Halfway through my junior year at school, I was going through a very crucial transition as a singer. CLA entered in my life at the most perfect time. When I found out I was accepted into this program, I was beyond thrilled and couldn’t wait to explore the art of bel canto singing.

We all arrived at Novafeltria, the cutest little town, and I was so happy to have the most wonderful host family along with their cat whom I instantly fell in love with! Later that evening, the students and faculty went to a restaurant in town and had a very delicious and welcoming Italian dinner, which gave everyone a great start to begin our work the next day.

A day in the life in CLA Italy consists of coachings, language classes, masterclasses, rehearsals, and performances. One of my favorite parts of CLA was getting to travel to different towns in the region and to be able to perform in some of the most beautiful theaters. One night that stands out to me the most was when we all went to Ravenna, a small city known for its mosaic art. We performed at an outdoor concert venue, and I swear, hundreds of people attended our concert, which was absolutely incredible.

I love every aspect of performing, but the most impactful lessons that I took away from the program were the several coachings that I had with all the faculty artists. It would take an entire book for me to write about the knowledge I gained from them, but I will begin by saying this: the faculty at CLA will help clarify and confirm everything you are working on in your training, and they will help you discover new ideas that you didn’t know were possible. I had many eye opening moments during my coachings with Glenn Morton and Ubaldo Fabbri.

One of the main concepts that Glenn brought more awareness to me about was my different chambers of resonances and how to remain in a “column” while singing: nothing forced and nothing pushed - just simply sing. Ubaldo and I worked together and, even though he and I had a language barrier, I still understood what he was asking of me. His passion for consonants, ironically, gave me a deeper understanding of my vowels, which helped my legato line tremendously.

I am beyond grateful for my time in this program. As I wrote earlier, I was in a growing transition before CLA that was both wonderful and awkward. The CLA faculty helped build my confidence in my new voice, gave me a deeper understanding of the importance of language, and increased my passion for this art form called opera.

Thank you to all of the CLA faculty for your guidance. I’m so thankful that you have a special place in my journey.

Lots of love, sincerely, and many thanks,

Sara