L'UOMO EMAILS THE MET
The Loggione is a topical blogsite which in addition to publishing articles responds to events as they unfold. These events often result in a number of ancillary pieces being published which add greater context to an article or series.
The MICS AND THE MET series has led to a number of these ancillary pieces being written such as THE CHRONICLES AND CONFESSIONS OF CASTAGNER and THE JK EFFECT. The Loggione has also decided to add this piece to the list allowing readers an inside view of events as they unfold.
Below is an email which the Loggione has sent to the Met press office. In this email the Met has been asked to offer clarification on two specific issues.
1) The Met has been asked to confirm or deny if a body mic was used to amplify Michelle DeYoung's voice into the house during its production of Tannhäuser in 2015.
2) The Met has been asked to make a distinction between what it defines as amplification and enhancement and to confirm or deny if sound enhancement technology is being utilised.
The email which the Loggione has sent to the Met is outlined below. This email was sent on March 18, 2021.
(Start email)
To whom it may concern,
My name is Brett Goulding and I am the author of the blogsite L'uomo del Loggione which publishes articles about opera. Currently I am in the midst of releasing a five part series titled MICS AND THE MET which deals with the issue of microphone technology within opera today.
The reason for my email is to seek clarification on the Metropolitan Opera's policy in regards to both sound amplification and enhancement.
As your records may reflect I was granted a backstage pass to the Met during October and November of 2015. During this period of time I saw Michelle DeYoung fitted with a body mic for the entire run of Tannhäuser. This body mic was only worn in the final act of the opera where Venus was positioned deep upstage on high scaffolding with two scrims between her and the audience. I was told that this amplification was required because Miss DeYoung's voice was not satisfiably projective due to the aforementioned reasons.
It's my hope that you might confirm these events and offer clarification as to why the amplification was required in this instance. Furthermore I would like to ask if you might offer clarification on the Met's policy regarding sound enhancement thereby distinguishing it from amplification.
Due to the fact that this is a matter of public interest I have included this email in the body of an article titled L'UOMO EMAILS THE MET which can be viewed on the Loggione blogsite. I will also add the clarification which you offer to the article, assuming that a response will be forthcoming.
I respectfully look forward to your response, which would enable the readers of the Loggione, many of whom are paying customers of the Met, to gain more clarity regarding these issues.
Regards,
Brett Goulding
(End email)
NOW IT’S A WAITING GAME
The Loggione will publish any email response it receives from the Met here. Until then the Loggione will defer to its readers who are encouraged to give their thoughts in the comments section below.
These issues have been debated in the comments section of the Loggione since October 24, 2020, where in response to the article HOW DOES JONAS KAUFMANN COMPARE TO THE GREAT TENORS OF THE PAST? extensive discourse ensued. In this exchange the protagonist and friend of the Loggione Philippe Castagner authoritatively proclaimed that the Met did not use amplification or enhancement. Since then Philippe has conceded that an enhancement system is indeed being utilised. However, he then went on to state that the Met does not amplify selectively and that enhancement systems offer no advantage to singers. The Loggione responded with the article THE CHRONICLES AND CONFESSIONS OF CASTAGNER which offered a detailed refutation to both of these new claims and requested a response. To date no such response has been forthcoming. Instead Philippe has stated that the Loggione has written these articles to create bitterness and outrage and then discontinued his commentary.
Is the Loggione creating bitterness and outrage? Is it reasonable to ask these questions? Does the public have the right to know the truth?
Let us know what you think.
Copyright Brett Goulding 2021
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