A production on The Opera Atelier. Silvia Ludueña & Daniel Daroca. Playing or singing with abandon requires memorization. Memorization allows the music to live independently in the performer. Then it can be processed within and gain in richness, once the musical imagination is activated. The musical imagination works in tandem with the inner hearing ability. A fifth in the score may produce the image of a far away impression. Then, when playing, that image translates into a

Joao Pires faces a great challenge Pianist Maria Joao Pires was in for the shock of her life when, during rehearsal, the Conzertgebouw Orchestra started playing a concerto different from the one she was expecting to play. On the video you can intuit the surge of conflicting emotions within her. Thanks to her unusual talent and preparation, she was able to play the concerto she was presented with. Luckily, she had it in her repertory. Her talent, aplomb, experience and techniq

Clementi wrote his Gradus ad Parnassum as a means to facilitate playing proficiency through a series of etudes. And what are the steps the budding singer should take to arrive at Parnassus? Who are the artists to be emulated, which are the exemplary performances to study? Concurrently with technical training, musical understanding and eloquence should be developed through piano, solfege and musical studies. Learning entire roles, creating believable characters, and practicing