I am grappling for the right words to describe an absolutely astonishing turn of events which overtook me this afternoon. Strangely, the first words that come to mind are “a house fell on me today” – which doesn’t sound all that pleasant – but honestly that’s kind of how it felt. That’s how shocking and stunning today’s surprise was . . . but fortunately for me, it was perhaps the single most pleasant surprise I’ve ever experienced in my whole life. Here’s what happened. . .
First of all, I’ve been grumbling for a week now because other people have received their copies of the most recent issue of Opera News, which happens to be a special issue commemorating the magazine’s 75th anniversary – and I have not. (By the way, as I write this it STILL has not shown up.) In an act of real kindness and generosity, my Carthage colleague Sarah Gorke brought her own copy of Opera News to school today so I could read it and maybe smile again. As I paged through it, I was especially intrigued by an interesting, fun article by the editor-in-chief of Opera News, F. Paul Driscoll, outlining some of the things he has learned about opera and the business of opera since he began writing for Opera News back in 1990. It was an intriguing article and also quite accessible- and then and there I got the idea that it would be fun to do a morning show interview about Opera News and this milestone. (I was already planning on one of two opera-related interviews for next week in anticipation of a new season of HD movie theater simulcasts from the Met beginning on October 2nd.)
So I tracked down the phone number of the administrative offices of Opera News, dialed the number, and then explained to the man who answered a little bit about the interview I was hoping to do with someone at Opera News. Without missing a beat, he said “Let me put you through to F. Paul Driscoll. He’s the editor-in-chief of the magazine.”
(As if I didn’t know.) Whoa! A moment later, I was leaving a voice mail, explaining my interest to talking with him or someone at the magazine. (I was truly taken aback that my request had so quickly been taken to the very top.) I hoped that I would hear back from him within a day or two as I hung up and headed off to Carthage Choir rehearsal.
I was sitting on the piano bench, having yet to play my first notes of the rehearsal, when my phone suddenly began to vibrate in my pocket. I grabbed it, took it out, and was taken aback when I saw that the area code of the caller was 212. . .. New York City! I stood up from the piano bench, head spinning, and quickly whispered to Eduardo “I’m sorry – I have to take this” and raced out of that choir room like a sprinter at the Olympics. It was an odd sensation], to be moving that quickly! (It must have been a disconcerting sight – because Eduardo sent a bass out to find me and make certain that I was okay and not needing to respond to some sort of emergency.) And sure enough, there on the other end of the line was F. Paul Driscoll, editor-in-chief of Opera News magazine. And he was excited at the prospect of being interviewed by me about the magazine’s 75th anniversary. Yay for me!
And then came the part where a house fell on me – happily so! He asked me to clarify where the station was located, and I replied with my typical answer: just south of Milwaukee. (It’s easier than explaining where Kenosha is.) He then asked me if I happened to know of any free-lance music writers in the area, because the critic the magazine normally utilized for reviews of the Milwaukee Florentine would not be able to review a world premiere they would be presenting later that fall. Did I have any suggestions for him of someone in the area they might approach about writing this review?
It took me half a second to process the question and to formulate my answer: “Well, by coincidence, you happen to be talking with the CD and DVD reviewer for The Journal of Singing, the official journal of the National Association of Teachers of Singing.” I decided to leave it there- not saying anything along the lines of “how about me?” And sure enough, it took Mr. Driscoll about a second and a half to ask if this review was something I would be interested in writing. Of course, I said Yes – and just barely resisted the urge to add “O my gosh! This is something I’ve dreamt about for years but never thought could ever possibly come true ! ! ! ! ! ! !” I left it at a friendly “Yes” – but inside I was doing cartwheels over the grand canyon. And to make a long story short, it appears that I most likely will be writing this review for Opera News- and although there is no way to know if any other opportunities might follow this one, it will remain the thrill of a lifetime to see my name actually appear in the pages of this magazine which I have been devotedly reading for more than a quarter of a century.
As I hung up my cell phone and headed back downstairs to the choir room, I was flying more than I was walking – and as I sat there for the rest of the Carthage Choir rehearsal, I could not help but break into a broad grin, over and over again. I almost made an announcement to the choir, just so they knew why I had stepped out so abruptly and why I was now smiling in front of them with an especially intriguing grin. But no, that turned out not to be necessary. I sat there for a few moments thinking about famine, pestilence, and other earthly miseries just to tone down the silly grin on my face. . . but inside I was positively giddy about this – especially given how it came out of the blue as a complete surprise. Every so often life deposits a supremely wonderful gift right into our laps, and this is such a gift for me.
And that’s about all I know at this point. I know nothing about whether or not Opera News of the Florentine furnishes the reviewer with tickets, or if they are my responsibility . . . or exactly which performance I will attend (the performances are all over the same weekend that I am up in the Twin Cities) . . . and at this point I know nothing at all about this new opera receiving its world premiere. But those are questions for another day. Right now, all I can do is grin . . . and I’ve pretty much been grinning without ceasing ever since . . . even at the end of the day when I walked to my car in an absolute downpour (without an umbrella) – totally soaked to the skin. I just kept smiling and shaking my head in stunned wonderment at how ridiculously blessed I am, far beyond my deserving.
pictured above: the special Opera News issue lent to me by Sarah Gorke. By the way, Sarah is the first person I told this story to, and it was so neat to see her so genuinely thrilled on my behalf. On the drive home, I called Marshall, and prefaced the story with “you might hate me just a little bit for this” but in fact he was completely delighted for me. So was Trevor, who I called next- and he repeatedly thanked me for calling him with the news, as though doing so was some sort of generous act on my part. I ended up telling Kathy about this in person, since she was tied up in a meeting at the Racine Theater Guild as I was driving home. Telling her in person was better anyway, and she was thrilled not out of her own interest in opera or Opera News (which are both rather limited) but simply because she knew that I was thrilled. And I have to say that sharing this happy news with friends and with Kathy somehow quadrupled the joy of it.