Little Cahn Artists
I've always loved to sing. My brother Ulrik and I have been singing together and harmonizing our whole lives, first randomly around the house and later with the synagogue choir. It was the best way to be Jewish, we had to go to temple anyways, but this way we didn't have to sit with our parents. And we actually got paid. Also, because we're both so good at recognizing songs after just hearing the first few beats, we still play "Name that Tune" whenever there's music on. And it's highly competitive.
I suppose my love for opera was ignited in my teens. I was in a musical theatre group in Sweden when I was 14 or 15 called Miniteatern. Yes, that means "mini theatre" as in for mini people. Not short people, but young people. We were doing a show that was a compilation of different operas and I was chosen for the solo song "Mein Herr Marquis" from the Opera "Die Fladermaus" by Johann Strauss. I really really loved it and still sing it around the house in its original language. As much as I have ill feelings towards Germans... because of the Holocaust and such...they know how to write a good opera. I saw The Magic Flute in the Luxembourg Gardens in Paris a couple of years ago and it was incredible. And I'm still hoping to get to See Carmen at the Met which is actually playing two weeks before my birthday.
So this was something I added to the list. I wanted to get back in touch with my opera voice and my love for singing, beyond Beatles Rockband, and asked around for suggestions.
"Calvin Remsberg is a larger than life type character," said Luke, the person who referred me to my new voice teacher. Luke is not just a talented actor but an accomplished bicyclist, a lumberjack-shirt-wearing Canadian and an incredible singer. He referred me to two teachers but Calvin really stood out as someone who would be a great addition to the Forty By Forty project when Luke described him.
My first lesson was...larger than life. It started out with some vocal exercises so that Calvin could get a sense of my range. Momomomoms and nununununununs and lalalalalalalalas. And then I sang some songs. "Beauty and the Beast." And then "I Could Have Danced All Night" which I realized I knew in Swedish so the second time around, I sang it in Swedish, (a first for Calvin.) That's when a strange and foreign feeling spread across my body. It was a feeling of youth and happiness and love and it flooded my whole being. So, when we got to "My Funny Valentine" I was more confident and secure. As a result, both my throat and my heart were more open.
Calvin said I have a wide range...I hit a high C which surprised me....he also said I have a good ear. Which makes up for the fact that I can barely read music. Calvin was amazing. He's a very accomplished singer in opera and musicals as well as a great director. All in all, it was such a treat and I can't wait to go back next week. I'm not sure where this is all leading but I think this is one of those things I'd like to stick with for a while. Who knows? Maybe I'll be ready to sing an aria at my Forty By Forty Birthday Party? Until then I'll be momomomom and nunununununun and lalalalalalalala-ing in my car. Because it has a cassette player and that's what Calvin gave me. 'Cause he's old school.
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