Home from Home?

As I was running through the Rosenstein Park last night, trying to grab at some ideas for this weeks post, I realised that I am quite fond of this little corner of Germany, of Stuttgart.

To me Stuttgart feels small, particularly as a Londoner, and if I was here on a year long experiment trying to experience the great German night life then Stuttgart wouldn't be high on my list of cities to visit. It is, though, a well formed city, with strong culture, a few nice places to eat out, good shopping areas and a surprisingly good mix of old and new architecture.  The public transport is good and when it isn’t then nowhere is far to walk to anyway.  

The position of my flat is very convenient, which helps a lot. I am no more than twenty minutes walk from the centre of town, there is a big park 5 minutes away, there are backerei and mini-markts scattered around and if I want to get out of the city, half an hour walk over the hills and I find myself in the surrounding forests.  

Yet Stuttgart is not home and the realisation that I won’t be here beyond the next 6 months doesn’t help this fact.

Boarding School

I am quite good at not being at home. Having first started at boarding school as a 7 year old trainee St. Paul’s Cathedral choirboy, I have had 21 years to get used to being away from family and home comforts. Such experiences as a young child have enabled me to settle quickly wherever I happen to be, something that is useful in this sometimes nomadic life of an Opera singer.

A lot has changed in those 21 years and the internet likes to make us think the world is a smaller, more accessible place than ever before. What the internet doesn’t do is enable you to have those normal conversations you have with family and friends when you are just sitting around, watching Top Gear or having food. Despite all the Facebook posts and hashtags, the internet is no substitute for real human contact and in truth hanging onto what friends and family are doing through social media can make one feel further from home instead of nearer to it.

It was good then, this week, to have some familiar faces turn up in Stuttgart for auditions at the House. Nice to be able to show them Stuttgart, and nice to be able to chat about things back in the UK.

Opera studio auditions

With my friends over in Stuttgart this week, I realised it is a year since my own Stuttgart Opera Studio auditioning experience. What a year it has been, and I still can’t quite believe I am here now having been at such a low ebb for much of 2013. I would encourage any of you who happen to be auditioning at the moment to persevere, not be too down trodden by any rejection and look forward to the next opportunity.

I have to remind myself of this all the time, last weeks audition cancellation being a good example. There is nothing I could have one about it and though I was frustrated such feelings are wasted energy. Now this week three other audition opportunities have come my way, which is great and a great relief, and obviously I feel really excited about it.

The Now

In a career where one is always looking to the next audition, competition, concert, city etc. It is easy not to enjoy the now. My run last night not only helped me realise how much I like Stuttgart, it also helped me realise how much I am enjoying the work at the moment.

The show I am currently rehearsing, Il Vologeso by Jommelli, has a great cast of singers and a really positive production team, including the Intendant Jossi Wieler. With such a small role to play, rehearsals can often feel long and drawn out, yet with Jossi and Sergio Morabito, his long time directing partner, even the two guards are made to feel integrated into the production.  The importance of us guards to develop our own characters through the plot has been emphasised and any danger that we were just going to come on for 2 minutes to sing our little quartet and disappear to be forgotten has dispersed.

Away from the Jommelli I continue to work on learning Cosi Fan Tutte, which I understudy in later in the season. I just love the music so much and in contrast to Jommelli, who was writing around the same time, Mozart is such fun to play and sing through.  I say play, my keyboard skills make the playing of Mozart more comedic than it should be, but fortunately this morning I have a coaching on it so I can concentrate on just singing!

I am also learning music for some upcoming concerts, both here in Stuttgart with the Opera studio, and back in England. I am really looking forward to performing Messiah on the 8^th of March at the Leith Hill Music Festival. This festival, no more than 5 miles from my secondary school,  is 110 years old this year and the conductor of the first concert was Ralph Vaughan Williams. I was always aware of the festival when I was at school and there is a buzz amongst the local musicians when it comes around each year. This year I am singing in it for the first time and am lucky enough to be in two concerts with them, including Messiah.

No Football

There was no football this week. Though I was free to play, the orchestra had a stage and orchestra rehearsal which clashed with their regular football slot. The Opera house must plan better in the future.  Maybe I should send them a quick email, they obviously don’t realise how much I enjoyed it.

In the meantime, hope you have a great week. Until next time,

Tom

Ps. Health check I am fitter than before, but his week the weight hasn’t changed. Must try even harder. 

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