Sitzen - (German) - verb infinitive, to sit
(das) Fleisch - (German) - noun, meat
Why are we talking about "sitting meat?"
Sitzfleisch is probably originally a Yiddish term, but makes sense in German. It is technically now even an English word, according to the Oxford English Dictionary.
It literally means "the meat on your butt." And I bring it up today because - it is at this point in the semester - where things get hard. If you don't show up every day and do the work, and organize your practice time, you will not have the proper amount of Sitzfleisch.
Why is a pianist telling singers to sit?
First of all, some of your music really needs to be plunked, sat about, and-or thought about, at a keyboard. And all of it could use seated-focused-at-the-keyboard work.
Here is a photo (I've heard they are worth a thousand words) of my activity this past week in Germany. You can see me on the right, playing the accompaniment. Why I love this picture so much is that is shows my beloved colleague, Tara, at the opposite keyboard, playing HER part.
In the photo, we are working on four arias, two of which we premiered last Friday. These were written by her husband. (These will be performed twice in Albuquerque in November).
These pieces are challenging for both pianist and singer. Rhythmically tricky. Sometimes the accompaniment does not generate the pitches for the vocalist. The texts are in several different languages. And not to mention - having the composer in rehearsals means that there "is no hiding."
- Posted en route
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