It has all started with a bang ! I was back at the Youth Square Dance Studio for my first full day of work. Interestingly, this was my first ever venue on my first ever festival visit back in 2010 and it has become a favourite place ever since. Beautiful big studios with great pianos and a lovely acoustic, so I was very pleased about that when I found out. I began with the under 19 alto class and it was delightful, and as I told them a perfect start to my festival. The song was a piece by Haydn called The Spirit’s Song. A typical Classical era Mozartian piece which the girls managed very well, even with bottom G#’s !! There were a number of good performances and it was hard to separate three young ladies, but it has to be done. Two were very dramatic with their opening ‘Hark’s rather overegging it, so as anyone who knows me will know, I went for clean legato line, no bumps and melodrama, and the small and serious young lady who delivered with fluidity and natural ease got the prize ! I like a bit of drama but not when it masks bel canto !
The morning went on well with a class of senior girls duets……ladies note, I now have a lovely new duet to offer around ! Ave Verum by Faure ! I previously did not know this piece……failed again…..but it is a lovely work. Two young ladies who sang with great line and dignity got the prize, and when they received the banners for first place, they bowed gravely to me and said in perfect English, ‘ We had no expectation of this, Thankyou ‘ ….I was speechless for a moment, as it was the standout performance !
The afternoon went downhill. The festival has lowered the age range for entry to the Open classes. It has always been 18-23 years, or post school university candidates, which for the set pieces chosen was exactly correct. Well, it is now 15…..gulp. So I had to adjudicate voice and piano in the Art Song Class with girls and boys attempting monumental Schubert songs. We had small bespectacled girls singing The Erl King and Ganymede, and taller gangly boys attempting Aus dem Wasser zu Singen. I realise my friends reading this may not themselves know these Mount Everest songs but take it from me I worried they might all still be standing by the end, or even that they might make it to the end at all. It is going on my list of comments for future festivals…age appropriate repertoire only.
I came home on the MTR and was, for 10 stops, trying to lower my blood pressure, my glucose numbers and my need for a gin and tonic ! WHY would teachers do this ? I know that the ethos in the East is to achieve, to work very hard and to become as good as possible as young as possible but this was beyond even all of that….it was voice abuse. I praised them for the sheer learning and memorising of these mammoth songs but beyond that there was nothing to say. Thank the Lord, within the class there were some university singers singing French Song who were delightful ( can you believe I am saying that !?) and who won and were placed in the class. Even that had its moment of drama as the girl and boy who actually got the highest marks had forgotten to bring the original copy and thus, in this brutal regulation ruled world, were disqualified…….so second place got that all important banner.
There was a lovely ‘working dinner’ in the evening. This was a great way to meet the other adjudicators, most of whom seemed American. The Chinese and Western buffet was gorgeous and I found plenty of smoked salmon, chicken, crab and lobster upon which to feast. I cheated with a tiny buy divine Chinese mango pudding. Got to be done.
I feel as if I still have some jet lag, so today, Saturday, I am resting and really trying to acclimatise to the time change. Housekeeping have already rung to ask if I want my room cleaned later, but I said thanks but no thanks, I vant to be alone……
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