Learning New Opera in the 21st Century
New Opera is the new norm. American Opera singers are not only expected to have mastered the standard repertoire, but also the skills to learn operas being composed today. For many artists, the opportunity to sing new works feels daunting. But even now, the American operatic musical language is expanding and with it, the expectation of singers to arrive at workshops, first rehearsals, or even a coaching, with a solid understanding of the musical, vocal, and dramatic landscape.
I had the pleasure of speaking to sopranos, Adrienne Danrich and Brittany Olivia Logan, and bass, Morris Robinson, who are preparing roles for the world premiere of composer Kevin Day and librettist Tifara Brown’s Lalovavi, which will premiere this summer at Cincinnati Opera. The opera is part of Cincinnati Opera’s “The Black Opera Project,” developed to create new works celebrating Black Stories.
A good portion of being an American Opera singer is learning new operas. How do you learn an opera without being able to reference how others have interpreted the role?
Adrienne Danrich: Often, when you’re learning a new opera, a composer will send you a file in the form of a MIDI or piano part that plays the accompaniment and your part. If I don’t have a recording, I hire a pianist to play the accompaniment and my part, and any parts that lead up to my part. It helps me understand the composer’s language, tonality, and it helps with memorization. Because you’re often called to learn new works quickly, I developed a three-week system where I focus on language week one, music, week two, then putting it all together during week three. If it’s a two-act work, I split the acts for each week.
Morris Robinson: I’ve done a lot of new operas and one of the valuable things you can do is get your hands on a workshop recording. Those are sometimes provided for you, sometimes they’re not. But you have to be careful. You can start to mimic what you’re hearing and not make it your own. Also, you have to be aware that a new score is in a constant state of revision. Another important thing is to find a pianist you trust and have them play through the score. Knowing what the words are and knowing what the story is, you can use your own artistry to shape what you want to sound like.
Brittany Olivia Logan: With traditional opera, there are so many recordings you can draw back to for ideas. But with new music, you get to keep your musical skills sharp and show who you are as an artist, but also your skills as a musician. With new opera, to originate a new role, I get to make it feel very much like my own.
MR: For me, the skills of learning a new opera are just like learning any opera. There are dots and pitches on a page. You see them put them together is progressive manner and stay as true to what is on the page as possible. Discovering how a composer and a librettist set something can be both fun and painstaking. But as the creator of a role, we are responsible for and privileged to set the standard of how it will be interpreted in the future.
BL: I like to read the libretto first, then go to the pitches. I have my trusted coaches who will take me through the score. I love the solitary learning process and then going to my coaches who add in the other musical elements.
AD: The skills/process is sort of the same. For example, with contemporary music, where no one’s put their stamp on it, I have to go further in deciding what my take is on the music and text. I also find that with contemporary music, it’s very mathematical, with different time signatures. How I mark up my score is vastly different. In Puccini there’s tradition, but in new opera, we get to set up traditions. If it’s based on history, I like to watch videos from the period and incorporate that into how my character moves. I also like to look at the era where the opera is set and absorb the images.
This work is not only a new opera but also has sections that are in Tut. Can you tell me about the unique challenges of learning this particular language?
AD: It was fascinating for me to discover that there are people alive today, who still speak this language. It was utilized to teach enslaved people to read without being discovered by those who enslaved them. Each letter has its own sound, so I had to learn it through an aural process. As part of our workshops, we had a Tut expert come in. We also got access to a glossary and there are videos online where you can hear the language in action.
BL: I have been going online and doing a lot of research by listening to native speakers. It helps me gain an understanding of exactly how to sound. I’m always trying to make sure everything that comes out of my mouth is correct.
MR: The fact that it’s being utilized for the first time is so important. And it wasn’t a language widely known, it was created and utilized by our enslaved ancestors to communicate with one another. I think one of the challenges for the creative team was understanding how to incorporate certain phrases so that the language is impactful, easier for the artists and audiences to digest, and keeps the mystery of the language intact.
What is it like working with a living composer and librettist? How much input have you had in crafting your specific role?
MR: As an artistic advisor for Cincinnati Opera, “The Black Opera” project was something I championed. After hearing Kevin’s music, I put him in contact with the folks at Cincinnati Opera. As far as changes, I believe in letting the composer do what he does. I try not to interfere with what they are aiming to create. If I find something difficult, I will see how we can address the master together. But I’m not a composer… I’m a singer.
AD: I love being able to work alongside a living composer. Being a soprano, I’m always looking for ways for my role to be higher. I’ll say, can you add an “ossia” here on this note. But I also try to make sure the pitch I’m suggesting is in service of the character. In Lalovavi, I actually asked if I could take a note down because it felt more impactful.
BL: I haven’t been in the workshops, but if I have ideas, I always like to ask about shifts and changes during the process. Many composers and librettists seem open to the idea.
As American opera singers, how much of your career is devoted to new opera? Is that by design or a by-product of what it is to be a 21st century American opera singer?
AD: I think as I’ve gotten older I’ve discovered that I love doing new works. I think I’ve done at least ten new operas. What I love most about it is that I get to sing the role and not have to worry about a lineage of people who have sung it before. I get to make it my own which only deepens my connection to the role and the music.
BL: I made a conscious choice to not only want to sing traditional repertoire, but I want to be able to experience and grow as an artist by performing contemporary opera. I think it’s important to be flexible as an artist and not stick to only one type of music. When I was in school at CCM, they had the Opera Fusion: New Works so I was lucky enough to be part of the workshops of Matthew Aucoin’s Euridice and Castor and Patience written by Gregory Spears. I knew from those experiences that new opera was something that I wanted to do. With new opera, it’s fun to “flex on them” and show the industry what else you’re capable of doing.
MR: I started with Aida and Bluebeard’s Castle, so I’ve had a steady diet of both. I want to be seen as a versatile artist, and I want to utilize my gifts to express music in many ways.
What most excites you about your role in Lalovavi?
BL: So, I’m excited to bring to life a sci-fi themed, Afro-Futuristic opera to the stage. And Persephone is a strong-willed, powerful person. I hope this character inspires a lot of young ladies to stand in their power and show the world who they are.
MR: My character’s name is Titan and whatever definition you want to use: the largest moon of Saturn or the figure from Greek Mythology who is large and powerful, it’s me. I get to bring the gravitas of roles like Zaccaria, Sarastro, and the Grand Inquisitor to a role that embraces an Afro-Futuristic soul and is in English and Tut. One of the main reasons this is important is to create regal, powerful characters who look like us on stage.
AD: This piece is a breath of fresh air. It feels new and like something we’ve never seen before, and I love that about it. It feels like every character is a multi-dimensional figure so we can understand their motivations. My role, Dinah, also provides an incredible acting challenge as the stakes grow higher and higher. Each of these roles are tour-de-force opportunities for the singers. Like learning any opera, preparation, intense respect for the craft, and an ability to grow as an artist are necessary hallmarks. When one is set to create a new role there is a need for greater discipline and freedom of expression. And it doesn’t hurt if you have a proven system for learning contemporary music. And if an artist gets bogged down with thoughts of “this new stuff is never going to make it,” we must remember that once upon a time, Mozart sounded “new.”
