Opernunterricht: Von Würzburg nach Lissabon

Tenor Mathew Habib gab Kindern zwischen 4 und 18 Jahren Einblicke in die Welt der Oper
Im Februar dieses Jahr besuchte Musiktheater-Ensemblemitglied Mathew Habib eine Internationale Schule in Lissabon. Nachfolgend ein Erfahrungsbericht von Mathew Habib über seine Arbeit in Portugal

In February, I visited Carlucci American International School of Lisbon (CAISL). Over two days I gave presentations, workshops, masterclasses, and concerts for kids ages 4-18.

On day one I gave a presentation called, “Opera Man”, for kids in grades 3-5. During this presentation, I talked about what is opera, sang opera arias and led the kids in a discussion about what they noticed in the music, like dynamics, tempo, poetry, and style.

Later that day I was busy preparing a musical theater piece with the middle and high school choirs. Each individual choir performed, “Sit down you’re rocking the boat”, from the musical Guys and Dolls for the younger aged kids. I was the featured soloist. Before the younger kids arrived for the performance, both classes rehearsed the music, dance routine, and performance style.

Day two was set up more for teaching. In the morning I was able to work with the musical theater class on their upcoming production of, ‘Moana’. The class involved lessons and exercises in acting, diction, dance, singing, and working as a team.

Later that day I taught a small group about vocal coaching. This was highlighted by one of the students who prepared an Italian aria for the class.

To finish off the day, I worked with the parents! A small group came in to see the, ‘Opera Man’, presentation and to have a detailed discussion about the world of classical music, and how to best prepare their kids for the future.

None of this would have been possible without the many efforts of my former teacher and friend, James Rode. He works for CAISL as their choir teacher. Mr. Rode made all the lesson plans for each day, created the PowerPoint for all the presentations, and accompanied me on the piano for all performances.