4 minute read
MUSIC FEST PERUGIA
Collegiate recounts journey to perform opera in Italy
By Jordan Riek (Epsilon Epsilon)
In August 2023, I traveled to Perugia, in the Umbria region of Italy with four other Mu Phi Epsilon members from the Epsilon Epsilon chapter at Texas Christian University. We were so excited to perform in the Music Fest Perugia where we would have a chance to sing arias in recital with full orchestra, sing in masterclasses and potentially perform in our first opera abroad. My trip was funded by the Ines Pratt Jamison Scholarship from the Mu Phi Epsilon Foundation. I am incredibly grateful for this life-changing experience and for all the support I have received from my Mu Phi family. I met so many amazing people and made such wonderful music while in Italy.
When we arrived, we traveled up through the Perugian fort that was built in 1540 to get to the center of town where we would spend most of our time. The town was absolutely beautiful and looked like it was straight out of an Italian fresco painting. We could see the rolling hills of Umbria and the whole town from our small hotel in the center of town. The food was also incredible. Perugia specializes in the production of truffles and chocolate. We ate a lot of truffle pizzas and umbricelli, a style of pasta unique to Umbria, made with sausage and truffles.
The day after we arrived, we had callbacks for the opera Le Nozze di Figaro. My friends and I walked to the oratorio for our auditions and performed our arias and the finale with a pianist. After our callbacks, I found out that I would be performing the role of Barbarina in Music Fest Perugia’s production of Le Nozze di Figaro with a full orchestra. I was overjoyed at this news and very excited to perform with many talented musicians. We performed in the most beautiful hall, called Sala dei Notari. The hall was covered wall to wall with frescos that even went over the ceiling, it was magnificent.
Watching my friends and fellow Mu Phi members perform beautifully with an orchestra was absolutely breathtaking. I am so grateful to have experienced this with them. We all grew so much as musicians and as humans while we were in Italy. We also got to watch concerto performances with an orchestra every night of the festival in which people from all over would play their instruments.
In addition to the opera that I performed with the orchestra, I also performed two recitals with piano. I had the honor of performing the Lamké “Flower Duet” with one of my best friends. We also got to work in masterclasses every day for three weeks and have private lessons with teachers from other countries. One of the guest artists who worked with us was world-renowned opera singer Eva Mei. She taught multiple masterclasses and had lessons in which she helped with my arias and my acting.
On August 5, I made my European debut in the opera. I performed with singers from all over the world including Uruguay, Poland, China, Italy, Slovakia and Israel. We did the majority of Le Nozze di Figaro, semi-staged, with a full orchestra and costumes. I vividly remember the moment where I took a deep breath and entered the stage for my aria, “L’ho perduta,” in the beginning of the final act. I entered through the audience, searching as I made my way to the stage. The sound of the orchestra flowed through my body as I sang my final cadenza at the end of the aria. This was genuinely one of the greatest feelings of my life. Nothing else in the whole world feels like performing with a full orchestra.
After the opera, we all ate together at a lovely restaurant and celebrated our performance. I made lifelong friendships from this experience and learned so much about myself as a musician and as a person. I have since grown immensely in my technique and musicianship. I also have even greater appreciation for my fellow Mu Phi members who traveled with me to perform at Music Fest Perugia. I could not have asked for better humans to accompany me on my Italian opera journey last summer. I am incredibly grateful.
