Rhythm Is the Key to Success!

ARTIST FEATURE: Meet Logan Tanner, our next featured artist! Logan is a countertenor, the winner of The American Prize In Opera and a regular with orchestras across the US and Europe. Let’s see what he has to say about rhythm and time in music!

1) Why is rhythm important?

Rhythm is the key to success in musical performance. Without correct rhythmic execution one is easily lost in the music and out of sync with the other members of the cast or ensemble. Furthermore harmony is built into the rhythmic pulse of the piece. If you are not in sync with that pulse the written harmonies won’t translate.

2) How do you practice your rhythm and sense of time?

I practice my rhythm by using a metronome. One of the most difficult aspects of my repertoire is learning to sing fast coloratura passages. What I do to train myself for this is I use a metronome and set it to a very slow tempo, master the coloratura passage at that slow speed and then increase the tempo by 5 bpm, then I master it at that new pace and continue this cycle until I can sing it at the speed I want it. This is a long process, but by the end of this process my coloratura is solidified into my muscle memory.

Harmony is built into the rhythmic pulse of the piece!

3) What are your favorite rhythmic exercises?

As a countertenor I sing Baroque music more than the average opera singer. With these baroque arias there is usually a recitative preceding it. Getting the rhythm correct in these recitatives is extremely important but you can easily shortchange the rhythms if you aren’t hyper vigilant, so I use a metronome to learn my recitatives because then I can know exactly when I am off.

4) Can you name one thing that you like about the metronome on Metronome Online?

I like that the tempo markings are matched up with the BPM that match that tempo marking. Sometimes as a singer you read “Allegro” but aren’t sure just how fast allegro should be. Well, Metronomeonline.com has solved that problem completely.

VIDEO: Check out Logan’s performance of “Fammi combattere” from Handel’s Orlando for Opera Modesto’s Festival at Home season!

Logan Tanner

Praised for his “striking musicality, clarity, and strong coloratura” (Opera Canada), countertenor Logan Tanner has been an award recipient in several competitions, including third place in the Dallas Opera Guild Vocal Competition, first place in the Choralis Young Artist Competition, first place in the New York Classical Music Society International Competition, First Place in the Vano Visioli international Opera Competition, and 5th Place in the Opera Tools International Competition. He was also the winner of the American Prize in Opera, and the Pasadena Vocal Competition Special Encouragement Award. In addition Mr. Tanner was also granted honorable mention by the NOMEA International competition and the Vienna New Years Concert international competition. On the concert stage, Mr. Tanner has been engaged as soloist with the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, Austin Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Europa, North Carolina Baroque Orchestra, the Philharmonic of Southern New Jersey, Chorus Austin, New York Chamber Choir, the Henry Purcell Society of Boston, and La Fiocco, to name a few. Mr. Tanner’s concert repertoire spans a wide breadth of material, and he is known for bringing a flowing bel canto dimension to the alto solos in Handel’s Messiah, the Roasting Swan in Orff’s Carmina Burana, the Brahms Viola songs, and the treble solos in Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms which he performed alongside Jamie Bernstein, author, and daughter of Leonard Bernstein. Mr. Tanner has also appeared in concert alongside other renowned artists including Cynthia Phelps of the New York Philharmonic, and Martin Katz. Mr. Tanner will make several international debuts in the 2021-2022 season including appearances in Italy, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand, and Germany. A native of Texas, Mr. Tanner started his musical studies as a tenor at Baylor University and went on to graduate studies at Westminster Choir College. There he studied with Christopher Arneson who encouraged him to become a countertenor. Mr. Tanner dove into the repertoire and found it a perfect match. He entered the 2017 New York Classical Music Society International Competition and won it. “It was kind of mind-blowing,” he said. “I never looked back after that.”

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