Meeting with Jana Burke

My interview was planned at the last minute because a week before the trip, my mom was working and while she was helping a woman, she mentioned that her daughter was going to New York on a trip for music. Ironically, she works at the Brooklyn museum, and one of her co-workers has tried out at the met, and went to school to be a singer. So, she introduced me to her over email, and we set up a time at the Brooklyn museum to meet.

Her name is Jana Burke, and she is a soprano, and does auditions in the area. One of the things we talked about the most were auditions. I asked her what one would prepare for an audition, and how they would present each of the songs. For auditions, one would choose 5 arias, with languages of Italian, French, English, and German. She said to start with the one you are most comfortable with, and one you know you will succeed at, even if you are having a bad day.She also said that of those arias, to not necessarily pick something that is popular, and that everyone is going to sing and their should be a variety of pieces that you offer at auditions. I also asked about proper dress attire for an audition. She said for an audition dress, it should be something that you know you look great in. Jana expressed the importance of having the dress be a color, because they will remember you easier. Also, to wear your hair however you feel comfortable, wear a sensible heel, and have the dress at least be knee length.

For more of the business side of the industry, she said to keep a binder of all the gigs you do, so you have a specific place you can go back and look at all of the roles you have done. In addition, she could not stress the importance of finding an accompanist right away. After one finds an accompanist, she says to make yourself a website, and put recordings of yourself on there. She also said to do everything you can afford to do, like masterclasses or lessons with people. For head shots, she said to make sure you bring different options, debating on which role you will be auditioning for.

Overall, Jana was so helpful to me because she had a lot of relevant information, and tied up all of the loose ends of the trip. She even gave Laura and I wristbands to see some of the exhibits at the museum which was super nice. After my interview, she emailed me with a name of a tax accountant for singers, and someone who has done Renee Fleming's taxes in the past. She also made herself available to me if I had anymore questions. I cannot believe that the trip was so long ago because it feels like a week ago I was getting on the plane to go. I can only hope my next trip to New York is as successful as this one was!

Jessica