Let me just say that by the time we lay our head down on the
pillow Christmas night, we classical singers have done a hard month’s
work. I mean for realz. For the first time in months we may actually
have a little extra money in our pockets, but we have swollen, tired vocal
cords, sore breathing muscles, and aching feet to show for it, and every piece
of concert black clothing we own is threadbare.
Our brains are officially dead after sight-reading piece after piece for
the Christmas Eve marathon, memorizing all fourteen verses of O Holy Night and
the First Noel for that last minute gig, and well, trying to read the
conductor/organist’s mind as per usual.
Add to that the stress of trying to make it all work around
our tricky audition schedules and going back and forth to New York, oh…and if
any of us are academic voice teachers…well…forget it. If you make it Christmas in the first place
with all your hair, arms and legs, and not mortally ill, you’ve really
accomplished something. And you know, sometimes just the emotional strain of
hoping and striving for a dream can really wear you out, especially if you’ve
been met with some rejection. Don’t
worry, singers, you’re not alone.
Believe me, we, like the rest of the world, have worked hard
this year, made it through a hurricane and a presidential election. So these are a few gift ideas for all the
opera singers on your list, or if you ARE a classical singer, maybe it’s about
time you TREAT YOURSELF.
1. Audition Season Detox Bath Pack
So, you know how about this time of year, you start dreaming
of being on a sandy beach in warm weather, frolicking in the waves? And you know why you feel so great and
relaxed when you come out of the water and lay down on your towel to dry off in
the sun? Because you just took a
saltwater bath. It literally flushes the
toxins from your body, cleansing you from the outside in.
So, put together sweet little box with Epsoms salts,
lavender and eucalyptus essential oils and maybe a little loofah sponge. Lavendar is great for a relaxing bath, and
the eucalyptus is great when you’re feeling a little congested or think you
might have a cold coming on. Add a note
about which to use when!
2. Amazon Prime Membership
This would be a WONDERFUL gift. We could order scores, books, CDs, and get
FREE two day shipping! Add to that the
awesome bonus of access to the Kindle Lending Library, for FREE Kindle books! Dreamy.
Never be bored on your audition and gig trips again! Sitting on a bus is just WAY less of a
life-sucking experience with juicy reading material.
I have these, and they are not only comfy but look way more
expensive than the $19.95 I paid for them.
It is just a pleasure to be tooling around town in these with a pair of
black pants or jeans. And, they are
audition trip approved, in other words: they are as comfortable as a sneaker,
but provide a little bit more polish so you look cute and professional.
4. A gift certificate for a great meal in
Midtown West
Try this: The
Burger Joint at Le Parker Meridien
Or this: Ayza Wine and
Chocolate Bar
This, admittedly, is where we spend a lot of our time in New
York, right, singers? Or for those of
you nearer Chicago, San Francisco, or points south, there’s probably a city you
travel to often to do the old audition one-two.
A thoughtful relative or friend would thrill us if they were to pick a
comforting, mid-priced, easily accessible restaurant and get us a gift
certificate. I mean, imagine not eating
Dirty-Water Dogs (otherwise known as hotdogs from a street vendor) on the
street for once! It sounds like a little
slice of heaven!
YAY! Oh man I want
this so bad! My lovely colleague
recommended it, and says it has worked very well for her, but it is a
reasonable price, and oh so useful. Even
in the teaching studio, where the air can get awfully dry. And you know what dry air means! Long-living virus bacteria!
Even if you’re not a history buff like yours truly, if you
sing Mozart, this DVD contains valuable information about the times, the
attitude, and exactly what the heck happened during that thing we like to call
The French Revolution. It changed Europe
forever, people, and influenced a lot of operatic situations, so lets all get
behind learning a little something this holiday season. You weren’t planning on just sitting around
watching football all day on New Year’s were you?
7. THE No. 1 BEST PRESENT WE COULD RECEIVE: a
YES instead of a NO!
Hire us! We will love
you forever! Give us the chance to sing
something, anything! We want to give
what is overflowing inside us, what propels us from one up to an down to
another up, what keeps us going when it feels like nothing is working, and
nothing is going our way. We want to
give you our hearts, wrapped up in a little package called song.
And please email me and comment with more things you’d love
or love to give as gifts. I know you
have more fabulous ideas for me!
2 comments:
No one can take the gift of music from me, but I willingly give it away every time I sing.
This Is a fantastic list of gifts for the opera singer in my life!! You are funny and creative, thank you.
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