About book The Inner Voice: The Making Of A Singer (2004)
The Inner Voice is an autobiography of the soprano singer Renée Fleming. It shares her musical upbringing, the development of her voice, discusses her education and opera career, and provides a glimpse into her personal life through the personification of her voice. The book explores the aspects of a singing career and proves that one’s inner voice holds the same importance as the outer voice (or instrument or skill) and should always be considered – our business decisions cause a ripple effect into our personal lives, on our image and into the future. The reader sees this through Fleming’s account of the trials and tribulations she faced while auditioning, her failed marriage, and the death of her mentor. By removing the glamour and showing us the raw side of her singing career, Fleming makes something that most view as unobtainable and far-fetched seem like an everyday occupation, and her insight gives the reader inspiration to pursue their own dreams. Her message is simple: keep a positive self-image, enjoy what you do, always be persistent, and share your talent with the world. Having a basic foundation of music terminology and a familiarity of famous operas and their characters before reading the book will enhance the reading experience, especially in the chapters about her education, apprenticeship and roles. Throughout the book she will mention a role she performed (ex. Desdemona in Othello) but not discuss the character or the level of difficulty the role entails – that is, until chapter eleven. By that time you’re at the end of the book and have missed the intensity and understanding she was trying to convey by name-dropping. In addition, a knowledge of the opera houses from around the world would help in receiving her message, as she shares a lot of travel stories – another great opportunity for the reader to learn from her experience. If this foundation isn’t built, many passages won’t make an impression on the reader. I found myself stopping a few times and thinking, “Come out with it!” just like I did while reading the Twilight series (not that the books have any content similarities), but because the book could have been edited once more, and many superfluous lines could have been condensed or even omitted. This would have made room for the descriptions that are lacking, which would have made the story flow better between chapters. I would have liked to see more detailed descriptions of the opera houses where she performed, the outfits she wore, and the cities she traveled to. I do have to give her credit for making a semi-dry subject quite engaging by the way she personalized it.
What an inspirational, beautiful mother, actress, singer, and artist Renee Fleming is! I have so much respect for her after reading this book! Opera singers are incredible because they have SOOO much to learn and understand about their role before they can perform. It's amazing. Reading this book has only enforced that I have much more of a passion for music theatre, I'm so glad that I'm in the right place! haha. There are so many quotes that I LOVED in this book but I didn't have any stickies to put to mark them!! One that really stuck out to me was on page 182, "What we do is so joyous, so satisfying, we would do it for free. We are actually paid for the grief of leaving our families and friends." Fleming stated that that was said by a wise colleague. I loved how she talked about completely giving yourself into a role. How the stage is where all of your emotions come out, because I feel the same way. It's interesting the different approaches she was talking about to that. She said that one singer would cry, and get all of her emotion out in the dressing room so that she could portray it better onstage. I loved how she said that on stage we need to have the emotion expressed not only in our face but throughout our entire body so the audience can read the emotion. This book is so encouraging! It's exciting to know that someone who made it went through several obstacles before she went big. :) The copy I read is signed by her, because I went backstage to meet her after her concert at the civic center that I saw!!! She was so calm, and beautiful looking, she looked like she just got out of the shower! She was so gracious and nice, I love how she treats her fans. I'm so glad I have a signed copy of her book! It's a treasure, as this book is!! :) YAY!
Do You like book The Inner Voice: The Making Of A Singer (2004)?
Very enlightening! I found consolation in the fact that she also found the aquisition of a good vocal technique to be elusive, frustrating, and so mysterious. What this book made me realize and appreciate is that I was in no way cut out to be an opera singer. She details every aspect of a singer's life, and I am so relieved I did not desire or try to make a career in opera! I guess I finally feel vindicated for not trying to be an opera singer! Not only did I lack the musical requirements, but I would have been miserable with that life style.
—Sue
I picked this little gem up at the Strand in NYC, and I am so thrilled that I did. Although the personal anecdotes are very effective, the real value of this book is the real-world, actual advice Ms. Fleming gives to up-and-coming singers. She talks at length about her vocal and artistic process, choosing teachers, choosing roles, and managing the profession of singing. I highly recommend this title to anybody who has thought about pursuing a career as a singer, or anybody who needs some inspiration for their own ambition.
—Matthew
Renee seems to be an example of someone who is great at everything she does. And her happiness is inspiring. I couldn't recommend the book better than this: "a luminous, articulate, and candid self-portrait of a contemporary artist--and the most revelatory examination yet of the performing life." She is a brilliant writer and I love how she goes into detail about everything. And a quote from the book: "In the end, singing isn't a science, but a highly cultivated, almost perverse use of our natural voices, and it requires persistence."
—Stephanie Kreiner
