from Steven Blier: The first professional singer I ever accompanied was English soprano Valerie Masterson. I met her through Matthew Epstein, who went to high school with me. Even at age 17 Matthew was the master of going backstage, honing his skills during the D’Oyly Carte company’s periodic visits to New York. That was how […]
Read MoreIt takes a lot of courage to give your first performance of a song in front of the New York audience and critics—but that’s what we have done for decades at NYFOS. Of course, every singer lives in fear of forgetting his lyrics. Therefore it is comforting to know that legendary artists also go up […]
Read Morefrom Steven Blier: I went out to Brooklyn last week and saw the Fiasco Theater’s production of Two Gentlemen of Verona. It was a magical night on every front: gorgeous weather, beautiful theater space (the magical Theater for a New Audience), and one of the freshest, most captivating performances I can remember. This very early […]
Read MoreOur inaugural ‘Song of the Day’ comes from NYFOS’s Artistic Director Steven Blier. (Check back M-F each week for more great songs!): This song-a-day blog is a project I’ve had in mind for years, and I am thrilled to share some of the vocal music I love—from the sublime to the ridiculous. To kick the […]
Read MoreDAY 5: April 26, 2015 I do most of my programming staring at my computer screen. I don’t sit down and play through the show before finalizing my NYFOS concerts. I just…gaze at my Mac…and imagine how it’s all going to work. This method seems to be working for me. The last bunch of shows […]
Read MoreDAY 3 April 23, 2015 There are some recipes that require you to mix ingredients in two different bowls and then combine the contents before cooking them. That’s what happened this week: Alexey could work Monday but not Tuesday, Corinne and Theo could work Tuesday but not Monday. Wednesday we poured the two brews together. […]
Read MoreDAY 1 – April 21, 2015 We’ve had two days of rehearsal on LETTERS FROM SPAIN, a program about which I had some trepidation. No surprises there—I am always freaked out before I start a project, certain that I have miscalculated in some fatal way. So my dominant feeling right now is relief, for two […]
Read MoreDAYS 5 and 6, March 13 and 14 So much drama. Friday we did a presentation for a bunch of high school choral singers. The kids didn’t seem too interested in Michael or me, but they were really into the singing, absolutely fascinated to hear full-throated, sophisticated vocalism close up. And we fielded a lot […]
Read MoreDAY 4, March 12, 2015 The atmosphere was, as I expected, a little different today. No guest coaches, just Michael and me—and our first work-through in concert order. Michael, Chris, and I decided who would be playing which songs on Sunday (with some possibilities of change for the Tuesday concert in New York). And it […]
Read MoreDAY 3, March 11, 2015 Wednesday is usually when we start to see where the glories and the rough spots of the program are. It is also the last day when we permit ourselves to feel carefree and pleasantly exploratory about it all. “What key did you decide on for that song?” I say in […]
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