March 2008

William Bolcom, Musical America’s 2007 Composer of the Year and recipient of multiple Grammy awards, and Joan Morris, one of the country’s premier interpreters of American popular song, share how they’ve been successfully collaborating as both musical duo and husband and wife for more than 33 years.

Submit entries to the bulletin board by e-mail at bulletinboard@classicalsinger.com.

A singer in mid-career found herself reevaluating her priorities. Some careful self-analysis led her to exchange one dream for another: professional singer for full-time wife and mother. Now she has added the role of artist manager and shares how this new career path allows her to stay fully focused on her top priorities.

In this edition of her quarterly column, Ana María Martínez shares her insights on walking the tricky tight rope: being both a professional singer and a wife and mother or a father and husband. This balancing act is not for the faint of heart—but the rewards are priceless.

When it comes to fluency in a second language, Americans have a bad reputation. Classical singers may fare better, but singers typically score much higher on pronunciation than they do on comprehension or fluency. This month, CS reviews the German levels 1 and 2 in the latest version of Rosetta Stone and offers some other ways to get an immersion level of learning without buying a plane ticket or spending a fortune on lessons.

After three intense rounds of competition among more than 200 applicants, the judges of the AudComps 2007 named 13 singers Certified Classical Singers for 2007-2008. This month, we feature soprano Jan Cornelius and mezzo-soprano Jennifer Kosharsky, both from the Emerging Professional Division.

In this second part of a two-part article on German Lieder, Wolfgang Lockemann continues his discussion on the differences between opera and art song, with clear examples for how to overcome these differences, which are often stumbling blocks for singers. Whatever language of art song you’re currently working on, find the keys to true expression here.

Do you have a question for the doctor? E-mail jahn@classicalsinger.com.

Many singers choose to continue their careers at full speed while coping with the challenges of being full-time parents. Soprano Robin Wiper was one of them. Now she shares the reason she made the decision to slow down and stay at home with her children.

Women are not the only singers in opera that having children affects.

Women in opera are taking on the role of a lifetime and having it all, balancing high-maintenance careers with motherhood. Five divas sit down to discuss how they determined when it was the right time to have kids and how that decision has affected their careers.

A fundamental part of the online Classical Singer Community since its creation in 1998, the General Interest Forum is more than a resource. For classical singers and those interested in the art of singing it has become one of the most popular discussion panels available on the Web. Here are some quotes from some great moments this past month on the forum. Want to voice your opinion on something here or otherwise? Visit www.classicalsinger.com.