SAMRO: What I learnt as a singer-in-the-seat
As many followers will attest to, its been a crazy two months. In fact, as I updated my 2019 performance calendar with details of tomorrow's "Women of Song" concert, and October's "Last Night Of the Proms", I realized that I have appeared in & staged eight concerts this year!
As part of my career development, I decided I would go & watch the semis & finals live in Johannesburg. There was so much to learn from my contemporaries, some wonderful people I'd been dying to meet, and I wanted to see what my fellow opera artists were up to. So, notebook in hand, I caught a flight to JHB, then touched down in the Linder Auditorium, courtesy Uber.
Many of my fellow artists who are also "starting out" have asked me to share what I learnt by watching this National singing competition live, and I always enjoy sharing things on this platform. So, here-goes:
1. I observed that many of the candidates were already enrolled in further studies / working in an opera house abroad, and were well on their way to making a name for themselves.
2. The repertoire that each singer had selected was varied, mixing "standard" arias with ones from their countries of study, or those which revealed their particular tastes. For example, one of the competitors, Thembinkosi Magagula, had a throughline of contemporary composition in both programmes, which really suited her voice & flaunted her vocal capabilities. I also came across a lot of unfamiliar repertoire by names like Otto Niccolai, Jeanne-Philippe Rameau, A. Tippet ...
3. It was beautiful to listen to the commissioned works of Neo Muyanga (lyrics by Gcina Mhlope), and others. I still have the melody for "Wen'us eGoli" stuck in my head!
4. Then there were practical things, like observing how the singers presented themselves. How they walked onto & then used the stage, singing technique, & how their dress code shifted from semis to finals. In the semis, the candidates wore incredible heritage-focused ensembles, and in finals, the ball gowns & suits came out and the audience was even more blown away! Speaking of which ...
5. I expected that the semis would have as large a turnout as finals. I put this down to me being in "holiday" mode, while the rest of Johannesburg was right in the middle of a working week. When finals came around the next night, however, the Linder Auditorium was packed!
I left the SAMRO International Voice Competition 2019 so impressed and inspired. I really respect SAMROs support of the next generations of artists in this country, and their contribution towards financing the work of South African composers. Their work, as well as Juan Burgers' UBuntu Opera Company & William Charlton Perkins' Knysna Theatre leave me with such a sense of pride & excitement for the voices that we have in this country. And I feel that continuing and bettering our support of the artists of today will help soothe and uplift our wounded country, and sing it towards a brighter tomorrow.
To the 2019 SAMRO International Voice Competition contests - congratulations to ALL of you!
Heartfelt thanks to Clare Loveday, Anriette Chorn, and Jeanne Zaidel Rudolph & others for meeting with / making musical plans with me, and to Katryn Nieuwoudt & Bonginkosi Hlatshwayo for hosting me.
Love and Light,
The Forest Weaver
I can be found flitting around on Insta @the_forest_weaver
he Forest Weaver
