Last Saturday, I went to a concert by graduates of a music college—something I rarely do. It was also my first time back at Oji Hall in a while. The program was quite varied, including vocal music, piano, flute, and even koto, performed by people of different ages.
Since I was alone, I prayed that I would have a meaningful time and, if it was God’s will, meet someone I knew. To my surprise, I ran into my former classmates at the venue, and we enjoyed spending time together after the concert.
We first went to a retro-style café, where I chose a yogurt parfait—slightly less guilty, perhaps. Then, as if it were their tradition, we walked from Ginza toward Yurakucho looking for a karaoke place. That walk itself was a joyful time. 😊
At karaoke, I realized I could mostly sing only old Japanese songs, the Carpenters, the Beatles, and maybe Queen—with difficulty. Even when I raised the key, things didn’t go well. 😅
Then I found two arias: “Vissi d’arte, vissi d’amore” from Tosca and “O mio babbino caro.” Since I had practiced vocalization just two days earlier, I somehow managed to sing them. Opera requires so much breath that I was already sweating after just one song!
About 20 years ago, I had the chance to see Tosca in Prague at the Prague State Opera.
This is the Prague State Opera.
I watched from a box seat, and the ticket cost less than 5,000 yen, which surprised me.
The ceiling was also beautiful.
The opera was sung in Italian, but the subtitles were in Czech, so I barely understood anything. 😅 I almost fell asleep, but I clearly remember staying wide awake during “Vissi d’arte.”
Prague is one of my favorite cities. I’ve been there twice—once with a childhood friend and once alone. If I go again, I would like to fly there with someone. 😊
If you’re interested, I wrote more about this trip (in Japanese) with additional old photos here:
にほんブログ村
にほんブログ村
多言語学習ランキング
