{"id":165,"date":"2020-08-14T17:19:35","date_gmt":"2020-08-14T17:19:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/?p=165"},"modified":"2020-08-14T21:45:31","modified_gmt":"2020-08-14T21:45:31","slug":"virtual-opera-the-sound-of-music-during-covid-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/virtual-opera-the-sound-of-music-during-covid-19\/","title":{"rendered":"Virtual opera: The sound of music during COVID-19"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-audio alignleft\"><audio controls src=\"http:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl_mixdown_done.mp3\"><\/audio><figcaption>Mercedes Musotto is an opera director and conductor who is finding a way to still make music despite the impacts of COVID-19 on the performing arts industry.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap\">Mercedes Juan Musotto has conducted operas for years.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Musotto, originally from Argentina, is an opera director and conductor at both <span class=\"has-inline-color has-primary-color\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.smc.edu\/academics\/academic-departments\/music\/index.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Santa Monica College<\/a> and <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.csun.edu\/mike-curb-arts-media-communication\/music\" target=\"_blank\">California State University<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.csun.edu\/mike-curb-arts-media-communication\/music\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">,<\/a><a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.csun.edu\/mike-curb-arts-media-communication\/music\" target=\"_blank\"> Northridge<\/a>. She\u2019s the first Latina woman at these campuses to hold these positions.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As a Latina woman in a historically white-male dominated classical music industry, Musotto acknowledges that seeing a beautiful brown woman on the conductor\u2019s platform is something that is still not as common.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-large medium-wide\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"661\" src=\"http:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl001-1024x661.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-166\" srcset=\"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl001-1024x661.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl001-300x194.jpg 300w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl001-768x496.jpg 768w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl001-1200x774.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl001.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Mercedes conducting in the orchestra pit during an opera performance. (Photo by Clare Calzade)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSometimes people look at you and they&#8217;re like \u2018Oh, so you&#8217;re really a conductor?\u2019\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Musotto is no stranger to challenging the status quo and overcoming obstacles. Within the last few months, she\u2019s faced a crisis unlike any other before: COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Opera houses, theatres and concert venues around the world canceled their seasons until the end of the year and closed their doors due to COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Performing artists and musicians who make their living playing in gigs or shows have lost their income and <a href=\"https:\/\/nycfuture.org\/research\/art-in-the-time-of-coronavirus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">a plethora of theatres are facing bankruptcy.<\/a>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.npr.org\/2020\/03\/20\/818539329\/resources-for-music-businesses-and-industry-workers-in-need-amidst-the-pandemic\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Resources<\/a> like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cciarts.org\/California_Relief_Fund.html#:~:text=Innovation%20(CCI).-,The%20California%20Relief%20Fund%20for%20Artists%20and%20Cultural%20Practitioners%20is,based%20sole%20or%20collective%20creative\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">California Relief Fund for Artists and Cultural Practitioners<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.musicalartists.org\/membership\/agma-relief-fund\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">American Guild of Musical Artists Relief Fund<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.billboard.com\/articles\/business\/9337908\/coronavirus-resource-guide-music-professionals-help\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">others <\/a>are trying to help this industry during the pandemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On March 13, 2020, Musotto was minutes away from starting rehearsal with her singers and orchestra when she learned that their opera was canceled. Opening night was only two weeks away.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-large medium-wide\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"http:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl002-1-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-222\" srcset=\"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl002-1-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl002-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl002-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl002-1-1200x800.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl002-1.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Mercedes bowing with the cast during the <em>Serse<\/em> fall production in 2018. (Photo by Clare Calzade)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>She had to quickly find a way to make ends meet and teach her students. Both Musotto and her husband are musicians and part-time professors who don\u2019t get paid during the summer.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>One of the first things she did was create and sell \u201conline aria packages\u201d for singers who wanted to learn opera roles.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-pullquote\"><blockquote><p>I am getting a lot of pleasure out of finding solutions because I see singers happy who were going down in a dark place.<\/p><cite>Mercedes Juan Musotto<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The package includes learning two Italian arias, one in French, German and English, as well as Musotto\u2019s recording piano accompaniment tracks, weekly lessons, diction coachings and translated music on Zoom.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"722\" src=\"http:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl003-1-1024x722.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-223\" srcset=\"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl003-1-1024x722.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl003-1-300x212.jpg 300w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl003-1-768x542.jpg 768w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl003-1-1200x846.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl003-1.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Student Justin Haase watches Musotto on his laptop during an opera coaching with her. (Photo courtesy of Justin Haase)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Musotto also found a way to safely make music with others in her own home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She purchased a plastic curtain, which acts as a sneeze-guard between her and her students and bought a fogger\/ozone machine with an FDA approved disinfectant to clean the screen between singers.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-large medium-wide\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"557\" src=\"http:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl004-1-1024x557.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-224\" srcset=\"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl004-1-1024x557.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl004-1-300x163.jpg 300w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl004-1-768x418.jpg 768w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl004-1-1200x653.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl004-1.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>The plastic curtain that Musotto placed in her home acts as protection during lessons with students. (Photo courtesy of Mercedes Juan Musotto)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Even though her spring opera was canceled, Musotto found a way to perform it virtually.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She recorded piano and conducted tracks to send to the orchestra and singers. Musotto taught herself how to sync those recordings using Logic Pro and video software.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-video alignwide\"><video controls poster=\"http:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Opera_VideoCOVER.jpg\" src=\"http:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Suor-Angelica-by-Puccini-Finale-1.mp4\"><\/video><figcaption>CSUN Spring (Online) Opera: Suor Angelica Finale by Puccini <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>This upcoming fall semester Musotto, along with the CSUN Animation Department, CSUN Film Department and others, will put together the opera <a href=\"https:\/\/csunfunder.csun.edu\/project\/21644\/wall?fbclid=IwAR3_h3Qy7hh-4PNjOgwckLusgoV_sr8A-PG9E-2644IxWSY0jaeSv_BBh_s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Giacomo Puccini\u2019s <em>Gianni Schicci<\/em><\/a>, in an animated and virtual way. A task, she said, that won\u2019t be easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Using a MIDI keyboard, she has recorded each instrument one by one as a digital \u201cmock\u201d orchestra and then syncs it together. \u201cBasically only five minutes of music is about four days of work,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The entire opera is an hour long.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The animation department will create animated backgrounds while the film department records the singers individually, who will wear masks, on a green screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhen I first heard that that we would probably have to wear masks, I was like, \u2018ahh, how do you do that?\u2019\u201d She said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite these challenges, Musotto believes that COVID could have a lasting positive impact on the opera and performing arts industry.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>She said in the past that music students may have hesitated to audition for the opera, or take music lessons, because of the huge commitment and expenses, but now that lessons and the opera performance are virtual, the amount of musicians signing up is overwhelming.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Musotto said going to see an opera can cost hundreds of dollars making it a less accessible art form, which artists comment can create a historically \u201celitist\u201d audience, but COVID-19 could change that.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For example, major opera houses around the world, like The Metropolitan Opera, offered free recorded operas on streaming devices during quarantine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWhen I was in school, there was no way you could watch an opera if you didn&#8217;t actually go to the performance. And the ticket was who knows how much,\u201d she said. \u201cSo all of this that\u2019s happening, I think it&#8217;s positive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>COVID-19, while still currently devastating for the performing arts industry, may be the awakening and push the industry needs to progress towards the future.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignwide size-large medium-wide\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"697\" src=\"http:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl005-1-1024x697.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-227\" srcset=\"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl005-1-1024x697.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl005-1-300x204.jpg 300w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl005-1-768x523.jpg 768w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl005-1-1200x817.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/37\/2020\/08\/Xochitl005-1.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption>Musotto first learned the piano at about seven years old. After 10 years of lessons, she entered a conductor contest at age 16 and won. (Photo by Clare Calzade)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Musotto is eager to be back conducting in person again one day, but until then she\u2019ll keep the genre alive, virtually.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>CSUN\u2019s virtual opera project for the fall is currently holding <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CSUN-Opera-982258528633306\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook live virtual concerts<\/a> as fundraisers for donors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Donations will go to the <a href=\"https:\/\/csunfunder.csun.edu\/project\/21644\/wall?fbclid=IwAR3_h3Qy7hh-4PNjOgwckLusgoV_sr8A-PG9E-2644IxWSY0jaeSv_BBh_s\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">CSUN Opera Fund<\/a> to support the virtual opera and will compensate the opera and performing arts students during the pandemic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mercedes Juan Musotto, originally from Argentina, is an opera director and conductor at both Santa Monica College and California State University, Northridge. She\u2019s the first Latina woman at these campuses to hold these positions. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":375,"featured_media":257,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[20],"coauthors":[13],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/375"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=165"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/165\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/257"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=165"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usc2020.nextgenradio.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}