Things worth doing…

While making a pot of pea and ham soup yesterday I watched Sunday Arts on the ABC. There was a great interview with the soprano Yvonne Kenny. The interviewer, Virginia Trioli, asked Yvonne Kenny about how much of her success was due to talent, and how much due to hard work and training. In response she talked about the amount of work she has to do, memorising operas in different languages, and about how she finds learning the verses of each aria really tough; she always worries she will forget when to come in with the right verse.

This made me reflect on the amount of work ‘stars’ must do in order to make their performances effortless. I hadn’t really thought about it – they look and sound good and it seems so natural (especially a diva like Yvonne Kenny). I guess I’d imagined they just did it. It’s good to remember that some things take effort and energy and practice to achieve. Of course, in some areas, talent is essential too – no amount of hard work or training will turn me into a soprano! (My vocal range, such as it is, is more alto/contralto, anyway.)

Sometimes, in our instant gratification society, it’s easier to follow Homer Simpson’s maxim: “If at first you don’t succeed, give up.” Just microwave it, or get fast food, then, when you need to lose weight, pop a pill… The quick fix sometimes has consequences which we can’t always predict at the point of choosing it. And is it as satisfying?

The other thing Yvonne Kenny said that interested me was that singing in each of the languages of the Western opera is a very different experience – some seem naturally higher or lower (or “more forward in the mouth”). Obviously I don’t have any real point for comparison as I don’t know any arias, and definitely not in German, Italian, Russian or French (Frère Jacques doesn’t count). I have been told before that I tend to speak in a higher pitch when I speak Mandarin, though.

The soup turned out well – last time I made it, a few weeks ago, I didn’t stir it very often and the bottom burned. It was very irritating having to pick out the burned bits. This time I sat in the kitchen watching tv and reading (The Scar by China Miéville) and making sure I stirred the soup every ten minutes or so.

Listening to: Roberto Servile, The Barber of Seville – Largo al factotum della cita – Rossini.

Categories: practice