Teacup Cafe XXX

[sisterandcousinandaunt]

Originally Posted by Gwaimir Windgem

LOL! That is freaking FUNNY! I mean, just listening to her sing it, your like "Uh...what the hell?" But when you actually WATCH her....

You're scared out of your wits.

Gotta get this computer fixed.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

I have to say, the whole alto/mezzo thing really confuses me. I mean, there are a few singers who are unequivocally contraltos if you've any sense (Podles, Stutzmann), but after that, it gets really confusing. I've heard some heavier, lower voices described as mezzos, and some higher, lighter voices described as altos. Heck, even Podles I've seen on not one, but TWO separate lists of "Modern Mezzo-Sopranos you simply MUST hear" or something like that. So many singers are sometimes billed as Mezzo, sometimes as Alto, apparently determined by which side of the bed they got up on.

But there are some things which are definitely NOT contralto. Among them is the alto singer for this antiquated Magnificat I'm listening to. Also among them is Anne Sophie von Otter, regardless of what my "Opera Next Generation" CD says.

The height of the confusion lies in a CD I have (actually, its Podles on the CD) which says, on the cover, "Rossini Arias for Contralto", and on the CD itself, "Rossini Arias for Mezzo-Soprano".

Originally Posted by siscoz

Gotta get this computer fixed.

Probably best not to, for sanity's sake. She's mad, I tell you, and it's infectious. I was in a straightjacket for a week after I first saw it.

[sisterandcousinandaunt]

Marketing writes the labels.

I'm really suspicious about this whole notion of, like, 'Original practice'.

I was working in a Shakespeare theatre that started to talk about "original practice". What that actually wound up meaning was 'no theatrical lighting', which meant "Actors in the dark" since the "original practice" didn't extend as far as trying to convince an audience to sit in the sun for 4 hours in the middle of the day. @@

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Marketing should at LEAST have the same time on the cover and on the CD. Or at least not contradictory ones.

Period instrument groups are often better for early music; they often have a vitality and freshness to them which (as hec calls them) "Good Ole Boys" groups lack when performing older music.

A really great "period practice" piece I saw was the DVD of Il Sant'Alessio. Simply gorgeous, which is a real treat after the monstrosities that pass for stagings of Baroque operas so much these days. Case in point: Rinaldo.

[The last sane person]

*boogies around the teacup*

Hehehe, I'm watching Junglebook with my baby cousin. Though to be honest, I'm the one enjoying it most, seeing as she is barely 1 1/2. It was my favorite movie ever. Still sorta is. But she is laughing at it; it's kinda fun.

[Thain Peregrin Took I]

Originally Posted by The last sane person

WooooHOOOOOO! Finally!!! The first XXX rated thread on Entmoot!


PARTY NAKED! Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhh hh!

... I'm good. I really don't want to go naked, and anyway, but new tank top is too cute to take off. *parties clothed* *puts on music*

Originally Posted by Birdlovers

Hello you all.... I have come meet you and have some fun...

Hi! Welcome to the 'Moot! You can call me Pip, TPTI, Thain, or whatever you want. ^^

Originally Posted by sisterandcousinandaunt

I accidentally went camping at 'the bear campground'. Now bears are a problem, anywhere people are stupid about feeding them. But in this place, they'd gotten so comfortable that the bear safe did nothing. They'd break into cars if they saw a gum wrapper. When I went, the first night, at about 6pm (full light), there were 3 bears SITTING ON SOMEONE"S PICNIC TABLE EATING THEIR DINNER.

There I was, in a little tent, and every night you'd hear people start to set off horns, like, airhorns? That's how they kept the bears out of the trailers by the lake. You'd hear them, as the horns got closer and closer...camping loop C, on the end, down to the middle, that big deep horn in loop B...all the way up to me. My site was next to bear potty. I would hear them SNIFF THE TENT and see the shadows from the moon. 2 nights I lived that way, then I slept in the car for 2 nights until my reservations for another campground came due. I literally could NOT eat at all, because I was afraid I'd smell like food.

Not funny. Not at all.

Oh my gosh, I feel so sorry for you! I would have died of fear.

Originally Posted by The last sane person

*boogies around the teacup*

Hehehe, I'm watching Junglebook with my baby cousin. Though to be honest, I'm the one enjoying it most, seeing as she is barely 1 1/2. It was my favorite movie ever. Still sorta is. But she is laughing at it; it's kinda fun.

I've watched so many kids movies while babysitting, it's not even funny. It was really cute, because this one boy that I babysit was watching The Fox and the Hound, and the porcupine was voiced by whoever voiced Piglet in Winnie the Pooh, and this bird was voiced by whoever did Tigger. The boy knows that animated movies aren't real, but he was crushed when he noticed the voices. He was like "The porcupine sounded like Piglet, and the bird sounded like Winnie the Pooh!!!" I think he was sorta wishing that Winnie the Pooh was real. Awwwww!!! Cute kid.

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Here we go:

Originally Posted by LP

Pergolesi: Stabat Mater

Margaret Marshall, soprano
Alfreda Hodgson, mezzo-soprano

Now, when they give you full notice ahead of time that the alto part is sung by a mezzo, I can live with that. It's not noticing that there should be a difference that I kills me.

[Tessar]

Oh Lord, I love that clip. I showed it on my laptop to a bunch of my friends from the voice department at school one day, and everyone was just staring at it in horror. Then we all started trying to sing like that, and realized that with a normal anatomy it's not possible to contort like that and get sound out. She is a truly extraordinary woman, but I dunno if that makes her good all of the time .

And my GOD, her 'a' vowels are horrific. They're just... bad. My voice teacher has seen her live a few times and said that it was impressive what she could do with her voice, but especially when it comes to live singing she tends to really lose musicality.

I do like a lot of her stuff though. She's a nice 'flavor' for every now and then, and you can't deny that -however- she's getting it, she has an insane range.

Also I think this is quite pretty: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=XoGZrrKlsK8

Originally Posted by Gwaimir Windgem

I have to say, the whole alto/mezzo thing really confuses me.

Join the club.

So many singers are sometimes billed as Mezzo, sometimes as Alto, apparently determined by which side of the bed they got up on.

Like siscuz said, the label tends to control that. I've heard Barbara Bonney called everything from a subrette to a lyric to a coloratura to a spinto.... it just goes on .

A lot of it is personal opinion as well. For my voice... am I -really- a lyric baritone? I have the range for one, my breaks are in the right places... but my voice is lighter than some lyric baritones'. Am I a baritenor because of that coloring?

Or am I a tenor, just not a 'High C' tenor? Not all real tenors are constantly flying up to that C in Nessun Dorma ya know, but they -are- tenors, and their breaks happen a little lower than a typical tenor... but their voices are built to live in their middle and upper registers anyways.





Don't forget among all of this 'oh she's no alto' talk that there is absolutely such a thing as a lyric contralto. Not every single alto has the ability to barrel down into those insanely low notes, nor do they all have those huge chest-voice sounds. Some altos use more of a head voice blend because maybe they are a lyric alto.

I also can't tell you the number of times that you'll see a choir director hand someone some music for a solo or quartet or something and you'll hear the poor singer go, "Oh, but I'm not an alto, I'm a high mezzo..." and the director will say, "Well, I've heard you sing lower than that before--you'll be great." And so the singer just struggles on because the conductor likes their sound or doesn't want to give the solo to someone else. Or because the conductor is ignorant . Not all conductors are vocal pedagogy masters.


Also consider the sound the conductor wants. Maybe they've heard too many altos just blast down into those low notes, and they're so sick of it they want something lighter .


And last but not least, singers do have contracts with the labels, studios, and choruses sometimes. Especially if you're up and coming you don't have much choice on what you'll be singing. Or if you're a star name, they may beg you to be a part of a recording just for the sake of lending your name to it.



Music is confusing . Sadly a lot of times it also has less to do with actually making music, and more to do with little politics and such.

[hectorberlioz]

Originally Posted by Tessar

Well, naturally, except for them.


That is the unforgivable sin for which one must be flogged upside down over a barrel of flaming oil to the tune of the Mozart Allelujah...

As performed by Cecilia Bartoli .

Mmmmhhhmmmmahahahaha! Delicious.

Cecilia Bartoli is so darned good! If only I had the more dashing good looks, was a tad older, and was super rich...I'd marry her. (Sorry Mari, et al)

[Nurvingiel]

Darn it, I always miss starting a new Teacup thread. Le sigh.

I know I'm going back a bit in the thread here, but I just have to comment on Sis's Adirondack camping trip.

The picture of those bears is horriffic!! I would have been terrified and slept in the car (even though sleeping in a vehicle sucks). I can't be 100% sure, but those bears look like grizzlies. Their shoulder humps look fairly prominent and it does look like their rumps are lower than their shoulders. I can't tell if their faces are dish-shaped or not. These are important distinctions in identifying the two bear species.

It is of interest only what species they are. Either could snap a human in half if it felt threatened. Plus, the picture looks like a sow and cubs. Most bear attacks are due to surprising a sow and cubs, as bear mothers are very protective (and are very strong and have claws and teeth the pierce).

I love bears, but I love them out in the wild, behaving like wild bears. They will eat the food that is natural for them to eat, and I won't bother them. They, in turn, will not bother me. Bears would really rather be left alone, but they're not morons either. If they realize that humans are an easy source of food, there's going to be problems.

[hectorberlioz]

Originally Posted by Nurvingiel

Bears...If they realize that humans are an easy source of food, there's going to be problems.

Unfortunately, that could also mean they see us as tasty.

My dad was telling me about this story he'd heard about a guy, eccentric, who tried to live with some...uh, grizzlies. He'd walk with the grizzlies, try to pet the grizzlies, and finally he made supper for the grizzlies. Ya know?

[Thain Peregrin Took I]

Originally Posted by hectorberlioz

Unfortunately, that could also mean they see us as tasty.

My dad was telling me about this story he'd heard about a guy, eccentric, who tried to live with some...uh, grizzlies. He'd walk with the grizzlies, try to pet the grizzlies, and finally he made supper for the grizzlies. Ya know?

Ew. That's sad, though. Poor stupid... guy. No offense to him, but you should know the risks of doing something like that.


49 more posts until I reach 1,000!!! WOOT!!!

[Gwaimir Windgem]

Originally Posted by Tessar

Oh Lord, I love that clip. I showed it on my laptop to a bunch of my friends from the voice department at school one day, and everyone was just staring at it in horror. Then we all started trying to sing like that, and realized that with a normal anatomy it's not possible to contort like that and get sound out. She is a truly extraordinary woman, but I dunno if that makes her good all of the time .

Yeah, it's definitely...interesting. That's one thing no one can deny about her performance.

And my GOD, her 'a' vowels are horrific. They're just... bad.

Ah, hell yeah. The first person I heard sing this was Diana Damrau. I thought her enunciation was too strong, and her body language a little creepy. Then I saw Bartoli's. Like I said, straightjacket for a week.

My voice teacher has seen her live a few times and said that it was impressive what she could do with her voice, but especially when it comes to live singing she tends to really lose musicality.

You mean the way the Baroque music is often said to lose beauty in favour of virtuosity?

I'm going to get to see her live second semester next year; she's going to be in Santa Barbara, doing her Maria Malibran shtick. I'm going to have to skip a seminar, but that's life. I just hope it's on some boring philosopher, and not Flannery O'Connor or summat of that nature.

I do like a lot of her stuff though. She's a nice 'flavor' for every now and then, and you can't deny that -however- she's getting it, she has an insane range.

Also I think this is quite pretty: http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=XoGZrrKlsK8

Oh yes. She can be excellent. I liked that duet, also (though I'm not a big Mozart fan). I also thought her Sposa son disprezzata was just delicious. Absolutely packed with pathos, though, so if you can't take too much of it, watch out. I'm a softie, though. I do like Vivica Genaux's (wildly different) interpretation better, though; I just love her virago persona, and I like the way her interpretation of Irene hasn't given up yet. Both are lovely, though.

Like siscuz said, the label tends to control that.

But when the label calls the same album "Arias for Contralto" on the cover and "Arias for Mezzo-Soprano", that's just ridiculous.

Originally Posted by hectorberlioz

Mmmmhhhmmmmahahahaha!

Cecilia Bartoli is so darned good! If only I had the more dashing good looks, was a tad older, and was super rich...I'd marry her. (Sorry Mari, et al)

Oh, yes, no doubt about it. I would say she's easily the second-best young mezzo today. But did you look at the link Alleluia link? It's terrifying. She's so fierce, I think she's about to turn into a lioness and ravage the orchestra.

Originally Posted by Nurvingiel

The picture of those bears is horriffic!!

Speaking of which, is that a picture of your bears, siscuz?

Originally Posted by hectorberlioz

Unfortunately, that could also mean they see us as tasty.

My dad was telling me about this story he'd heard about a guy, eccentric, who tried to live with some...uh, grizzlies. He'd walk with the grizzlies, try to pet the grizzlies, and finally he made supper for the grizzlies. Ya know?

Yes, Werner Herzog did a documentary on it called Grizzly Man, using the footage the guy took.

[hectorberlioz]

Gwai,

There's a Werner Herzog movie about going into the amazon jungle to build an opera house. Have you heard of it? I tried watching it. I admit, even I'm not that desperate to see an opera house built.

Also the recent movie about the Vietnam war, Rescue Dawn, is directed by Werner Herzog. We own it, but I haven't watched it yet.

[Tessar]

Originally Posted by Gwaimir Windgem

Ah, hell yeah. The first person I heard sing this was Diana Damrau. I thought her enunciation was too strong, and her body language a little creepy. Then I saw Bartoli's. Like I said, straightjacket for a week.

Believe it or not, I'm not a huge Diana Damrau fan. I think she has a wonderful voice and everything, but I just don't really like the way she sings.

You mean the way the Baroque music is often said to lose beauty in favour of virtuosity?

Okay, in my opinion (and I realize not everyone feels this way), it's all about knowing -when- to throw in that virtuosity.

One example I like to use is Emma Kirkby. Not the most incredible soprano voice ever, but she has good technique, and while she sometimes lacks feeling in her earlier work, I definitely consider her not just a great vocalist, but a fantastic -musician-. Maybe it's her own virtue, or maybe she's just had really wonderful conductors, but rarely if ever will you hear her sacrificing the beauty of the music for the sake of virtuosity.

She certainly has plenty of virtuosity, but I don't feel that she sacrifices to have it because she uses moderation.


IMO Cecilia Bartoli is the Christina Aguilera of the opera world . Don't get me wrong, I love Christina, but especially in her earliest stuff she just kills the melody in an attempt to fit in 500 little extra notes where two would suffice quite well . I think Cecilia fails to moderate herself quite often, and just goes straight for the virtuosity over musicality.

I just prefer people who (again, in my opinion) are true musicians over just flashy showmen. Like Barbara Bonney... everything she sings is gorgeous, because she's such a -wonderful- musician. She has so much sensitivity for the music.

That's why I really don't care much for boy sopranos or child soloists. They can certainly have gorgeous voices, but they lack (purely due to age) musicality and any real connection to the music. Again not that I don't enjoy it from time to time, but overall it's just not my cup of tea.



... of course all that said, I really hope you enjoy the concert!

I do like Vivica Genaux's (wildly different) interpretation better, though; I just love her virago persona, and I like the way her interpretation of Irene hasn't given up yet. Both are lovely, though.

I do enjoy Vivica Genaux very much, too .

[Grey_Wolf]

And here Friends, Mooters, Fellow Posters/esses... is the Current Set Up of the Band...


THE MOOTS (featuring Midge)

Nautipus - Lead

Sister - 2nd Lead and 1st Base

Earniel - Electric and Acoustic Guitar

Nurvingiel - 2nd Electric and Acoustic Guitar

Azrael - 3rd Electric and Acoustic Guitar. 1st Sax and 2nd Trombone. 1st Bass & 1st Violin.

Katt - Pennywhistle

Acally - Flute

Willow Oran - 3rd Lead and Fiddle (Like the beatles - you sing in harmony w Lead and
2nd Lead)

Curufin - 4th Lead and 1st Trombone

Sas - 2nd Base, Trumpet and 2nd Drums

Mari - Pianist and Hammond Organist

Midge - Featured Pianist

Sane - Drums

Shesa - Harmonica

Pip - Xylophone

The Mootettes - Sister, Sane and Mari, Katt and Acally

[Mari]

Originally Posted by hectorberlioz

Cecilia Bartoli is so darned good! If only I had the more dashing good looks, was a tad older, and was super rich...I'd marry her. (Sorry Mari, et al)

...
*grabs her mace while looking grim*
...

[sisterandcousinandaunt]

Not my bears. I would never have had the presence of mind to take a picture. No, I got my gear packed and moved on to another site. But I saw coolers that had just been sliced open like an overripe melon...and they broke into cars, too.

Saw plenty of bears, though, ambling after cubs down the road to the lake, midday. After the first *Wow!!* it was just plain miserable.

I really thought the state of NY should have posted a warning on the website...with pictures.

[Acalewia]

Originally Posted by Birdlovers

Hello you all.... I have come meet you and have some fun...

Welcome, BL. Nice to meet you

Originally Posted by Mari

I went to the film with my sister after all. There was an early showing of a different film (she wanted to see Hancock which is only at 21.30 but instead we went to Mamma Mia at 19.45) and it was great fun.
Actually, the fun started at my grandmother's with a lot of sillyness from all sides
I love my family!

Anyways... *tackles Sis, Acally and Gwai* Yo.
Didn't expect to come back here today anymore.

EDIT: Sane, yay! No surgery? This needs a party! *throws flowers around*

*is tackled* Yay!
Saw Hellboy II *Big grin* Loved it! Of course

[Mari]

Originally Posted by Acalewia

*is tackled* Yay!
Saw Hellboy II *Big grin* Loved it! Of course

*tackles Acally again* Hehe, if you hadn't loved it, I would have had to ask who you are and what you did with Acally