10 APR 07: VIVA LAS DIVAS?
Where was the crying baby? That was one of several questions on my mind Monday night, as GPB Radio aired a recording of last September's "opera divas" concert at the RiverCenter. I never heard one making noise. But then again, I never heard the singers lecturing the audience for bad manners, either.
I wanted to know how GPB would handle the September recital by Frederica Von Stade and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa - the one which left some RiverCenter concertgoers insulted and offended. It turned out the radio network handled things with grace and dignity. Some might argue Te Kanawa could learn from that example....
If you came in late to all this: Frederica Von Stade and Kiri Te Kanawa stopped their RiverCenter recital last fall after one song, because of a baby inside the theater and some people taking cell phone pictures [4 Oct 06]. But GPB did NOT air any of the disruptions -- so I guess someone in the audience will have to post them on YouTube.
The baby inside the Bill Heard Theatre didn't make enough noise to be picked up by GPB's microphones, during an opening series of duets. Perhaps the divas simply have sensitive hearing -- or the RiverCenter is using old mikes from the Three Arts Theater, which need replacing.
What makes all the talk about disruptions more interesting is what GPB's Terrence McKnight revealed in introductory remarks about the recital. Dame Kiri Te Kanawa once was a pop star, who sang in New Zealand nightclubs! So flashing cell phones should be nothing to her - and she should be thankful the RiverCenter doesn't allow smoking in the theaters.
(By the way, Terrence McKnight said the RiverCenter was "just about full" for the September 30 recital. Just about?! That's the trouble with scheduling this performance for a Saturday night during college football season....)
The only slightly awkward moment GPB aired during the recital came at the end of a Benjamin Britten work that Frederica Von Stade sang. A few members of the audience applauded before piano accompanist Warren Jones was finished. It's a wonder Jones didn't speed up, or hit some loud off-key chords.
But perhaps the biggest faux pas of the recital came when Frederica Von Stade sang the cute Aaron Copeland tune, "I Bought Me a Cat." It has the singer imitate various animals - and Von Stade did the usual line, "The duck said quack-quack." She's in Columbus, and she doesn't change it to Aflac?!
Frederica Von Stade actually seemed to have rapport with the RiverCenter audience, making humorous remarks several times. I didn't notice any such comments from Kiri Te Kanawa -- so it's no wonder some concertgoers wouldn't have objected if Indonesia invaded her native New Zealand.
GPB interviewed the "opera divas" separately, and Frederica Von Stade admitted her successful 30-year career in classical singing is partly due to luck. She said she's learned "I know what I can't do." That explains why she hasn't appeared on a duet album with Elton John.
Accompanist Warren Jones also was interviewed by GPB. He revealed the only time he's ever stopped playing during a concert occurred at the University of Florida, when he was "immobilized" by how well Kiri Te Kanawa was singing. Compare that with the RiverCenter recital - when the audience was immobilized simply by how she talked to it.
In a classic ratings-grabbing move, GPB invited us back NEXT Monday night - to hear a "master class" Frederica Von Stade and Kiri Te Kanawa conducted with seven Columbus State University students. One was heard saying he screamed so loudly at the invitation, "I caused my dog to p** on herself." This is why some conservatives are so skeptical about public radio....
BLOG CLARIFICATION: After chatting with my Pastor at church, we're clarifying a comment we posted here Sunday. The Pastor tells me the statement that Easter Sunday is an "unsanctified" day really comes from God, NOT from him. So if you have a problem with what the Pastor said, go take it to his Boss on the top floor.
My pastor should be interested in our top story, reviewing leftover news items from the last couple of days:
+ The Muscogee County School Board discussed making the New King James Version the "official textbook," in the upcoming Bible literature curriculum. That would satisfy the traditionalist churches in town - the ones who like to say N.I.V. stands for "not-inspired version."
+ Pine Ridge Elementary School's Daniel Trotter was named Georgia Principal of the Year. So what does he win - a golden paddle?
+ The Sunday morning low temperature in Columbus stayed above the freezing mark, at 35 degrees F. The high was only 56, but one of my neighbors still had an afternoon cookout in the apartment courtyard. How you cook an Easter ham on a charcoal grill, I'm not really sure....
+ Sumter and Taylor Counties had their income tax deadlines extended to April 30, because of tornado damage. Muscogee County is overlooked again - but then again, people in the Brookstone neighborhood can afford the best tax lawyers to avoid paying, anyway.
+ WRBL reported the Talbot County NAACP had a community meeting, on opposing a proposed sludge facility. It was joined by the group "Citizens Against Toxic Sludge" - as if CATS don't produce enough waste on their own.
+ Columbus State's second-ranked softball team swept a doubleheader over Clark Atlanta. C.S.U. won the first game 25-0 - which leads me to wonder if the Clark Atlanta pitchers were held over by midterms, and showed up late.
+ Atlanta baseball pitcher Mike Hampton was declared out for the season, because he'll undergo more elbow surgery today. Hampton's hardly thrown for Atlanta since 2005. Some Columbus employers would have fired him by now, for having obvious attitude problems.
+ The Atlanta Falcons signed quarterback Joey Harrington, to back up Michael Vick. Harrington is an accomplished jazz pianist -- so maybe he can steer his teammates to do proper things in Buckhead nightclubs.
+ Instant Message to the woman who e-mailed information about a "blogger's row" planned in Washington in two weeks: Thank you - but I think other commitments will keep me from attending. Not to mention the fact that I don't have a laptop, so I'd have to borrow one. And the fact that I wouldn't know a "wi-fi hot spot" if someone lit a bonfire on the sidewalk to mark it.
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