all done!

(written at 2:45 p.m. in the Calgary airport)

Well, it’s done! I think, all things considered, it went very well. It was a different audition committee this year, and they were not as friendly and chatty as they have been in the past, though that really doesn’t mean anything.

I had a moment of panic when my pianist (who came highly recommended) came in to the waiting area, introduced himself, and said, “Wow that’s a really tough Mozart piece you’re doing, eh? How do your other accompanists handle it?” (He was referring to “Smanie implaccabili,” which is tough, I suppose, though it’s also one of the most commonly performed arias in the mezzo repertoire. Luckily, we had a chance to talk through everything before it was my turn – he didn’t realize I was doing the recitative at the beginning, and the tempo he wanted to take was considerably slower than what I normally do. However, in the audition, everything was fine, and I breathed a sigh of relief. They were flying through people, generally only hearing one aria, and when I got to the end of Smanie, they heard part of “Things change, Jo,” and then it was over. I didn’t even get to do my monologue, which was a little disappointing! I mean, I learned one and everything…. Oh, well, maybe next time.

They chatted with me a bit after the audition was over, asking how I had heard about the program and why I was interested in doing it, etc. Then, I was off to a yummy lunch, and I will shortly be on my way home. A whirlwind trip, to be sure!