Crazy opera singer here

[C.O.L.A.H.]

I'm preparing for my fourth trip to Black Rock City, and I think it's fucking lame that I've never done there what I do here, which is sing all the damn time.

I'm looking for a stage to sing on! I could bust out some French Romantic aria (Massenet, anyone?) or bust out the vocal fireworks a la Rossini. What I'd need is a piano. And to do it on a Monday or Tuesday, before my voice is killed by the dust. Any ideas?

On a non-operatic note, I am also working on a solo project that is for electronics, strings, and voice. That might be a bit more complicated, as I would need to wrangle a violinist and/or cellist, and have a place to "plug in" .. laptop and mic would be involved.

I heard that there is a lady who sings some opera at Thunderdome. Now THAT would be killer.

Let me know if you have any leads/advice- thanks!

[Elorrum]

You must seek out Elliot. He is up to his neck in pianos I hear. It would be glorious to have you sing on his piano boat while cruising around.

search elliot and look at his posts, and (I'm getting ahead of myself on this, it's not my boat. pm him and I hope it works out somehow.

[Elliot]

One banana boa... I mean, piano boat reporting for duty!

It is Mutant Vehicle number 296, called (You're Gonna Need A) Bigger Boat, and it will indeed have a piano onboard. (I've already told you this by PM, but we are trying to spread the word here.)

Whichever of my pianos winds up on the boat will probably have difficulty qualifying as a honky-tonk payanner in a western movie, but considering we are probably going to drop it from a great height at the end of the week....

If you look around on this forum, you will also find string players, including a cellist.

What I don't have is a pianist! My "art" in this regard is transporting the piano(s) to the Playa.

So this is a casting call for pianists! Top priority is accompanying the real opera singer, but we have a whole week to make joyful noise, so all genres are most welcome.

In addition to Bigger Boat, there will be two pianos in Terminal Village, and one of those is scheduled to be a Steinway Concert Grand (not mine).

I'm also hoping to put wheels on my ratty Baby Grand, but that's on the back burner now that I'm building Bigger Boat.

Oh, and I'm looking for more free pianos. It's a numbers game -- grab enough free pianos, and some of them will be usable. (I see lots of them on Craigslist in the Bay Area -- the difficulty is getting enough help to wrestle them out of the owners' house without tearing up the floors. And I live way north of the Bay.) Any style piano, but of course... if you can pilfer a perfectly good Grand from your excentric grandfather....

All right -- speak up, pianists!

[talito]

Pianist present!
Looking forward to fondling the faux-ivories on the playa.
C.O.L.A.H. , can't wait to hear you sing. I don't play much operatic music but I'd be open to working on some pieces if you have anything specific in mind.

[gaminwench]

These four posts are 'why you gotta love eplaya'....

[Thecatman]

Even though I'm more into classic rock and classic country, oprera would be a good change along with classical stuff like Mozart, Beethoven etc.

[masho]

Looking forward to hearing more, one might even say that I'm "stoked"

[pinemom]

Colah, we actually did Opera on the playa at the Booby bar circa 2007.

Elliot is in Terminalcity too!!!!

(there was rumor for awhile that we would have another piano in the Booby Bar 2010...we'll see, as playa happens and not all things come to fruition..)

My dtr come to burningman and is also a accomplished Violinist(although the violin she brings out there is her student model, cause I wont allow the JacksonGouldan to go to the dust. She is thinking about bringing one of her electric Violins too...


Oh what fun 2010 is gonna be!

[Ugly Dougly]

DTR = Drunk Texter's Remorse?

[ygmir]

Colah, we actually did Opera on the playa at the Booby bar circa 2007.

Elliot is in Terminalcity too!!!!

(there was rumor for awhile that we would have another piano in the Booby Bar 2010...we'll see, as playa happens and not all things come to fruition..)

My dtr come to burningman and is also a accomplished Violinist(although the violin she brings out there is her student model, cause I wont allow the JacksonGouldan to go to the dust. She is thinking about bringing one of her electric Violins too...


Oh what fun 2010 is gonna be!

I'd perform "River Dance" if Dougly and others, would join me at the Booby Bar.......

[FIGJAM]

Antler dance. Antler dance.........

[talito]

Another idea to throw into the mix, which has worked very well for me at many events, is an 80s singalong.
Many people seem to know and love that repertoire.
Songs such as "Take On Me", "Jesse's Girl", "Jenny (867-5309)", "Take Me Home Tonight", "Livin On A Prayer", etc.

[Elliot]

Some of us are a bit off the trail here, in that Sophia (C.O.L.A.H.) is a real opera singer -- not just "a lady with a decent voice who likes to sing". I just want to make that clear.

I have also renewed contact with VeganChoirGirl, who came close to joining Terminal City last year but wound up camping elsewhere. She reports having a great first burn and we may get to hear her sing this year.

Pinemom, if the Steinway fails to show up, you can still have one of my uprights in Booby Bar.

[diane o'thirst]

An opera singer? Masenet? Rossini? Beethoven?? Pianos??!??!

And I pick this year to sit out the Burn!

[Elliot]

My pianos are bottom-of-the-barrel units that I'm picking up free off FreeCycle and such, but Oscillator has volunteered to come to my house and apply his piano technician skills to the most grievious problems. And I have one that seems to need nothing at all for Playa duty.

[talito]

[quote="Elliot"]:D
Some of us are a bit off the trail here, in that Sophia (C.O.L.A.H.) is a real opera singer -- not just "a lady with a decent voice who likes to sing". I just want to make that clear.
[/quote]

No disrespect intended to C.O.L.A.H. Just offering various music options. In my mind, hearing a pro opera singer singing something other than opera could be wonderful.

I'm a professional pianist, and though I don't specialize in opera, I have worked with an opera troup in rearranging several operatic pieces for their live performances. So the concept of crossing genres and traditional stylistic boundaries appeals to me.

[Elliot]

Wondermuss!

[penrose]

Hi Elliot. We were in the same camp in 08. Anyway, I've been wondering what to do with the Packard upright that's been in the family forever besides move it from one living room to the next every thirty years and suddenly it looks like there are more options ...

I love operatic singing and hope I get to hear it. It's a different sort of voice than we get in the playa choir.

[Elliot]

Hi Penrose -- yes, yes... Camp Inspiratum with Chuck and Marek and The Exploratorium and so forth. Since I like to rotate among my favorite camps, I may be back there in a couple of years!

Opera is indeed a unique musical form.
I may be technically wrong, but I have always thought of the human singing voice as a musical instrument, rather than a storytelling device. To hear a story, I generally prefer to hear a poem or simply a spoken story. Put another way, when I listen to a song, I listen more to the sound than to the words. Opera is of course the most advanced form a human-voice music. (Silly idea, heh? )

So... what do you want to do with your piano? Can you bring it to Camp Inspiratum? If it's in tip top playable condition, it ought to be put to use.

I can neither sing nor play, but I sure can listen. I think I have heard of the Playa Choir -- perhaps you can tell us more. A burner called VeganChoirGirl is lurking around here somewhere.

[theCryptofishist]

Another idea to throw into the mix, which has worked very well for me at many events, is an 80s singalong.
Many people seem to know and love that repertoire.
Songs such as "Take On Me", "Jesse's Girl", "Jenny (867-5309)", "Take Me Home Tonight", "Livin On A Prayer", etc.

And what circle of hell did you crawl out of?

[Elliot]

I try not to judge anybody's choice of music, but since you bring it up.... I've been kind'a hoping Talito was kidding.

[talito]

Judge away! I take no offense about that kind of stuff. Especially when it comes to Burning Man.

I'm a child of the 80s, was raised on that music, as well as classical. I've been playing piano for almost 30 years, and currently work professionally as a composer/arranger/producer/pianist/teacher...and to me the genre is irrelevant as far as "quality" goes. Approaching music with a purist's stylistic hierarchy with classical/opera at the top and others below it makes no sense to me.

My personal listening taste generally leans towards jazz and classical, but not far behind are many others - funk, afro-cuban, brazilian, electronic, folk, rock, etc.

In any event, fret not fellow burners, I won't be forcing my ideas on anyone. I'm down with keeping it pure opera if that's the consensus.

[Elliot]

Talito, you have given me courage! I shall now confess my dark secret to the multitudes of the Burning Man Community -- The one album I would take with me to solitary confinement for the rest of my natural life: Fleetwood Mac's Rumours.

Also, please note that I put at least two qualifiers in my silly statement above. Now that I think about it, there are even Fleetwood Mac tunes that "do not measure up". Quality is quality in any genre, indeed.

Have you made contact with Sophia yet?

[talito]

Ha!

Elliot, No need to hide your love for Fleetwood Mac. Rumours is a beautiful piece of music. Maybe we can do a few songs from the album at BRC?

[C.O.L.A.H.]

Pinemom-- if you have a piano in the Booby Bar this year, I'll bring my voice AND my boobs to your camp!

Also, the idea of an electric violin is awfully exciting, seeing as I am on the hunt for live strings to play with my electronica/strings/vocal set at the Transmorphogon! This one is a little harder to put together but if the violinist is interested-- it's extremely simple string parts and about a 25 minute set. It would happen on Monday night or Tuesday day/night. Please let me know, thank you

Talito-- PMed you about piano wondrousness. As far as the '80s music goes, that is the situation I found myself in last year, at the end of the week with a dust-broken voice but a strong desire to sing my little heart out. The area around 8:30 and H got to hear me warbling "It's time for the GOOD TIMES!! Forget about the BAD TIMES! Just seven days to come together to release the pressure! IT'S TIME TO CELEBRATE!" while wandering around in a dust-covered haze.

Um...

[talito]

C.O.L.A.H. , that is a great picture you paint! I wish I could have witnessed that in person.

[Elliot]

Update on my piano situation:

I will have a big tall upright piano in Kamp Apokiliptika's Kantina, in Terminal Village, at A & 3:15. It is on wheels, so they may move it out on the street and what-not.

I will have a big tall upright piano in Kinetic Cab Company, on Esplanade at 9. That's where I will be camping. Not sure if the piano will be in camp, or in our exhibit across Esplanade.

I will have a portable piano to tow anywhere (within reason). I expect to use my four-person pedal-vehicle for this. It will be a spinet, for light weight, but I just don't have time and money to get my motorized Mutant Vehicle finished this year.
One confirmed appearance or the portable piano is the E-playa Meet-N-Greet on Thursday evening at Barbie Death Camp And Wine Bistro.

I am definitely open to setting up other scheduled singing-and-playing sessions!

[talito]

Oooooh baby!

I would love to schedule another singalong.

Also, COLAH and I were planning on performing together. Can't wait to hear her sing her heart out.

Looks like I'll be camping with BRC Center for Unlearning located at 3:00 / D, but of course we can set up our singalong anywhere. I'll also have my keytar for some electronic flavor.

[Elliot]

Also, COLAH and I were planning on performing together. Can't wait to hear her sing her heart out.

You two set a time and place, and I'll show up with the piano. Assuming that time slot is not already taken, of course. (Thursday afternoon and evening is packed.)

Or hold it at my place, Esplanade & 9, if you wish.

[talito]

Excellent!

I'll get in touch with her, and we'll coordinate time/place with you.