drama on a high note and the soprano doesn’t die – verdi’s masked ball

Two Concert Performances of Verdi’s UN BALLO IN MASCHERA

Soprano Lisa Daehlin in Concert at Schloss Wolfshagen, Germany, August 2010

Sunday, September 12,2010; 2:30pm
Carnegie East House
1844 2nd Avenue (95th-96th sts.), NYC, NY, USA

AMELIA: Lisa Daehlin

OSCAR: Karole Lewis – ULRICA: Marilyn Spesak
RICCARDO: Dante Fiore – RENATO: Robert Garner
GIUDICE,ETC.: Kevin Courtemanche – SAM/TOM : Peter Heiman
MAESTRO: Richard Nechamkin

Sunday, September 19, 2010; 2pm

Fordham Evangelical Lutheran Church
2430 Walton Avenue, Bronx, NY, USA

AMELIA: Lisa Daehlin

OSCAR: Catherine Heraty  – ULRICA: Jennifer Zarchy
RICCARDO: Dante Fiore – RENATO: William Safkow
GIUDICE,ETC.: Donald Johnston – SAM/TOM: Peter Heiman
MAESTRO: Richard Nechamkin

When I was a kid, I used to think that I’d grow up to look like Barbie (I know, crazy, but go with me on this one). Like many women, I have seen a lot of advertising in my life and, at times, have fallen prey to its overt or covert messages.  At some point, it became apparent to me that I was not going to be 6 feet tall and have that ridiculously rare body which that piece of molded plastic doll would have if she were actually expanded to human size. I must admit that this surprised and (for a time) disappointed me. As fate would have it, the body in which my spirit lives happens to be built more like a tube, a music-making tube to be precise. Thank god for teachers who recognize the signs of a wide jaw, square head, tube-shaped body and what that can sometimes indicate for a singer’s voice type.  Long story short, I’m singing Amelia in Ballo, a role which I’m built to sing. What a pleasure to find a role that fits so well and is a joy to perform.

Oh, a note about the photo above: it was taken after a concert of art song this summer at Schloss Wolfshagen, Germany on which I sang Duparc’s Chanson triste and Von ewiger Liebe by Brahms. To my right is a hint of the collection of Meissen Porcelaine on view in the castle (not at the museum, but I like these bells, not tubes, but I’ll bet they make a lovely sound).  One more thing, yes, the bracelet I’m wearing IS made of Hairpin Lace Crochet (a technique you can learn by taking a class at Cooper Union).

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