Puebla, Masterclasses, Uncle’s Birthday…
Hi there! I hope you are well. This week I started it in Puebla where I gave Monday and Tuesday Masterclasses at the conservatoire. Thank you Omar for the organization and for the support towards these classes. I had ten students and I can not emphasize enough how much I enjoy doing this. To understand each singer is a challenge and then to understand how is that they perceive the information given. Some singers are more about few words and more images, some others require a more physiological explanation. I am glad there are many things also in terms of interpretation that were worked during the course. I also really like discovering new arias and songs, specially of other voices. That way I also learn about repertoire I will never.
Time in Puebla was really special to me, last time I was there I sang a concert with my dear friend Elisa Avalos, who passed away almost 9 months ago very suddenly. This time the city although really colourful, it was to me a bit grey, definitely Elisa is missing in beautiful city. Omar (which is her husband and a dear friend) was kind enough to allow me to stay with him few nights at his place. We spoke a lot about Eli and in general how he is dealing with the loss. We spent time talking in several occasions and we had a very long lunch before me going back to CDMX. Many topics related to Eli were spoken, although very interesting and deep, I am choosing to keep them private out of respect for Omar and Eli. But definitely she is missed and the impact that she had on the people of Puebla was hug, both, as a singer and as a human being.
After coming back to Mexico City, I got stomach sick, therefore I was forced to cancel 2 days of Masterclasses in the city of Toluca planned for Friday and Saturday. I was sad to cancel the classes as I was really looking forward to work with the singers, specially because for the first time almost all the repertoire suggested was baroque and Lieder, which I love working on. But definitely, my health is first and next week I fly back to Europe and I want to be in good health as I am arriving almost already to a new production and as a freelancer I cannot afford to be sick otherwise I do not get paid. I hope to be completely fine my last two days in Mexico so that I can eat some Mexican food before leaving to Germany.
This week was my uncle’s Birthday, we had a nice BBQ at his beautiful home with some family and my grandparents. I am so happy to see some of the family in my final days here in Mexico. It is food for the heart to spend nice time with the family, specially the old ones. For me, that I live in Europe since 17 years, is really important and I really appreciate the little time I get to spend with family. This is one big sacrifice I am doing in my pursuit to be an opera singer and for a better life. Over the years the priorities are changing, the older I get the more family plays a big role in my life, and the wanting to be more balance between family and work. So far I have manage to come back to Mexico at least once a year and I plan to be more often in the following years, I am working towards it.
I keep doing my 4 times a week exercise routine and my daily reading, plus continuing with Kunde’s book. I hope you are well and see you next week.
