Thursday, September 8, 2016
Wednesday, September 7, 2016
Good Eats, Part 2: Gelato
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| Post-concert ice cream. Yaaaaas. |
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| This would be called "Heisse Liebe" (hot love) if there were whipped cream on top. Oh, the Gemrans. Gotta love 'em.
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Good Eats, Part 1: Breakfast
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| The breakfast spread at my homestay, with the lovely Hanna |
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| Coffee all day all day all day |
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| Breakfast at the Hotel Cetena, hallelujah! |
#TeamPaul on Reformation Sights
Today, we hear from Paul, cornerstone of the bass section in both Canto Armonico and also back at First Lutheran on Berkeley Street. I (Lucy here) have had the pleasure of singing with Paul off and on for almost five years, and we are looking forward to being a part of the wedding ceremony of our dear friend Anya in the coming weeks out in Colorado. But for now, Paul will lecture on all things Reformation!
(Paul begins): So being the resident confessional Lutheran supernerd, going to Germany has been a blast. While we have not been to major Reformation sites we have seen several Lutheran churches. However, the following find took me by surprise.
So picture this, I'm walking through Corvey Abbey enjoying the marvelous sights (including the unexpectedly ornate chapel) when I see a wall of former abbots. Naturally I went through looking at each one when I stumbled across these two.
The descriptions in Latin are at the top of the blog. However from my basic understanding the first abbot contended against Lutheran doctrine spreading through the area. The second man ends up dealing with clergy and laity signing the Augsburg Confession. So even here in Corvey in an somewhat unexpected place the impact of the Reformation is seen.
Tuesday, September 6, 2016
Emily speaks of German audiences
Hello! Emily Thorner here.
It's crazy and incredible to be back in Germany...because I was here only 8 weeks prior to our arrival. Here I was, hoping endlessly for years to make it back to Europe, and I have been singing here for most of the last few months. Unlike last time where I traveled alone, I am here with 14 other singers. It's incredible that we all come from such different backgrounds and are all different age ranges. So far, we have been sight reading aggressively to be as ready as possible, and it's impressive how well the first concert came together.
One of the things that astounds me most about singing here is the audiences of Germany. In America, you sing...you finish...and the applause varies in size but it always dissipates quickly. Here, they will applaud as long as they possibly can. What a difference! Our first concert was in a wet acoustic in the Martini Kirchof. Our second concert was in Celle (after meeting Fenster Mann! more on him to come...) and the space was the perfect acoustic for singing Tallis and Byrd. True success is when you can have each concert improve one after the other, and when you've only been working the material for a day or two. That would have been success enough, but the audience surprised us in a way I've never seen before. They applauded, and they wouldn't stop. Their clapping didn't decrease in size, it grew! And if that wasn't enough, they created a solid, rhythmic clap pattern: one that said, "we would love an encore!"
As icing on the cake, the audiences are incredibly kind. Mein Deutsch ist nicht perfect. Aber, die Leute sind froh zu sagen zu uns "du bist wunderbar!" One woman even told me that our singing brought tears to our eyes. They are grateful, kind, and happy to have us. In the U.S., the audiences are smaller, and in a tiny town you are lucky to have an audience. However, this audience was not only grateful, but full of excited audience members. To travel is to gain experience in life. We grow as singers when we explore outside of our limits. Experience is what life is all about.
---Thank you, Emily!
It's crazy and incredible to be back in Germany...because I was here only 8 weeks prior to our arrival. Here I was, hoping endlessly for years to make it back to Europe, and I have been singing here for most of the last few months. Unlike last time where I traveled alone, I am here with 14 other singers. It's incredible that we all come from such different backgrounds and are all different age ranges. So far, we have been sight reading aggressively to be as ready as possible, and it's impressive how well the first concert came together.
One of the things that astounds me most about singing here is the audiences of Germany. In America, you sing...you finish...and the applause varies in size but it always dissipates quickly. Here, they will applaud as long as they possibly can. What a difference! Our first concert was in a wet acoustic in the Martini Kirchof. Our second concert was in Celle (after meeting Fenster Mann! more on him to come...) and the space was the perfect acoustic for singing Tallis and Byrd. True success is when you can have each concert improve one after the other, and when you've only been working the material for a day or two. That would have been success enough, but the audience surprised us in a way I've never seen before. They applauded, and they wouldn't stop. Their clapping didn't decrease in size, it grew! And if that wasn't enough, they created a solid, rhythmic clap pattern: one that said, "we would love an encore!"
As icing on the cake, the audiences are incredibly kind. Mein Deutsch ist nicht perfect. Aber, die Leute sind froh zu sagen zu uns "du bist wunderbar!" One woman even told me that our singing brought tears to our eyes. They are grateful, kind, and happy to have us. In the U.S., the audiences are smaller, and in a tiny town you are lucky to have an audience. However, this audience was not only grateful, but full of excited audience members. To travel is to gain experience in life. We grow as singers when we explore outside of our limits. Experience is what life is all about.
---Thank you, Emily!
Dienstag, oder "Bean stalk"
Tomorrow marks the halfway point of this trip.
WOW.
We will thus far visited Hannover, Minden, Celle, Wuntsorf, Bad Pyrton, a big Schloss owned by a Wellesley alum from the class of '73, and a Monestary with a fantastic restaurant. We've driven for hours and hours and eaten for just as many hours, and perhaps, we've even rehearsed and performed for the same amount of time as the other two.
This trip, more than any other tour I've ever been on, has brought more body-rocking laughter out of me personally, and it seems that is a spreading phenomenon. What luck, to be stuck in three cars and close quarters with such wonderful people and musicians.
Cheryl will be jumping on here to give some background information on our two programs, one of Tudor music and the other consisting of German composers writing about John the Baptist, and Paul will jump on to wax poetic about Reformation history and some of the noteworthy sights we have seen so far in the churches we've visited along the route.
But first, let's hear from one of the newer Canto sopranos, Miss Emily.
-Lucy
WOW.
We will thus far visited Hannover, Minden, Celle, Wuntsorf, Bad Pyrton, a big Schloss owned by a Wellesley alum from the class of '73, and a Monestary with a fantastic restaurant. We've driven for hours and hours and eaten for just as many hours, and perhaps, we've even rehearsed and performed for the same amount of time as the other two.
This trip, more than any other tour I've ever been on, has brought more body-rocking laughter out of me personally, and it seems that is a spreading phenomenon. What luck, to be stuck in three cars and close quarters with such wonderful people and musicians.
Cheryl will be jumping on here to give some background information on our two programs, one of Tudor music and the other consisting of German composers writing about John the Baptist, and Paul will jump on to wax poetic about Reformation history and some of the noteworthy sights we have seen so far in the churches we've visited along the route.
But first, let's hear from one of the newer Canto sopranos, Miss Emily.
-Lucy
Monday, September 5, 2016
Montag, spaet.
Willkommen! Bienvenue! Welcome!
The singers of Canto Armonico are well unterwegs in Germany. After a busy first three days overseas, we finally have landed in a small spot with a bit of time to stretch legs and lungs. We are currently staying in a small guesthouse at the end of a road closed for construction in the town of Wunstorf, maybe an hour away from Hanover. The 14 of us encountered many challenges getting to Germany and surviving the first weekend of intensive rehearsals with our conductor, Ulf Wellner, while battling jet lag, so we are happy to have two lovely and wildly successful concerts behind us. Today, we played tourist in the town of Bad Pyrmont, ate a lot of food, and are all quite "satt", satisfied.
More background information on this trip and all of the music and also the history of the cities we're visiting will be forthcoming, but for now, here is some music. Our new Canto Armonico soundcloud page can be found by clicking here. I have been sneakily recording sections of rehearsals and performances and will continue updating this page as the tour continues east toward our final stops in Leipzig and Dresden. As this week continues, I will have "guest" bloggers, so be sure to check the sign-off to see who is in fact sharing stories and pictures.
And now, after a long shower, a snack of leftover dunkel brot and frischkaese and mineralwasser, I bid you all goodnight, in the "sound of music" melody of course, even though we are not in Austria.
-lucy
The singers of Canto Armonico are well unterwegs in Germany. After a busy first three days overseas, we finally have landed in a small spot with a bit of time to stretch legs and lungs. We are currently staying in a small guesthouse at the end of a road closed for construction in the town of Wunstorf, maybe an hour away from Hanover. The 14 of us encountered many challenges getting to Germany and surviving the first weekend of intensive rehearsals with our conductor, Ulf Wellner, while battling jet lag, so we are happy to have two lovely and wildly successful concerts behind us. Today, we played tourist in the town of Bad Pyrmont, ate a lot of food, and are all quite "satt", satisfied.
More background information on this trip and all of the music and also the history of the cities we're visiting will be forthcoming, but for now, here is some music. Our new Canto Armonico soundcloud page can be found by clicking here. I have been sneakily recording sections of rehearsals and performances and will continue updating this page as the tour continues east toward our final stops in Leipzig and Dresden. As this week continues, I will have "guest" bloggers, so be sure to check the sign-off to see who is in fact sharing stories and pictures.
And now, after a long shower, a snack of leftover dunkel brot and frischkaese and mineralwasser, I bid you all goodnight, in the "sound of music" melody of course, even though we are not in Austria.
-lucy
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