I did something in my last post that I have been trying really hard not to do in this blog: assume non-singers know about dorky singer stuff. I totally didn't explain the Met auditions, so I'm going to remedy that right now!
First of all, the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions aren't really auditions per se - it's really a competition. Unlike an audition, which singers do to try to get a job, the purpose of a competition is to encourage talented young singers with cash prizes and sometimes helpful comments on their performances by the judges, who are opera professionals. Winning competitions also adds a little prestige (or padding, depending on how you look at it), to a singer's resume.
The Met auditions are sponsored by the Metropolitan Opera National Council, which is basically a volunteer organization made up of donors and patrons of the arts. Their website states that the auditions serve to "discover promising young opera singers and assist in the development of their careers." The prizes are donated by philanthropists throughout the country, including regional opera guilds and private donors. Any singer who meets the eligibility requirements (between the ages of 20 and 30, US citizen, five arias in contrasting languages, demonstrate operatic potential, possess musical training) may compete in the district auditions.
There are forty-five districts within fifteen regions. Each district may send up to three winners to the regional level (but they do not have to send three - it is often only one or two), and one winner from each region moves on to the semi-final round in New York. Approximately ten singers are then chosen to compete in the final round, and up to five singers may be awarded grand prizes. At the district level, there are also encouragement awards and there may be various other donated awards. The amount of prize money varies greatly from district to district, and some singers decide where they want to compete based on the potential amount of prize money available.
Basically, it's just a competition, and it's nice to be able to win a little money to pay for the ever-mounting expenses of weekly voice lessons, paying a pianist several times a month for coaching and rehearsal, recording costs for audition applications, audition application fees, head shots, travel and lodging for auditions, proper clothing for auditions, music scores, and -- oh yeah -- the fee to enter the competition in the first place!
Have I skipped over something else I should have explained? Feel free to ask more questions in the comments section!
Showing posts with label competitions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label competitions. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
I won the Nebraska Met auditions!
I can't believe I haven't posted for nearly two weeks - so much has happened! Top of the news is that I'm back home in Minneapolis after winning the Nebraska district Met auditions in Lincoln on Saturday, less than 24 hours after arriving back in Omaha from an exhausting week of touring Nebraska, South Dakota, and Iowa.
Prior to touring, we performed at a couple of events for donors to the opera. On Friday night, we sang arias and songs during a silent auction/wine and scotch tasting in a large, CARPETED hotel ballroom. Oh, and with a keyboard instead of a piano. That was an interesting experience! I have sung for events like that before, but never with a keyboard or in a carpeted room. It's challenging to perform while people are mingling, but I really had to be mindful of the way I was singing this time. It's tempting to 'push' the sound over that din in a room already muffled by carpeting, especially when you aren't supported by an actual piano. It was a good event, though, and I think it was a nice benefit for the opera - there should ALWAYS be scotch tastings at benefits and fundraisers! The next evening was in a similar location, but featured a six-course dinner with wine pairings, followed by a live auction. I was seated at a table with the owner of Omaha Steaks. Fancy!
We started out that week of touring on Sunday night, the 16th, driving to a hotel in Yankton, SD, which would be our home for three days. We did two high school or college shows every day Monday through Wednesday, fortified by the grilled and fried cuisine of South Dakota, nary a vegetable or fruit in sight (sad, sad, SAD - singers do not appreciate acid reflux, even if some of them do rather enjoy the occasional onion ring or grilled ham and cheese). Happily, our hotel not only had an excercise room, but racquetball courts! Darren (the baritone, remember?) pretty much kicked my arse, but at least we worked off the pounds of grease and cheese.
On Wednesday night, we moved our home base to Sioux Center, Iowa, where we gave a concert on Thursday night and our final education outreach show (at my alma mater, Dordt College!) on Friday. It was a little sad, but our voices were pretty exhausted by that point. Then on Saturday, I sang the competition and everyone else went home!
Within the next day or two, I'll write something on what I learned from my experiences, and I plan to continue blogging about auditions, gigs, and making this opera career, so keep reading! I probably have some more pictures hanging around somewhere, too...
Prior to touring, we performed at a couple of events for donors to the opera. On Friday night, we sang arias and songs during a silent auction/wine and scotch tasting in a large, CARPETED hotel ballroom. Oh, and with a keyboard instead of a piano. That was an interesting experience! I have sung for events like that before, but never with a keyboard or in a carpeted room. It's challenging to perform while people are mingling, but I really had to be mindful of the way I was singing this time. It's tempting to 'push' the sound over that din in a room already muffled by carpeting, especially when you aren't supported by an actual piano. It was a good event, though, and I think it was a nice benefit for the opera - there should ALWAYS be scotch tastings at benefits and fundraisers! The next evening was in a similar location, but featured a six-course dinner with wine pairings, followed by a live auction. I was seated at a table with the owner of Omaha Steaks. Fancy!
We started out that week of touring on Sunday night, the 16th, driving to a hotel in Yankton, SD, which would be our home for three days. We did two high school or college shows every day Monday through Wednesday, fortified by the grilled and fried cuisine of South Dakota, nary a vegetable or fruit in sight (sad, sad, SAD - singers do not appreciate acid reflux, even if some of them do rather enjoy the occasional onion ring or grilled ham and cheese). Happily, our hotel not only had an excercise room, but racquetball courts! Darren (the baritone, remember?) pretty much kicked my arse, but at least we worked off the pounds of grease and cheese.
On Wednesday night, we moved our home base to Sioux Center, Iowa, where we gave a concert on Thursday night and our final education outreach show (at my alma mater, Dordt College!) on Friday. It was a little sad, but our voices were pretty exhausted by that point. Then on Saturday, I sang the competition and everyone else went home!
Within the next day or two, I'll write something on what I learned from my experiences, and I plan to continue blogging about auditions, gigs, and making this opera career, so keep reading! I probably have some more pictures hanging around somewhere, too...
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