{"id":46595,"date":"2017-08-05T18:07:03","date_gmt":"2017-08-05T22:07:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/?p=46595"},"modified":"2017-08-05T18:07:03","modified_gmt":"2017-08-05T22:07:03","slug":"feature-bicycle-opera-project-pedals-hard-to-the-finish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/2017\/08\/05\/feature-bicycle-opera-project-pedals-hard-to-the-finish\/","title":{"rendered":"FEATURE |\u00a0Bicycle Opera Project Pedals Hard To The Finish"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Sweat,
Sweat, by Bicycle Opera Project (Photo: Dahlia Katz)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

N<\/span>ine opera singers, one trailer full of equipment, eight Ontario cities, over six hundred kilometres pedalled and one brand-new a cappella<\/em> opera. <\/span><\/p>\n

These are the facts and figures of Bicycle Opera Project\u2019s <\/span>Sweat, <\/span><\/i>an opera by Juliet Palmer and Anna Chatterton that caps off its Ontario tour in Toronto this weekend. <\/span><\/p>\n

When most people think of opera singers, feats of physical fitness don\u2019t immediately spring\u00a0to mind, despite the fact that opera singing\u2014like playing any instrument\u2014requires immense coordination. But the Bicycle Opera Project, founded by Larissa Koniuk in 2012, dispels stereotypes of operatic grandiosity as BOP’s fit young singers perform around Ontario without huge sets, technical crews, orchestra or in this year\u2019s case, even accompaniment. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe transportation helps eliminate some of the stigmas attached to opera and opera singers,\u201d Geoffrey Sirett, long-term BOP member and music director of <\/span>Sweat<\/span><\/i>, describes BOP\u2019s signature mode of travel.<\/span><\/p>\n

This year\u2019s Bicycle Opera Project production is the company\u2019s most ambitious to date with more singers involved than ever before. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c[Having more singers] is a bit of a logistical nightmare from a touring perspective,\u201d Sirett explains. \u201cSimple things like dealing with road safety or mechanical issues on the road. When there are ten bikes, there are twenty brake pads that can loosen up, ten chains that need lubing in the morning, twenty tires that might need some attention and air and all those things.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Mezzo-soprano Emma Char, member of the ensemble for <\/span>Sweat<\/span><\/i> and first-time BOP singer, reflects on these challenges from a first timer\u2019s perspective.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was really exhausting at times, biking all day and then having a show the next day,\u201d she confesses, \u201cas well as having to get to the venue super early to do tech things and adjust to the space and have a quick musical rehearsal. I found my body adjusted to all the cycling by the time we were finished.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Bicycle Opera Project is interested in more than just the physical challenges of biking an opera from place to place, as they aim to per<\/span>form new Canadian works that focus on current issues. So, w<\/span>hen composer Juliet Palmer approached Bicycle Opera Project about producing the Canadian premiere of <\/span>Sweat<\/span><\/i>, an a cappella<\/em> work that centres\u00a0around women in the textile industry, it was hard to think of an opera more perfect for the group.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Sweat,
Sweat, by Bicycle Opera Project (Photo: Dahlia Katz)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cIt seemed like a natural fit in terms of being easily transportable,\u201d Sirett describes of <\/span>Sweat<\/span><\/i>. \u201cIt also deals with something very modern and socially relevant, which has always been at least a part of our mandate in terms of introducing people to opera for the first time. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOur instruments come with us on our bikes, whether we want them to or not,\u201d he continues. \u201cThat\u2019s also impacted our trailer substantially. We\u2019ve always travelled with three trailers and this year we were able to compress [it] to two because we didn\u2019t have instruments to tow.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

But these advantages came with other challenges for the opera singers of BOP, many of whose repertoire focuses mainly around works by Mozart and Strauss rather than new a cappella<\/em>\u00a0works.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201c[In preparing this,] I had no way of knowing how the other voices would sound,\u201d Emma Char admits. \u201cPlaying notes on the piano didn\u2019t provide a good aural reference for me. It was really exciting to come to rehearsal on the first day and hear how it sounded.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe challenges are both for the singer and the audience,\u201d Sirett expounds. \u201cIt takes a while to adjust to a purely vocal environment. It can be a little disarming to not have the foundation; or at the very least a piano, if not an ensemble or small orchestra. You start to realize how much you rely on that as both a listener and a performer. It also means there\u2019s an extra level of intimacy.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Sirett also believes Palmer\u2019s a cappella<\/em> score adds particular weight in depicting the vulnerability of women in the textile industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn this piece, [singing a cappella<\/em>] is also a bit of a statement,\u201d he describes, \u201cin terms of giving voice to these women who, in our international discourse, go unvoiced and don\u2019t have the kind of support or foundation that might be associated with an orchestra.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The very nature of BOP\u2019s car-free transportation sets an example as to how arts organisations can leave less of an environmental\u00a0footprint, which pairs naturally with its production of politically-motivated works.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a synergy there,\u201d says Sirett, \u201cin terms of [our work] being both ecologically and economically sensitive.\u201d<\/p>\n

But, as with anything with opera singers involved, things aren\u2019t all serious. When asked if the singers ever practise their a cappella<\/em> ensemble-singing while riding, Sirett laughs.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe sometimes practise Disney,\u201d he tells. \u201cABBA seemed to be very popular this summer as well. A lot of people rely on 90s pop music to get them through the hills.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Toronto audiences have two last chances to see and hear the important work from\u00a0Canada\u2019s pedal-powered opera company.<\/span><\/p>\n

Cycle over to the Daniels Spectrum Saturday night or Sunday afternoon to, as ABBA would say, thank Bicycle Opera Project for the music.<\/span><\/p>\n

For more CLASSICAL MUSIC NEWS, visit\u00a0HERE<\/u><\/a><\/span>.<\/h3>\n

Want more updates on Toronto-centric classical music news and reviews before anyone else finds out? Follow us on\u00a0<\/i>Facebook<\/i><\/u><\/a><\/span>\u00a0or\u00a0<\/i>Twitter<\/i><\/u><\/a><\/span>\u00a0for all the latest.<\/i><\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Bicycle Opera Project cycles back home to Toronto this weekend, capping off their Ontario-wide performance tour of Sweat. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":48,"featured_media":46597,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[6439,4967,3693,43,63],"tags":[9715,514,1393,1802,9714,3367],"yst_prominent_words":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/08\/Sweatstills-photobyDahliaKatz-4950.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9bakr-c7x","amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46595"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/48"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46595"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46595\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46600,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46595\/revisions\/46600"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46597"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46595"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46595"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46595"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ludwig-van.com\/toronto\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=46595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}