Sempre Libera: Day 3

Sempre Libera is officially done!

What a crazy and amazing experience it’s been. I must admit it was far more exhausting than I had imagined. The days weren’t particularly long, but the kind of focus and stamina involved was a surprise for sure.

Today we finished with the the last five arias:

“Vilja Lied” from The Merry Widow (Lehar)
“Sempre libera” from La Traviata (Verdi)
“Ecco ridente” from Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Rossini)
“Una furtiva lagrima” from L’Elisir d’amore (Donzietti)
“Voi che sapete” from Le Nozze di Figaro (Mozart)

Once again, the fast pieces proved the most challenging (Verdi and Rossini). The second session, however, with the Donizetti and Mozart, was the perfect way to end the process. Two beautiful pieces that went together really quickly and are always a joy to play.

Now we wait until we start getting edits, which should be sometime late in the summer. I’m glad it’s going to be a while. I need the break from the pieces so I can come back to them with a fresh ear and a clean head.

All in all, this was an experience like no other that was so rewarding for all of us, I think. I’m confident we will have a final product that we will all be proud to say we were a part of.

I have to thank Valerie Trujillo for her fantastic playing and unwavering support and friendship. I couldn’t have done this without her. And, of course, I have to thank Bruce Egre and Alan Bise from Azica records. These guys are great people, totally supportive and extremely professional. Finally I have to thank the folks at Goshen College. What a concert hall they have! A real gem. The people I met there were welcoming and super excited to have us.

So now we relax and return to our respective homes. I can wait to see how the disc turns out…

Of course I’ll keep you posted 🙂

Thanks for tuning in!

Ted