On the Radio

To celebrate my FIFTIETH blog post I thought the most exciting thing to do would be to invite you all to listen to me sing the last performance of Elijah with the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp Youth Symphony Orchestra and Choir exclamation point exclamation point exclamation point*

The piece will be broadcast live from Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor, Michigan on Blue Lake's own public radio station at seven thirty eastern time/six thirty central time.  To listen to it live online, just click here: ELIJAH LIVE BROADCAST. It would be silly for you to listen online and have no idea what we are saying, so please follow along with the text here. Singing in Hill will be a bittersweet moment for me because it is the last time I will be performing in Ann Arbor before I move back to Texas in September.  In the last four years at the University of Michigan I had many opportunities to both sing on the stage with the Chamber Choir and see many concerts from the audience of this beautiful hall, and getting to do so one last time will be such a treat.

Now, not to be tacky [oh who am I kidding], lets compare Hill randomly to one of the places I had to got to sing in Europe...

* So in addition to my screen breaking on my lap-top, apparently the number keys don't work either, which is really fun when I try to type exclamation points, at signs, parentheses, etc.  I also tried to pay a bill online the other day and when I was prompted to put in my credit card number I wept a little bit and just called them. Oh, and apparently you can make the asterik by hitting function p on dell laptops, so that helps

He that shall endure to the end, shall be saved

Welllllll this is the last post from Europe!  Last night was the final Elijah concert (until Ann Arbor that is) and praise be to God that it is being held in a cathedral!!  I am so happy to have our last performance in an appropriate space! (The exclaimation points mean I'm thrilled!!!)

The Billerbeck Dom

Restoration that was taking place

Side chapel

I am lucky enough to be staying with the conductor for this leg of the tour, which means that I got a little extra time to work with him on tempi... plus he didn't feel the need to show me around because he knew that basically all I wanted to do was rest.  It was the perfect last house! He met his wife while visiting France and because he only spoke German and she only spoke French they had to talk to each other in English!  At home, though, she speaks French to her daughter and he speaks German, so needless to say there were many many conversations I didn't understand.

With Ann and Pouline!

                    

Maestro Ludwig before the performance

And for one final random picture... they had this game at there house in German! (of course, what other language would it be in?) If you read my previous post then you know I LOVE anything to do with this game!

THE BUTLER DID IT!!! BTW, who the blank is Fraulein Gloria? And don't even get me started on Oberst von Gatow... I'm pretty sure that's not even a real German name.

The Elijah performance went very well and we even had a thunderstorm during part of it which was wholly appropriate.  DIRECTLY after the performance we had to load up the bus and take a nine hour drive from Billerbeck to Paris.  

                        

Oooooweeeeoooohhhaaaahhh... creepy night time bus ride

                                  

Our bus for the last 3 1/2 weeks.  I would have gotten a picture with the driver, Peter, but quite frankly he was super grumblies and not exactly the most agreeable of people!

Then we continued the whole process by getting seventy plus high schoolers through Charles de Gaulle airport, which I'm sure you can imagine was a fun time for all involved.  Luckily, though, I had spoken with my friend Steven (he was one of my closest friends at my undergraduate, Baylor University, in Texas) and oddly enough had been in Germany visiting family and was flying out of Air France at the same time as us but only to Houston instead of Chicago.  Even though we only got to see each other for five hot seconds it was enough to get me through the morning!

                        

I MISS YOU!

Everything involving the check in, flight, and process of going through customs went very smoothly and the parents were at the airport to happily collect their progeny.  I can't tell you the joy I myself had in seeing their heads get smaller and smaller as they were swifted away!!! (Yes, five weeks with high schoolers has soured me a bit!)

As I mentioned earlier, we will have the chance to perform Elijah one more time... at Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor, MI on July 27th at 7:30pm.  If you are in the area, PLEASE come! It is truly a wonderful piece of music and I am very proud of the work that I and the choir and orchestra have put into it.  If you aren't able to make it to Michigan, don't fear: the Blue Lake radio station, which is the NPR channel for that part of the state, will be broadcasting it and also live-streaming it on the internet.  I will have more details to follow once I get them.

                        

Though I am not exactly sure what time zone, or state (mental or physical) or day it is, I am very happy to be back in the states.  I had an ab.so.lutely amazing tour and the good times certainly helped me get through the stressful ones.  I made so many fantastic friends, got to sing something that I have dreamed of doing for the last eight years and I hope you enjoyed the photos and stories in the process!!

The Lass from the Low Countree

For the first time I was able to go to the orchestra concert put on by the Blue Lake International Youth Symphony Orchestra.  They are the group that plays for the Elijah concerts and, like the choir, they also have an independent performance outside of the oratorio. In attendance was the Cultural Ambassador to Germany from America and I made a point to introduce myself during the intermission.  This is basically what our conversation entailed:

Me: "Hello, Mrs. Johnson! I just wanted to introduce myself.  I am not actually in the orchestra but am a soloist for the Elijah performance tomorrow night.  Do I understand correctly that you are a Texan?"
Karen: "Yes, and you are as well?"
Me: "Oh just from a small town in east Texas."
Karen: "Me too!! I'm from Port Arthur!"
Me: "Uh oh, you're gonna get my accent coming out!"
Karen: "Do me a favor... count to five for me."
Me: "Ummm, okay.  One two three four five."
Karen: "There it is!! The *i's* always give it away"
Me: "Exactly!  That and saying the word 'oil'."

We laughed a bit and I had half a mind to say: "Hahahahah... but no, seriously, though, are you hiring?!?" but I thought perhaps intermission at a youth symphony concert wasn't exactly the most appropriate of times to job hunt.  Oh, don't get me wrong... she will be getting an email upn my return to the states!

On the Elijah front there were a couple of fun things that set this performance apart from the others.  Lübeck is home to our maestro and so he got to perform on his own turf which was very exciting for him.  Unfortunately, though, we were performing in yet another gymnasium.  At least this one didn't have carpeted walls!  Thought we didn't have an American diplomat in the audience, we were graced by the cultural minister for the region of Germany which was fun. 

Apparently the flag in the middle is Michigan's flag.  How did it take me four years and another country away to finally see this? 

Maestro and soloists post-performance!

Also, click here to view some pictures that were taken by a local photographer and then later posted online!

You know how you hear those stories about opera singers breaking glass while singing high notes? WELL it kinda actually happened.  John, the tenor, was singing his first aria and I kid.you.not a window pane shattered from the balcony.  He and maestro were a pro and just kept on going until the number was done and then we had a brief pause.

Get it little Elijah tenor soloist!

Sun King

On our free day in Uetersen two other campers staying with another family joined my host mother and i in a walk around the town, as their host parents were both working that day. First we stopped by the church that Elijah was supposed to be held in but was changed at the last minute do to some immediate renovations that had to be undertaken.

Shoulda, woulda, coulda

Then we walked along the outward streets of the town and got to see what the local German country side had to offer.  After this we took a stroll through the city center and headed back to the house for some lunch and some much needed rest.

Fffffountain

As is only appropriate for a city that celebrates roses, my host family had a beautiful garden where we spent many evenings chatting and cooling off from the unusually warm days.

With my host family

Nothing really new or interesting to report on the Elijah performance other than it was held yet again in the finest gymnasium in the region.  I had hoped to be singing in glorious space after glorious space, but I suppose I shant bite the hand that is feeding me amaing French and German food and giving me the opportunity to sing on of my favorite pieces.

You may be wondering to yourself: "Does carpet lining the floor and 1/3 of the wall help resonate sound better?" Wonder no more... for it ab.so.lutely does not

Locker room Dressing room to the stars!

That night, though, I FORCED myself once again to go out.  Much in the same way that I have FORCED myself to drink the wine in France and beer in Germany these last few weeks.  I'm a trooper, I tell ya.  Emily's host, Christina, took Mason, Ellen, Emily and I out to Hamburg for another respite from the chitlens.  I had opted out of the previous day's trip to Hamburg in order to stay home and rest so it was nice to get a taste of the city.  And by "taste" I mean our first stop was unashamedly Amercian-- BURGER KING!!! 

Poor, sad Amercians getting a free trip to Europe

How do they manage to look so cute in a Burger King! Well, Emily is giving a bit of her Jezebel eyes...

I would have shown a picture from the outside but fear for my life in doing so.  I took one but was immediately (and quite literally) hissed at from a bevy of women standing the the front.

Christina: "Oh, Joseph, don't take pictures of the prostitutes, please."
Me: "Wait, what?!"
Christina: "Yeah, they get really angry."
Me: "Okay, no more, I promise.  I just wanted a silly picture of an American restaurant for my blog but didnt realize... sorry."
Christina: "Don't put that on the internet, it wouldn't be good."
Me: "Ha ha, okay sure, 'cause they'll come after me and all."
Christina: (With the seriousness reserved only for news of death and last call at a bar) "No, really, do NOT put the pictures up at all."

Soooooo not that I really think I'll be shanked in my sleep by a German lady of the abend, but better safe than sorry?  After sucessfully avoiding a cat fight and getting a bit of greasy food in the process we went and got a couple of drinks and walked around.  Apparently the Beatles performed somewhere in the vacinity of some of the bars and they had some cool metallic statues to commemorate the occasion.

Workin' it like the girls in front of Burger King!

GET IT!

As is also the custom after a night out, everyone was super super tired and earned a much needed nap in the back seat.  Though I'm not sure how they were sleeping-- we were shooting down the autobahn at almost 120mph!!! Yaaaaay foreign speed limits!

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

German stop numero uno was the city of Landau, located in the southern wine route and birthplace of Thomas Nast, political cartoonist and creator of the modern image of Santa Claus!!!

One of the days we were there we had the privelege of being introduced to the mayor, who showed us around the city center and even took us into the government assembly hall (?) Or courtroom (?) Or oddly bright planetarium (?)  I can't really say for certain because the whole tour was given in German and I understood about seven words of it.

City center

Making a judgement... or stargazing

Mega sun roof!

My favorite thing about Landau (besides our absolutely adorable host sister, Lena) was that we got to perform Elijah in a "real" space as opposed to the glorified movie theater in Sucy-en-Brie or the gymnasium in Barr.  The difference it makes for myself as a soloist, as well as the choir and orchestra I'm sure, is completely monumental.  I was a bit nervous singing Elijah in Germany because, well, I was singing it in German.  To pat myself on the sholder a bit, I did have several people come up and ask me if I were German because they said my diction was absolutely wonderful.  THANKS to all you teachers who helped that be possible!

                                        

Where I made my German premiere!

                                        

After having an amazing night in Sucy with Stephane and going out with some of the other counselors in Obernai, I think that it must now be a rule to... we'll just call it "de-stress" after each Elijah performance.  Luckily for Mason and I we had a fabulous host sister who knew all of the great places to go out.

As a bit of a side note, though, I must commend Lena for putting up with the both of us.  Spending day-in and day-out with the fourteen to eighteen year old social scene can take a toll on one's maturity level, and we were certainly no exception!! (At least that is what I am using as an excuse... you probably know better).

So.... Ausfahrt is the German word for "exit."  Come on, though, that's pretty funny

The counselors have also translated "that's what she said" into both French and German so we can still say it around campers without being completely inappropriate.  Lena had never heard of or seen The Office (where the phrase originally comes from) and so she just rolled her eyes everytime we said it in German! "You are just like a five year old" she would tell us.  Truer words will probably never be spoken.

Anyway... back to the partying. Directly after the concert we went to a bar and got some drinks with a group of other counselors and their respective host sisters.

                              

                                                                     Lena, Myself and Mason

Lena then took Mason, myself, and Zack, one of the orchestra members out to a couple of discotheques.  And yes... that is what they call them, which I LOVE.  The first one we met up with her friend Ronja, who just happens to be the local Onion Queen.  She was unable to make it to the perfomance of Elijah because she was decorating her onion cart, but we got to party afterwards nonetheless. 

                             

                                                              Zack Manier, Lena and Mason

                             

                                                                        German smiles!

The second stop on the disco train was the DiscoPlex, which had different themed rooms with different types of music. The first room was what one would expect from a disco: strobe lights, fog, techno music.  The second, though, was some odd Appalachian room that played '50's Amercian music and had stuffed, animated animals and people right out of a trippy version of Deliverance.  I swear I heard banjo's going at it somewhere in the distance. 

                           

Classy chandelier

Please don't murder me in my sleep little German fox

Why are you doing laundry at this time of night!!! Shouldn't you be churning butter?

All in all Landau was a pretty fantastic first time in Germany!!! Up next... the Rose Festival of Uetersen!

The Movie in my Mind

Our second (and last) stop in France was the supremely picturesque Alsace region-- heretofore to be known as "where the wine comes from"!  The region is made up of several smaller villages, including Barr (where our concert was held) and Obernai (where my host family was located).

The crest of Obernai

The first day we walked around the town, which was so beautiful that I felt like it was straight out of a movie set!

The outer walls were built in 1282!!!!!

My host family lived on the outskirts of the town and across from their house was a large corn field situated between two other houses. Apparently every spring they sit in their front yard and toast a drink to the corn because, luckily, no one has mowed the field down and built a house on it.

View of the field from my window

The husbad was also in the process of making stone steps for the entrance of his studio (he is an artist) and the stone mason was over one morning carving out some of them.

The Elijah concert went very... ... ... interestingly to try and chose a polite word.  the conductor, Maestro Jean-Jacques Werner is a big name in the area from what I understand.  A tip to future singers: if you ever hear the words "I will follow you" from him it most likely means "I will drop beats, give you false entrances and conduct in patterns so fast even hummingbirds will have a hard time distinguishing three from four." Or perhaps something just got lost in the translation?

Unfortunately our concert was held in a gym. Waaah waaah

The nice thing is that I still feel I sang well and we were lucky enough to have the performance broadcast on the radio across the entire region, including Strasbourg.  Funilly enough the review in the local paper didn`t have a word to say about the choir, orchestra or anz of the soloists.  For all you Werner fans, though, don`t worry, they didn`t fail to mention the Maestro`s "magic baton."  And by magic I mean wonky.  Bitter soloist much? :)

As is often the case after a big performance, some of the other soloists and counselors decided to go out to a bar and have a little adult time away from the campers.  Following is the resulting revelry!!!

Mason, Emily, Sabrina, Zach (lookin all cray cray) and Ellen

Sabrina and John... Soprano and Tenor.  Get it high voices!!

YAAAAAAAY no campers!!

Representing U of M with the highest amount of dignity and class