Award Date

May 2023

Degree Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA)

Department

Music

First Committee Member

Alfonse Anderson

Second Committee Member

Linda Lister

Third Committee Member

Monica Williams

Fourth Committee Member

Kimberly James

Fifth Committee Member

Spencer Baker

Sixth Committee Member

Joe Bynum

Number of Pages

111

Abstract

A prevalent way to enter the opera industry in the 21st century is through participation in young artist programs (YAPs), which are stable and consistent employment opportunities designed by opera companies to train and nurture emerging talents. To be considered by such companies, each applicant goes through the audition process, which requires each applicant to submit an aria package. An aria package consists of four to five pieces that best display the applicant’s abilities and artistry. Based on Wolf Trap Opera’s aria frequency lists, I selected several popular audition arias and carried out an in-depth analysis. The analysis includes a series of extrinsic and intrinsic factors that influence one’s performance, and how it is perceived. Such factors include but are not limited to, vocal, physical, psychological challenges, marketability, employability, and the reason behind their popularity. I hope to create a framework for singers and voice teachers to use when selecting audition repertoire because there are additional factors to be considered in an audition setting. A standard framework can provide assistance to emerging artists and voice teachers during the selection process, as well as transparency amongst applicants in the audition circuit.

Keywords

arias; exploration; opera; popular; selecting audition repertoire; tenor

Disciplines

Theatre and Performance Studies

File Format

pdf

Degree Grantor

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Language

English

Rights

IN COPYRIGHT. For more information about this rights statement, please visit http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

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