Dear colleagues

I wish to inform you about a summer workshop that will take place next July
in Co. Dublin.

The opera workshop is based on a handbook written by Maestro Angelo
Sturiale, who will be the facilitator. His work is a resumé of techniques,
advice and practical suggestions for opera singers of all nationalities who
wish to learn or improve their pronunciation of the Italian language either
for professional or personal use.

 In order to achieve a satisfactory level of interpretative consciousness,
both handbook and workshop have been conceived to lead singers gradually to
the dramaturgical command of the characters they play. Through an analysis
of the linguistic structure of the verses, a series of exercises has been
developed such that the singers can both recognise and memorise the
pronunciation rules of the Italian language used in arias or opera
librettos.

 Other than making use of practical phonetic examples inspired by
onomatopoeic sounds and even everyday noises, the main kind of exercise
employed in the workshop consists of the transcription in western music
notation of the linguistic problem or "mistake" to be overcome, such that
the singers can approach difficulties as they normally do when start
studying a new piece of music.  Rather than learning abstract phonetic
rules, singers will address and solve the most common phonetic pronunciation
problems through easy-to-repeat musical exercises that can be revised even
at home or during a break!

 The workshop will therefore be of particular help to singers who experience
difficulties with aspects of accentuation, rhythm, syllable duration of the
Italian language. Particular attention will be given to singers who want to
solve typical pronunciation problems coming from their specific mother
languages. The workshop will also focus on specific subjects such as the
metrics and prosody of an opera's libretto and arias as well as the
relationships between the meaning of the text and the body movements needed
to enrich the communication of the text itself.

 Thanks to a humorous approach to phonetics, the workshop can be of use to
singers but also to musicians who want to improve their Italian
pronunciation through music.  Some of the  musical exercises presented
during the workshop will also be useful in solving particular problems of
the spoken language such as prosodic distributions of stresses and pauses
and intonation.


Regards,

Tiberio Snaidero
Courses Co-ordinator
The Italian College
www.theitaliancollege.com