I have always been very active in the performing arts, starting with choir in Elementary School and later playing in a guitar orchestra for three years in High School. Throughout High School I submersed myself in varies groups, including advanced guitar ensembles, various choirs, and small chamber groups within the Music Honor Society I belonged to. So when it came time to think about going to college, I started to consider a career in the music industry. Ultimately, I made the decision to attend Radford University to pursue a Bachelors of Music, with a concentration in Music Business. At this point in my life, I would have never thought that making this choice would eventually fuel my love for Opera.
A big part of why I chose Radford University was that it’s Music Business program was that it included one thing most other Music Industry programs left out: Performance. At Radford, you are required to spend the majority of your college career studying performance through private lessons and ensembles. I had to make the decision whether to study guitar or voice, but ultimately felt a stronger connection with singing.
Upon entering my first voice lesson, I was very apprehensive. I had no interest in singing classical music and it felt like taking lessons would be something I would just tolerate for six semesters; And for my first year of college I did just that.
At the end of my first year of college, I found out that my voice teacher would be leaving to pursue her budding opera career. At first this didn’t bother me, but then I realized that this meant I would have a brand new teacher who might not put up with my lack of interest in classical music; and in making this assumption I was correct.
At the beginning of my sophomore year I began studying with my new voice teacher, who expected me to put my all into singing classically. That semester I was assigned my first opera aria, “Porgi amor” from Le Nozze di Figaro. At first this piece of music meant nothing to me, but once I had watched the opera and began singing the piece, something began to change. I began to connect to this aria and character in a way that I had never experienced in singing anything before.
After that semester, I began singing in the University’s Opera Ensemble where I sang scenes from operas like Carmen, Die Zauberflote, Lakme, and La Cenerentola. This is where I really discovered exactly what made me want to continue growing my relationship with this beautiful art form.
The thing that appealed to me most about singing and eventually being an avid fan of opera was how emotional this art form can be. The aria itself is a reflection of the internal emotions of a character and to me, someone who is incredibly emotional, this gave me a chance to truly let myself be an emotional mess without people thinking any differently of me.
Fast forward two and a half years, I am now a senior at Radford University, still studying voice and preparing for my senior recital as a Spinto Soprano (self classified), singing pieces from operas like Ballad of Baby Doe and Rusalka. In April, I will be singing in my first professional opera as a chorus member in La Traviata.
Needless to say, I am in love with this art form and it has truly changed my life in a way that three years ago I would have never thought to be possible. I will be using this blog to write about various topics to do with operas and my experiences as I begin my journey in singing this incredible music.
millennialoperafan 