To start, Genaux elaborates on the
challenge of coming onstage and singing just two showcase arias,
rather than a longer, mixed programme: ‘It used to be quite
difficult for me because I was more accustomed to singing entire
operas. The energy and concentration one uses for a concert are
quite different, and I used to watch a lot of sports on TV to see
how athletes prepared themselves for different events. A lot of
sporting events like figure skating, skiing and track have athletes
preparing for both longer programmes or courses, versus shorter,
more technically intense events.
‘Singing an opera takes the strategy of a longer marathon
where you are working with prolonged concentration and endurance,
short bursts of sprinting and moments where you’re still working
but saving energy for the next sprint. Singing a concert seems more
like Super G where you’re working with as much technical precision
as possible right out of the gate. Having added many more concerts
to my schedule in the past few years I’ve become much more
comfortable with this, and really enjoy it.’ |
| Rossini is one of the
three main parts of her repertoire, along with the baroque and classical
periods. How does performing this type of music compare to the earlier
repertoire that she regularly performs? ‘I don’t really
have an extensive classical repertoire,’ she contends, ‘though
I’ve been adding to it this season. Rossini and baroque tend
to be my main focus points, and I feel they complement one another
very well. The roles I sing in baroque music are typically ones
written for castrati, and I most often play the part of the young
hero. This is generally the same kind of role I find myself playing
in the Rossini operas as well, as he composed many, many of the
young heroic roles for the mezzo-soprano voice. The range is very
comparable to what I would be singing in baroque, often with a two
and a half octave extension, and with a lot of flexibility in ornamentation
and interpretation so by the time you’ve prepared a role you
feel like it’s been created especially for you. Really "haute-couture"
music!’ |
Photo Credit:
Harry Heleotis |
| Showing off a strong technique
is clearly the main aim of ‘Non piu mesta’, but
does she think there’s also a dramatic point to be made
in this aria? ‘Oh, there’s definitely a very strong
dramatic point in this aria for me,’ she says. ‘I
have learned so much from the character of Angelina, her steadfastness,
her altruism. There is so much antagonism in today’s
society; people concerned more with criticising and attacking
others than with addressing their own shortcomings. I find
Angelina to be a great refuge from that. This aria for me
is a confirmation of the existence of karma, the wonderful
feeling that if you truly give your best every single day,
remain true to yourself and treat others with compassion,
you will find joy.’
‘Mura felici’ is more serious and introverted:
does she change anything about her manner of singing or
the colour of her voice when performing this aria, compared
to ‘Non piu mesta’? ‘While "Nacquì
all’affanno" represents the joyful culmination
of an entire opera for Angelina, Malcolm in "Mura felici"
is just beginning his journey,’ says Genaux. ’It
is much more introspective and full of longing, and I do
think the colour of the voice reflects that. I don’t
think it’s anything one does consciously; it comes
from the text itself and just being in the character.’
Genaux is looking forward to working with Gianandrea Noseda.
‘This will be my first performance with Mo. Noseda,
and I am thrilled to be working with him. I first met him
in Pittsburgh where he often conducts the Pittsburgh Symphony.
He invited me to perform Rossini’s La Cenerentola
with him at the Stresa Festival in Italy this year, as well
as this concert for the Proms. From the performances I have
seen him conduct, I find he has a remarkable attention and
understanding of the voice, and I am really looking forward
to this collaboration.’
The Proms is one of the world’s biggest festivals,
and the Royal Albert Hall is an enormous venue: is the scale
of the concert intimidating? ‘Generally I don’t
pay too much attention to the scale of the hall in which
I am working, as I can’t let it affect my approach
to my performance. I usually enjoy smaller venues a lot
more because I feel more connected to the audience. I have
seen many of the Proms concerts on television, though, and
the audience seems to have a special energy which I am excited
to experience!’
Genaux’s love of music has been with her almost since
birth. ‘Music, dance and the arts in general have
been a part of my life since I can remember,’ she
says. ’My father had an extensive record collection
which he listened to constantly. Living in a small log-cabin,
when he was listening to Bruckner, Mahler, Beethoven, Mozart,
we all listened! It was a great education for me even though
I only discovered the names and composers of those familiar
works years later when I was studying music at Indiana University.
I played violin for nine years, danced ballet, modern, jazz,
sang in every kind of vocal ensemble imaginable and fell
madly in love with ABBA when I was 12 - music has
always been a huge part of my life.’
|
|
Il trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno
in Madrid
Photo Credit: Javier del Real |
Why
did she decide to pursue a career in opera? ‘I first
went to university for a degree in science, but was absolutely
miserable without music as a primary focus in my life. While
through high school I’d been able to balance a challenging
academic schedule with a rich extra-curricular life of music,
that was no longer possible in college. I felt like a crucial
part of my personality was repressed, and I finally decided
that if I was going to be that miserable I might as well do
it being a starving artist rather than a lab-rat! I made the
decision to transfer to Indiana University, and gave myself
a window of 5 years after which I would reassess and see if
my progress had been sufficient to merit staying the course.
Within that five-year time frame I had won several big vocal
competitions, made my debuts at various opera companies including
the Dresden Semperoper and the Teatro Filarmonico in Verona,
Italy; I decided that signs looked pretty good for having
a professional career, so I kept going and haven’t looked
back since!’ |
| How challenging
did she find her professional training? ‘I think I consciously
tried to make it as challenging as possible. I always had
a nice voice, but I would say that my technique is "learned"
rather than "natural" and that can be a very difficult
path to find. Teaching/learning vocal technique can be very
tricky because the concepts of correct breathing, vowel formation,
etc are fairly abstract. Coming from a science background
I was programmed for analytical thinking, and it took me a
long time to come to terms with this new way of learning.
Even the violin and dance study I had done was more concrete,
in that a teacher could physically correct your arm/finger
position or posture. Singing was totally different, and that
was awfully frustrating for a while. Lucky for me, I am very
stubborn so through the tears and the doubts and the misgivings
I persevered.’
How easy was it for her to establish her career in opera?
‘My career took off quite quickly, so one could say
it was quite easy. On the other hand, I had no stage experience
and began working in important theatres right from the beginning,
so it was a lot of responsibility. I took that feeling of
responsibility quite seriously and worked twice as hard
in order to make up for my lack of experience. So in that
respect, establishing my career was pretty hard work.’
Genaux lists several highlights of her career so far: ‘I
will always remember my first baroque opera with original
instruments, Hasse’s Solimano at the Deutsche Staatsoper
Berlin, with René Jacobs conducting. I had not had
that much experience with baroque music before that, and
the sound of Concerto Köln playing that amazing music
was a turning-point in my life. Realizing that this entire
world of baroque music was open to me was so thrilling.
I am also very, very proud of a Vivaldi arias CD that will
be coming out this fall with Fabio Biondi and Europa Galante.
It is my first recording of Vivaldi arias and I am so excited
at the prospect of this coming season which includes the
CD release as well as several concerts with Maestro Biondi
and Europa Galante.’ |
| One of her other
upcoming recordings is of Vivaldi’s scarcely-known Ercole:
having performed several of his operas now, why does she think
it’s worth reviving all these completely unknown Vivaldi
operas? ‘I think the revival of Vivaldi operas is worthwhile
in several ways. For one, the operas themselves are very interesting
because often they are "pastiches" which include
works by other composers contemporary to Vivaldi. At least
vicariously, an audience who is familiar with Vivaldi’s
music and is willing to pay the ticket or CD price because
they like Vivaldi also gets some exposure to other baroque
composers. If they ever actually find out that the aria they
liked so much in Vivaldi’s Bajazet is actually by Hasse,
they might actually want to buy a ticket or CD of a Hasse
opera next time! Another benefit of recording the whole oeuvre
of a composer is that someone who doesn’t read music
can listen to a series of works representative of a composer’s
life and actually hear the evolution of his/her style throughout
the career.’ |
Rosina in Paris (Photo Credit:
Eric Mahoudeau) |
| Another of her
personal projects is reviving the music of Hasse. ‘I
was very fortunate to sing my first Hasse with René
Jacobs; Hasse’s music coupled with Mo. Jacobs’
ornamentation was phenomenal,’ she explains. ‘I
love doing concerts which include both Handel and Hasse arias,
as both composers had such similar backgrounds yet such disparate
styles. Hasse, to me, completely adopted the Italianate style
of singing, and is luxurious to sing. The fact that he himself
was a singer, married to Faustina Bordoni, one of the most
prominent international singers of the time, gave him a special
perspective on the voice. His music is very challenging, but
at the same time feels like it fits my voice like a glove.’
Having sung over forty roles now, I ask Genaux what roles
she plans to add to her repertoire. ‘Undoubtedly there
will be more Handel and more Rossini in my future, also
I hope more Hasse, Leo, Porpora, Vinci, perhaps Mozart and
Piccinni,’ she says. ‘I would also like to explore
the recital and concert repertoire a lot more; I love singing
recitals and am very enthusiastic about Pauline Viardot’s
compositions. I would also like to add some Hahn, Berlioz,
and perhaps some Offenbach.’
To end, I ask Genaux about her plans for the coming season
- a typically rich mixture of engagements. ‘I
have my first Tancredi coming up at the Theater an der Wien
under the baton of Maestro Jacobs, as well as my first Ernesto
in Haydn’s Il mondo della luna again at the Theater
an der Wien. I love Vienna and I adore the Theater an der
Wien, both for the history of the house as well as the wonderful
people currently working there, so I’m quite happy
at the prospect of having four months with the company!
I also have very exciting concerts planned for the coming
season, including concerts of the Vivaldi aria CD with Fabio
Biondi and Europa Galante in Paris, Krakow, Torino, Bologna,
and Napoli, as well as a concert (again with Biondi and
Europa Galante) of Hasse’s opera Piramo e Tisbe in
Salzburg. I will also be returning to the Theatre des Champs-Elysées
for performances of Handel’s Semele with Christophe
Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques.’
Reprinted
with Permission
http://www.musicalcriticism.com/interviews/genaux-0709.shtml
READ
THE FRENCH TRANSLATION |
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