DESCRIPTION OF MATERIALS FOR SALE

MODEL LETTERS TO OPERA HOUSES

These are form letters which have your return addresses at the top, the opera company's address underneath, and the date (which you can omit if you wish to be flexible about when you want to send the material). The opera letters (338 letters in total) will be addressed to the right contacts in the right language. (The contacts are updated yearly from our personal research and from data collected from reliable standard music industry source publications.) The letters are in the following languages:

• German if sent to Germany, Austria, the German section of Switzerland and Belgium and the Eastern block countries such as Romania, Hungary, Croatia, Czech Republic, Poland etc....(since they are more familiar with German than with English)
• English if sent to Great Britain, Ireland, Scotland the Nordic countries (Denmark, Norway, Finland, The Netherlands Sweden), Greece, Portugal and Spain.  
• French  for French speaking countries such as France, Monaco, Luxembourg, parts of Belgium and Switzerland.
• Italian if sent to the Italian countries.

The letter itself will state that:

• you are a singer of a certain fach
• your résumé and photograph are included
• you will be in Germany/Europe for a certain amount of time, and contactable at your return address at the top of the letter
• you are interested in auditioning for them, and that you will contact them again once you are in Europe.

MODEL LETTERS TO AGENTS

These letters (203 in total) follow the same format as the opera house letters.  The agents selected are agents with important and well-known reputations, ones we have personal knowledge of, and agents in major cities.

ALL MODEL LETTERS WERE WRITTEN WITH THE EXPERTISE OF A NATIVE LANGUAGE COACH IN THE SPECIFIED LANGUAGE BEING WRITTEN AND ARE GENERAL ENOUGH TO SATISFY ALL OFFICIAL OPERA HOUSE OR AGENT REQUIREMENTS.  PLEASE NOTE THAT ANY CHANGES (AN ADDITIONAL NEW SENTENCE OR PARAGRAPH) ON THE MODEL LETTERS MUST BE EXECUTED BY THE CLIENT.

MAILING LABELS TO ALL OPERA HOUSES

These are all Avery #5160 labels (size 2 1/2  inch by 1 inch) to all the right contacts in all the opera houses in 28 countries.

MAILING LABELS TO SELECT AGENTS

TThese are all Avery #5160 labels (size 2 1/2  inch by 1 inch) to all the right contacts in all the agencies in 24 countries.

MAILING LABELS WITH YOUR RETURN ADDRESS

These are all Avery #5160 labels with your return address. You can choose to use your American address as a contact but we advise you to use a European address. Once in Europe it will be costly to call home to find out if you have received any mail or faxes. However, we can help you to find a European place of residency, a contact address and voice mail box for your three month stay.

AN AUDITION ORGANIZER BOOKLET WITH ALL AGENT/OPERA HOUSE ADDRESSES

Once you have mailed all your materials you are going to want to keep track of:

• who you mailed to and when
• when your auditions are or were
• how the auditions went
• who you sang for
• what you sang and what you wore for the audition
• your personal comments on the agent or opera house

This audition organizer booklet is laid out in three columns:

• The first column is titled Agency or Opera house and has the address, telephone etc. of the Agency/Opera house
• The second column is titled Date Contacted for you to fill in when you wrote/called the agent or the opera house, and the date of your audition.
• The third column is titled Comments for you to fill in your ideas on how the auditions went, who you sang for, what you sang and what you wore for the audition and other relative information.

GERMAN BUSINESS LETTER VOCABULARY TRANSLATIONS

This is a vocabulary list of the most common German business letter vocabulary found in the typical return letter from a German opera house or agent regarding an audition or job opening. In addition to saving you a lot of time translating response letters, you will be learning the German language.

SPECIAL BONUS: FAXES TO ALL INTERNATIONAL SINGING COMPETITIONS AND COMPETITION ORGANIZER BOOKLET

While you are in Europe you might want to audition for some international competitions, so, as a special bonus, we have included 42 fax letters to the appropriate international vocal competitions. Additional countries such as Japan are included in this list. Each letter states when you will be in Europe, your return address in Europe and the U.S., and requests an application and/or information about the competition. You may choose to fax ahead of time either from the U.S. or while you are in Europe. In addition, we also have included a table formatted competition booklet similar to the agent/opera house booklets. In this booklet, however, the comment column is filled with pertinent information about the competition, including age limits, deadlines and repertoire requirements.

HOW OFTEN IS THE DATA/MATERIAL UPDATED?

The greatest efforts have been made to insure the accuracy of all contacts and addresses. All materials are updated on a continual basis through personal research and from data collected from reliable standard music industry source publications.  Since these music source publications are only printed once a year there may be some limitations to their accuracy as occasionally an agent may go out of business or will have changed their address within the working year.  We are not responsible for any occasional errors or omissions that might occur in these materials.   MATERIAL HAS BEEN UPDATED FOR 2012- 2013.

On another note, we would like to state that these materials that you have purchased are for your use only and are fully protected under copyright law.  Any duplication or private sale of these materials would be a copyright infringement.

MAILING ADVICE / WHEN TO MAIL?

Once you receive your materials all you have to do is sign your letters, stuff your envelopes with the letters, résumés and pictures, and stick your labels on the envelopes.

If preparing for the fall audition season:
You should mail your materials to Europe by mid August, September or October at the latest, or June or July at the earliest.

If preparing for the Spring audition season:
You should mail your materials by January or February, and by March or April at the latest.

Please contact us as soon as possible before these deadlines to make your audition tour as smooth as possible. 

LOOKING FOR A PLACE TO STAY IN EUROPE?

Since so many people ask this question, we decided to offer our information for free regarding possible services that can assist you in finding a temporary apartment, mailing address or phone service.

For a temporary mailing address:                              

1. Take a look at this web page and address and or write to the other organizations below.

www.knecht-und-partner.de

Büro Knecht und Partner GmbH · Dietlindenstr. 15 · D-80802 München
phone +49/89/36036-600 · fax +49/89/36036-700
www.knecht-und-partner.de
e-mail: infoknecht-und-partner.de

2. Baxter & Weithaus, B & W Services, Henkestrasse 34 91054 Erlangen, Deutschland

Tel: (49) 9131 202506

For a temporary apartment:

1. Contact this web page to find temporary housing or write to the address below.

http://muenchen.homecompany.de

2. City Mitwohnzentrale, Lämmerstrasse 4, 80335 München, Deutschland

Tel: (49) (89) 19430, Fax: (49) (89) 19420

LOOKING FOR A EUROPEAN/AMERICAN CELL PHONE?

Using a GSM cell phone (mobile phone) on your trip to Europe. This information is for Americans and Canadians traveling to Europe. Europeans traveling within Europe do not have these same concerns; they can use their cell phone easily in other European countries (but pay roaming fees).

GSM Cell Phones (World Phones)

GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) is a type of cell phone and network used in Europe and most countries in the world. Some US cell phone companies use GSM (T-Mobile, AT&T), but many do not. You need a GSM phone in Europe. These are sometimes called "World Phones" because they can be used around the world. In the United Kingdom, a cell phone is called a "mobile phone".

SIM Cards

SIM (Subscriber Information Module) cards are a small chip that fits into your phone. This chip contains the cell phone number (so if you switch it to another phone, you still have the same number) and your account information. The SIM Card determines the network and phone number the cell phone uses. These can easily be switched in a phone, so you can put in one for Italy, then remove it and put in one for the US.

If you want a cell phone in Europe, you have these options:

• Purchase an unlocked GSM cell phone and European SIM card: Purchase a cell phone that works in Europe and a SIM card for the country you are going to. This is the best option if you travel to Europe each year and make and receive a lot of calls (calls are inexpensive). Read more about this option.
• Rent a GSM cell phone and European SIM card: Rent a cell phone that works in Europe and a SIM card for the country you are going to. This is a good option if you do not travel each year (calls are inexpensive). Read more about this option.
• Use your GSM cell phone from the US and your US cell account: If you are on a GSM system in the US and your phone and plan allow international roaming, this is a good option if you need the phone for emergencies only (calls are expensive). Read more about this option.

The European cell phone situation changes constantly - pricing, options available, whether or not foreigners can buy a cell phone in Italy or other countries. I try to keep this page updated, but read it through and then go to the message board to ask if anyone has more recent experience.

LOOKING FOR FREE TRAVEL/AUDITION ADVICE?

To make your planning easier we offer a half hour of free travel/audition advice once you purchase the package.

Tel:  (212) 879-0144
(The best time to reach us is from 9am to noon U.S. Eastern Time).
Fax: (831) 305-7228  E-mail us
Copyright © The Musical Occasion 2012