How to Prepare to Sing an Opera Role

As you see by the drawing above, this is how an instrumentalist can learn an opera.  But what does a singer do to prepare an opera role?  A singer must not only learn the music, but research the opera on several levels.  It takes time, but it is much more rewarding when an artist is totally informed when performing.
I have had times when I have had to learn an opera quickly.  I once had to learn Luisa Miller in 36 hours.  I also learned Aida in 5 days.  Luckily I had the time and facility to focus and succeed.  As I get older I find it harder with the myriad distractions in life to focus as I did when I was younger, but when I do have time, anything more than a couple months, this is what I do to learn a role:

1.  I buy a score and a CD, and find a good translation, hopefully more word for word and not poetic.  I am fortunate that I speak multiple languages, so I can read a great deal of most scores.  I read through the score and when I need help I look at the translation.  If the phrase or translation doesn't seem right, I use a dictionary to find a particular word..  If this fails, I call someone who speaks the language of the opera and resolve the issue. Sometimes this leads to a wonderful conversation about linguistics and historical use of language.  But the important thing is to do as much as I can by myself so that I can make it mine: I have to understand and feel the message of the opera.
2.  I listen to all of the recording while reading my score.  I do this to get a feel for the scope of what the composer wants to present to the audience.
3.  I listen again to my role and read carefully so that I can circle words that catch my ear as maybe a bit odd to pronounce and how they fit in with the music.
4.  I sit at the piano and go through the score with the recording.  I stop every few phrases and sing the phrases, making sure the breathing and support are correct.
5.  I sit at the piano run thru my scenes and sing thru them with the score.
6.  Hopefully my musicianship is good enough so that by this point all is in order and I am ready to go to a coach who is experienced, knows the repertoire, and can correct me if I have missed anything.  By this point my score is basically memorized.

Learning an opera is a process, but also a joy that is exhilarating and very satisfying when done correctly.  If  done correctly we can come into the first rehearsal full prepared to share the experience of the great music with our colleagues.

How to study at a summer language school in Europe or the USA

I wrote the other day about staying out of China long-term to learn as much as possible about classical opera.  If any of you have ideas to attend a summer language school in Europe or in the USA, I have a recommendation on how to handle the situation:

While I was the Head of Vocal Studies in Hong Kong I was able to find scholarships and sent several students to Italy to study Italian.  The first year was of course, finding out what really works.  Five Hong Kong students went to the University in Perugia, Italy to study Italian.  They lived together.  

Another two students went to a language school in Florence.  They lived together but were not really friends so they found other people to do activities with.  

Who learned the most Italian?  Yes, the two who went their own way and did not associate so much with other Hong Kong students.  

The five HK students had a great time but came home after classes and spoke Cantonese.  They came back to HK and their progress in many was was negligible.  The two students in Florence who were more independent ended up studying in Paris and London, respectively, and have become better performers and better at languages.  

Over time I have found a great language school in Verona, Italy.  I sent several students there and they have returned having learned a great deal of Italian.  The key is there was only one student in the school each year.  They lived with an Italian family and were forced to speak Italian every day, a great deal of the day.  My top student studied there, returned to HK and we performed an Italian opera.  She arrived at the first rehearsal with the complete opera memorized and translated.  The next summer she returned to Italy and studied Italian again.  After just those two months she spoke excellent Italian.  

This is the solitary path that you must follow if you want to progress and be cost effective. 

Beijing Gathering

While I was in Beijing meeting prospective students for my summer program in Verona last weekend, I was asked by one of the students, "What must we as Chinese singers do to have success in the opera scene in and out of China?"  

My answer was:

Stay out of China.  Stay out as long as you can.  This is not a negative comment on China, not at all!!!   What I mean is young Chinese singers must live outside of China for years.  Not one or two years, but many years.  If you can live outside of China for 10 years, then come back, you can raise the level of teaching and singing in China.  If only two years, you have barely taken care of yourself and your needs.  If you stay overseas for many years you can truly become more competent in languages, style, repertoire.  We must realize that classical opera is a western art form:  it takes time to assimilate all the details of what it is.  If you can stay out of China and learn more about it and it's languages, then when you come back you can be a great teacher, coach, and better performer.  By staying away from home, when you do come back, you add so much more skill and expertise to what is China.  So in the long run, you are helping your country by staying away.  Does this make sense?

The Met rehearsal process

I was asked by a Weibo follower what the rehearsal process is at the Metropolitan Opera.  I am covering now, but will sing in February and March of 2015. 

 

First, this is very important to understand: when you arrive at the MET and ready to work, you must already have the music well learned and memorized.  You cannot arrive and not know the music. 

 

I often work in Asia and I arrive to work with different companies and all ages of singers.  Many of them are not prepared with the music.   This is a shame for a couple reasons:

 

1. if you are not prepared, it is almost impossible to catch up.  If you do catch up with memorization, you may not have a good feel for the translation or for the singing, as you have been too busy memorizing.

 

2.  You make the process slow for your colleagues and you waste their time.  If you are wasting their time, they know it, and you will not be respected.

 

3.  At the Met as with many theaters, there simply is not enough time during a production schedule to ‘catch people up’ in the process.  If you arrive not prepared, you may be terminated quickly.

 

In the end, not being prepared means that you don’t give the audience all that they need and have paid for.  You cheat them.  You should NEVER cheat your audience.

 

So, you arrive with everything well memorized and then you have a coaching with an experienced pianist who knows the music and language.  After that you have an ensemble rehearsal, and maybe one more individual coaching to clean up any problems. 

 

Then there is a rehearsal with orchestra where we sit and listen to the artists.  We make notes what the conductor does for tempos so that if we need to sing we are able to do exactly as he wants it.

 

The second step is the stage work where as a cover (I am covering remember, I will sing in February), they give you maybe 2-3 times to rehearse each scene  -This is very little time.  Then we have a piano run-through of the opera in the large backstage room. After this  we are generally free unless we must go on for another artist because of illness. 

 

I cannot stress that truly being professional means being totally prepared, a good colleague, and on time for every rehearsal.  In fact, I am very nervous if I am not at the MET and near my rehearsal room a minimum of 15 minutes before the scheduled time.

 

These are the procedures at the MET for a cover artist. 

 

I will write about a singing artist and what is required, soon.

What I have learned about the singers at the MET

I have worked at the MET one week and had time to hear casts of MacBeth, Carmen, Le Nozze di Figaro and La Boheme. I am excited for this opportunity to hear some of the best singers in the world and watch how they work, and dissect their techniques. What I have learned about the singers at the MET is the following:

1. The amount of detail and preparation needed to sing a role properly at this level is not understood by most singers. 

2. If one is not at this level they must arrive at said level immediately, or within a rehearsal or two they get left behind. 

3. The style of singing that I have always taught is correct; I know exactly how the top singers are producing their voices. It is clear as a bright summer day. I have been away from the top opera house for 12 years. I worried that technical styles have changed. Well, they have not. Good, honest vocalism and a good balance in registration is still what makes a voice carry, even in a large opera house as the MET. 

4. I wish the top singers and teachers that I work with in Hong Kong could experience a week just observing rehearsals at the MET. It would be so much fun to listen and talk about how the top singers go about their business. 

5. If any of my friends are in NYC, I do have a free pass and one friend at a time can attend any rehearsal with me. 

6. The mezzo-soprano singing Carmen is a throwback voice to the Golden Age. She has an incredible instrument that everyone must hear. She is an amazing talent.

Vocal Health: How to prevent long term damage

I am fortunate to have never had any serious vocal issues.  

I exercise regularly, don't smoke or drink, and am very jealous about a minimum of 8 hours of sleep every night.  I truly believe this moderate life has helped me maintain my strength even as I am now in my 57th year of life.

Keeping my voice healthy has had some challenges as I have had many allergies since birth.  I was fortunate to grow out of some, but from time to time something will pop up and my voice gets irritated.   

Or worse, I might fall ill and the illness settles in my throat. 

The best piece of advice I can give is this, and it is a paraphrase of the legendary tenor Carlo Bergonzi:  "If you begin to vocalize and your voice doesn't feel good, stop." 

In other words:

1.  don't push your voice.   You can do a lot of learning by listening to music, softly pronouncing the words, sit at a piano and play through your notes.  The worst thing we can do is to think we MUST sing out to get in a good practice.  So if you are not feeling good, approach the learning process in a different way. 

2.  Sleep.  A good night's sleep works wonders.   When I sing a large role I also enjoy a short nap in the afternoon of a performance.  I try to have a normal lifestyle even of the day of a performance.  I will get up, run errands or have a light workout, eat a light lunch, then lay down for 45 minutes to an hour.  I may only sleep 20 minutes, but I wake up refreshed and always feel my voice has found an extra level of strength and clarity.   Always make sure you finish the nap 3-4 hours before your performance so that you can get your body awakened and ready to go. 

3.  Try to be consistent with your lifestyle so that you can be consistent in preparing for rehearsals in performances:  have a plan. 

4.  Don't TALK!!! I think the worst thing a singer can do is talk too much within 36 hours of a performance.  Talking really grates on your vocal folds. 

5.  Never scream.  Never.  

6.  Try to be very moderate in drinking, and if you smoke, please severely limit it.  

Do these things and you will avoid most of the problems that can stop you from having a quality performance.

Five Tips for a Stellar Audition

Five Tips for a Stellar Audition

1.   Try to sing repertoire in which you are extremely comfortable.  Never add a new piece without proper preparation and having sung it before (unless you were specifically asked by a listener to learn something at the last minute).

2.   Have a stellar pianist.  Needing to lead the pianist by beating time during and audition means you hired a lemon.  An experienced or talented pianist will help you in your total presentation.

3.  Have your words down so that you can interpret the song, AND have a plan of movements to show the listener that you truly know the words and the content of the aria.  Give energy and let them know what you have by being positive in your thinking and energetic in your presentation.

4.  Dress well.  For women, tasteful makeup and moderate heels.  Wearing 5' or 6' platform shoes means you will walk in a very clumsy way.  If you are short, you are short.  Wear moderate heels and you will move more naturally. 

5.  Get your sleep.  If you get your sleep you will have your energy.  If you have your energy you will have your confidence.  If you have confidence and have prepared then you will easily sail through your audition. 

Beautiful Calling

Beautiful Calling
 

I consider opera singing to be a "Beautiful Calling" 

I have often been asked, "How do you sing in a large opera house, one that has over 2000 seats"?

How about if you sing outside am Roten Tor in Augsburg, Germany, or in Italy at Macherata or Caracala in Rome or in the Arena di Verona? 

The Arena hold approximately 20,000 seats for opera! 

In my experience, to increase your voice to be able to sing in huge venues you must use a good balance between "head" and "chest" voice.  I have found many singers, especially sopranos, lean to using a great deal of head voice because it is a pretty, resonant sound.  However, in large spaces, there must be chest voice added in or the voice doesn't travel. 

I was working in Verona one summer (Iago in Otello) and I attend a performance of Aida.  The Aida was a famous singer but she wasn't using any chest voice, a killer for Aida as there are many low notes that require more sound. 

The audience was not pleased and she did not make a very good impression: the sound wasn't big and her low notes were very weak.  

I was impressed, however, to hear her a few years later and she had reworked her voice to have a nice balance of 'head' and 'chest' voice.  She has sung over 20 years at the peak of her profession, and it is because she was able to balance her voice. 

It takes some experimentation and sometimes a good ear to help you find balance, but as long as your can sing easily and stay relaxed, work for a good balance in the registration between 'head' and 'chest' voice.

Posture When Singing

Good posture when practicing or in lessons. 

I often see students looking DOWN at the music while singing.  
What a terrible way to tighten up your throat!!!

If you are looking down then the throat is basically blocking itself from any open sound. 

Many singers feel great CONTROL when looking down or tilting the head down, but we want a free sound, right?

Remember these three rules:

1.  Keep your head up when singing.  This means the music stand you use might need to be raised.
 
2.  Hold music up when singing in choir so that you just see the conductor over the top of the music.
 

3. Stand up when you practice.  Don't sit unless you really know what you are doing.  Sitting can also block your support if you don't keep the chest and head up.  

Support

Is your support too strong?  

Many singers I have found use too strong of a support. 

I believe the support mechanism requires as a rule a gentle support.  If too strong, we run the risk of having muscles too tense around the diaphragm and mid-section. The residual effect can at time carry tension clear up to the throat, therefor affecting the vocal folds. 

If we start tensing unnecessarily in our throat, then we begin to have major issues with tension in the sound: the vocal folds will not be relaxed and vibrate freely, and the throat will be tight, and the sound will be uncomfortable for the singer and listener.
  

Remember these three rules:

1.  The air should always be flowing out of your lungs.  It should feel like a 'river' of air flowing out of your lungs, through the vocal folds and out of your body.

2.  Try to keep your support 'stable' and in your midsection.  Not let the support creep up into your chest or you will be too tight in the throat. 

3.  If you push down too hard in support, then you will also be tightening all the muscles too much. 

So, take a nice round breath, GENTLY push down or out, focus any tension at the sternum (so that the throat can be free), and then you will have a better support and sound. 

The Importance of a Good Coach: Role Preparation

I was very fortunate to apprentice at the Lyric Opera of Chicago for two years at the beginning of my career.
We were provided international coaches, retired singers, and old grizzled conductors to train us.

It was intense, it was demanding, it made is realise how much we didn't know, and I think that was a good thing: it kept us humble and taught us to respect the music.

When I prepare a role I find someone who is smarter and/or more experienced than I. It is the only way to  learn the correct style and phrasing.
  

I see many young singers learning on their own, and then showing up to the first rehearsal unprepared.
The problem is the rehearsal process nowadays is short and intense. If an artist shows up unprepared,
they may not be able to catch up and be truly comfortable in the role.

Find the best coach, which may not be a pianist but an older singer, and invest  the time in proper study of the role. It is your duty, and the audience will appreciate your hard work.

Knowing Your Lyrics

I am lucky that I have had the opportunity to learn multiple languages in my life.
I speak 5 western languages and some Mandarin Chinese. 

Knowing a language when preparing a role is a great advantage. We can quickly grasp the text and with this understanding we can have a stronger, more true character. In doing so we convey much more power to the audience in our movements, voice, an inflections of the language.

When I watch a performance, I can usually spot an artist who really doesn't understand the words he or she is singing. This is sad, as the learning process can be much deeper and satisfying if we translate a role properly.

Why Do We Sing?

Some artists sing for money, for fame, for ego. 

I would hope that the main reason we perform is for the joy of performing, and share our gifts with the audience.  If as artists we truly sink ourselves in the role, the audience will know it.  If we stand there posturing, wanting people to notice us, to like us, then we are out there for the wrong reason. 

In the end, if we give of our heart when performing, we will receive our reward with applause from the audience. 

So, don’t worry about the audience, just use your skills, be the character you are singing, and let the chips fall where they may.

Breathing and Performance Nerves

Breathe.  

One of the 1^st things affected by nerves is the breath or support.

Learn to be consistent with your breath.  Be consistent for every phrase.  If you make a habit of this while practicing, it becomes automatic during performance. 

Advice On Performance Nerves

One of the challenges of young artists is to get past the nerves of performance so that they can do their best.   

Most seasoned professionals learn over time to simply get out on stage and ‘do their job’ as passionately and skillfully as they can, not worrying about what people will think. 

I think one of the reasons some people have nerves is because we worry about the opinion of others, rather than simply performing. 

Focus on your job, your skills, stay in the ‘box’ of the stage, do your work, and the audience becomes an afterthought, and you can avoid being nervous.

 

The ‘OOH” vowel

In Italian the vowels (a, e, i, o, u)  are pronounced: “ah, eh, ee, oh, ooh”

I see many, many young singers today avoided a true ‘ooh’ vowel. 

In trying to relax or sing a pop music style ‘ooh’, they are flattening their mouth into more of a speech pattern and are not singing a proper ‘ooh’

A good ‘ooh’ vowel is balsam for the voice; in other words, it promotes good muscular alignment and vocal health. 

Also if you sing a good ‘ooh’, then the ‘ah’ and ‘oh’ vowels which are very much connected to the ‘ooh’, become better.

To sing a good ‘ooh’ all you must do is open the lips a bit more for the ‘oh’ and ‘ah’, all the time keeping a nice elongated mouth for a nice, easy open sound.

Singing through consonants

One of the challenges for singers is:
How do we sing a nice legato line when all the bloody consonants get in the way? 

This is particularly an issue when singing high notes, or more specifically, if you have a large interval between notes.

For example, as a soprano singing Un Bel Di from Madama Butterfly, in the last phrase of the aria you have a leap from Dflat to high Bflat, and the words are “l’aspetto”

How do you sing the ‘sp’ of aspetto on the high Bflat?
The answer:  you don’t.

What you do is sing the ‘sp’ as you leave the lower Dflat and travel to the high Bflat. 

In other words, you phonate the ‘sp’ early so that when you reach the high Bflat (on the beat) you are only singing the ‘e’ vowel. 

In this way you can keep a nice flow of air and not let the interval add tension to your singing;
you can keep the throat open and free. 

Don’t just listen to an opera, study it!

In the easy world of Youtube or Youku, it is a few simple clicks away to listen to an opera, an aria, or some famous singer.  

This is all well and good, if you are doing it for enjoyment or musical background. 

What is also necessary when listening to the music is to study it:    

1. Look at the words
2. Stop the recording when you don’t understand something
3. Research the word or phrase
4. Continue listening

How about having a score in front of you while listening?

Another thing to do is sit at the piano while listening:  

1. Stop the recording when not sure on note values
2. Play the note values on the piano
3. Stop and understand why the chord progressions or accompanying line are written the way they are.

If you simply listen to a recording, you can miss many details which will not only give you a richer understanding of the music, but you can also pass this understanding on to your audience with a more informed performance.

Balance

When we sing we usually focus on the throat and all the tensions there as this is where the vocal folds are located.  

What is necessary is taking the focus off the throat and giving up “control” of the vocal folds.  In this way we have more relaxation and in doing so, have a freer sound.
 

Balance in the body, balance in life, it all helps with singing.
What I try to do is teach the students to have more balance throughout their body.  

Focusing on support, having a ‘lean’ into the chest - this takes focus or tension off the throat.  This especially helps when a singer is holding tension and has an abnormal vibrato. 

Singing in a foreign language

Living in Hong Kong, working here and in China, is a fascinating experience.  

Young singers here are very talented, but as with young singers anywhere in the world, working in foreign languages requires a learning process.

I often here many singers sing phonetically rather than looking at the music and knowing what each individual word is. 

Translating and reading a western language is hard for a Chinese person, just as it is virtually impossible for a Westerner to quickly grasp and work in the Chinese language quickly and correctly.
 

I often hear young singers make mistakes with such Italian words as: mia, tua, sua, via.

 

Everyone knows when speaking Italian we say, ‘MI-a, or TU-a, SU-a, VI-a.  But when singing I hear many singers sing:  mi-AH, or tu-AH, su-AH, vi-AH, with the emphasis on the last syllable, which is wrong.

I also hear young singers take a world like, beato (pronounced bay-AH-toh) and sing “be-ah-TOO.  They look at it phonetically and not as an entire word with the stress on the correct syllable. 

Another thing I hear because of lack of understanding of languages is a breath in the middle of a word.  I tease Chinese singers and explain it thus:  Tomorrow I will go to Bei (breath) jing. 

Well, you can’t separate the syllables of “Bei” and “jing” with a breath: you must say, “Beijing”. 

It is the same in other languages; you cannot split syllables with a word or it sounds so wrong.  That is why so much understanding of foreign languages is necessary. 

What is legato?

When a coach or teacher tells a singer to sing legato (legato means ‘tied together’ in Italian), what does that mean?  

Singers begin singing legato, or more smoothly, but what is true legato?

I have always been taught that true legato is actually the air constantly and smoothly coming out of the lungs. 

Many young singers need to look at how they study music and the phrases they sing.  Most pick up the music and start singing the words right away, fumbling with pronunciation as they fumble with the notes.  This is not the way to study a piece and makes singing legato impossible.

Furthermore, our body remembers this through muscle memory and we then need to go back and learn to sing true legato in the middle of studying a piece of music!

The best way is to have a study plan and learn to sing the music correctly from the first time you look at it.

What a singer needs to do is study the notes at the piano, phrase by phrase, and sing, ‘ah’.  Singing “ah’ is easier on the voice and combined with good support, can help the singer discover a true legato, which is the air smoothly and freely coming out of the lungs.

So when you pick up a new piece of music, sing, ‘ah’  or ‘oh’ or whatever vowel is easiest for you, and sing the song several times, phrase by phrase with just a vowel, and in doing so you will have an easier time at discovering true legato which is; the free and easy flow of air out of the lungs. 

The body memorizes this good free feeling very easily. 

It is at this point that you then add the words (which have
been studied and translated), and combined with body memory, helps keep a true legato line in the sound, even with the words added. 

One Opera Two Languages

When I was working in Luzern, Switzerland, we had presented a new production of Lucia di Lammermoor.  The beauty of the theater in Luzern was that as a rule we performed everything in the original language. Therefore, we performed the Lucia in Italian.

A month or so after the premiere, I received an emergency phone call from the theater in Pforzheim, Germany.  Their baritone was ill and they needed me to ‘jump in’ to their production of Lucia that very evening.  

It was 1pm in the afternoon and I immediately packed an overnight bag, my music, and hurried to the train station.  It was about a three hour trip to Pforzheim.  

I arrived there are 5:30 and the conductor picked me up from the train station.  

This was my second year in Europe so my German was advanced and that is what we spoke was he drove me to the theater for the rehearsal.  

We entered a practice room and he started playing the introduction to my music.   I began singing (in Italian) and he abruptly stopped with a shocked look on his face.  

He said, ‘Du singst auf Italienisch!!!” (you sing in Italian!!!)

I said yes, that in Luzern we sing everything in original language. 
He said, ‘aber unsere ist auf Deutsch!!!”  (but ours is in German!).   

Well, there was no time to find another baritone, so I sang in Italian and all the others in German.   It did work and the audience didn’t seem to mind!!!! 

A month later Pforzheim had the same emergency, and I was called in again, so I must have done alright! 

Importance of Languages

The first European contract I signed was a two year contract with the Stadttheater Luzern in Switzerland.  

Then by a stroke of luck I was asked by the Baseler Theater in Switzerland to sing one performance of Madama Butterfly, one of Don Pasquale, and then Junius in the Rape of Lucretia. The Butterfly and Don Pasquale were a week apart, so I had to come in completely prepared as I only had four days of staging for both productions.

Imagine my surprise the first day of rehearsal when I met the other singers in Butterfly:  None of the other guest singers spoke English! 

The soprano was Japanese and had lived in Italy, therefore she spoke Italian.  The Suzuki was Chinese and spoke French.  The tenor was from Cuba and spoke Spanish and German.  I spoke Spanish and a bit of Italian, but really hadn’t learned my German yet.  

How were we going to communicate? 
Fortunately the assistant stage director spoke six languages and was the bridge between us.  

Not all theaters had this luxury, but the Basel Theater and our cast was lucky.

I can’t emphasize how important it is to be actively engaged as a life’s work in learning and improving your language skills as a singer and international artist. 

Learning music on short notice, can you do it?

When I did my first audition for the Metropolitan Opera, my voice teacher was very connected with a pair of super agents in New York.  

I sang on a Thursday for the MET, and on Friday my teacher told me a rumour was going around that a baritone would bow out of a cover responsibility in Luisa Miller.  My teacher thought there was a strong possibility for me to be asked to stay in New York another week and cover the upcoming three performances.
 

Saturday morning I went to Patelson’s music store and purchased the music to Luisa Miller, and my teacher had a CD.  I took the music home and at 11am I begin learning the baritone role of Miller. 

On Sunday, I had an audition in which I tried out the big area from Miller. 

On Monday morning at 11am I finished memorizing the music.  

I received a call from the MET at 1pm in the afternoon and was in rehearsal Tuesday morning ready to participate in stage rehearsals.

Sometimes these opportunities come, and when they do, we as artists must make them work to our advantage.  You must really know yourself and your capabilities before taking on a last minute task as this one, but the pay off was my foot was in the door at the MET.

Overnight Audition

Luzern, Switzerland, November 1986

When I went to Europe for auditions for the first time I spoke no German, Italian or French. 

I spoke English and Spanish.  English and Spanish don’t help you much when you are basically in the major Germanic countries. 

I went to Vienna and sang for the assistant to Ioan Holender, and he sent me to the Vienna Volksoper and the theater in Luzern, Switzerland. 

I received an offer from the Volksoper, but the assistant, Herr Seitter, wanted me to sing in Luzern before I made any decision on accepting contracts. 

I traveled to Luzern for the audition and as I had almost no money for lodging (or the whole trip for that matter), I was looking for a very cheap hotel.

As it turned out there was a large event taking place in Luzern and no cheap hotels were available. I back-tracked to Zurich, and also, nothing cheap (well, Switzerland has never been cheap, anyway). 

As I was desperate to do anything rather than sit in a cold train station all night, I jumped on a train from Zurich to Milan.
I arrived in Milan around 1am, luckily sleeping on the train. 
I then had to wait four hours before returning to Zurich, so I walked around Milan until my train left. 

Once in Zurich (I wasn’t able to sleep much on this train), I doubled back to Luzern for the audition.   I had to wash on the train, cold shave, change clothes, and warm up, all in the small bathroom! I was tired arriving in Luzern and concerned I wouldn’t have a strong voice. 

When singers do a general audition they usually sing two arias, one other their choice then the theater management chooses the other.  

I sang Ford’s Monologue from Falstaff first, then they asked me if I would sing a German aria. Just as I was about to sing an aria from Tannhaeuser they also asked if I knew any other Verdi aria, and I did have “pari siamo’ from Rigoletto.  After the Tannhaeuser they also asked if I had the Count’s aria from Le Nozze di Figaro.  I had sung the aria, but not for over a year.  As I walked off stage they told me to take ten minutes to refresh my memory then sing the last two arias.   Well, I was in a bit of a panic but was able to put everything together.   So, in this audition I sang four arias.  Some how my voice was in great shape and I sailed through the audition.

I was asked after the audition to come to the office and speak with Herr Statkus and Marcello Viotti, who was coming in as the new General Music Director. They offered me a two year contract, in which I would sing Rigoletto and the Count in Le Nozze di Figaro, among other operas. 

So began my European career with a wonderful two year stay in Luzern, Switzerland.

Claiming Control of Career

I have been fortunate to have well-meaning people and teachers around me.  Even though one of my teachers was considered by many to be very controlling, I met him when I was already beginning my career.  He did give great advice, and I was loyal to a fault.  I was fortunate that when I met him I was not always in New York; I was already a traveling artist.   However, we had a fruitful relationship for almost the first 15 years of my career. 

 

My first teacher was in Seattle where I was raised.  He had performed over 10 years in Europe and knew the importance of European training. He pushed me to the Lyric Opera of Chicago (another of his students had preceded me by one year to the Lyric), and then I found a manager BEFORE I moved to New York City to continue coaching and private study.

 

I now live in Hong Kong and see so many young professionals who are being sucked into following local teachers for years, or for wrong reasons.  I know that respect is very important in Chinese culture, but I see this respect being carried to such extremes that students get stuck with teachers far too long.  I also see singers gravitate to teachers who can help them locally, but don’t have the international skills (although the teachers will pompously tell the students otherwise) to bring them to where they need to be to get out of Hong Kong.   

 

A young singer must claim their freedom and have a balanced relationship with their teacher.   If a teacher is not working in the best interest of the students, not helping them to truly progress, then the student must be strong enough to move on to the best TEACHER and MENTOR.  A young singer must make plans, spend extended periods in a foreign environment, with a teacher who is truly international, or they do not progress as they should. 

 

I recently attended a small production of a main stream opera.  I was only positively surprised by two of the 9 young professionals that I heard.  The rest had the same issues and hindrances they showed while studying their undergraduate degrees.   If a young singer truly wants to progress, they must fight, struggle, and put in the time necessary to truly grow.   One of the challenges in Hong Kong is that young singers must make a living, hence they must teach.  However, the after hours dedication needed to progress if staying local is obviously not happening for the majority of the young singers. 

 

Put in the time, the effort, the pain, the struggle on your languages, style, technique, or you will always be grasping for roles.  Be truly prepared for every rehearsal, every production, then you will never look back with regrets.

The Early Days: Night Trains and WURST!

I went to Europe in 1986 to audition for opera houses.  

I had been living in New York, was poor, and had just worked the summer in Central City Colorado.  Central City had been a  great experience, singing a lead role on the main stage, but it wasn’t the highest paying contract (as is the case with most summer contracts in the USA). 

I was working as a temp secretary to make ends meet in New York.  

After singing for Herr Holeander in New York, I made plans to go to Europe.  I realized I didn’t have the necessary funds.  I asked a wonderful sponsor who had heard me in a summer program in the Ozarks, and he offered to pay my airfare.  

The Sullivan Foundation (in New York) said they would repay my Eurail Pass IF I WAS OFFERED A CONTRACT.  

I had 500 USD in my pocket to live and eat on in Europe for one month.  

Of course 500 USD was totally unrealistic and I had to sleep in Youth Hostels, ride night trains, and eat a great deal of WURST.  

I was lucky to only be in Europe 2.5 weeks, received a contract, and was back in the States, with 200 USD in my pocket.  I was truly fortunate.

The Early Days: Zwei und zwanzig Dezember Nineteen Fifty Six!

I was having a conversation with a friend the other day and we reminisced about career beginnings and opportunities. 

At age twenty seven I apprenticed two seasons at the Lyric Opera Center for American Artists in Chicago and then moved to New York City. 

I was lucky to have found a manager at Columbia Artists Management Inc. (CAMI). At the time, CAMI was one of the top agencies in the world. 

My manager was new and didn’t’ have a lot of power, but one thing he did was fight for me to sing for Ioan Holeander.  Herr Holeander at the time was the most powerful manager in Europe, based in Vienna.  He subsequently took over and ran the Vienna Staatsoper for 20 years.

The upper management at CAMI wanted to present the top artists for guest contracts.  My manager was wise enough to know that although I had abilities, I needed experience. 

Europe was (and still is) the best training ground for singers. 

At the audition Herr Holeander asked me if I could speak German.  I truthfully told him ‘nur ein bischen’.  He then asked me in German when I was born and luckily I was able to answer with, “ich bin zwei und zwanzig Dezember Nineteen Fifty Six geboren…”  He laughed and said I would be fine.   He invited me to audition in Europe with a 90% guarantee of a contract. 

In Europe I sang two auditions, in Vienna at the Volksoper and in Luzern, Switzerland.  I was fortunate enough to get two offers and took the offer in Luzern. 

Singing In Mandarin

I have sung a couple standard popular love songs in Mandarin, but in June I will sing my first operatic role in Chinese. 

I will sing the role of the American Ambassador to CHIANG Kai-shek's Guomintang in the new opera, Soong Ching-ling (Madame SOON Yat-sen).  

This is work.

I have been looking at the music for several weeks, and although I speak some Chinese now, it is hard to memorize the words. 

The music is no problem; it is not tonally difficult. This will take time.
 

I relish the challenge as I believe I will be one of the first (or definitely few) Westerners to sing in a Mandarin opera in China.  It is at Beijing's National Center for Performing Arts, to boot!

One good thing is I am singing the role of the American Ambassador, so if my Chinese isn't perfect, it can fit nicely into the role...............

Italian recits to English dialogue to Mandarin: Writing last minute dialogues in China

Last December I had the wonderful opportunity of directing and singing in the first Western Opera ever presented in Guiyang, China. 

The opera presented was Mozart's Le Nozze di Figaro. The singers were young faculty members at Guizhou Normal University and several young professionals, plus myself. 

Working in China is sometimes daunting, and the weeks leading up to the rehearsals were a bit frustrating as I didn't get much information:  I didn't know how much music they were planning on presenting.  

Imagine my concern when I arrived and over the first three days of rehearsals found that only 60% of the music, and the only the standard recitative lead-ins to arias would be sung. 

They asked me to create dialogues to bind the musical scenes and story together.   Well, this was a challenge. The first four days I went home and was writing several dialogues in English, which I emailed to a wonderful young Chinese flutest who spoke great English.  She then translated them into Chinese and sent them on to the Chinese conductor, who would print them out and bring them to the morning rehearsal. 

We would then add local idioms and humour to spice up the recits.  We even ended up having a fun 'tai chi' theme for the distraught Countess throughout the show.  In the end it went very well and the audience was engaged throughout. 

It certainly kept me on my toes, having to produce the dialogues on the fly!

FAVOURITE OPERA TO DIE IN

Which opera is your favourite to die in and why?

There are several operas in which I enjoyed dying. 

One is Mercutio in Romeo and Juliette.  My first Romeo was Roberto Alagna, so that was fun.  It was made doubly nice as he is such an enjoyable colleague. 

I enjoyed dying as Posa in Don Carlo - It is a regal and elegant death. 

My favourite role in which to die is Scarpia in Tosca.  Why? 
I think the intensity of the death and in fact the entire role. 

From the moment Scarpia enters the stage he is all business and stays extremely intense through almost his entire role.  We get a glimpse of his carnal desires even in the Te Deum (in church of all places!) at the end of Act one.  And his expression of his desires and what he wants at the beginning of Act II.  He is a powerful, wanton man with huge desires and cravings.  His death at the hands of a woman is shocking because it is women that he could use and abuse on a whim; one strike of the dagger from a woman and it is shown that even a powerful man can fall.  I think when Scarpia is stabbed, many people in the audience will be thinking, "yes!  He deserved that!!!".

BEST OPERA ROLES FOR YOUNG BARITONES

What are the best roles for young baritones?

I think my time and experience as a 'young baritone' was very formative. 

I grew up in Seattle, and fortunately at that time in my Public School District we had a Summer Stock program.  My first lead role was the Pirate King in The Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert and Sullivan.  We had an experienced director who challenged us to be creative. 

Then next year I sang Emile in South Pacific.  So at a young age I was able to understand the rehearsal process.  

After returning from two years in Bolivia at age 21, I began to seriously study voice.  Within a 3 year period I had sung Danilo (Merry Widow), Frank Butler (Annie Get Your Gun), Sir Francis Chesney (Where's Charley?), Papageno (Magic Flute), Escamillo (Carmen), and John (The Face on the Barroom Floor).  All were good for me and helped me grow as and artist. 

My professional debut was as the Imperial Commissioner (Madama Butterfly).  By the time I made my debut with Seattle Opera at age 26 I had already sung over half a dozen lead roles.

I think the key for a young singer is to seek any opportunity to perform,  and have a mentor to say "no" when you wish to take on a role too large.  We don't want young baritones singing Rigoletto or Scarpia too soon! 

Good roles for a young baritone (depending on your baritone voice type) would include:  

Papageno (Magic Flute)

Guglielmo (Cosi fan tutte)

Schaunard (La Boheme)

Silvio (I Pagliacci)

Valentin (Faust)

Belcore (L'Elisr d'Amore)

Malatesta (Don Pasquale)

Mercutio (Romeo et Juliette)

Of course there are many smaller roles that one can accept that help develop your craft. 

As a young singer, we need to take advantage of opportunities to sing roles, be in productions.  Sometimes there is a bit of a financial sacrifice, but the more experience we get at an early age, the more solid our career can be down the road.  

This is why I always try to promote and find good opportunities for young singers to grow.

In Asia, there are some talented young singers that don't get an opportunity to sing a full opera, or sing enough of them.  Through summer programs outside of Asia, or the creation of productions in China or Hong Kong, we can offer desperately needed experience to young singers.  

ACOUSTICS: HOW TO SING IN DIFFICULT THEATRES

As singers we are always thrown into new environments to perform. 

Some theaters are very 'live' or have a lot of echo or feedback, and some are 'dry' or even 'dead'. Singing outside can also be difficult at times.

When we sing in a very "live" space we generally have no issues, as singers always enjoy the echo. We can stay relaxed when we feel the voice 'come back to us'.   When we are in a 'dry' or 'dead' space, then we have to worry not to push our voices and stay within technique.  This is where we are challenged to stay disciplined. 

For me, my tendency in a dry or dead space is to push and use too much 'chest voice', thereby losing balance with the 'head voice'.  If this happens, I basically get too bright a sound. This is how singers tire easily.  This can also lead to the voice cracking, or even catastrophic meltdowns, depending on how technically secure the singer.  (I've never had a meltdown, thank Goodness!)

In my case, I make doubly sure that I am staying on the breath, the sound is forward, and that every single phrase is well supported and the air flow out of my lungs is constant.  I also am more aware every time I sing in or through the passaggio. and make sure my voice will co-ordinate (some people say cover) at the right time, thereby keeping balance in the registers. 

I was lucky to take part in Texas Opera Theater tours when I was younger.  We would be in 25 -30 different cities in a six week period, and each theater was different. 

I learned at a young age the necessity of adapting to the different acoustics.  This was good training for when I started singing in different theaters all over the world. 

SINGING AT THE MET

Singing at the MET: My Debut Day

My debut at the MET was the role of Rodrigo in Don Carlo by Giuseppe Verdi.  The debut came about because Vladimir Chernov, the Russian baritone, had fallen ill.  Before walking on stage, I had rehearsed the staging on C Level for several days, and had one ensemble rehearsal with Maestro James Levine and the "A" cast.  

The first time I sang on the stage, other than my audition, was in my debut!  It was a bit of pressure of course.  Luckily I could  refer back to my stage audition and knew that there was an echo or 'feedback' from the house. This meant if the acoustics remained the same with an audience, that I would be fine. 

The MET  is a very large opera house, but the acoustics are still very good.  When standing on the stage, one cannot see to the back of the Family Circle (the farthest upper reaches of the theater).  With the lighting coming from farther back in the house, or off the facade of the first couple balconies, visibility is next to none. So the area that we can see from the stage is actually about 2/3 of the actual space. This gives the singer a psychological lift as we are 'tricked' into thinking the theater is much smaller than it is.  It helps us to relax and sing easily. 

OPERA FAILING

Why is opera failing around the world?I think there are several reasons. 

I believe the trend began in Europe decades ago when classic productions began to be replaced with "Konzept Oper" (concept opera) and has moved into a phase of "regietheater" (stage theater).  
Theaters began permitting stage directors to explore the psychological side of the operatic characters, many times finding a completely new vision for the opera.  Unfortunately, this confused audiences and attendance has since dwindled. 

I look at an updated opera production this way:  if the director needs more than a page in the program to explain or justify his concept, then it is probably too complicated for the audience to easily enjoy. 

I don't want to sit in a theater and spend most of the show trying to figure out what the significance is of many new twists the director may have included.  

I attended several performances in the Arena in Verona, Italy last summer.  Some of the people in my group made the comment, "...it is hard to hear the singers...." 

Yes, the Arena is an outdoor venue where one must truly listen to the singers, as the Arena holds 18,000 people.  But another issue is amplification.  If we listen to music at home, even classical music, it is easy to crank up the volume and sit in the middle of the orchestra and hear every sound out of digitally mastered voice.  This is not the same sound we hear when we attend a live performance of opera in a theater.  
I believe a well tuned theater gives us the best chance at hearing a voice at its best, and hope that people can continue to take advantage of live performance as the best way to see and hear an opera performance.

OPERA COMPANIES CLOSING

It was announced just days ago that the San Diego Opera is closing its doors, effective the end of their current season. 

This follows a trend of companies closing their doors over the past six years, including venerable companies like Baltimore Opera and New York City Opera.  
However, San Diego Opera was not a company that was seemingly in financial distress; they had balanced the budget for 28 straight years even through tough economic times.  However, as they planned ahead for next season, they realised with dwindling audiences, and a donor base that was 'exhausted', the management felt it couldn't present 4 operas without running a deficit. 
A gift given ten years ago of ten million dollars from a donor had finally run out as they had tapped one million a year to balance the budget.  
This company was one of the top ten in the USA, known for its quality and stability.  
Yes, opera is arguably the most expensive art form as it combines stage, voice and orchestra.  But companies in the USA are generally privately funded these days, and during hard financial times are very susceptible to financial crisis.
 
SDOpera however, had a fifteen million dollar budget per year.  The company had 117 employees, (some seasonal), and recently spent 2.6million USD on a production of Verdi's Un Ballo in Maschera. 

The General Manager, Ian Campbell, drew a paycheck of 500,000 USD per year.  For the company and board of directors to not make substantial cuts in these troubled financial times and burn through their 10 million dollar endowment is simply irresponsible.  

Cuts should have been made, beginning with the salary of the General Manager.  A regional company, however stable, should not be spending 2.6 million USD on a production.

In this case, it seems as if the company management and board killed the goose that laid the golden egg and in doing so, will effect not only the opera company and its employees, but the stage hands, orchestra members, and artists that will no longer be able to make a living.

SECCO RECITATIVES!

As I was teaching some young singers this week, we were working on Mozart recitatives. 

Anyone will tell you that the first time a young singer tackles a Mozart recit, it can be a bit comical for the seasoned listener, coach or performer. 

As I chuckled a bit during the rehearsal, the two students reacted a bit perplexed at my demeanor.  I had to explain to them that learning how to present a secco recitative takes a bit of time and skill. 

To present a secco recit correctly, the performer must have a great understanding of the text, sub-text, and feel for what the scene is trying to convey to the audience. 

For a young singer, this is simply a learning process. 

One of the students this week tried to sing everything fast, showing good memory skills (but no real feeling given to the words)  while the other used so much character that there were great pauses before each line, both of which lead to a very jagged and unintelligible recitative. 

Add upon this the fact that most young Chinese singers don't yet have a great understanding of Western languages, and one realises there is a great deal of work to do when it comes to interpreting a secco recitative.

SELF-ASSESSMENT

One of the most challenging tasks for any artist is to honestly assess themselves.  

If we are not having success in securing performing opportunities, what are the causes? Are the reasons clear or not?  

If the reasons are not clear, we need good, honest advice.  Hopefully we have someone in our lives who as a mentor can be honest and tell us what we need to improve. 

As for ourselves, we need to be fearlessly and sometimes brutally honest with ourselves about what we need to improve or change in our performance package.  

It isn't always easy, but as anything in life, if we can be totally honest with ourselves we can become better performers, and also better individuals.