audition a.m.

After a sleepless night (WHY do I always get the crappiest non-sleep when I have to audition or perform the next day?!!), I finally decided after being awake for 2 hours that I may as well get up at 7:30, 15 minutes earlier than I had planned. Got in the shower, had to be quiet not to wake the world up around me.
At 8:45 I got to a quick practice room for a 20 minute warm up and then I was off to the NYIOPS at Riverside.

Couldn't really decide what piece to start with, I was kind of leaning towards Chacun as of yesterday's coaching..but I went with my normal "starter for European people or things that could actually cast me" (rather than my normal -competition starter)..which is Zerbie.

I can absolutely feel the work that I've done in recent coachings and lessons creeping into these arias..and I LIKE it! I recorded myself at Riverside and wow--the sound is just...surprisingly round, lovely in the middle--I really am enjoying this..and it's all EASY and NATURAL which is the bottom line for me when doing any tweaking of my singing. As soon as it begins to feel laboured, I'm doing something wrong.

THEN they asked for ROSINA!!
(this is the 2nd time it's been asked for)--I pretty much put it on the list because I saw that they were trying to cast a bunch of other rossini operas, like Viaggio, etc.-- It's usually not on there..MAYBE for competitions.
But I sang it well--again, felt the new middle voice/low voice difference, rounded out those legato lines EVEN on the coloratura..and in general felt awesome about it (especially the last F that I hold forever).

AND THEN one of the panelists asked if I sang Flute, and could I take 5 minutes breather and come back in and sing Queen.
WELL SURE I COULD!

So I waited one singer more, drank some water mixed with emergenC, (my breakfast of champions since I DESPISE any type of food in the morning when I have to sing)...and I was back in the room.

Queen sounded nice as well. I was a bit tired by this point, so I COULD have sung those grace note sixteenth pickups to the coloratura more cleanly..and I ALSO could have sung a few of the D's in the coloratura better--but the F's were all there, nothing was out of line...and...
(the best part)

AFTER I was finished the dude asked me IN GERMAN where I learned German..and I answered IN GERMAN that I studied in Munich in the summer at the Goethe Institute! And I think I even used the KIND OF right pronouns for everything!!! HAHAHAA (three thousand dollars including the flight WELL spent for just that one answer).
And then.....
wait for it...

he said---ihre deutsch ist sehr gut !!! OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT--which pretty much means I RULE.

NOW I'm calming down for another hour..because the competition is later today--I sing at 3:15. Have to be there at 2:15.

I'm in my pjs. Drinking some "Naked Green" juice, trying not to fall asleep, but trying to relax.

YAYAYAYYAYAYYYYY.