ME--BUDDY VEST IN "A CHORUS LINE"  DR. K

ON DICTION AND PRONUNCIATION:

"Y'all are just a bunch o' Yankees. What y' look into is not a meer --it's pronounced mirr-ohr!"

"...two
words pronounced wrong--"our", which has 2 syllables. and "Tuesday,"
pronounced "twosday" not "teeoozday."     "Miss Susie says..."

ON SPEAKING TO FEMALES: (SOPRANOS AND ALTOS, GENERALLY BUT NOT ALWAYS)

"Dahrlin'...(most females addressed in this manner .)

"Well-l-l there's MIss___________"

"Come back, little Sheba!" (to an inattentive female during rehearsal)

"Whoa there, Miss Molly!"

"Holy cow, gal! You can hit that high C! C'mon now, do it!"

ON AUDITIONS:

On
the first Monday night of each quarter "Mr. K" would conduct 'hearings'
(as opposed to auditions, since he believed that anyoen who could match
tones should be given the opportunity to experience the excitement of
singing major choral works to orchestral accompaniment, if they put
forth the effort. The 'hearing was simply employed to place the singer
in the proper voice range section.) On one such occasion, after many
hearings of "Way Down Upon The Swanee River" a young lady with a
confident manner, enetered the hearing room. With a clear ringing
quality in her voice Mr. K took her though scales from low G to A above
the staff, his eyes growing larger with each sequence. Giving her a
gracious compliment on her voice Mr. K excused her. When she was gone he
turned to his assistant and said with wonderment only he could exude,
"The roof of her mouth must look like the Sistine Chapel."

ON PHILOSOPHY:

"...a oneness which abides."

"...a terribbly meaningful experience."

"Your joys, hopes, dreams and fears are mine. I want mine to be yours."

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I
took Dr. K to his first performance ever of "A Chorus Line". He sat
crying, trembling, through the song "At The Ballet". This was a man who
had sung all over the world, had taught music for over 25 years and
after the show said, "That song, 'At The Ballet' is one of the most
perfect pieces of music I have ever heard in a Broadway show."

We lost him too soon.