The Inner Voice : The Making of a Singer
by Renee Fleming
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Book Summary Information
Author: Renee FlemingEdition: Paperback
Format: Bargain Price
Published: 2005-09-27
ISBN: N/A
Number of pages: 240
Book Reviews of The Inner Voice : The Making of a Singer
Book Review: An Insiders Look At A Little Known World
Summary: 5 Stars
Often celebrity memoirs(especially those involving singers) are light gossipy and fun. Sure there's a chapter or two about the drug addiction and rehab, but for the most part the genre deals in champagne parties and red carpet fashions. As Renee Fleming warns us in her introduction, this is not your average celebrity memoir and Fleming is not your average celebrity. Rather, "the Inner Voice" is very much a portrait of an artist at work, as well as an introduction to the artistic and the commercial aspects of the career of an opera singer. Yes, Fleming does mention what it's like to do interviews and choose gowns for gala performances. But these are mere mentions.
The bulk of the book deals with Fleming's preparation of her roles as an actress and as a singer, from going through the score pre-performance, to interpreting the emotions of a character. She deals with the creative side of her work with more vigour than almost any other- how does an actress approach a role like Juliet or Ophilia that's been played by hundreds of predecessors? The question we learn is the same for an opera singer with one addition: how does one add something unique and individual to the music while still remaining true to what's written?
To answer this question Fleming takes us though her education from her early childhood music classes, through college, grad school, and her early career, introducing us to her teachers and mentors and sharing their advice. Other issues that are central to Fleming's memoir is balanceing her professional life and personal life (primarily as a mother), avoiding inadvertant damage to her vocal chords and living with the knowledge that if her voice goes, her career is over in a snap of the fingers.
Many people listen to opera and are unable to "get it"- to understand why it's beloved by so many. Fleming makes that love clear in her passion for her work and her description of the painstaking labor that goes into each and every element. First and foremost you come away with the impression that the human voice is an instrument just as much as the violin or the cello and that opera singers are masters of their individual instruments- a mastery that comes from decades of hard work. Even if you don't love opera after reading this, it's very hard not to respect it.
Nothing Fleming discusses in inaccessable to the layman, nor is it condescending to the professional or the connaiseur . It's simply a depiction of an art, and a profession which few people glimpse
Summary of The Inner Voice : The Making of a Singer
One of the most celebrated talents in today?s music scene, soprano Renée Fleming brings a consummately beautiful voice, striking interpretive talents, and compelling artistry to bear on performances that have captivated audiences in opera houses and recital halls throughout the world. In The Inner Voice?a book that is the story of her own artistic development and the ?autobiography? of her voice?this great performer presents a unique and privileged look at the making of a singer and offers hard-won, practical advice to aspiring performance artists everywhere. From her youth as the child of two singing teachers through her years at Juilliard, from her struggles to establish her career to her international success, The Inner Voice is a luminous, articulate, and candid self-portrait of a contemporary artist?and the most revelatory examination yet of the performing life.From Publishers Weekly Calling this candid account "the autobiography of my voice," soprano Fleming details the years of study it took to master the art of vocal production and the discipline that brought her international renown. A former manager deemed her "the single most ambitious singer he has ever known," and given the tenacity with which she faced early setbacks?"I have a noble history of being rejected from a lot of places," she writes?his comment is understandable. After her first big break in 1990 (as the Countess in Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro with the Houston Grand Opera), Fleming's rise to the top was steady. But she's quick to point out that the life of an opera star is not always glitter and glamour; the business side of singing?scheduling performances, arranging interviews and recordings, choosing a repertoire and marketing herself?is arduous. Although Fleming offers glimpses into her personal life, touching on her failed marriage and her loving relationship with her two daughters and concluding with a chapter describing what she experiences backstage during a Metropolitan Opera production, this is not a deeply intimate autobiography full of childhood vignettes, personal anecdotes and behind-the-curtains gossip. Instead, it's a realistic portrait of what it takes to succeed and a volume intriguing for its advice and honesty. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Interview with Renee Fleming 
Renee Fleming speaks about recent projects, including The Inner Voice and her recent Handel CD, in our interview.
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