ASO part 2

I’m writing this in my room, to be posted online this evening on my twice-daily Starbucks trip. Ah, the joys of a T-Mobile HotSpot, especially when one’s husband is employed by T-Mobile… It is much cheaper to use that than to get the internet at the hotel ($9.95 a DAY; unbelievable…), so I’m becoming a regular.

Today’s rehearsal was one of my favorite kind. I sang about three notes! Most of the attention was focused on the orchestra and the acoustic balance, so I got to work on warding off Alzheimer’s. I figure if brass players can read novels during their endless measures of rest, I can do likewise.

There are a few things in this production that are different, the most notable being that instead of a chorus of 8 women we are a chorus of 20. There are now six women on each vocal line, plus two (myself included) as a sort of counterpoint. The size of the chorus really goes a long way towards capturing the feeling that Osvaldo wants, that of children playing (or women wailing) in the streets of Granada. I also think it works better to have it sung by a “chorus,” rather than by soloists singing together, if that makes any sense. I hesitate to say that, because I know that several of the women in the ASO chorus have trained as soloists, and maybe still perform as such; I don’t know for sure. But there is something to be said for the dynamic that exists between a group is used to working together with a common goal, versus than a “group of individuals.” You get me? Regardless, what they are doing sounds great, and Osvaldo is very pleased.

Let’s see, what else… There are three guitarists this time, two of whom are members of the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet. The third is a flamenco guitarist, and I’m not sure where he came from. Nice guys, all, and I look forward to getting to know them. RA has joined us from Florida, so now our SFO mini-reunion is complete. We weren’t expecting to have AR (another tenor, not RA!) with us, so it was an unexpected joy to find him here. I’ll be staying in his neighborhood in NYC this December, so we’re planning some get-togethers there, as well. It’s so good to be with friends!

More in a bit. Off to get some Thai food for an early dinner, then hit the grocery store (finally!) to get some goods for my larder. If I can eat at least one meal (preferably two) a day in my hotel, I’ll save LOTS of money. And room service doesn’t count…