Spring 2006 Feature:

GALA CENTENNIALCelebrationApril 28, 2006Friday, 6:00-10:00 PMA commemoration of NYSTA’s one hundred years of accom-plishment. The gala celebration will include a champagnereception, a concert by our David Adams Song Competitionwinners and the awarding of distinguished artist awards.Among the recipients this year are VICTORIA CLARK, winner ofboth the Drama Desk Award and the Tony for her performancein The Light in the Piazza and legendary soprano APRILE MILLO,who has triumphed worldwide portraying the great Verdiheroines. In addition, we will pay tribute to those who have madesignificant contributions in the field of voice teaching and vocalpedagogy and to those who have worked so tirelessly andunstintingly to make NYSTA a vital part of the musical life ofNew York City. Our honorees will include Shirlee Emmons,Jeannette Lovetri, Scott McCoy, Janet Pranschke, Marvin Keenzeand James Stark. Join us for this festive occasion!

The Kosciuszko Foundation5 East 65th Street , NYC (Between Fifth and Madison Avenues)

Admission for All: $75

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VOICEPrintsBULLETIN OF THE NEW YORK SINGING TEACHERS ASSOCIATIONMARCH - APRIL 2006

IN THISIssue:Professional Development Program...............................Page 1

Message from Josephine Mongiardo........................Pages 2-3

Feature Article: Breaking Through the Mind Barriers: Challenges to Singing, by James Stark...............Pages 4-6

NYSTA Calendar 2006...................................................Page 6

Feature Article: The Founding of the Citywide Youth Opera, by Andrés Andrade....................................Page 7

NYSTA Board of Directors..............................................Page 7

IN MEMORIAM: Helen Lucille Lightner.................Back Cover

NYSTANews......................................................Back Cover

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ProfessionalDevelopmentProgramSINGER’S ANATOMYAND PHYSIOLOGYJune 7-8 Wednesday-Thursday, 9:00 AM-6:00 PMInstructor: Dr. Scott McCoy, Westminster Choir College

This course offers a detailed exploration of the majorphysiological systems of the singing voice. Topics coveredinclude respiration, phonation, articulation, laryngeal function,and resonance.

Teachers College, Columbia University120th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue, NYC

COMPARATIVE VOICEPEDAGOGYJune 9 Friday, 6:00-10:00 PM andJune 10 Saturday, 9:00 AM-8:00 PM

Instructors: Nancy Adams, Dr. Christopher Arneson, MarniNixon, Michael Ricciardone, George Shirley, Sharon Sweet

During this course, six master teachers will present teachingdemonstrations after case histories of students have beendiscussed. To make concrete links between various teachingstrategies and the scientific and medical information covered inearlier courses, the weekend will include an Anatomy Review byDr. Scott McCoy and a Comparative Pedagogy session led byMarvin Keenze of Westminster Choir College

Teachers College, Columbia University120th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue, NYC

Tuition for each course is $200. To register, emailJanPranschke@aol.com, log on to NYST.org, or call917-544-5309.

NEW THIS YEAR:One GRADUATE credit for each course is available throughWestminster Choir College. Each credit costs $150, a fraction of theusual per credit cost. This fee is paid directly to Westminster. If youare interested in this option, let us know at the time of registrationand we will provide you with the appropriate forms.

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MESSAGEfrom the President

Well, here we are on the brink of amomentous occasion: the one hundredthanniversary of NYSTA. The CentennialGala celebrating this auspicious event isfast approaching and the excitementsurrounding it is palpable. In NYSTA’slong history, there have been manycelebrations which have acknowledgedteachers and singers but this year webring together the various spheres ofNYSTA’s influence and take note of itsaccomplishments with wine, food andsong—–there will be some chat too. Thefestivities will take place at the gloriousKosciuszko Foundation Townhouse,which not only has a lovely receptionarea but a beautiful concert space wherethe winners of the David Adams ArtSong Competition will regale us withsong and our distinguished artists willbe honored and interviewed.

It has been the custom of NYSTA tohonor one distinguished artist at a time,but clearly a centennial celebration meritsan embarrassment of riches and we areproud to have two extraordinary artiststhis year: Aprile Millo and Victoria Clark.Victoria Clark received the Tony, DramaDesk and Outer Critics Circle Awardsfor her luminous portrayal of the over-protective mother, Margaret Johnson, inthe critically acclaimed Craig Lucas-Adam Guettel musical The Light in thePiazza. The talented actress and directorbegan her formal studies at the age of

sixteen when she was accepted into themusical theater program at the presti-gious Interlochen Arts Academy inMichigan. She continued her musicalstudies at Yale University and New YorkUniversity’s Musical Theatre Master’sProgram in Directing where she wasone of only two women chosen for thisinnovative new program designed tofoster the collaboration between aspiringdirectors and composers. Clark made herBroadway debut in 1985 in Sunday in thePark with George. Other appearances haveincluded Alice Beane in Titanic, Smitty inHow to Succeed in Business Without ReallyTrying, the Tony Award winning revivalof Guys and Dolls, Penelope Pennywise inUrinetown, Fräulein Kost in Cabaret andDoris MacAfee in Bye Bye Birdie. Her filmcredits include Tim Robbins’ wonderfulchronicle of Mark Blitzstein’s The CradleWill Rock and her voice can be heard inthe animated films Aladdin, The Hunch-back of Notre Dame, Anastasia, Beauty andthe Beast, Christmas Belle, and The Adven-tures of Elmo in Grouchland. Her manyrecordings include the original castalbums of The Light in the Piazza, Titanic,A Grand Night for Singing and Far From theMadding Crowd; the new cast albums of

How to Succeed In Business WithoutReally Trying, and Guys and Dolls; TheScarlet Pimpernel and the soundtracksto The Cradle Will Rock and Anastasia.

Victoria Clark studied acting withthe renowned Rebecca Taylor andcontinues her vocal training withEd Sayegh. A teacher as well, for22 years, she has been helpingaspiring actors train their voicesfor Broadway roles.

Aprile Millo is universallyacclaimed as today’s true Verdisoprano. She burst onto the operaticscene as a last minute replacementin the role of Amelia in Simon Bocca-negra on December 3, 1984 and washailed as “the New Verdi Star.” Shewent on to become an audiencefavorite and the head of the VerdiWing at the Metropolitan Opera forover twelve years, performing inAida, Otello, Luisa Miller, Un ballo inmaschera, Il trovatore, Don Carlo,Ernani, I Lombardi and Giordano’sAndrea Chenier, Boito’s Mefistofele andPuccini’s Tosca. In 2002 Millo addedAdriana Lecouvreur to her repertorywith Opera Orchestra of New Yorkat Carnegie Hall under the directionof Eve Queler. Her association withOpera Orchestra of New York hasincluded performances of I Lombardiwith Carlo Bergonzi, La Wally, Ilpirata, La Gioconda and La fanciulladel West.

On the international scene she hastriumphed in the opera houses ofEurope, Russia and South America.Millo is the recipient of numerousawards: the First Prize in the VociVerdiana Concorso in Busetto, Italy,The Francisco Viñas Prize in Spain,The Montserrat Caballé-BernabéMartí Special Verdi Prize, TheGeraldine Farrar Award, The RichardTucker Foundation Award and theAprile Millo Victoria Clark

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very special Maria Callas FoundationAward. Her television appearancesinclude the Emmy award winning Aidafrom the Metropolitan Opera and thelive broadcast of Un ballo in maschera forThe Great Performances Series on PBS,both available on DVD. Her recordingsinclude her debut disc of Verdi arias forEMI, Aida and Don Carlo, Luisa Millerand Il trovatore for Sony.

A native New Yorker, she was born totwo opera singers who were her teachersuntil she met Rita Patané, wife of theconductor Giuseppe Patané, with whomshe collaborated on her first recording.She returns to Milan each year toresearch and study with this mostaccomplished teacher.

Ms. Millo and Ms. Clark will beinterviewed respectively by Ira Siff,famous for his portrayal of MadameVera of La Gran Scena Opera Companyand his perceptive writing for OperaNews; and by David Sabella-Mills whoseshow-stopping performance as LittleMary Sunshine in Kander and Ebb’sChicago will remain the gold standardfor years to come.

We also pay tribute to a number of ourcolleagues who have made outstanding

contributions in the fields of voiceteaching and vocal pedagogy. Theseoften unsung heroes have helped toelevate our profession by challenging usto be better teachers. They are: ShirleeEmmons for her innovative work in thefield of vocal repertoire in her book TheArt of the Song Recital and her insight intothe complicated battery of skills requiredfor successful performance in PowerPerformance for Singers; Jeanette Lov-_etrifor her years of devotion to scientificinquiry into the function of the profes-sional singer’s voice, enabling voiceteachers to be taken seriously by thescientific community; Scott McCoy forthe clarity he brings to the teaching ofAnatomy and Physiology and Acousticsand Resonance of the Singing Voice,making these seemingly complex andforbidding topics approachable andapplicable for the average voice teacher;Janet Pranschke for her determinationand commitment to the education ofvoice teachers through the creation andcontinued growth of the Oren LathropBrown Professional DevelopmentProgram; Marvin Keenze for his tirelessefforts to improve communicationamong voice teachers worldwide

through the International Congress ofVoice Teachers and for his generousand continuing participation inNYSTA’s Professional DevelopmentProgram; and James Stark for hisexhaustive work chronicling thedevelopment of theory and practice ofvocal pedagogy in his book Bel Canto:A History of Vocal Pedagogy.

Since 1906, when Anna Ziegler andArthur de Guichard called the firstinformal meetings to form a NationalAssociation of Teachers of Singing, agroup whose goals were supported bya charter member list which includedDavid Bispham, Enrico Caruso, Ger-aldine Farrar, Mary Garden, MarcellaSembrich, and Luisa Tetrazzini. TheNew York Singing Teachers’ Associa-tion, as the organization was renamedin 1917, has made an importantcontribution to the musical fabric ofNew York life. As we have grown overthe last one hundred years, we haveaddressed many issues that affectteachers as they relate to their craft, oneanother, their students and the broaderpublic. We remain committed tofostering an atmosphere of inquiry andprofessional growth through programswhich ask us to have an open mind andbroaden the scope of our intellectualand musical thinking. As President, Iam grateful to those members that havecome before me and set a high standardfor the organization and furthered itsvision: I invite everyone to be with usfor this festive occasion so that we maythank them publicly.

Josephine Mongiardo

Ira Siff David Sabella-Mills The Kosciuszko Foundation, NYC

Shirlee Emmons Jeanette Lovetri Scott McCoy Janet Pranschke Marvin Keenze James Stark

BREAKING THROUGH THE MIND BARRIERS:Challenges to SingingBy James Stark

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Bel canto, or beautiful singing, hasalways been the art of the few, not themany. There are many reasons for this,but foremost is that classical singingtechniques are by their very nature aliento the vocal experience of all but a fewpeople. The highly trained singerperforms extraordinary feats that bearlittle resemblance to any other type ofvocalism. Young people, on the otherhand, are conditioned by familiar formsof vocal usage and casual singing thatare common to everyday life, oftenbeginning their singing in choral orgroup situations, or perhaps with agarage band. These habitual forms ofuntrained singing create a gravitationalpull that draws them away from theartifices of operatic and concert singing,thereby creating a mindset that is oftendifficult to breach. (The situationreminds me a little of Gustav Mahler’ssong St. Anthony of Padua’s Sermon tothe Fishes, in which the fish seem to belistening to the preacher, but when thelesson is over they continue to do whatthey have always done.)

As well, they are often exposed at anearly age to the idea that singing shouldbe natural, intuitive, relaxed and effort-less. When they decide to take voicelessons, it is all too easy for them tocarry these naive notions over into atotally different kind of singing—onethat is anything but natural or simple.

The role of singing teachers is towean them away from their vocal inno-cence and into a world where nothingis as it seems. Students must be madeaware of the hidden nature of somevocal techniques, and of the specificphysiological and acoustical require-ments for good singing. What followsis a discussion of some of the vocalconcepts facing young singing students,as seen from both a naive and a criticalpoint of view. These concepts includevoice projection, relaxation, breathsupport, and voice placement.

Let’s begin with voice projection.Every singer knows the importance ofmaking the voice carry to the back ofthe hall. Yet there is a commonly held

view that singing should be regarded asan extension of speech. Speech is ourmost familiar form of vocal usage, andfor conversational speech we don’treally need to think about what we aredoing since it seems to be perfectly easyand effortless. But to stand in a concerthall and sing long and difficult phrasesover a nine-foot grand piano or anorchestra without the aid of electricalamplification requires altogetherdifferent means. Singing is a form ofphysical work, of vocal athleticism, andthis work requires conscious musculareffort. What is important is to knowwhich muscles must be engaged, andin what manner. Natural or intuitiveimpulses must be abandoned in favorof learned vocal behavior. The idea thatsinging is like conversational speech isone of those mind barriers that mustbe overcome.

Rather than trying to relate speech tosinging, it is better to focus instead on“the call,” which is a kind of yell thatlends itself well to the idea of voiceprojection. The call is more closelyrelated to oratorical or stage speech thanto conversational speech. A while ago Iwas delighted to see a TV interview inwhich soprano Renée Fleming describedher own singing as “controlled yelling.”Her comment brought back memories ofmy own first lessons in singing, whichbegan with my teacher demonstratingthe call. It required elevated breathpressures, strong glottal resistance to thebreath, low airflow rates, and a steady,low larynx that did not bob like an appleas the pitch ascended and descended.These muscular maneuvers had notpreviously been a part of my concept ofsinging. Only after several weeks ofcontrolled yelling was I shown how tocarry this technique over into singing.As a teaching tool, the call can be useful,especially when practised in a hall, sincean auditorium provides a better sense ofdistance and acoustical ambience than ateaching studio (“the stage is the bestteacher”). Sometimes students will“catch on” to the call by imitating“belting,” which is a form of controlled

yelling often found in popular singingstyles. In either case, it is controlledmuscular effort that produces this kindof voice projection. The concept of thecall can change the student’s mindsetaway from habitual vocal practicestoward more physical use of the voice,which is of course the starting point.

The idea of vocal relaxation is itself aproblematic concept in singing. “Justrelax!” is advanced as a cure for manythings, including singing. It was Man-uel Garcia II (1805-1906), the well-known singer, teacher, author, and theinventor of the laryngoscope, whochallenged notions of vocal relaxationwith a ground-breaking theory of vocalonset that he called the coup de la glotte(usually translated as the “stroke of theglottis”). In his famous Traité complet del’art du chant (1841/1847), he said thatimmediately before the onset of phon-ation, the glottis should be firmlyclosed and the pressure of the breathbelow the glottis should be raised, as inthe instant before a cough. Uponphonation, the singer should “pinch”the glottis in order to keep the ary-tenoid cartilages firmly closed, therebyreducing the vibrating length of thevocal folds. This technique resulted inimproved breath efficiency (less airflowper second) and more éclat (“edge,” orhigh-frequency components) in the tonethan a relaxed glottal setting in whichmore breath is used and a duller toneis produced.

Garcia coupled firm glottal closurewith a lowered larynx and a raised softpalate that lengthened the resonancetube and added rondeur (“roundness”)to the edge. The blend of bright and

Manuel Garcia II

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James Stark

dark qualities in the tone became knownas chiaroscuro (the “bright-dark” tone), adefining characteristic of operatic andconcert singing. Garcia’s critics rejectedhis coup de la glotte as being dangerous tothe health of the vocal folds (a view stillheld in some quarters). For them, theword coup, or “blow,” implied a kind ofvocal violence, while the idea of “pinch-ing” the glottis was the antithesis ofrelaxation. Their opposition later becameknown as the “no effort” school ofsinging. Yet, Garcia was correct inasserting that by such means one couldachieve the voice quality and breathefficiency to meet the demands of operaand concert singing.

Glottal closure is itself an importantelement in breath control. However,breath control is often regarded as largelya matter of “deep breathing” and“flowing breath,” with little consider-ation of the role of glottal resistance tothe breath. Students may even practiseexercises in inhalation and voicelessexhalation with no attention to glottalresistance at all. By including glottalclosure in the equation, with its short-ened glottis, its long closed quotient (thepercentage of time in each vibratory cyclethat the glottis remains closed), and itslow airflow rates, a more completepicture of breath control is established.In other words, it is not only the musclesof respiration that are responsible forbreath control, but the glottis itself. Therespiratory muscles, both inspiratoryand expiratory, engage in an isometrictug-of-war in order to control subglottalpressure, while glottal resistance controlsthe actual airflow. Giovanni Battista

Lamperti (1830-1910), a celebratedsinging teacher, described it this way:“Breath is ‘held back’ by two fundamen-tals, vibration (pulsating of the vocallips) opposing the exit of compressed airfrom the lungs, and concerted action of[the] entire muscular covering of thebody restraining the energy of theescaping air, the diaphragm acting as a‘stop-cock.’” (William Earl Brown, VocalWisdom: Maxims of Giovanni BattistaLamperti (1931/1937, 23-24). The idea of“holding back” compressed breath asopposed to allowing the breath to flowfreely is one of the hidden aspects ofvocal technique that is crucial to thesinger’s training.

Francesco Lamperti (1813-1892),Giovanni’s well known father, coined aterm for this kind of breath control. Inhis book The Art of Singing (1884, 1916),he called it appoggio, replacing the earlierdesignation lutte vocale (vocal struggle).In essence, appoggio can be described asthe total vocal posture, or muscular“equipoise,” necessary for classicalsinging, including the respiratory,laryngeal, pharyngeal, and articulatorymuscles. Appoggio was often character-ized as “leaning on,” “drinking,” or“sitting on” the breath. This image isquite the opposite of breath “flow.”Appoggio, then, is a delicate balancing actbetween various muscle groups, andindeed, G. B. Lamperti likened it towalking a tightrope (Brown, 18). Thevoice with appoggio is notable for itsbuoyancy and its fine nuances, as wellas its chiaroscuro. The ultimate test ofappoggio is the messa di voce, that is, thesinging of crescendos and decrescendoson both long and short notes whilemaintaining good projection. While it isimpossible to describe appoggio clearly inwords, it is a quality that can be recog-nized in an instant by the cultivated ear.In the words of Francesco Lamperti, “thegreat secret of the art of singing” lies inappoggio. (Lamperti 1916, 14).

The term “voice placement” is oftenused in singing to refer to resonanceimagery and metaphorical suggestion.The student is instructed to place (aim) a“stream of tone” at the masque (facialcavities), or even out through the top ofthe head. The sensations that accompanysuch tones can serve as a guide to

creating similar tones on demand. Thewide-spread use of resonance imageryas a pedagogical tool cannot be dis-missed: if it works, by all means use it.By forming a mental picture of directingthe tone to “resonance chambers” ordistant points in space the singer maywell be making adjustments to the vocalmechanism that are similar to thosedescribed by Garcia and the Lampertis.

The fact that the tone cannot really bedirected in this manner then becomesirrelevant. As well, resonance sensa-tions can do much to reinforce thesinger’s control mechanisms, since theyact as part of a feedback system, alongwith hearing and proprioception. Butthis method is often hit-or-miss, andmany students do not respond well tometaphorical suggestion or voiceplacement. So, if it doesn’t work, whatis a good alternative?

An exciting development in recentyears has been the gradual adoption ofvocal spectrography as a means ofproviding real-time visual displays ofvocal resonance, and the simultaneoususe of electroglottography to indicateclosed quotients of the glottis, thusproviding a new form of instantfeedback. The system I am mostfamiliar with is VoceVista (seewww.vocevista.com). Using such asystem allows the singer to see graphicrepresentation of the specific resonancesas they are being produced, as well asthe pattern of glottal closure for eachtone. This is a more objective andspecific means of identifying voicequality than resonance imagery alone,Giovanni Battista Lamperti

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NYSTACalendar 2006DAVID ADAMSArt Song CompetitionMarch 23, 2006 PRELIMINARIES: Thursday, 12 NOON - 6:00 PMMarch 24, 2006 FINALS: Friday, 12 NOON-3:00 PMCash prizes of $1,000, $500 and $300 plus a performance at NYSTA’s Centennial Gala on April 28th at the Kosciuszko Foundation.Applicants must be no younger than 23 years of age and may not have been reviewed in a major recital appearance in New York. They must submita full recital program, twenty-five percent of which must be American song. No arias or popular songs are acceptable. Singers must send a letter ofapplication postmarked no later that March 10th which must be accompanied by the following: a non refundable application fee of $30.00; proof ofage, such as a copy of a birth certificate, passport, certified school record or driver’s license; seven typewritten copies of the recital program, but notthe music; the applicant’s statement agreeing to comply with the above mentioned requirements; applicant’s name, address, telephone number andemail address; the date and the applicant’s handwritten signature. Letters of application should be sent to Nancy Adams, 251 West 98th Street,Apt. 9-B, New York, NY 10025. Telephone inquiries may be directed to Mrs. Adams at 212-749-6228.

Liederkranz Club, 6 East 87th Street, NYC.

GALA CENTENNIALCelebrationApril 28, 2006 Friday, 6:00-10:00 PMA commemoration of NYSTA’s one hundred years of accomplishment. The gala celebration will include a champagne reception, a concert by our songcompetition winners and the awarding of distinguished artist awards. Among the recipients this year is VICTORIA CLARK, winner of both the DramaDesk Award and the Tony for her performance in The Light in the Piazza. In addition we will pay tribute to those who have made significantcontributions in the field of voice teaching and vocal pedagogy and to those who have worked so tirelessly and unstintingly to make NYSTA a vitalpart of the musical life of New York City. Join us for this festive occasion!

The Kosciuszko Foundation 15 East 65th Street , NYC (Between Fifth and Madison Avenues)

Admission for All: $75

and it, too, can reinforce impressionsof one’s hearing and muscular engage-ment. It is unlikely that resonanceimagery will ever disappear from thefield of voice teaching, but new technol-ogy can, at the least, supplement it as ameans of achieving vocal efficiency anda good voice quality, and in cases ofreceptive students and teachers it canbecome a new and exciting avenue tovocal progress.

The challenges to good singinginclude not only the technical mattersdiscussed above, but also the influenceof popular culture on today’s youngsingers. The ubiquitous “vernacular”styles of singing include rock, pop,country, folk, jazz, Broadway and hip-hop, which contain varying degrees ofhollering, crooning, yodeling, whisper-ing, and rhythmic talking. Electronicamplification and manipulation areused to produce a “sound” that appealsto young music fans. Classical musicseems to hold less attraction for today’syounger generation than it did when Iwas a teenager. In 1957 I attended myfirst opera, where I heard RenataTebaldi sing La traviata. Before then Ihad been a chorister and string bass

player, and I listened to the Met broad-casts, but nothing prepared me for thesurprise of hearing live singing that wasso foreign to anything I had knownbefore. In an instant my whole concep-tion of singing was changed. In thosedays, the Metropolitan Opera stilltravelled to my home town of Minne-apolis each year, Mario Lanza was a boxoffice sensation, Blanche Thebom wason the “Voice of Firestone,” and theTebaldi-Callas rivalry at the opera wascapturing headlines. Today’s students,especially those who live outside ofurban centers, often have little liveexposure to good classical singing orvocal role models, while their immer-sion in vernacular styles can have amarked effect on their ideas aboutsinging. Without proper role models theformation of vocal concepts consistentwith operatic and concert singing isespecially difficult.

While it is true that there are manychallenges facing young singers today,there are also advantages that did notexist in earlier eras. Vocal pedagogy hascome a long way in dispelling fancifulnotions of vocal function: at one timethe glottis was thought to work like a

flute, and one late-19th-century authoreven thought that the human larynxworked like the avian syrinx! Voicescience has provided new tools that cansupplement traditional teachingtechniques, and voice researchers areworking alongside singers and voiceteachers to improve our understandingof the human voice. Today’s voicestudents and their teachers are as brightand talented as at any time in the past,and opportunities in opera and concertsinging are flourishing. But there remaincertain widespread attitudes andmisconceptions about singing that canhamper a singer’s progress. Breakingthrough these mind barriers is the firststep toward good singing.

AUTHOR’S NOTE:I would like to salute the New YorkSinging Teachers Association (NYSTA) onthe 100th anniversary of their formationin 1906. It was also in 1906 that ManuelGarcia died at the age of 101, and thatHerman Klein became the first presi-dent of the NYSTA. Klein was a studentof Garcia, and he edited Garcia’s lastwork, Hints on Singing (London, 1894).

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THE FOUNDING OF THECitywide Youth OperaBy Andrés Andrade

NEW YORK SINGING TEACHERS ASSOCIATION

NYSTAPRESIDENTJosephine MongiardoVICE PRESIDENTNancy AdamsTREASURERPeter LudwigRECORDING SECRETARYKatherine HoffmanREGISTRARMaria Argyros

BOARD OF DIRECTORSBarbara EubanksLeslie GiammancoBrian P. GillGaryallen GlassPaula LiscioLori McCannMartha MovasseghiDora OhrensteinJanet PranschkeDavid Sabella-MillsDaniel James Shigo (Editor, VOICEPrints)

Since I came to the LaGuardia ArtsHigh School in the Fall of 2001, I havebeen charged with the development ofthat school’s Opera Workshop. It hasbeen an educational four years: I havehad to wear the many hats of voiceteacher, coach, occasional accompanist,casting director, administrator, accountspayable clerk, secretary, fundraiser,concert planner, liaison with outside artsorganizations and become intimatelyinvolved with various aspects of stagedirection/management, set and costumedesign. I also oversee the repertoirechoices and administrative tasks as wellas give individual help to students.

The results of this type-A activity havebeen worth it, seeing that the programhas grown and strengthened. Progress ismost evident not only in the productionvalues of each annual full-scale opera,but also in the depth of research thestudents are able to achieve whilepreparing their arias and scenes (slowprocess), and the level of enthusiasmgenerated (fast process). It is thisenthusiasm that caught the attention ofa parent of one of my private studentsin the Met children’s chorus as shewatched a dress rehearsal for a benefitconcert given at LaGuardia.

This parent commented that thereare several high-school age studentsthroughout the city who are hungry forthe kind of in-depth study in opera thatis part of the course at LaGuardia, but forvarious reasons attend other high schoolprograms. Thus was born the idea forCitywide Youth Opera (CYOp, Inc.), anew after-school program geared towardhigh school-age students who wish toexplore the craft of creating operaticcharacters through scene and aria study.Though it is on a much smaller scalethan the program at LaGuardia, CYOpoffers different challenges than a pro-gram affiliated with a larger institution.

We began in July 2005 with a full-length production of Pergolesi’s La servapadrona (stage directed by JenniferGriesbach), followed by a benefit concertin August to raise much-needed funds,and we wrapped up our first Fall sessionwith a concert of scenes and arias on

December 8th at Advent LutheranChurch. The first production (Serva)featured alums from my program atLaGuardia, the second was a mix ofstudents from throughout the city, alongwith some LaGuardia alums and thisFall session is comprised almost entirelyof students from other schools—not justthose with the LaGuardia background.Why am I watching this shift so closely?At LaGuardia, vocal students have hadtwo years of 5-day-a-week voice classesbefore they are even permitted toaudition for the opera program, and Ineed to determine which adjustmentsmust be made for kids attending allother types of schools.

As it turns out, I need not haveworried so much. I wound up withstudents from the Dicapo Children’sChorus, Bayside (Queens) High School,which has a thriving and supportivemusic program, and others with acombination of contagious enthusiasm

and support from voice and musicteachers—among them BarbaraEubanks, Basia Gajdek, DeepakMarwah and Pamela Levy. I have afantastic teaching team in stage directorJudith Barnes and music director JulieKuipers. A fundraising campaign isunderway as we move forward andseek to further build a program that isopen to students throughout themetropolitan New York area.

The most satisfying aspect has beenthe excitement of the students. Theyseem to really enjoy the silliness ofFranz’s aria from Tales of Hoffmann, thecattiness of the Marcellina/Susannaduet, the extreme pathos that can beexplored in Lascia ch’io pianga, and theendless possibilities for humor andbeautiful melodies in the Zarzuelarepertoire. Their increased love for thischallenging repertoire as well as thecultivation of proper work habits andhealthy vocalism is equally rewarding.Auditions for the Spring 2006 session ofCYOp will take place in February andcan be arranged by calling 212-539-3561or emailing CYOperaInc@aol.com.

Marcus Feldman and Claire Raphaelsonin a scene from CYOp’s 2005 production ofPergolesi’s La serva padrona

Andrés Andrade

VOICEPrintsBULLETIN OF THE NEW YORK SINGING TEACHERS ASSOCIATIONMARCH-APRIL 2006

c/o Leslie Giammanco180 Cabrini Boulevard, #76New York, NY 10033

www.NYST.org

IN MEMORIAMThe Board of Directors would like to note thepassing of Helen Lucille Lightner, a dedicatedmember of NYSTA who died on January 24,2003, following an extended battle with heartdisease. Born in Twin Falls, Idaho, shegraduating from St. Mary’s Academy andMaryhurst College and taught school insoutheastern Oregon at Crone for three years.In 1942 she left for New York City and acareer in music. She attended classes atJuilliard, and earned her Master of Artsdegree in Music Education at ColumbiaUniversity.

In the 1950’s, Helen joined the MusicEducation faculty at New York University,where she taught voice for 28 years. Duringthis time, she acquired her doctorate fromTeachers College and gave many recitals inNew York’s concert halls. Helen Lightnerbecame a member of NYSTA in 1963 and wason the board of directors from 1976 to 1989.It was during her Presidency (1982- 1984)that NYSTA created the Music TheaterCommittee. In 1990, she retired from NYUto Twin Falls to be near her family andenjoyed traveling and teaching abroad. Sheis survived by her sister, Joan Watt of TwinFalls, Idaho, and her brother, John Lightnerof San Diego, California.

NYSTANews

NYSTA Centennial Honorees Victoria Clark & Aprile Millo

Past-President Jeannette Lovetri will moderate the first ever ContemporaryCommercial Music Panel (CCM) at the 2006 Voice Foundation Symposium:Care of the Professional Voice on Sunday, June 4, 2006, from 1:30 - 3:00 pm.The panel will include Dominique Eade, vocalist, composer and foundingteacher of the vocal jazz improvisation program at the New EnglandConservatory in Boston; Robert Edwin,; Doug Hicks, PhD, Robert ThayerSataloff, MD, DMA, FACS and Johan Sundberg, PhD. For more informationregarding, please contact Jeanie LoVetri at lovetri@thevoiceworkshop.com

Robert Marks, Vocal Coach, Conductor, Arranger, Director and Composer,will be the featured presenter at the 13th Annual Summer Vocal Pedagogy &Performance Workshop: Music Theatre: How to be Competitive in the 21stCentury at Belmont University, TN, May 21- May 22. For more information,please contact Dr. Jennifer Coleman at coleman@mail.belmont.edu.

MADAME VERA GALUPE-BORSKH: The 20th Annual Farewell Recitalswith Maestro Sergio Zawa at the piano

Madame Vera Says a Final Farewell to New York25 years ago, Artistic Director Ira Siff founded La Gran Scena Opera Co.,the internationally acclaimed travesti opera company of sensational maledivas. And 20 years ago Siff launched the critically praised Annual FarewellRecitals of his invented Gran Scena diva,“traumatic soprano” MadameVera. Now Madame Vera says farewell to New York for real, returning tothe Thalia Theatre at Symphony Space for three hilarious diva-in-recitalspoofs, MARCH 22, 24, 25, 2006 at 8 P.M.Broadway at 95th Street. Tickets: $32 Box Office (212) 864-5400

LA GRAN SCENAOpera Companypresents

Ira Siff as Slavic“traumatic soprano”Madame VeraGalupe-Borszkh.