Dear Editor: Please advertise ALL auditions in the magazine. What a pain it is to have to search them out online.
—Name Withheld, Shippensburg, PA
We would like to, since many singers still don’t have online access. However it isn’t possible, since many companies don’t decide to audition until the last minute. The auditions go up on the web, occur and are over before the magazine ever gets printed. Many more auditions are online [www.classicalsinger.com] than ever see the pages of the magazine.
Dear Editor: Loved the Susan Larson article [“Faded Queen of Song,” October 2002, p.12]. I’ve admired her singing and her writing for quite a while now. She’s a courageous person who still has a beautiful voice—be it nowadays in print rather than in song.
—Maria Tegzes, Valley Stream, NY
Dear Editor: I appreciate the honest information that is published in your articles, and I feel that there is a real variety of pertinent subjects covered. I would like to see articles on the issue of people wanting quality entertainment but not wanting to pay for it. It’s amazing how some of the wealthiest people can be the cheapest in acquiring entertainment. Singers make people feel good, uplift their hearts and souls, and can even heal others! Surely, this is a very valuable public service!
—Name withheld, OR
Dear Editor: It would be wonderful to have an article on the Cleveland Institute of Music Art Song Festival. Every other year two major artists perform recitals with their respectively famous pianists, and they do masterclasses for ten singer/pianist teams that are selected through auditions in New York and Cleveland. I founded this festival in 1985.
—Mr. George Vassos,
Cleveland Institute of Music
Your letter and the October issue with Stephanie Blythe on the cover must have crossed in the mail, because she was interviewed while a resident artist at your wonderful festival this year. We printed two photos of Miss Blythe coaching tenor Sheldon Hughes at one of the masterclasses. Congratulations on starting such a successful program! —Editor
Dear Editor: I thoroughly enjoy the breadth as well as the focus you give to various topics. All of my students are encouraged to subscribe as soon as they can afford it or to request subscriptions for birthdays or Christmas. Universities for the most part offer a limited view of the world of singing, and your magazine is an eye-opener to the “business.”
—Linnie Garner, Hattiesburg, MS
Dear Editor: I’ve been a subscriber to CS magazine for about nine years. For all of those years I’ve found the magazine insightful, informative, educational and entertaining. CS is the only magazine of its kind, and it addresses just about every concern, worry, problem or need that a singer might have. Yes, it is a costly magazine but it is an investment (and a tax deductible one at that) worthy of the sacrifice.
—Barbara Divis, Plainview, NY
Dear Editor: Thank you for a wonderful magazine: helpful, insightful, honest. You deal with topics that otherwise could only be discussed through word-of-mouth, and that not very reliably. You are right not to spend too many resources on review, although I realize there is a shortage of reviewers. Perhaps just short blurbs on various performances (those not likely to be reviewed elsewhere—i.e. don’t cover the Met.)
—Donna Wolansky, Bogota, NJ
Dear Editor: I appreciate the competition information. I wish you would include more discussion of singing technique, especially in the interviews with singers. I want to know what they feel and think about when they sing—less dribble about dealing with fame and abuse.
—Name withheld, Lakeland, FL
Dear Editor: I appreciate your candid articles about university vocal programs. I received my Master’s in voice from Indiana University and was glad that your article brought to light both the negative and positive aspects of the school. I have found it true that if you can survive IU, you can survive anywhere. It’s much easier to put together a recital, find teachers, coaches and pianists outside of IU.
—Name Withheld, NC
Dear Editor: Your magazine is a great resource, but it is seriously overpriced. Most of us are poor young singers with very little extra money to spend. For $52 we could have two opera scores or two opera CDs, but instead we get 10 issues of your magazine.
—Kyle Ferrill, Tallahassee, FL
You’re the only one who can decide if you are getting more value from the auditions and career information in the magazine than you would from two CDs. (And it’s 12 issues a year, not 10, by the way.) But you’d understand why CS costs more than, say, Reader’s Digest if you thought about it for a minute. Think about the salaries of our staff and costs of printing, first class postage and general costs of running a business. Then think about the limited audience of Classical Singer magazine. You’ll understand that the cost can’t be spread over several million readers. We are very lucky that we have advertisers who bear some of the costs.
—Editor
Dear Editor: I thoroughly enjoy your magazine, because it explores every issue affecting the singer today. I really enjoyed your college spotlight series this summer—it gave me a wonderful look at some of the best places to study voice. Thank you!
—Name Withheld, Tempe, AZ
