Photo of the Day — Day 230

Before I met S., I had seen a couple of operas, regional productions of popular operas, and I certainly enjoyed them.  Tonight, I had the pleasure of hearing S. and her compatriots sing a selection of opera pieces and other songs, a sort of opera “greatest hits,” if you will, and it was a treat.  All of the ladies were dressed for the occasion in formal gowns, looking quite lovely, and they sang their hearts out for an appreciative crowd.  Anyone who has tried to take photos of opera singers in action knows that it is definitely a challenge: the sorts of faces divas make when they sing are not necessarily photogenic, and since opera houses are large, the audience isn’t close enough to inspect the performers up close.  Add to that the poor lighting and cluttered background of the church where the concert was held, and I freely admit that it was very hard to make images that I found satisfactory.  Nonetheless, I wanted to share a few of photos that I thought captured, to some small extent, the intense emotion that these women managed to express through their performances.  All in all, it was indeed a magical evening, and I’m glad that I was there to capture a little bit of it.

Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church in Charlottesville, VA

Photo of the Day — Day 229

Tomorrow S. and the other singers in her studio will be holding a concert, and this evening they held a rehearsal at the venue where they’ll be singing.  It was interesting for me, since I’ve never had the chance to attend such an event.  Opera singers are pretty much by definition perfectionists — you simply can’t work that hard for that long to train your voice to that level without being one — so you can imagine that there were some pre-concert nerves.  I was struck by how well everyone did, though, not only in terms of how well they were dealing with the anxiety, but also in how supportive they were of each other.  S. is singing a few things, and she did an amazing job of evoking the deep emotion expressed in the music.  If tonight was any indication, they’re going to put on one heck of a show tomorrow!

Thomas Jefferson Memorial Church in Charlottesville, VA

Photo of the Day — Day 118

As I was walking back to my car after checking out the latest developments in the Occupy Cville movement, I heard some quite nice music playing, and it didn’t sound like it was coming from a car stereo.  I turned the corner near Lee Park and saw folks sitting on the side of the hill, listening to a mini-concert.  The musicians were playing at what is likely the smallest concert venue around, the Garage (http://thegarage-cville.com/), which is (as the name would suggest) a one-car garage on North 1st street that has been turned into an art space of sorts.  I’d never seen the Garage open before, but a quick Google search lead me to their website, which describes the places as an “art space/concert venue/amateur film theater/impromptu studio/potluck dining hall/etc.,” which sounds pretty cool.  I stayed for only a couple of songs before moving on, but I was definitely charmed by the idea of a tiny garage concert, and I look forward to checking the place out again soon.

The Garage on North 1st Street in Charlottesville, VA

Photo of the Day — Day 83

The Darjeeling Cafe (http://darjeelingcafe.com/) is really picking up steam these days: they have their liquor license, they have expanded their menu, and they’re  now hosting all sorts of events like open mic nights and spelling bees and high teas.  Tonight was an open mic night, and although I was only able to stay for the first couple of performers, I was seriously impressed by the quality of the music.  J., who with M.B. is one of the owners, started the evening off with some incredible singing, and the acts that followed kept up the pace.

This is my first attempt at concert photography, and the lighting — while nice and dramatic for the audience — was a real challenge for photography.  I want to work on improving my concert shooting, but these “rough drafts” will have to suffice as the photo(s) of the day.

Darjeeling Cafe in Staunton, VA