Have any of you heard the Cake song “Opera Singer”? If so, what are your thoughts on it?
For those who sing in foreign languages: Do you know the translations of the words you sing, or do you just get a general understanding of the underlying meaning?
What made you (each of you) decide that singing opera was what you wanted to do?
Yes, Victoria, BC. I played the role of Ben Hubbard in ‘Regina’ with Pacific Opera Victoria this April. One of my favourite companies because of Tim Vernon’s really interesting mix of popular and obscure repertoire.
What’s the point of vibrato? I’ve grown used to it but I used to really hate it. It often sounds artificial and affected.
No…but I’m going to dial it up on Rhapsody and listen to it later.
Every word. Not knowing those sorts of things is bush league. You can’t be an effective actor or singer if generalities are all you have to go on – you need something very specific to say, and specific reasons for saying it even though the composer has already given you the inflection and timing.
Actually, that last point is what makes opera such a fun challenge. Unlike actors, who have total freedom with line readings, pauses, speed of exchanges, etc., opera singers have to create the same impression of spontaneity within a pre-existing framework. You have to kind of reverse engineer the music and figure out exactly why the composer made the choices he/she did and then make them seem organic in the moment. When it works, it’s awesome. That’s a big part of the rehearsal process.
For me, it was the combination of discovering I was good at it and that it moved me. I’ve always been (and was especially as a teenager) a kind of stoic person with a limited range of emotional expression, but as a singer I discovered I not only responded very emotionally to music, but that I was able to open up a huge range of myself on stage.
I grew up listening mostly to rock and early hip-hop music and I never gave my own musical talents much of a thought until high school when I did a couple of musicals and joined an a capella group. I decided to take the plunge in college. Once I realized I had enough talent and started exploring the huge variety of music and poetry out there I never looked back.
Great question! Vibrato is an entirely natural part of the energized adult singing voice, and one of the most widely misunderstood elements of the voice, even by people who ought to know more about it. It’s not applied as a style choice, and it isn’t a technique. The problem is, lots of voices are out of balance (too driven, too heavy, not well enough coordinated with breath, acoustically “out of tune,” etc.), and that tends to make the vibrato too wide or slow (or in rarer cases, too fast, kind of like a machine gun or a bleat). When that happens, the vibrato takes on an unpleasant quality that overshadows the core of the voice.
Vibrato can be suppressed, and often is for special effect. Early music singers do that a lot.
Vibrato’s perception problem comes from radio voices, which aren’t deployed energetically or freely enough to exhibit much vibrato. This leaves a lot of people thinking that a lack of vibrato is natural, and that the operatic voice is manufactured and artificial. Neither is true. They are just very different kinds of singing optimized for different uses. Operatic singing is hideous at close range, which is why it doesn’t record well. Pop singing sounds perfect a couple of inches from the mouth (where a mic would be), and is practically inaudible across the room. Neither is better or worse than the other. Different tools for different jobs.
Vibrato is an entire dissertation subject. First of all, it’s important to understand that vibrato is not something you do; it’s a natural by-product of a well-supported, well-produced tone with no excess tension. A voice with a natural vibrato has to add tension in order to eliminate the vibrato, which, while it can be done healthily, can be dangerous. It also reduces resonance. A natural vibrato keeps the voice spinning and alive; the vibrato can be used for all sorts of musical and expressive effects. It’s also a good metric for the quality of the voice; a voice with an uneven, stuttering vibrato has extra tension and inconsistent support, while one with a consistent vibrato in timing and amplitude is well produced.
Vibrato can be irritating, especially a slow, wide one. Some singers do try to produce too much vibrato, resulting in a wobble, which is not so nice. It also tends to be flat.
I just heard it for the first time - thanks for the recommendation, I love it. I especially like the like “I sing what can’t be said”
Well, I’m speaking mostly for myself here, but I have put in a lot of work on my languages. I have a 101 level course in French, German, Italian and Russian, and I’ve tried to maintain or increase my ability in all of them. I’ve known other singers who didn’t give a rat’s about what they were saying when they sang, but usually you can tell because their characterization lacks depth. I can’t understand this point of view - I want to do everything I can to reduce the distance between me and what inspired the composer, and sometimes there are clues to your character hidden in the text.
In “Rigoletto”, there is only one character at the court that Rigoletto speaks to in the informal tense, and that’s Marullo. So, there’s some connection there that needs explaining and development - it turns out that in the original play, Marullo was the court poet, so while he and Rigoletto are of a similar status at court, Marullo has been a collaborator with the other courtiers against Rigoletto.
“Der Rosenkavalier”, Music by Richard Strauss, Libretto by Hugo Von Hoffmansthal, is a masterpiece of German literature, a real labour of love by someone who wanted to exploit every resource of the German language, from accents and dialects to philosophical ruminations on the passage of time. Every line rewards the artists’ diligence.
Opera Singers have the unique privilege of learning other languages through their song, which is really cool. I didn’t know I had the interest in other tongues until it was awakened doing Opera. If I couldn’t do music of any kind, I’d go back to college and get my Ph.D. in Linguistics…
I had some interesting early influences. I saw the Canadian Opera Company on tour doing ‘Barber of Seville’ when I was in grade 9, I heard “Lucia diLammermoor” broadcast by the Met when Alf Kruger and I were stuck in a truck during a snowstorm (he knew the piece inside out and translated for me during the breaks) and a friend of mine’s father was a fascinating man. Bud Cook was as tough as they come - strike captain for the local pipe fitters’ union, hardcore socialist and opera fanatic. Any time I’d go over to the house, he’d play me some of his massive collection of classical music, and for him, opera and art song were the peak of human creation.
For all that, I wanted to be the next Jazz/Rock guitar sensation. I wanted to go to university, because all my favourite artists (Frank Zappa, Robert Fripp, John McLaughlin, Steve Howe, Pat Metheny, etc.) had serious theory/history/composition skills as well as technique on the instrument. My grades in High School were awful, my local university was about the only place that would take me (so Berklee was out, f’r instance) but they only taught classical guitar and I didn’t have the skills. So, I got in as a voice major, based entirely on having done church choir and high school choir. After a couple of years, I was good enough (and lucky enough) to start getting work, and I gradually got hooked.
It’s the interesting combination of acting and singing that really gets me; it appeals to my scattered mind. It’s story-telling, but with the singing and the music as one more element in the story, and I find even the crappiest productions inspiring. When a group of people have probed the full extent of what is there in the rehearsal process, it can be truly transcendant, and an honour to be a part of.
Questions for all of you:
Which role is your favourite for you to play, and why?
Which opera is your favourite, and why?
Which is your favourite venue, and why?
What would it take to get a full blown production to visit Thunder Bay, Ontario? 
Wozzeck, in the opera “Wozzeck”, by Alban Berg, libretto by Alban Berg based on the play “Woyzeck” by Georg Büchner. I love this role because it is such a rewarding challenge. The drama and the music are completely intertwined - the character is as much in the notes as in the words, and the score is full of depth and subtlety.
Please note - I don’t recommend it for a first opera to listen to - it’s very modern (even though it is 90 years old) and most casual listeners find it jarring and dissonant. It is not an easy opera to listen to for the audience, but it also shouldn’t be an easy play or movie to sit through, as the audience is asked to sympathize with a downtrodden madman whose condition is worsened by all the authority figures who are supposed to help him. Then, when his common-law wife, the one stable relationship in his life, has an affair, his mind snaps completely and he kills her. Finding the balance between empathy for a victim and horror as he lashes out at the wrong person is a tough job, but I love doing it.
Well, as you can see from the above, Wozzeck is way up there, but I’m making myself pick another. Thing is, that’s hard, just like trying to say what your single favourite book, film, painting, etc. is. I’m going to go with “Gianni Schicchi” by Giacomo Puccini, libretto by Giovacchino Forzano. This one, I’d have little problem recommending as a first opera. There’s a lot of dark humour, and the story of scheming relatives having to accept the help of someone they’ve always looked down on is delightful. Check the libretto synopsis here .
The Four Seasons Centre in Toronto is the best hall I’ve heard anything in, and is my favourite in North America. I haven’t performed in it yet, but hope springs eternal…
I’ll have to get back to you in a couple of days, but I’m pretty sure the Canadian Opera Company would have performed there sometime in the mid-1970s.
Partly it depends on what you mean by a full blown production - Wagner is expensive and difficult for anywhere, but something like Don Pasquale or The Elixer of Love wouldn’t be too hard to produce. The Thunder Bay Orchestra would be a good place to start, particularly if you have a spare couple of hundred thousand dollars with which to sponsor a show. Orchestras usually start out with a concert version of somthing really popular with a small cast, and if it goes well, they try to expand from there.
I’m afraid the days of big touring opera productions don’t seem to be coming back any time soon. In the meanwhile, it would be easier to bring you to the opera than the opera to you. Manitoba Opera Association isn’t too far away from you (I’m from Brandon, MB, and we used to bomb out to TB to go skiing for a weekend.) Operabase used to have maps which showed the companies closest to a given location. It seems to be down for today, so I’m going by memory - near you are small companies like Opera of Green Bay, there was once a Duluth Opera, Minnesota Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago. If you’re ever down to Toronto, that’s the home base of the Canadian Opera Company. Hope that helps.
Tough question. I really enjoyed Andrew Borden, which I mentioned above. Like Le ministre and Wozzeck I really enjoyed the challenge. It’s not as challenging as Wozzeck, but it’s a seriously chromatic opera, and Andrew has probably the most angular and atonal part (owing largely to his being a supremely unpleasant man). It’s also challenging to play a man seemingly so unsympathetic, yet still give the audience a reason to feel horror at his death, and understand why Lizzie hates him, while obviously admiring him deeply (she essentially becomes him at the end). It’s a deeply disturbing, complex, psychologically compelling opera.
My piano teacher in college likened the question “who’s your favorite composer?” to “which of your children is your favorite?”. I love Wagner, and while overall I enjoy the Ring immensely, I’d say my single favorite of his is Tristan und Isolde. I’m not sure that’s my favorite, though, since it leaves out so much else. I’m not sure I can distill down to a single favorite.
In terms of sheer grandiosity, the Met in New York. Acoustically, if you’re just going in for a solo recital, the Sheldon Concert Hall in St. Louis is one of the world’s best. The Loretto Hilton Center here in St. Louis is a great place for a nice intimate performance, although it is not acoustically ideal, and the sort of theater in the half-round can lead to awkward stagings and odd sight lines.
My favorite venue that I’ve never been to would be Bayreuth, the only place you can see (and hear) Wagner as Wagner intended.
If you’re really enterprising, and patient, and good at fund-raising, and have a bit of musical talent (to save on some costs; you could run your own auditions and conduct the performances), you could start your own company.
(I’m joking, but the second largest company in St. Louis was started by a guy who just wanted to do opera, got permission from the church he directed the choir at to use the sanctuary for performances, and started with a tiny little company with a volunteer chorus, local talent, and a non-union orchestra and in less than 15 years has turned it into a fairly impressive outfit that now auditions in New York and LA, becoming so successful that the church renovated their sanctuary to include a full pit.)
I was going to guess that! I didn’t get to see it, though–I blew my opera money on the previous production, Madama Butterfly, in February. Dang–it really sounded interesting, too.
Are you familiar with Anna Russell’s works and what do you think of her Ring Cycle interpretation? 
Yes, and brilliant. We still pop in her “Farewell Concert” DVD regularly.
What is your favorite opera spoof?
I am an amateur singer myself, (extreme amateur, as in I’ve had some lessons and do karaoke once a week). I am wondering what exercises you do to increase range and volume.
Also, obviously smoking is counterproductive for quality singing. My question is how much.
Thirdly, do you ever feel superior to pop/rock/country singers? What is that scene like in the vocal community?
Scales and arpeggios, generally. That’s not a very helpful answer, but it sort of varies from person to person. The important thing is to learn to sing with proper posture, proper support (breathing with the diaphragm and impulsing the sound from the abdomen rather than from the chest and throat). Breathing and posture exercises are essential. Here’s a simple one: lie flat on your back on the floor (use a pillow for you head). I usually bend my knees and put my feet flat on the floor. Breathe deeply and feel where the breath is going. It’s very difficult to breathe with the chest (“clavicular” is the technical term for it) in this position. That’s your breath exercise. You can explore support from this position too; put a book of your belly, breathe in, and then hiss or sing a relaxed “oo” while attempting to keep the book up.
I use a lot of falsettos with men to develop the head voice. It takes a while to really develop the voice; you need to both develop the muscles and the coordination thereof, while at the same time unlearning years of bad habits and tensions. The important thing is to do so under the guidance of a voice teacher. They will be far better able to guide you without doing harm, as they will both know what to do with your voice, and will be able to hear better than you what is going on (assuming they’re competent).
I don’t know that anybody’s ever really studied it. I know a lot of singers that smoke; one may assume that they would be better if they didn’t, but it’s hard to say (one of my smoking singer friends was accepted into a fairly prestigious Young Artist’s Program this summer. She has since quit smoking, but she was smoking when she got the gig). Most singers in the early part of the twentieth century (which many would call the “golden age” of opera singing) smoked heavily. Caruso is particularly notorious for it. At the very least, it’ll shorten a career (not least 'cause you’ll die young).
Good ones? No. It’s a different style that requires different talents. There are elitists who will claim superiority, but my feeling is that, while I might not like the sounds they make, that doesn’t mean it’s somehow inferior.
Now, I’m sometimes pained when I hear someone belting unhealthily, just because I know what’s going on in their larynx, but that’s a different question.
I’ll give you a hint…it features Elmer Fudd singing about his “spear and magic helmet” and Bugs Bunny in Nordic drag on the back of a fabulously zaftig horse…
I’m also a big fan of Anna Russell (already mentioned twice). Her 5-minute ring cycle and “How to Write your Own Gilbert and Sullivan Opera” bits are hilarious.
do sopranos give you headaches?
No, my wife’s a mezzo.
(Ba dum bum ching!)
(Just kidding, honey.)
If you could get rid of one stereotype about opera and opera singers, what would it be?
I want to take my grandmum to see Madame Butterfly in 2009–have you ever performed it? What’s it like?
How do you keep your voice in good shape during concert season?