Loesser's lasting impressions

Watching All the Girls Go By/photos by Charlotte Teagle and John Luhn



What fun to do the celebration of Loesser's music on Jan. 23, 2011 to a sellout crowd of 90+. A few of my favorite images from the experience:

• The older fellow seated directly in front of me who knew all the words to "The New Ashmolean Marching Society" from Where's Charley? and sang along with us as we did the number. I learned later that this is a standard piece often performed by barbershop quartets.
• The look on Ted's face as I sang "Happy to Keep His Dinner Warm" to him.
• Smiles across the room.
• Working with a small ensemble of four (a first for me), the joy of all the group numbers we did, and doing "Fugue for Tinhorns" with nary a wobble when I had thought it couldn't be done. It was also wonderful to hear the laughter in the audience when all three of us started singing our disparate verses together and staying on track.
• The satisfaction of knowing I hit that E-flat in "Coffee Break."
• Looking pretty darn good in a hat.
• The relief of waking up the morning before the performance and knowing that I didn't have a sore throat or cold; this despite the fact that colds were running rampant in our community all through January. I really think being compulsive about hand-washing helps.
• Fully understanding that drinking water is not needed during a performance if you have hydrated well in the days beforehand.
• A fellow whose opinions I respect saying that I had done a wonderful job.
• This thank-you note from the center director: "You have a beautiful voice and a wonderful stage presence--you made me laugh out loud a few times!"
• The thrill of doing a show with fine musicians and solid performers--Laura Leigh Owenby, Barbara Luhn and C.B. Henson. Love you all!

I've Never Been in Love Before



Once in Love with Amy--Ha, ha, ha, ha!

There's no coffee!

Happy to Keep His Dinner Warm

Guys and Dolls

Fugue for Tinhorns--"I've got the horse right here."



It's almost showtime!

Preparing for the Heart & Soul cabaret-style revue has been a great experience, and makes me wonder how people did things like this before the Internet age. Our pianist has a jam-packed schedule, but we three singers have been able to rehearse sans live accompaniment thanks to CDs I made by downloading all our songs by different performers via iTunes, and then transposing them to the keys we selected via some free software I downloaded called Vocal Remover, which is meant primarily to remove voice tracks from recordings (I've never been able to get this function to work), but also lets you change the pitch and the tempo of selected works. With the aid of this CD, we have been able to rehearse the entire show consistently over the past few weeks, working out blocking for our group numbers and practicing the brief dialogue between certain songs. Next week--the week before the show--we have three rehearsals scheduled with the accompanist. We've been able to honor her schedule as well as get our kinks worked out well in advance of showtime. And now I am really looking forward to hearing how we sound with the piano accompanying us rather than Ray Bolger, Rosemary Clooney, Tony Bennett, Robert Morse, Megan Mullaley and all those lovable toughs from the original cast of Guys and Dolls.

My agenda, and I do have one

I like to think that I'm an evangelist for singing. I think everyone can and should do it. It's good for the body and soul. And so I got a kick out of this message from a high school friend who has been following my adventures in singing on Facebook and here on this blog.

"You inspired me to take voice lessons! My teacher teaches at Belmont and has lots of kids for voice and piano. He's also a Jewish Cantor! Maybe I'll learn some good Jewish songs, although he suggested we practice "Wondrous Love" which fits best at Easter. And our Bluegrass Band finished our CD and it's available but not in stores. Send me you address and I'll send you a copy."

Along the same lines, a friend and fellow cast member in The Wizard of Oz production this past summer was apprehensive about a presentation he was planning to make to a big dental conference in Hawaii in November 2010. I told him about my singing lessons and how they helped build confidence in public speaking, too. I saw him a few weeks ago at the Chamber of Commerce Christmas Bazaar and he said the presentation had gone beautifully. He thanked me. He had take my advice and enrolled in some singing lessons in order to prepare for the event.

BlesSings of the season

Singing with Laura Owenby at church, December 19, 2010

It is a treat to be singing so frequently this Christmas. A bit stressful, but a blessing nonetheless. Here is the rundown:

• "Were You There on that Christmas Night?" duet with Laura Owenby at church, 8 a.m. and 10 a.m. services, 4th Sunday of Advent, 12.19
• Performances 12.20 with Elizabeth Crittenden and Courtney Johnston of Eleanor LaForge's Christmas music and traditional carols at Magnolia Hills assisted living center and Habersham Home nursing home
• "Some Children See Him," accompanied by Joe Whelchel on guitar, opening solo for both Christmas Eve services at church, rehearsal 12.21 and 12.23
• 12.21--rehearsal for Frank Loesser show in January

If someone had told me three years ago that I would be singing this much--in public, no less!--during Christmas celebrations 2010, I would have said they were crazy. Now, I am so grateful for the adventure and for the opportunities to perform and learn. I wish I had done better at the 8 a.m. performance of "Were You There ..." with Laura. My voice cracked--I hate that! I had some a.m. phlegm issues that caused additional jitters. I didn't open wide enough for the note I cracked on and wasn't supporting it sufficiently. Thank goodness I have learned enough to know what I did wrong and to see that it didn't happen again for the 10 a.m. service. I was so grateful that performance went without a hitch. I need to keep reminding myself that I am still a newbie at this and thrilled to be singing with seasoned performers like Laura. On to new adventures later today!

But not before posting some comments just in:

"Such a treat to be with you and receive your gift of music this morning. SO beautiful.... "

"I enjoyed your singing and wanted to tell you that. I do enjoy the choir and am so thankful it's there for us. We are lucky to not only have a church that loves us but also one that has the music it has and the people!!!"

"The duet was really lovely. Thank you."

"You have a beautiful voice."

Lessons from Loesser

Frank Loesser smoked three packs of cigarettes a day, wore crisp, laundered shirts, Shalimar cologne and glassy green pomade in his hair. He also wrote beautiful music and some of the sharpest, funniest lyrics ever sung on a stage. Quite a package, you say? If his personal style is out of date, his music definitely isn't.

I've enjoyed reading about him in preparation for Heart and Soul: Sautee Celebrates the Music of Frank Loesser, a Sautee Supper Club show in which I will perform with buddies Laura Owenby, C.B. Henson and Barbara Luhn the evening of January 23, 2011, at the Sautee Nacoochee Community Center. (Mark your calendar now! It is going to be a great show.)

I like this advice to singers from one of Loesser's letters. The guy didn't mince words. "Don't sustain notes--any notes, I don't care if it's grand opera you're doing--beyond the point where they stop making sense, or beyond the safety limit of your wind or nervous system. Breathe your head off any time you want. Don't sing over-long phrases in one breath, because even a Kenny Baker can't do it without making the next passage suffer from lack of control. It beautifies nothing except your own private opinion of your vocal prowess--which is not what the public wants. They want entertainment."

What is your favorite Frank Loesser song?

In excelsis cole slaw

Saturday's performance at the Clarkesville Chamber of Commerce Christmas Bazaar was a learning experience. The sound system was lousy. Elizabeth, Courtney and I had trouble hearing our accompaniment track many a time. And there was lots of ambient noise in the place. At one point during a pause in Courtney's lovely Magnificat solo, in which she expresses Mary's angst at being the chosen one, I heard the barbecue vendor nearby yelling, "Cole slaw! Potato salad! Baked beans!" It didn't exactly enhance the music! Would I do it again? Yes, I say--without missing a beat. The more I sing the more I understand that you can study and practice your tail off , but the performance is when the real learning happens. I know as a result of Saturday's experience, my next performance will be better. I do hope, however, that no one is selling barbecue there.

What was your most harrowing performing experience?

Always nice to get these post-show notes

Hey all -

Congratulations again on a terrific show last night.  You were all a delight to work with, and we made yet another self-repairing ensemble that rolled with the punches and came up with an outstanding event to give to the people of Snacooch.

We’re looking at dates for Late Night Off-Center 2011, so start thinking now about what kind of madness we might want to offer in the spring...

Cheers

Lisa