Le Nozze di Dan and Whitney

Hey All! It has been an uneventful week. Brenda has been busy with rehearsals and studying her role, and I've been catching up on the laundry and stuff. I'm very proud of how hard Brenda's been working. She has a lot to sing in this opera, not to mention a bunch of German dialogue to speak, and she is stepping up to the plate like she always does. She's a rock star from Mars. The opera, Die Entführung aus dem Serail, opens on Friday. If you want to read a little bit about the opera, and see pictures from Frankfurt's production, you can do so here. Unfortunately, Brenda isn't in the pictures on the website, but I'll let you know if that changes.

This Saturday we're flying back to America for a wedding! Our awesome friends, Dan and Whitney, are getting married on Sunday, and we're really excited that we actually get to go to the wedding. Brenda will be back in Germany by next Wednesday (the opera house needs her) but I will be staying in the US for a couple of weeks. Florian was also invited to the wedding, and he and I are going to galavant across the midwest in grand road-trip fashion. Florian has never been to the midwest, so I'm going to show him the big tourist attractions. You know, like the Mississippi River, and Chicago, and um, all of those other quintessential midwestern sights. Hmm, come to think of it, this could be a long two weeks.

I'm just kidding. I love where I come from and Florian will too. Or else. (We can carry concealed weapons in Iowa you know.)

I will be sure to report in on Brenda's opera and the wedding next time. Until then, have a great week!

Goodbye Strauss. Hello Mozart!

Hey All! Apparently crossing my fingers worked - or pressing my thumbs as Drew so rightly commented - because Frankfurt has been very sunny since Brenda and I arrived on Friday. It is a bit chillier here than in Bordeaux, but I'm not going to complain. At least not until the clouds come back.

I am amazed by how long a week can feel. Last Tuesday, I was sitting in Bordeaux looking forward to coming back to Frankfurt. Today, I feel like we've been back for ages. In any case, it is good to be back. My coffee maker and I are finally reunited, and Brenda got her 2-hour massage. The first hour was a Thai massage, which apparently means that some lady climbs on your back and does somersaults until your muscles feel better; Brenda loved it.

Anyway, Brenda's weekend vacation is over. She's already had two days of rehearsal, and has been spending a lot of time with her Die Entführung aus dem Serail score. In fact, she's with her score in the other room right now. I'm trying not to get jealous.

Speaking of studying music, I actually need to do a little studying of my own. Brenda and I will be headed back to the US in less than two weeks for a wedding (YAY Dan and Whitney!), and we're going to be singing for the ceremony. Hopefully I still have a singing voice; it has been a while since I've dusted off ye old vocal cords. I'm sure it's like riding a bike, or something.

Before I bid you adieu, I thought I'd post a couple of pictures we took at the winery in France.

Brenda and me. And barrels of red wine.

More barrels of wine.

The guy who gave us the tour.

That's all I've got for this week. I hope you are all great, and I'll talk to you next week!

wine-ding down in Bordeaux

Hey All! It's another quiet Tuesday night, at least for me. Brenda is at work singing the 4th of 5 performances of Ariadne auf Naxos. The first performance, a.k.a. the premiere, was a huge success for all of the performers. The audience hooped and hollered most loudly for the 3 main ladies: Elza, Heidi, and Brenda. I wish I could tell you that the audience loved the stage direction, costumes, and sets, but they didn't. I have never heard such loud booing in my life. Personally, I thought the production was pretty good, but what do I know? In any case, Brenda was truly fantastic. This role has some of the hardest music you can find for Brenda's voice type, and she knocked it out of the park. If you care to look at some of the production photos, you can do so here.

The day after the premiere, Brenda and I toured a genuine Bordeaux winery with numerous other members of the opera house. It was interesting to learn about how wine is made and all that, but I think the "wine talking-to-wine testing" ratio could have been tweaked a little. Instead of an hour-long tour with 10 minutes of sampling, 30 minutes of each would have been about right. I decided to keep my suggestion to myself, however. There was an undercurrent of contempt for American wines during the tour, so I figured I had better keep my mouth shut if I wanted to sample anything at all.

The grand return to Frankfurt will be happening this Friday. Personally, I can't wait to get back; I miss my coffee maker. Brenda is also excited to get back for many reasons, chief among them is a two-hour massage she has scheduled for Saturday. Believe me, she's earned it. So I'll check in with you next week from sunny Germany (fingers crossed). Have a great week!

a day at the beach

Hey All! It is Tuesday once again and things are quiet around our apartment this evening. It is the calm before the storm or, as Brenda may be thinking of it, Opening Night Eve. That's right, Brenda's show opens tomorrow and it's going to be a huge success ('knock on wood' - you can never be too careful). I've already seen the show twice and it is a good production with some fantastic singing. There was an audience at the final dress rehearsal last night and they clearly loved the show. They particularly loved Brenda but I'm sure you guessed as much.

Over the weekend, Elza and Isabelle invited Brenda, Heidi (one of Brenda's fellow singers) and me to the beach home they rent on the western coast of France. We spent two fun-filled days exploring the beach towns in the area, staring at the waves and, of course, eating. It was really a great weekend and a much needed mini-vacation for the singers that are at the tail-end of an intense rehearsal period.

A view from the house.

Brenda and I enjoying the ocean.

Brenda walking barefoot along the beach.

The weather here has been overcast and rainy as of late but, considering some of you still have snow, I won't complain. We have 10 days left in Bordeaux and in that time Brenda has 5 performances. That is an intense performance schedule for an opera singer. When we get back to Frankfurt it will be on a Friday and the following Monday Brenda will be in rehearsal for another opera. Goodbye France, hello Deutschland.

I hope you are all doing well. I will let you know how the first performance goes next time. Until then, have a great week!

jour de l'amour

Hello All! Things in Bordeaux are moving right along. Brenda is busy with rehearsals and I'm busy trying to find things to keep myself busy. Ariadne auf Naxos, the opera Brenda is performing in, opens in 8 days. That means it is going to be orchestra rehearsals and run-throughs from here on out. I haven't sat in on any rehearsals yet but I have a feeling the singing in this production is going to be amazing.

The dinner party we went to last week was really wonderful. You may remember it was in honor of Brenda's birthday. Isabelle and Elza had us over to their beautiful apartment and made an excellent vegetarian meal. Below is a picture taken during the festivities.

Me, Heidi, Brenda and Elza

Not pictured: Isabelle, Luc and Thomas

Yesterday, Brenda had a piano dress rehearsal of the opera. She was kind enough to take a picture of herself in costume. And I thought opera singers usually wore horns...

I have done quite a bit of walking in Bordeaux. I haven't, however, been very adventurous in my routes and have stuck mainly to walking by the Garonne and in the neighborhoods around the opera house. A couple of blocks away from our apartment is a travel agency with the image below on one of their windows. I must have walked by the store two or three times before Brenda made me stop and really look at it.

Now, I've never felt great about my geography knowledge. I've always assumed that Europeans would know where countries are located way better than I would. After seeing this, though, I feel a lot better.

Yesterday was Valentine's Day! Yippee! Actually, between you and me, I'm not all that into Valentine's Day. Too much pink and red for my taste. I have to admit, however, that this Valentine's Day was fantastic. Brenda surprised me with a night at a very nice hotel in Bordeaux. I've never stayed in a hotel that nice before but I think I could get used to it.

I hope you all had a very nice Valentine's Day (if you're into such things) and I'll talk to you next week!

Happy Birthday, Brenda!

Hey All! I made it to sunny Bordeaux. And let me apologize in advance; I'm sorry it isn't below freezing and snowy here. If it were up to me I would be suffering through winter with the rest of you if for no other reason than a sense of fairness. However, Bordeaux doesn't seem to be too concerned with winter fairness since every day I've been here has been sunny with highs in the 50s. The French groundhog definitely saw his shadow.

A famous old building in Bordeaux. They have a lot of those.

It appears that I'm terrible at getting over jet-lag. My sleep has been extremely erratic since arriving in Europe. Two nights ago I slept for almost 12 hours. Last night I couldn't get to sleep until 5 am. I'm hoping that I will get into a regular sleep pattern soon so I don't have to be awake when the young drunk people come wandering down our street in the middle of the night. Brenda isn't sure why there are so many young people living in this area of Bordeaux -presumably there is a university nearby - but whatever the reason it makes for some noisy early morning hours. I couldn't sleep for a few hours in the middle of my first night here. As I sat in the living room reading, I got to enjoy many French conversations going on in the street. At around 5 am I was lucky enough to hear someone thoroughly empty the contents of their stomach right outside our apartment. I can't understand much of what anyone is saying around here but that guy got his message across loud and clear.

Trees

I haven't had a chance to explore much of Bordeaux yet but what I have seen has been beautiful. Bordeaux is built around the Garonne River which isn't very far from where we are staying. Brenda and I have already enjoyed several walks along the river which also seems to be a popular hangout for the locals.

The Garonne River

Today is February 8th or, as it's better known to me, Brenda's birthday! She is spending much of her day today at work but we will be going to a small dinner party tonight hosted by Brenda's lovely friends, Elza and Isabelle. Vegetarian food doesn't seem to be all that common in France but Elza and Isabelle are being very thoughtful and preparing a vegetarian feast for Brenda's big day.

I don't know for sure what the upcoming week will bring for us. Brenda will have rehearsal everyday (except Sunday) and I will most likely be reading and exploring Bordeaux. And eating baguettes. Whatever we do I'll be sure to tell you about it next Tuesday. Until then, have a great week!

la neige (snow)

Hey All! Hope your week is off to a good start. I'm guessing many of you are dealing with the big snow storm taking America by, um, storm. I have avoided the snow for the most part but have enjoyed watching it come down from the comforts of indoors. Barring any flight cancellations I will be leaving for Germany on Thursday. I arrive in Germany on Friday and take an 8 hour train ride to Bordeaux on Saturday. I can't wait to see Brenda!!!

Speaking of Brenda, France seems to be treating her well. She has rehearsals everyday except Sunday and when she's not in rehearsal she spends time with friends and skypes with me. Skype is awesome. I look forward to exploring Bordeaux with her and taking a lot of pictures. By the way, weren't the pictures Brenda posted on the blog last week nice? She has a real knack for blogging. I think she should do it more often.

Brenda and I will be in France until the first week in March. I have never been to France before and speak approximately 3 words of French. (One of those words is cheese.) I don't know if I will try to learn any French while I'm in Bordeaux for fear that it will take the place of some of my German vocabulary (or English vocabulary for that matter). I'll just wear a beret and do my best to fit in.

I will be writing to you next week from France! Until then, have a great week and au revoir!