While we are waiting for it to be safe again to have public performances and rehearsals, I decided to create a fun performance project for myself from home. I’ve chosen 24 arie anthiche (literally: “old songs”) to sing while accompanying myself on the piano. These Italian songs and arias are classics of the vocal repertoire and are often used as teaching pieces. I learned several of them as a beginning student, and I have been playing them regularly with my own voice students for the past 12 years. I’m uploading one song each day to YouTube for the rest of the month of May. It’s not slick sound or video production; it’s me, a one-woman team, just singing into my phone because I’m a singer and I simply must sing, social distancing notwithstanding. My spouse helps with the page turns, which is MUCH appreciated. I choose a dedication each day. Sometimes it’s to a group of people, sometimes it’s one individual I’m thinking of, someone who has a special story with the song or aria in question.
The first video, linked above, is dedicated to my first voice teacher, Professor Linda Dobbs. Linda made it clear to me that in singing, simple and easy were not the same thing. “Amarilli, mia bella” is her favorite of the arie antiche, and it really can’t be matched for lush beauty and subtle technical demands. It’s an excellent teaching piece and a piece to grow with throughout a singer’s life. I never tire of singing it or hearing it, and I’ve been singing it for almost 20 years now. I hope you enjoy this first installment of 24 Arias in 24 Days!
