December 19 - my last voice lesson of the Fall Semester and the last "class" of the semester at that. YAY! I'm officially on Winter Recess. It's been kind of a different semester for me. I was busy - but not as overwhelmed "busy" as I was during my masters. I almost feel a bit busy. But 3 less credits (which is three less courses because most of our courses are 1 credit each) will do that to you.
Since I, again, haven't written in nearly a month I'll retrace my steps back to the beginning of the December.

December 1 - I remember this day clearly because when I got up at 7:30 in the morning to run it was 65 degrees outside and I ran alongside the Charles River in shorts and a sports tank-top. Eventually - that day (and the day before) were both balmy - springlike days reaching into the 70's. "Welcome Global Warming". BUT then it got cold Friday night and into the weekend.
I also remember this weekend because my oldest friend Sarah (not "old" as in like 95 years old - but the friend I've known the longest in my life thanks to those library reading times) was in town for some classes along with her colleague and friend, Heather. It was great to see her - and I remarked that she was very lucky because she was only in Boston for the weekend but in that weekend she was able to experience what it's like in Boston during the spring/summer and also the winter! It was a 2-for-1 deal! We had fun on Saturday night - went to the North End and had a good Italian meal and evetually found was, according to a local in their class, THE best pastry shop in the North End with THE best Canolis. Yeh... they were pretty good. After - Sarah and Heather and Karen (who met us for dinner as well) took a little night-time tour of Boston in the Boston Common/Downtown Crossing area.

December 7 - my friend Rachel's Birthday and a celebration at Algiers Cafe which is right in Harvard Square. I've lived in Cambridge for 2.5 years now and walked past the cafe probably a zillion times (well - not really that many) and didn't realize it was a cafe. But now it's one of my most favorite cafes here - along with Cafe Paradiso. They have food, and turkish coffees, and espresso, and desserts. Speaking of desserts.....
So I met Louis and Rachel at the cafe and then 3 more people from Fellowship showed up. We all ordered drinks and after recieving them someone asked Rachel if she had had a cake that day and I'm pretty sure she replied "no" because we all decided we needed to get a dessert for her. I don't remember exactly what was on the dessert menu - I think some normal things like a chocolate cake of some sort, maybe tiramisu - I don't know. But, there was something called Basbousa. Of course, there are no descriptions and we were all saying to each other "what's that?" So someone - again it was so long ago I don't remember who - said "That's it! THAT'S what we're getting for Rachel's birthday "cake". We're going to order it and no one is allowed to ask what it is. It will be a surprise." So, we ordered it and while we were waiting for it to come we had to go around the table and make up our own description of what it might be - but the rule being it had to be something completely farfetched. So we had "Carmalized Rat" and "something with mint leaves..." and the list goes on. I decided I wanted to liken Basbousa to a "seven-layer bar" only - the layers would be something to the effect of mashed potatoes, raspberry preserves, whipped cream, lamb, mint leaves, honey, and something else I cannot remember. (yes, I have a very short memory!!!) Would everyone like to know what Basbousa actually is?? Well - it's a cake-like dessert which uses semolina in place of flour. (semolina is coursely ground grain.) This dessert also had honey and almonds and was topped off with rose water syrup. It was, ummmmmmmmmmmm, interesting. I actually think that without the rose water syrup it would have been quite tasty - but from the get-go it had this aroma of rose perfume from the rose water syrup. It was quite sweet - which was fine - but then it had this after taste of, well, having eaten a cake doused in rose perfume! HAPPY BIRTHDAY RACHEL! :-)

December 15 - Schumann Song Cycle concert. It went so well and it was great to hear everyone's piece within it's cycle and also quite polished. I've written a lot about Schumann and this Song Cycle class in previous blogs so I won't bore everyone to snores - but it was just really amazing. The Frauenliebe und -Leben went so well and the way we performed it was really quite effective for both performer and audience. Just as a reminder - the songs in the cycle decpict the emotional stages of a woman's life from the time she first sees the man of her dreams through engagement, marriage, motherhood, and then finally - the very sad death of her husband. The postlude in the final song (mourning his death) is actually a restatement of the theme of the first song (when she sees him for the first time). Yumi and Bree and I shared the cycle - each singing 2 or 3 songs (there are 8 in all). Jane (our teacher) did a little staging for the performance so that as the postlude to the a song was finishing the next person to sing would slowly move into place and the next song would begin instantly without having the interruption of the one song ending, the person who sang it sitting down, and the next person getting up and getting into place. It was quite effective. Then during the postlude of the last song (Yumi sang the last song - she was AMAZING) Bree and I - at seperate times - got up and slowly moved and stood next to Yumi. There we were - all the stages of this woman's life - the young girl, the mother, and now the widow. It was really quite something. I felt
a little teary-eyed standing up there and even Karen said she got a bit misty ("a tear" said she).
So the Frauenliebe is not the only song I performed. I also performed Mondnacht which is gorgeous and very decievingly difficult. It's from his Liederkreis, op. 39.
Now that I have everyone interested in Schumann and his song cycles I can direct you to some good recordings to check out!
Schumann Lieder: Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau Deutsche Gramophone
Schumann:Liederkreis Op. 24; Dichterliebe Op. 48 and 7 Lieder: Ian Bostridge, tenor EMI Classics
Schumann Lieder: Robert and Clara : Barbara Bonney, soprano Decca

December 17 - Bree's Recital!!!! It was amazing and she sounded and looked so beautiful! Brava to her! and shame on all of you who didn't come and could have!!!! tsk tsk...
Also - that evening (almost immediately after) was the Vocal Chamber Ensemble class concert. It went really well. Karen and I sang our two Purcell (Hark! How the Songsters of the Grove and No, Resistance is but Vain), Faure's Ave Maria, and Donizetti's L'aurora. Again - it went so well. Our voices fit so well together and we were very happy with our performance. Some of which was the best we had ever done. We just got up there and had fun and we rocked!

And now - it's today. I'm leaving on Friday to come home. I can't believe this semester is over with already and that I have one more semester to go. Which reminds me - I REALLY need to figure out the rest of my recital. I have three sets down and two more to choose. Last year at this time everything was already planned out! Why am I so behind this year. I think - I need to be done with school. For a while. :-)
I hope to try and see everyone while I'm at home. I'm in Shelby from the 22nd-28th and then Columbus the 29th-1st. I leave to come back to Boston on the 2nd and then NEW YORK CITY here I come. Reminder: I don't have mobile service at my parents house so if you need to get ahold of me via phone call me at my parents house and if you don't have that info then email me because I do have email access. Word to the Columbus gang - what's going on New Years Eve???

Hugs and kisses and Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all. xxxxxxxxx