ARTICLES & REVIEWS
| OPERA NEWS Online IN REVIEW NEW YORK CITY June 2004, Vol. 68, No. 12 “Coming Home” New Triad for Collaborative Arts 3/28/04 |
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A fresh breeze blew into the song recital world when four singers and their four accompanists presented ... "Coming Home" at Manhattan School of Music's Greenfield Hall. The (recital) was very much an ensemble effort.
That all were particularly communicative was a compliment to the faculty of ... New Triad. This (program) was the culmination of ... a course that helped them analyze poetry, become aware of dynamics of partnership and teach them how to communicate through their bodies.
- Marylis Sevilla-Gonzaga
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| Classical Singer Magazine July 2004 Collaborating with Your Pianist by Laura Schiller |
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Virginia NATS Conference, Shenandoah University
March 2006
“Although a vocal recital is always a treat for me rarely do I respond with tears. No longer is the audience an outside entity struggling with many foreign languages to grasp what’s going on. Through poetry, music and singing the audience participates emotionally in life’s experiences…”
Karen Scott Hoy, President, Virginia NATS
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Debut at the National Arts Club, Gramercy Park, New York City
February 2006
“People…were very impressed by the concept and mission of New Triad. Congratulations and kudos to… New Triad on your wildly successful debut.”
Linda Zagaria, NAC Music Committee
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New Triad at the Texas Music Festival
June 2005
“…you brought each song new life just by instructing the performers how to relate to each other and the score as true partners. We must do more to bring this level of collaboration to our students, to our treasury of great art songs and to our deserving audiences!!”
Katherine Ciesinski, Professor of Voice, Moores School of Music,
Univ. of Houston
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NPR Radio interview with Dean Dalton’s, “The Front Row”
June 2, 2005
“… a very exciting approach to story telling. Cabaret song at it's best is to us today what these art songs would have been to people in the 19th century.”
Dean Dalton, National Public Radio (KUHF / Houston)
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Mid-Atlantic Regional NATS Convention
April 2005
"The focus centered on bringing the text alive for the singer and pianist, thereby for their listeners. Deeper emotional resources were tapped... in a much more simplified, accessible manner..."
Barbara Ann Peters, VP NC NATS
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Song Salon at the Residence of Shining Sung
(music connoisseur of New York City and Taiwan)
May 2005
“… it was an art song as it ought to be. The seamless flow of classical and contemporary pieces, poetry and ideas was the epitome of New Triad’s aim of reaching collaborative heights through that deft combination of skill, communication, and inspiration. They concluded to a soft intake of collective breath in the room, a sure sign of how surely they hit home…” Charles A. Riley II, PhD
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Classical Singer magazine article “Collaborating with Your Pianist”
July 2004
“In 2003, Shrut launched the New Triad for Collaborative Arts, an organization dedicated to introducing a revolutionary new approach for training performers to present song recitals and other live musical events as the moving and passionate experiences they were intended to be. “
Laura Schiller, NY freelance writer, choral singer and poet
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Opera News Online review
New Triad Recital at Manhattan School of Music
June 2004
“That all were particularly communicative was a compliment to the faculty…”
Marylis Sevilla-Gonzaga, Opera News OnLine
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ARTISTS' FEEDBACK
“Training a recital with New Triad is about using everything available to you on stage (your body, your voice, your instrument) to tell a story. It is an all-encompassing way of looking at performance that merges these art forms, enabling the performer to express ideas fully from beginning to end.”
- Melissa Snoza, flutist and Executive Director, Fifth House Ensemble
“To me the New Triad experience was the powerful reminder of ultimately what we are doing on the stage as performing artists — telling the story. That tale begins with the intake of air in the wings, with the first step on the stage, every gesture of our body is capable of drawing the audience nearer to our heart, to the essence of the music we play. New Triad’s unparalleled symbiosis of disciplines allows us to illumine our music making to the best of our abilities. ”
- Konstantin Soukhovetski, pianist, 2006 Participant in New Triad’s Audience Engagement Seminar in New York . Juilliard School's William Petschek awardee and 2007 1st prize winner and audience favorite The New Orleans International Piano Competition
“I learned so much from New Triad, it’s amazing. I wish all the instrumentalists could have this experience …it certainly made me realize how much of a human element there is in collaborating with other artists. The music is the result of the chemistry between people that is then transmitted to the audience.”
- Stefan Milenkovich, violinist, 2006 Participant in New Triad's Audience Engagement Seminar in New York, Professor of Violin, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
“This needs to be a regular part of every performance class and was never offered in schooling. Overall, it is sorely needed at all levels and ages of performers, including all genres: chamber music, symphony, opera – all genres.”
- Jill Marderness, Participant in Chamber Music America's 2007 National Convention Education Residency Institute featuring New Triad, Bay View Music Festival, bassoonist Arizona Opera Orchestra, member Quintessence chamber ensemble
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ARIA/ART SONG WORKSHOP 2009
Emily Roye (soprano): Of the many new things I learned in this New Triad workshop, I now know that it is that it is not enough to understand or even to “feel” a piece; you have to be able to physically express it as you perform.
Andrea Leyton-Mange (soprano): The biggest thing I’ve learned from this New Triad workshop, both from watching myself and seeing other people work, is that there is no barrier between performer and audience… it's always necessary to be specific about your dramatic and musical intentions.
Zander Ebin (tenor): One thing I find very exciting is the way that I've been able to use both my experience and my imagination to clarify the complex drama of each piece.
Sujung Jang (pianist): As a collaborative pianist, I learned a lot from New Triad about how to connect the story to the music and how to express it in my playing.
Esha Datta (soprano): The most important thing I learned at New Triad was how to communicate a character's struggle through clear actions.
Danielle Vita (soprano): New Triad has helped me to explore the depth of every character and their unique situations.
Suzanne Vinnik (soprano): In my study with New Triad, I worked to create living breathing characters expressed in beautiful texts and music.
Taisiya Pushkar (pianist): Having worked with New Triad before, I've had time to be convinced, over and over again, of the importance of their unique approach. Only after these workshops did I truly begin to appreciate how strongly our total connection to what we do affects our audience. I am grateful to the New Triad team for helping me develop this incredible resource.
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Texas Music Festival
June 2005
"What I found most compelling was the three-fold way of looking at connecting art, artists and audience. The preparation is so much more comprehensive than traditional curricula and places a focus on engaging the audience..."
- Dr. Tracy Rhodus, Director of Col Canto, Houston Texas & DMA in Voice Rice University
"It was very different from anything I have received in my college curriculum... I will try to use the new Triad principles every time I perform."
- Kisa Parker, Mezzo-Soprano, MM Candidate University of Houston
"I will never prepare another recital again without this foundation and ideal in mind. It was a way of refining the tools I have been given into something tangible and new. I have been liberated to explore all possibilities of presentation, and I will not abandon this approach."
- Lynelle Elaine Rowley, Soprano, MM Candidate University of Houston
"This was the most in-depth instruction I have ever received in collaborating with a vocalist. I began to see myself as can equal partner in the process. I can only imagine how helpful an entire semester of applying these ideas would be for...renewed musical emphasis on the text and also a stronger commitment to conveying it. It proved how cohesive, entertaining and meaningful a program can be."
- Melissa Zindel, Pianist, MM Candidate University of Houston
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University of Kentucky
Summer Opera Workshop
Sponsored by the Lexington Opera Society
May 30, 2005
"Arlene Shrut dissects every phrase and note while allowing you to put everything together, making your performance unique and one of a kind. I found the experience unlike any rehearsal I have ever had."
- Tiffany Morgen of Valdosta, Georgia
"It was a new view of music with good integration of voice and accompaniment. I felt my piece was turned into a completely new song with a goal."
- Jenn Gardner of Round Park, Texas
"Her ability to give me solid things that I could add so quickly was a great help. I loved that we worked on musical line, energy of the vocal line and the rhythmic "grid".
- Eldric Bashful of Phoenix, Arizona
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Song Salon Seminar
New York City
Fall 2003
"It has exceeded my prior expectations greatly! I never expected we would reach a level of depth that (for example) Juilliard teaches in getting their stage actors to connect to their work, but that's exactly what happened... stress on commitment and specificity with every word and moment."
- Spencer Myer, pianist
"I am so excited to be part of a program that makes art song more accessible to audiences. Vickie Karp brought incredible insight to text analysis. Arlene Shrut has an amazing sense for developing unity between pianist and singer. Debra Wiley's "Introduction to Theme in Recital" was a thrilling experience, introducing us to a new way of exploring music, transporting us to a level beyond imagination."
- Jennifer Beattie, soprano
"I know I can't have these kinds of classes anywhere else. The teachers are fabulous and enthusiastic. Friends have told me that I have been changed in a good way. It helped in my stage presentation and in managing my stage fright. My sound got a lot freer and warmer. I started to love myself much more through the process of the seminar."
- Kyung-A Lee, pianist
"It was wonderful to find great teachers who are not only experts in their respective fields but good people. Every week I got something from all the classes...sometimes it was from their content and sometimes it was from their "being"."
- Soyeon Kim, pianist
"I found all of these classes to be immensely helpful. The recital reminded me why I am singing and why I pursue music as a vocation. Arlene's realism combined with her idealistic determination to promote the recital form is truly inspiring."
- Amanda Crider, mezzo-soprano
"The seminar has been productive, inspiring, and, most of all, exciting every time. It is exactly the way I've always longed to approach art song. Faculty members were great, courses well organized offered in a friendly, encouraging atmosphere."
- Mee-Kyung Chang, pianist
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Colorado Springs Conservatory
"Me in My Song Seminars"
July 2004 and 2005
"I learned what it is to sing an art song. It isn't just about producing beautiful music, it is about really diving into a song and learning what it is really, truly about - telling the story. Ms. Shrut did the most amazing job playing everyone's music, and really creating that connection, between accompanist and the singer. What Ms. Shrut teaches is completely different from anything I have ever experienced in my life. I also hope that more students and singers are exposed to this way of performing. A brand new appreciation for music will emerge for both the audience and the artists alike."
- Nicole Burbridge, age 18
"I learned how to connect the performer and audience even if there is a language barrier. It was the fastest I had ever related to a song."
- Ashley Runingen, age 14
"I walked out with what felt like a brand new piece. It was extremely enjoyable to watch my peers and see the transformation of their performances. Whether we were 18 or 4, the teaching approach seemed relatable to all of us on some level."
- Nisa Ari, age 18
"I can't wait to do this again."
- Owen Murray, age 9
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AUDIENCE FEEDBACK
Ohio State
“I was delighted to experience a rebirth of the song recital with an Ohio State appearance by New Triad Artists last November. Gone are the days of reigning diva clasping her hands in ecstasy while expecting a captive public to lap it all up. New Triad presents musically gifted young artists who are encouraged, no, enabled to dig into music, text and above all, to context. Why these songs and poems were written, what the combination of music and words bring to the art form, and gives us, the audience, a platform on which to care. Encouraging young singers and pianists to explore repertoire and present themselves in new ways seems to me the mission of New Triad, a mission which to date is remarkably well served. Soon, we'll have new audiences, and soon, new young poets and composers will unite to expand the repertoire; presenters will catch on to dynamic and cost-effective presentations and audiences can sit back and kvell."
Christopher Purdy, Executive Producer
WOSU Classics Network
Dramaturg, Columbus Symphony Orchestra
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Colorado Springs Conservatory
“The New Triad System coming to Colorado Springs has given our singers and accompanists a new edge. In America, the Art Song is a dying breed because it is misunderstood. With New Triad, 5 year olds to 22 year olds at The Colorado Springs Conservatory were exposed to the idea that each song is its own story. Each song is like a short opera with a hero and villain and when the performers have an understanding of this, it is that much more interesting to sing and for the audience to watch. Coaches have been stressing this idea vaguely for years, but never with a system in place like that of Ms. Arlene Shrut.
When I came into my coaching with Ms. Shrut, the first thing we worked on was the text and its relationship to the music. Many coaches I have worked with have focused on the tone quality, the phrasing, and then get to the text at the end of the coaching. Putting emphasis on the understanding of these words is different. I had my translation of the text, but not necessarily an interpretation of the poetry in regards to the music. Ms. Shrut stressed that the piano line and the vocal line were a duet. The words accompaniment and accompanist are misleading because both the written music and the person playing the piano are just as much a part of the story telling as the singer. In listening to what the piano line has to say, I got a new interpretation of the text. Just like being an actor on the stage, it was necessary to listen to and stay connected to my scene partner, my accompanist.
In seeing the recital of all the kids that had worked with Ms. Shrut whom I had known most of my life, the advancement was stunning.”
Julie Silver
Lawrence University,
Alumna of Colorado Springs Conservatory
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PRESENTERS' FEEDBACK
“The exciting approach to art song and recital that New Triad teaches thrilled and inspired our students and faculty!...As a consequence, our year’s end juries were more artistic and interesting."
- Dr. Karen Peeler, Professor of Voice and Vocal Pedagogy, The Ohio State University School of Music
"One notable improvement was in communicating the text. The participants, both undergraduate and graduate, emerged as confident young artists.”
- Beth Roberts, Vocal Chair, Mannes College of Music
“New Triad gave the members valuable techniques for addressing long-standing communication problems, and went a long way toward bringing everyone onto the same page. The new energy in the organization is palpable.”
- Denis Colwell, Music Director, River City Brass Band