You can see the Sun’s opera offer here.
That’s one hot picture! (I’d put it here, but that would get me in trouble. And I don’t like trouble.)
But wait … there’s more! Hot pictures plus an “easy-to-understand guide” … check it out.
And since I can’t put up anything of “my” production, here’s a clip of someone else’s “La ci darem la mano” (at a slower tempo than I prefer, but what do I know?) and “Ah! fuggi il traditor!”.
Hah! I typed “Con Giovanni” first. That works too.
In any case, SF Mike has words and pictures about the production, so check ’em out.
The two performances are already sold out, so if you were hoping to attend I suppose it’s just to late, baby, now it’s too late. So sorry.
As to my place in the show … well … last night was not where I like to be. It was uncomfortable. Pitch was questionable, and I occasionally hooked up to the tuner to see where the heck I was, because it felt so odd. I would think, “Man, I’m so darn flat this is awful,” but checking would show me to be either on pitch or sharp. So I think the pitch is quickly going up and I’m just struggling with that. But I’m a sub. And while I’m also principal oboe, it seems unwise to make too many comments as a sub. So I’ll deal. And hope my reed can reach.
I’m also using “Oboe A” rather than “Oboe 1”. I wonder if that’s part of the issue. Oboe 1 is easily sharp, which is why I selected the “A”, less frequently used Marigaux (yes, both are Marigaux oboes, and I do love them!) that I usually think of as my second. But maybe using Oboe A was foolish of me. I’m also wondering if the unstable above the line G is due to the oboe, or if it’s the reed I was using. I guess I’ll cart both to the final dress and see which is better suited to this, and attempt to try a few reeds as well. (I hate doing that!) I had also selected Oboe A because I thought it might be best because of it’s slightly lighter sound, and I know we can’t blast away with this particular opera; the pit isn’t a pit, the stage is small, and it’s really a chamber music hall … the best kind of place for Mozart, if you ask me!
Think of an orchestra. The oboe probably doesn’t sound that great by itself, but the maestro can make the oboe sound really good with the flutes and the triangle, the tubas, the drums and all the other instruments.
No. Comment.
It had been a tradition for the musicians to stand on the stage throughout their concerts, until the press noted that “aside from being uncomfortable to them, this looks bad and impressed the spectators uncomfortably.” By 1853 the musicians finally sat down, and were not asked to serve as ushers either, a custom which dissolved that same year, when paid ushers were employed.
I read this on a sample page for the book More than Meets the Ear: How Symphony Musicians Made Labor History
Perhaps I’ve found another book I’ll have to add to my reading list. Someday.
