We're all very happy to have the opera-rocking, roundabout-shocking, party-frocking, eye-popping stepdaughter back home from Europe, where she was taking part in the Vianden International Music Festival and summer school. This is a clip of her performing "Ave Verum" by Gounoud at the Trinitarier Church in Vianden last week. (She's up there, in the balcony... honestly).
Glad she's back for a while. We're driving her southwards for another year of school next weekend. At her age, parents aren't supposed to know much. But there's three things we know for sure:
We're proud of everything she does,
time flies,
and
nothing ever changes.
This summer, like last year, my brilliant stepdaughter has been working at the Caramoor music festival, which is held in a beautiful garden estate about two hours north of the city.
The Bel Canto program there is run by Will Crutchfield and Che says she's learning a tremendous amount from him and the other young artists.
Last night was this year's opening performance of "Norma" by Bellini, with the amazing Angela Meade - who also performed last year in Rossini's 'Semiramide' - in the title role and Keri Alkema as Adalgisa. Some of their duets were fantastic and Norma's 'Casta Diva' was out of this world. There's a nice interview with Angela Meade here, where she talks about the role, describing it as a "mammoth night of singing".
And while the jauntiness of the score can be deceptive, it's certainly a deeply intense piece of work which, like all good operas, ends with a lovers' death pact.
Being part of the chorus, and just getting to be around such wonderful artists, to witness their preparation and performance, is invaluable for young singers like Che at the beginning of their own careers. It also means that while we're supporting her we get to increase our own operatic knowledge - the pre-performance activities at Caramoor always include a talk on the piece - by hearing some of the finest singers of their generation.
Next week it's another performance of "Norma", then "Maria di Rohan" by Donizetti, before she heads off to summer school at the Vianden Festival in Luxembourg ahead of classes starting up again in Cincinnati.
The most important thing is that she's waking up every day and doing something she loves. But did I mention how proud we are of her...?
Went to the Metropolitan Opera today for the National Council Grand Finals Concert, and heard some remarkably talented young singers - a useful benchmark for where stepdaughter might aspire to be in a few years.
The next step for her is the undergraduate production of "Gianni Schicchi" next month, then all being well, a return to the Caramoor Festival this summer for "Norma" by Bellini, one of their Bel Canto productions.
It was a great show today; the orchestra was in fine form and the day was capped with a performance by Frederica von Stade which, it turned out, was announced as her final appearance on the Met stage, forty years after she launched her career by becoming one of the winners in this same competition.
The contest has become somewhat more well-known since the movie "The Audition" documented the 2007 final concert, and the place was packed.
The kids sang brilliantly and their repertoire selection was just the right mix of crowd-pleasers and more unusual choices.
It will probably always amaze me that Samuel Barber - the centenary of whose birth was last week - could write something as dischordant and challenging as "Give Me Some Music" from his opera "Anthony and Cleopatra" as well as composing what is possibly the single most perfect piece of music I have ever heard....
