On my “day off” yesterday, I was choosing what to practice and take for my coaching today- well of course nothing seemed more perfect than a set of Faure melodies. I am preparing a whole bunch of repertoire for competitions coming up in the next few months, some of which require songs in addition to opera arias, and I knew that I definitely wanted to work on the French set of songs while I was here. One always needs help perfecting foreign diction, but I was also hopeful that I’d get some insight into STYLE.
Boy did I. It was one of those times every musician or artist (or person) hopes for- when everything seems to come together and gel. We talked about how songs differ inherently from arias in that there’s no specific story to tell, and most songs happen so quickly that one can’t hope to express a complete story anyway. With the Faure songs we worked on, which are just so French, one must simply communicate a mood, and let the words and notes do the rest. The poetry slips by in a series of images like one of those old Kinetoscope films. Much of this 19th-century French song was being written at the same time as Impressionist painters were working - capturing visual images as impressions, not as precise realist renderings. As I sang, we did away with the very studied French diction and rhythm, and went for one big phrase. Some of these songs only last for a minute or so, so it makes sense not to belabor any single clause or word or note. By the end, I felt like everything clicked, and some of this attitude and approach can be applied to my other repertoire. I sometimes try too hard!
Leurs course vestes de soie,
Leurs longues robes a queue,
Leur elegance, leur joie
Et leur molles ombres bleues
Tourbillonnent dans l’extase
D’une lune rose et grise,
Et la mandolin jase
Parmi les frissons de brise.
[from ‘Mandoline’ by Paul Verlaine]
We also bemoaned my fate of being American- with all of our back vowels and consonants, it can be very hard to manipulate our tongues to form what’s necessary for singing in other languages!
I was informed about the music street- where there are luthiers and sheet music shops aplenty, and I may have to stop by there this weekend. I already brought one whole suitcase of music with me, why bring back a little more? Right? I love sheet music.
