Cange’s Corner Articles

The Chorus (a.k.a. Operatic Footsoldiers)

One of the more delightful aspects of coming to Dallas the past few years has been carving out the time to visit some old friends from college (undergraduate school) who have settled in the area for their livelihood.  My best friend in college, and among the first persons I had…

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"Death of a Symphony"??……Not so fast!!

One of the negative effects of participating so actively in the operatic forum is that of occasionally becoming musically ‘land-locked’.  After day-in and day-out of rehearsal, where the centerpiece is musical, sometimes the last thing we want to do in our free time is take in more music.  Oft times,…

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The 48 Hour Wednesday!!! (literally)

So how does one experience a literal 48 hour Wednesday, and completely lose a Tuesday from their life? It's easy; just head "down-under" and come back really fast!! You see, I spent a magnificent, long weekend in Montgomery, Alabama (read previous post) working with some wonderfully talented and dedicated young…

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Vann Vocal Institute: The Ramp Up

As some of you know, in addition to my operatic performance career, I have spent the last four years establishing (by invitation) a small but growing vocal institute in Montgomery, Alabama; a city with which I have had a decades-long association.  As the Artistic Director of the Vann Vocal Institute…

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Kuwaiti Holiday

As the city of Chicago sustains the crippling "Blizzard of 2011" (replete with thunder and lightning) on this February 1st, and I watch with delight from my large bank of living room windows in this truly Windy City tonight; my mind is wandering back to the sunny mid 70 degree…

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Acid and Angst!!

When I was first starting off in the opera business, I remember being impressed when I heard that a fellow singer had just flown in from London, Paris, San Francisco, or New York.  So romantic it seemed; and I wondered if I would ever get the chance to be the…

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Giancarlo del Monaco…is he just misunderstood???

The last three and a half weeks here at New York's Metropolitan Opera have been interesting, to say the least.  We have been busy staging Puccini's La Fanciulla del West, or technically speaking, "remounting" the production that was set forth some 20 years ago by sometimes "controversial" opera director Giancarlo…

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When the curtain comes down…

On October 23 2010, the first of my two contracts with the Metropolitan Opera for this season came to an end.  The second contract is scheduled to begin on November 11 (the day after my birthday).  So when the curtain comes down for the last time in the run of…

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From The Tales of Hoffmann, to the Hall of Fame

As I hit the mid-performance schedule of The Tales of Hoffmann here at the Metropolitan Opera, I find myself gratified by the large audience turnout, as well as their enthusiasm for this current cast.  By all accounts, it is considered to be a better suited group than those represented last…

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