As I'm waiting for Kendall to finish a working draft of the opera, I thought I should do some research and brush up on my English text setting.
This may seem easy, but it isn't for me; I know I have had some problems with scansion in the past. My solution for this is to study Henry Purcell's vocal works, which, according to my former professor, is best the way to learn how to set English.
I also figure the most ideal way to study these works is to - get this - SING through them. Of course, this little experiment of mine might have some consequences; mainly, that you the listener might turn red and laugh hysterically if you were to hear my singing. (Has this happened to me before? Ask Andrew Norman, who kindly accompanied me during a semester of voice lessons. My voice teacher made me speak like Mickey Mouse; he turned red, said he had to instantly excuse himself, then ran out and told all my friends how silly I sounded. Thanks, Andrew, you have scarred me for life.)
My next few blog posts will be spent discussing my attempts to sing through these vocal works. In the meantime, you can listen to Ligeti singing Purcell.
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