To kick off our alumni interview series, Daniela Magura spoke with CLA alumna Dorothy Gal. Today, Dorothy can be heard on the stage of the Houston Grand Opera as a member of the HGO Studio, a renowned young artist program.
Dorothy met Glenn Morton, artistic director of Classic Lyric Arts, during her first year of undergraduate studies at Mannes college. She shared with us that shortly after meeting Glenn, she thought to herself “I have to follow you around the world now”. In particular, she was drawn to his “insistence on purifying vowels and treating every note like it has its own world of colors”.
Dorothy followed her instincts and attended CLA Italy in the summer of 2013. For Dorothy, CLA Italy was a revelation in vocal technique. She fondly recalls her transformative work with faculty member and soprano Donata D’Annunzio Lombardi.
“Donata came at the perfect point in my development. She reevaluated her own technique midway through her career. Then, she had to take time to figure out the mechanics of singing and the relationship she had with her body. Singing is such a balance of freedom and physical strength. I’m always thinking about the things she said. It was about finding the deepest, innermost connection that you could make. It was eye-opening.”
Dorothy was bit by the CLA bug and decided to attend CLA France the following year. While Italy offered a foundation of vocal technique, Dorothy’s experiences in France expanded her expressive potential. She felt especially grateful to have worked with the late Michel Sénéchal, a renowned French tenor and co-director of CLA France.
Glenn and Dorothy in France
“It gives me goosebumps to think that I had the chance to learn from Michel Sénéchal. The way he viewed delivering text was the springboard for my love and passion of French song.”
She shared with us that, while preparing for an upcoming recital with Opera America, she has been recalling important lessons from her time in France.
“Sometimes you get so caught up in the primary colors that you forget you can start mixing things. The palette can be expanded in such a way when the space is intimate. You can do other vocalisms besides the most optimal production of sound. That’s what Michel was getting at. ‘I want you to explore more, I want you to go further, I want you to take your pianissimi to the brink of extinction’.”
Reflecting on her operatic trajectory, Dorothy expressed that CLA had a substantial impact on her early vocal experiences.
“Italy was profoundly important to my development of technique. It was really important for later on when I had more teachers to show me the way. In Italy, I heard for the first time, really, that you need to use your body to sing.”
“I was definitely a very changed singer leaving France. CLA France pushed me to think more deeply about what it is I’m saying and how I’m going to deliver that. Sometimes the way to have the most profound impact isn’t the way you would imagine. It’s like going through a second language, to figure out how you really want people to feel.”
Dorothy concluded the conversation by offering some heartfelt advice to young singers and future CLA participants.
“One of the most important things that has impacted my own life is to stay in your lane. Don’t view other people’s successes as your failures. Instead, spend your time practicing and learning: it is a better use of your time.”
“Listen to your instincts. I have had a long journey of knowing my voice. Every time I make a discovery in a voice lesson or coaching, I feel like I’m leveling up. Back away from labelling yourself, and just sing. Sing what you love, and your voice will reveal itself to you.”