggle with such things we often take for granted. Llamas are great, because not only can they survive on scrub vegetation, hence not robbing families of precious food, but they fertilize the ground in a great way, while their fleece serves as a fabulous source to knit clothing as a source of income! They are the best. (Not to mention that they are the cutest things in the universe - this alpaca stole my heart this past summer in the San Juan Islands!)


How ADORABLE is he? Or she.

It is a small gesture, but certainly anything but a small one for the family that will welcome this animal with open arms. Should you feel like reciprocating in any way, you, too, can purchase geese, sheep, rabbits, or even a part of a heifer!!! (Fat lady jokes commence!) Just click the link above and enjoy the rush of helping someone in a very significant, substantial and concrete way.

In the meantime, I'm home for Christmas, baking cookies, choosing ornaments (the Handel variety, not the red-ball variety!) and getting ready to enjoy every moment with my family. May each of you enjoy your holiday with gusto, overflowing with love and joy, or at least great music!! Again, you have been so very good to me, and I share in the beauty of this life with each and every one of you!

One last little gift to smile about -- ENJOY!!!


Cheers!
Joyce

Opera News Awards

I realize I'm a wee bit tardy on this post, but you know - there has been sunshine to enjoy, ornaments to write, and lyrics to memorize! But I didn't want to let too much more time pass before sharing the amazing evening that I participated in a few weeks back.

The Metropolitan Opera Guild began hosting the "Opera News Awards" 5 years ago, and it has become quite an event in the social calendar of New York City, not to mention in our wonderful, whacky opera world. They honor 5 different artists in the course of the evening, usually consisting of one or two singer on the younger side (eh hem!), one or two luminaries or legends, to say the least, and a composer or conductor of great merit. 2 years ago I was asked to present an award to the incredible Olga Borodina where Leontyne Price was also being honored - and the impact of her speech and very presence alone moved me deeply:



But this year it was my turn, along with Gerald Finley, Philip Glass, Martina Arroyo and Shirley Verrett. Sadly, the effervescent, elegant, refined and awe-inspiring Shirley Verrett could not attend the awards. She was sorely missed and celebrated with gusto by everyone in attendance in her absence. The video clip of her singing Dalilah was ravishing beyond words, and her legacy was deeply felt and celebrated by us all.


Gerald Finley, dashing as ever (and with whom I've had the privilege of sharing the stage on several memorable occasions), spoke eloquently of the importance of our art form and those who make it possible; following a witty introduction by none other than Paul Simon, Philip Glass accepted his award while speaking of the high calling of composing an opera; and Martina Arroyo - RADIANT with her beaming smile and twinkling eye, inspired all of us who are still singing to be sure to carry the torch, especially bringing in the next generation as we move through our careers. (She's putting her money where her mouth is, doing marvelous, intensive work with young singers as a part of her foundation.

I cannot speak for what the other recipients were feeling as they took their moment in the spotlight, but I can tell you that I was overwhelmed and perhaps even a bit incoherent! The "force of nature" that is Stephanie Blythe served up an introduction to me that reduced me to tears. (Although the tears had no strength to fight themselves back since I was attending the gala with a sleep deficit of about 48 hours!) But I'm rather certain that they would have shown up even with a full night's sleep, for she was incredibly eloquent and heartfelt and deluged me with the most touching and sincere words I could have imagined. She is a treasure, and I felt quite honored to be receiving this award from her.


As I accepted the award, I truly felt the presence of everyone who has touched my life in a significant way: the teachers who inspired with their wisdom and patience, the critics who, oddly enough, also inspired with their dismissals and oversights, the colleagues who challenged me to be better, the friends who lifted me through the most difficult of times, the manager who believed, the family members who walked with me, ... and it was each of them that overwhelmed me that evening, knowing that I could not have been standing there with the crystal in my hand without them.

We never know the impact we may have on another's life, but I can say that there have been COUNTLESS people in my life who have taught me, challenged me, lifted me up and tore me down. Yet the reality is that none of them can ever stand on the stage and make me do what I do - no artist or performer has the luxury of leaning on someone when the cue is thrown your way and you're not sure if you can do it or not. That's our responsibility alone. But somehow, the strength they have given you along the way, the lessons they have taught you, the times they have abandoned you and forced you to find the strength deep in yourself - somehow they all contribute to the making of an artist, and it was this which was heavy on my mind that night.

There is another element to building up an artist and helping them stand on a stage in front of thousands of scrutinizing people: the fans. The wonderful, passionate, discerning and sometimes whacky fans!!! None of this makes sense unless it arrives to the audience for people to hear, experience, live, breathe and FEEL the music and emotion. How privileged I am to be given the honor of singing for you!

Oh, there was one more element of the evening - which nearly put me over the edge! My brilliant husband was busy conducting "Casanova's Homecoming" in Minneapolis the same evening of the awards and was unable to be my date for the night, but the ever thoughtful Met Guild found a way to bring him to NY that night, via a video greeting. As you can see by my reaction, I was taken completely by surprise and felt overwhelmed by the outpouring of love not just from him, but from everyone that evening!


Thank you, Dario Acosta for the use of your lovely photos!!

Rainy days and Mondays...

...can often get you down, but in LA it's a bit hard to let it settle in and take hold, I have to say! Perhaps it's actually a most beneficial thing for my career that today is rainy, because loads of work beckons (or, is that loads of work beckon?), but I must admit that the last week of sunshine did my inner child a WORLD of good! I'll actually let a few pictures do the talking:



I really shouldn't say anything just yet (touch wood, please!), but my leg feels back to normal now. After loads of physical therapy, I have felt immeasurably lucky to be back on form, and while being cautious, have immensely enjoyed getting active again. In fact, I look at the roller skating as quite good therapy for the ol' legs! Not to mention the rush of just PLAYING! Ah, it does a soul good, so that when I have to play a young teenager...


...it doesn't feel like QUITE as a big a stretch as it might otherwise! I just think finding JOY around you is one of the greatest gifts you can possibly give yourself. Life is not always easy, and challenges present themselves on such a regular basis, it is true. But if you can find a way to train yourself to see the humor or the laughter or the joy in it, somehow it passes a bit more easily - and the bonus is that I think you leave yourself open for the truth of the experience.

Even if that's not always possible, I'm a big believer in that when life is GOOD, make the MOST out of it! Celebrate it, and let it refuel you for when the tough times arrive. Which they will. But in the meantime - celebrate!



Or at the very least, LAUGH!



Now my Italian Art Songs are calling...."Amarilli......"

Perspective!

Taken out of context, as we all know, things can carry very different meanings! I just snapped this photo from my window in GLORIOUS Santa Monica, CA, and found it very funny that, framed simply as it is, one could make countless different assumptions. If I had taken the photo in a landscape (vertical) direction, you would have found the bride's groom and photographer about 20 feet to her right, waiting to finish their photo shoot. However, as it is, I love the possibility for imagining what her story might be.

I think as a singer, imagination is one of the most important tools you can utilize. Being able to imagine a character's backstory, or the off-stage conversation she may have just had with the baritone, are enormously important to fleshing out any kind of character. (What happened during Fiordiligi and Ferrando's "walk" just after Gugliemo has seduced Dorabella? What ever did Donna Anna and Don Ottavio speak about before Giovanni burst into their lives? What was Mimi doing just before coming to knock on that creaky door?) The more specific a singer can be in their vision of the character, the more real he or she will be to the audience.

In "Una voce poco fa", usually no one is on stage with Rosina, and yet, isn't it feasible that she might want to take a peak into the next room to make SURE Berta isn't lurking? Wouldn't that help suggest the "danger" she is surrounded by in that claustrophobic house? That's something a director most likely would never point out, but if your imagination is activated, you might think about certain details like that - details that help make the scene become multi-dimensional. If you can truly place yourself into this character's room, your imagination can begin to feed you an infinite number of plausible things to play.

We had a lovely opening for our Barber here in LA. (Thank you to James Taylor and the LA TIMES for giving me such a lovely profile to announce the opening of the production!)

(Photo © Lawrence K. Ho for the LA Times)

Yes, I've now done a number of "Barbers", but I think it is my willingness to engage my imagination that keeps it feeling fresh and alive to me. This show carries it's own set of challenges, because the emphasis lies with the visual aspect of "Seville", incorporating lots of (wonderful!) dancers filling the space and lots of comedic bits that could sit simply on the surface of the show. I found that I had to dig in and rely on my imagination to help me fill in some of the blanks of this production, and in the end, it begins to feel very much alive to me, because of that. Sometimes I wish the directors could help me find those details that I crave, but in the end, if I've had to struggle to find them myself, ultimately I suppose they will be more authentic.

**Singers - I encourage you all to really engage your imagination whenever possible! Ask LOADS of questions about the articulation the composer gave you (why a staccato? why a diminuendo here and not a measure later?) If you can supply the subtext to all those various elements, you will be miles ahead in the game!

And while I don't want to brag, I have to say that being in LA in December does NOT hurt the ol' psyche at all! The sun is shining, the ocean steady and strong, and my inner child is partaking of the big playground of life here! Yesterday found me roller-skating on the boardwalk, playing beach volleyball with some of my fellow castmates, and finishing with a killer California-style yoga class, where I'm astonished that I can walk at all today!!! (They do NOT mess around with yoga here in sunny CA!) Thanksgiving found me doing cartwheels on the sand - and my inner 12-year old has never been happier! (And for anyone who may be tempted to tell me to be careful on those roller-skates, I promise I'm well padded!)


As a final salute to the importance of perspective, I attended a thrilling concert last weekend of the LA PHIL, with the electric Gustavo Dudamel at the helm, performing all California-related works from the last 15 years, including a premiere by John Adams. Meeting Mr. Adams afterwards, he asked me what I was doing in LA, and I simply said, "Ah, Barber over at the Pavillion." "Barber?" he responded, "Which one - Vanessa?"

See? It's all a matter of context and perspective, folks. If we can get that, world peace can't be THAT far behind, can it?

PS -- in case anyone has 5 hours to kill tonight (!) Jim Svejda of KUSC 91.5 in LA (the renowned host of the nationally syndicated Record Shelf) will be doing a 5 (!) hour show on yours-truly, including clips from a number of my recordings, interviews, etc. It can be streamed live on their web site. I had a ball speaking with him, as he is an incredible fount of knowledge, but it should give a very interesting insight into the variety of recordings I've been so lucky to participate in!!!