Rigoletto

"ttyymmnn" (ttyymmnn) 11/14/2019 at 21:44 • Filed to: Operalopnik

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Austin Opera is doing its second performance of Verdi’s Rigoletto tonight. It’s the usual story of love, deceit, and death. These are a couple of pages from my part in Act 1. These parts have literally been all over the world, and have markings made by countless trumpet players over the years. Some markings are helpful and are kept, others are annoying and get erased. But it’s almost like reading a historic record, and you have to be able to see the actual notes behind years of markings, cues, and cuts. Fun stuff. 

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > ttyymmnn 11/14/2019 at 21:51

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My wife is trying out a bow at orchestra tonight. $880 list price.... that’s a set of nice wheels for my Datsun.

CarsofFortLangley - Oppo Forever > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 11/14/2019 at 21:57

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Ugh fuck that.

ttyymmnn > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 11/14/2019 at 21:58

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Yeah, but she can make money with a bow. 

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > ttyymmnn 11/14/2019 at 22:06

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It's a nice bow. I'll grant that.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 11/14/2019 at 22:15

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It had better be... I wonder how much the expensive bows cost...

ttyymmnn > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 11/14/2019 at 22:35

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3x as much or more. 

Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen > ttyymmnn 11/14/2019 at 22:55

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For some reason, whenever Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody plays in my head ( which it does more often than it should), verse 3 starts with “I see a little Rigoletto of a man, scaramouche, scaramouche...”

Wobbles the Mind > ttyymmnn 11/14/2019 at 23:06

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Rigoletto is my Joker. One of the few operas that stuck with me from Music History. 

Alfalfa > ttyymmnn 11/14/2019 at 23:23

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It’s the usual story of love, deceit, and death.

And a clown. Don't forget the clown.

MrDakka > ttyymmnn 11/14/2019 at 23:33

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Opera?

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 11/14/2019 at 23:37

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You can spend up to $4,000 but a good professional now starts around $800.

ttyymmnn > MrDakka 11/15/2019 at 00:14

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It’s a job, but not necessarily a living. 

MiniGTI - now with XJ6 > ttyymmnn 11/15/2019 at 00:43

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Cool, I love seeing stuff like that too.

We went to Dead Man Walking ( https://www.lyricopera.org/productions/2019-20/dead-man-walking/ ) at Lyric on Sunday. It was absolutely riveting 11/10. Plenty of people our age and younger in the audience too (we’re 41).

Nom De Plume > ttyymmnn 11/15/2019 at 00:44

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Rental scores I take it. More interesting than the audience’s translation on a screen everywhere seems to think makes it better to watch.

Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 11/15/2019 at 00:49

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If y ou really put your mind to it, you can spend north of half a mill. https://www.thestrad.com/lutherie/tourte-bow-demolishes-price-records-in-french-auction/7333.article

My wife’s firm has some insanely rich (as in the 1% of the 1%) clients. One of them bought a $3M St ra divari us v io lin for their daughter ($3M is apparently a “cheap” Strad) . The bow for it cost another $10 0,000-odd. Apparently the kid’s pretty good. Sh e’d need to be.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen 11/15/2019 at 00:54

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Or maybe not and it doesn't matter.

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen 11/15/2019 at 00:57

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If you look at the numbers in that clipping, there was something like 25% in fees on top of the "hammer price."

Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 11/15/2019 at 00:59

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Well there is that.

I wonder how much you’d need to pay a violin teacher to get them to listen to a Strad being tortured. Maybe it’s a case of “as long as I get to play it occasionally. ..”

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen 11/15/2019 at 00:59

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Do you mean Scaramucci?

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Nom De Plume 11/15/2019 at 01:00

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Supertitles. I like them.

Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 11/15/2019 at 01:01

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Sucks to be an auction house...

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen 11/15/2019 at 01:03

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How trained does your ear have to be in order to tell the difference?

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen 11/15/2019 at 01:04

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Certainly, to buy from one...

Nom De Plume > Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo 11/15/2019 at 01:09

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They can be handled well.  I find plenty to engage with on stage and in the orchestra pit that doesn’t require a screen.  Or the noise of paging through a written translation they are meant to dissuade.

Svend > ttyymmnn 11/15/2019 at 02:06

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I used to go to see operas three times. The first time, to feel the music and the emotion, the second, I’d read the English along with the opera to know what they are saying then the third time, I’d put the two previous visits together. 

ttyymmnn > MiniGTI - now with XJ6 11/15/2019 at 03:28

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If you ever get the chance, you absolutely must see Silent Night , music by Kevin Puts, libretto by Mark Campbell . Austin Opera produced it last year and it’s absolutely spellbinding. Puts’ Manchurian Candidate is also quite good.

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > ttyymmnn 11/15/2019 at 09:52

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Very cool. Is it a cardinal sin to put a pen to these pages?

davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com > Distraxi's idea of perfection is a Jagroen 11/15/2019 at 09:54

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Holy...

ttyymmnn > davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com 11/15/2019 at 10:05

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Oh my god, yes. Ink marking are strictly verboten . Writing in ink will incur fines from the music rental house. You will notice, though, that there are red ink squares around each indication of the trumpet transposition. This is so you don’t miss it and start playing wrong notes (even with those red squares, there are constant penciled reminders of the transposition ) . Much of this piece is for trumpet in E-flat, but there are also instances of trumpet in E, D, and C. That means we have to play different notes than the ones printed, and it’s constantly changing.

Shour, Aloof and Obnoxious > ttyymmnn 11/15/2019 at 11:15

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I’ve played Rigoletto! Very fun! We got yelled at because the celli would always miss the cesura in the intro to La Donna. The concertmaster stood up in the middle of rehearsal and yelled, “WHAT is SO HARD to understand about this?!” He then proceeded to play the line, dut dut duhnuhnuh dut dut duhnuhnuh daa daa daa daaaaaaa daa daa daa “STOP!”

And he legit SCREAMED “stop!” at the top of his lungs. Instead of motivating us to get it right (clarinets weren't the issue), I looked at my partner in crime and said, "we should add that to the opening night performance."

ttyymmnn > Shour, Aloof and Obnoxious 11/15/2019 at 11:19

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The Duke is putting a big fermata on the high note the second time around. All the way through the dress rehearsals, somebody played on beat two. Thankfully, nobody has done it in performance.

Also, screw the concertmaster. Friggin prima donna. 

Rusty Vandura - www.tinyurl.com/keepoppo > Nom De Plume 11/15/2019 at 11:28

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For me, it’s about accessibility. I’m as musical as anyone, though musicianship is not something that I have developed in my life as much as other skills. Operas were written for the masses to come and enjoy and the supertitles are very helpful in that regard. I attended a performance of Messaien’s St. Francis of Assisi in San Francisco some years back and I really  appreciated the supertitles. At the SF Opera, they have a long, slender screen on each side of the stage; rather discrete, actually.