She began her vocal career as a talented high school singer in Park Forest, Illinois. Upshaw received a B.A. in 1982 from Illinois Wesleyan University and went on to study voice with Ellen Faull at the Manhattan School of Music in New York, earning her M.A. in 1984. She also attended courses given by Jan DeGaetani at the Aspen (Colorado) Music School. She was a winner of the Young Concert Artists auditions (1984) and the Walter M. Naumburg Competition (1985), and was a member of the Metropolitan Opera Young Artists Development Program. Since her start in 1984, Upshaw has made over 300 appearances at the Metropolitan Opera.
Upshaw came to international fame with her million-selling recording (1993), with David Zinman, of the hauntingly powerful Symphony No 3 by Henryk Górecki, known as the Symphony of Sorrowful Songs (Symfonia pieśni żałosnych).
In the past decade she has premiered more than 25 new works and has embraced several works created for her, including the Grawemeyer Award-winning opera L’Amour de Loin by Kaija Saariaho, The Great Gatsby by John Harbison, the nativity oratorio El Nino by John Adams, and Osvaldo Golijov's chamber opera Ainadamar and song cycle Ayre.
Her rendition of Ayre made her appear almost as a charismatic rock-singer. It is a tribute to her vocal range, as well as her star-stature, that she has moved out of the traditional role of a classical singer. Her engagements with James Levine over the years led to a 1997 recording of Debussy songs.
She tours regularly with piano accompanist Richard Goode. Margo Garrett and Gilbert Kalish are also long-standing partners. She has worked with the director Peter Sellars many times, including his staging of Händel's Theodora at Glyndebourne, his Paris production of Stravinsky's The Rake's Progress (1996), a staging of Bach's cantata BWV 199, presented in the 1995-96 season at New York's 92nd Street Y, and the Salzburg Festival production of Olivier Messiaen's St François d'Assise (1998).
Upshaw was a guest of President of the United States Bill Clinton and Mrs. Clinton on the NBC special, Christmas in Washington. The BBC presented a prime-time telecast of her 1996 London Proms Concert, "Dawn at Dusk", in which she performed songs from the American musical theater.
Dawn Upshaw joined the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra as Artistic Partner beginning with the 2007-08 season, and she is Artistic Director of the Graduate Program in Vocal Arts at the Bard College Conservatory of Music, which accepted its first students in the 2006-2007 academic year. She also is a faculty member at the Tanglewood Music Center.
She holds honorary Doctor of Arts, honoris causa, from Yale University, the Manhattan School of Music, Illinois Wesleyan University and Allegheny College.
Lorsque Vous N'Aurez Rien A Faire' from Cherubin
Dawn Upshaw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Mandez-moi vite auprès de vous
Le paradis que je préfère
C'est un coussin à vos genoux
Vous me remarquerez à peine
Je me garderai de parler
Et je retiendrai mon haleine
Si mon souffle peut vous troubler
Afin que dans mon coeur morose
L′hiver fasse place au printemps
Je demande bien peu de chose
Un sourire de temps en temps
Et si c'est trop... un regard même
Suffira pour me transformer
Car sans rien dire je vous aime
Autant qu'un être peut aimer
In Dawn Upshaw's song 'Lorsque Vous N'Aurez Rien A Faire', the singer expresses their desire to be in the presence of someone they deeply love. They describe their ideal heaven as simply being by this person's side and resting on a cushion by their knees. The singer claims that they will make themselves as unobtrusive as possible while in this person's presence in order to avoid causing any disturbance, preferring to remain quiet and holding their breath if necessary.
The singer then goes on to describe how this person has the power to cure their winter-like gloom and bring spring back into their heart. They ask for very little, just a smile or a glance every so often, as it is enough to sustain them. They confess their love for this person, even if they don't say anything about it and hopes that a mere glance would be enough to convey their feelings.
Overall, 'Lorsque Vous N'Aurez Rien A Faire' expresses the singer's longing for their loved one's company, detailing just how much they are willing to do and give to make it happen. The song's melody is melancholic and subdued, lending itself well to the delicate and heartfelt emotions expressed by the singer.
Line by Line Meaning
Lorsque vous n′aurez rien à faire
When you have nothing to do
Mandez-moi vite auprès de vous
Quickly send for me to be with you
Le paradis que je préfère
The paradise that I prefer
C'est un coussin à vos genoux
Is a cushion at your knees
Vous me remarquerez à peine
You will barely notice me
Je me garderai de parler
I will refrain from speaking
Et je retiendrai mon haleine
And I will hold my breath
Si mon souffle peut vous troubler
If my breath can trouble you
Afin que dans mon coeur morose
So that in my melancholy heart
L'hiver fasse place au printemps
Winter can make way for spring
Je demande bien peu de chose
I ask for very little
Un sourire de temps en temps
A smile every now and then
Et si c'est trop... un regard même
And if that is too much... even just a look
Suffira pour me transformer
Will suffice to transform me
Car sans rien dire je vous aime
Because without saying anything, I love you
Autant qu'un être peut aimer
As much as a being can love
Writer(s): Dawn Upshaw, Jules Massenet
Contributed by Lincoln P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@zoobee
When you have nothing to do
Send me quickly to you,
The paradise that I prefer,
It is a cushion at your knees.
You will hardly notice me,
I will refrain from speaking...
And I'll hold my breath
If my breath can disturb you.
So that in my gloomy heart
Winter gives way to spring,
I ask very little:
A smile from time to time...
And if it's too much... even a look
Will be enough to transform me.
Because without saying anything I love you
As much as one being can love.
@wonksliver
Wanneer je niets te doen hebt,
laat mij dan snel naar je komen,
het paradijs dat ik prefereer,
is een kussen aan je knieën.
Je zult me nauwelijks opmerken,
ik zal afzien van spreken..
en zal mijn adem inhouden,
als mijn adem je kan afleiden.
Dit opdat in mijn sombere hart,
de winter plaats maakt voor de lente.
Ik vraag heel weinig:
een glimlach van tijd tot tijd...
En wanneer dit teveel is... alleen al een blik
zal genoeg zijn om me te doen transformeren.
Want zonder iets te zeggen hou ik van jou
zoveel als een wezen lief kan hebben.
@douglasbrandao2100
Manchester by the Sea brought me here
@rohan23k
Manchester by the Sea got me here🙌
@chill528
One of the most beautiful arias - sadly rarely recorded. Dawn Upshaw just brilliant here.
@LuizPauloRochaLP
Wonderful! Thank you very much, Mrs. Dawn Upshaw!
@Juancantor76
Upshaw owns this aria. Elegantly phrased, gorgeous timbre, stunning legato line...simply a brilliant delivery!
@1989kd
I miss going to the opera. 😭
@baussie8128
The Dish (Australian movie) got me here.
@lauramaetzinroblesramirez6800
Sublime 🥰
@zoobee
When you have nothing to do
Send me quickly to you,
The paradise that I prefer,
It is a cushion at your knees.
You will hardly notice me,
I will refrain from speaking...
And I'll hold my breath
If my breath can disturb you.
So that in my gloomy heart
Winter gives way to spring,
I ask very little:
A smile from time to time...
And if it's too much... even a look
Will be enough to transform me.
Because without saying anything I love you
As much as one being can love.
@haarp24
Manchester by the Sea