ANNOUNCEMENT # 1, to repeat the information on my minipost of June 6, for those who may have missed it: We have now launched my video series under the sponsorship of Bel Canto Boot Camp. These will be weekly episodes based on the Introduction and Part 1 of Opera as Opera, which consists of 14 essayettes on aspects of our artform. In each episode, I’ll be reading the indicated essayette, then answering some excellent questions about it posed by the BCBC leadership. So the thoughts of the brief essays are elaborated, and I think there will be material of interest even for those who have read the book.
The series will culminate in the fall with a live, interactive Book Club event, in which questions will be welcomed from viewers in real time. The first video is up on the BCBC website now (links below), and the episodes will remain on the site, in front of the paywall, for the duration of the series and beyond. All three links will get you there, but I do recommend that you explore the BCBC site, and learn about this enterprising organization’s exciting activities in the education and hands-on training of a new generation of classical singers.
The links:
Announcement # 2: After delays and frustrations occasioned by the shocking bankruptcy of our printer followed by the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, we have at last gotten underway with the third printing of Opera as Opera. Inasmuch as we have sold out the second printing more quickly than expected, there will be a slight delay until the availability of the new printing. (Shipping is currently expected for July 6.) However, pre-orders are being taken, and the steps for ordering remain unchanged; just click on Opera as Opera on the home page.
Finally, I must record with sadness the death of Joel Friedlander. Joel was a highly regarded consultant and designer in the field of self-publishing, with a long track record of successful projects, and with books and articles turned to by many for information and advice. As a beginner in self-publishing, I turned to Joel first for much-needed consultation, then contracted with him for the interior design of Opera as Opera. His work was superb, and his collaboration through the editing process unfailingly warm, friendly, and supportive. I, and the field to which he contributed so much, will miss him.
And to the topic of the day:
There are stirrings, signs of a re-awakening from our suspended animation to the possibility of something resembling opera in its natural state. Overseas, this has already happened in certain places with certain restrictions. Here in New York, the stirrings are muffled owing to the persistence of serious labor disputes at the Metropolitan Opera, and the announced plans for a full 2021-2022 season (to say nothing of the company’s long-term prospects) have a wobbly-in-the-knees look. Nonetheless, we have reason to hope that by the turn of the year opera in full, opera whole, will be back before us. People of high professional standing will sing from a stage and play from a pit, and we will gather to see and hear them.