Exclusive Interview - Jumping
into the Fire: Tenor Michael Fabiano on Met Opera's 'Fledermaus' & Career
Development
http://www.latinospost.com/articles/32898/20131230/exclusive-interview-jumping-fire-tenor-michael-fabiano-met-operas-fledermaus.htm
"Jump in the fire. Don't
be scared. Don't sit around and wait for people to push you along and hold your
hand and don't sit around waiting for people to give you their stamp of
approval."
Those are the words of tenor
Michael Fabiano as he speaks about his way of managing his career. The American
tenor recently spoke to Latinos Post about his upcoming run at the Metropolitan
Opera in Johann Strauss Jr.'s "Die Fledermaus" as well as the
continued development of his career.
In this context, the
"fire" that Fabiano speaks of is the competitive world of opera that
could burn you if you take the wrong step. But this is a simple definition of
fire in the context of Fabiano and his career. His eloquence and intensity reveal
a fiery passion for not only his work, but the world around him. The tenor's
continual rise has actually taken a rather unique journey that has in some ways
been a trial by fire.
This is not the story of a
child prodigy who knew from his childhood years that opera was for him. In
fact, Fabiano noted that despite some knowledge of the art form in his early
years, he headed to college thinking about an economics degree.
"I went to college with
the suspicion that I would get a degree in economics and then an MBA with maybe
the idea that I would get a law degree. I wasn't actually sure," he
revealed when asked at what point he wanted to jump into the proverbial
"fire" that is the opera world. "I went to college thinking that
while wanting to study voice because I liked music."
Fabiano noted that despite
many attempts at trying to enjoy the popular music groups like Nirvana and
Green Day, he always found himself more interested in the classical composers.
"I much preferred
listening to Dvorak or Rachmaninoff," he noted before elaborating on how
he learned to appreciate opera. "Then I got the opera bug when I was 17
and started listening to all the greats and realizing that this was what I
really loved."
He noted that the first of
many turning points was the attendance of a performance of Giuseppe Verdi's
"Il Trovatore;" the choice of composer would actually foreshadow what
was to come.
"The first performance
that I remember seeing where I felt something tangible was 'Trovatore' in Michigan when I was 18
and I took my father because he loves 'Trovatore,' Fabiano noted.
While in college at the Academy of Vocal Arts, Fabiano eventually made the
switch to studying music after his first year and finished college in three
years; he has never looked back since.
"Once I get the
treadmill, I want it to go as fast as possible," he stated. "That
isn't to say that I am trying to rush everything. Once I'm in it, I go. I study
very hard and I don't turn off. I took extra classes and studied in Italy every
summer. I was very excited to study and it took off very quickly."
At the age of 19, Fabiano
sang in Giacomo Puccini's "Gianni Schicchi," his first operatic
endeavor onstage. Despite learning a great deal from the experience, Fabiano
noted that he faced a tremendous amount of challenges along the way.
"I was a very heavy
person, much more than I am today. I remember people being tough on me and I
didn't know what to do at that point," he revealed. "I didn't really
know how to move on stage. I didn't know to use my voice. It was voice with no
refinement and the administration at Michigan
gave me a chance at a young point. I wouldn't say I had unbridled success but I
made a go at it."
Once school was done, Fabiano
continued down his own path; the path defined by a strong will and
determination.
The Audition
During his school years,
Fabiano took a stab at the Met Council Auditions at the age of 22. The tenor
notes that he was warned about taking on the competition at an early age; some
people even told him that he was not ready. But true to his word and beliefs,
the tenor saw no reason to wait around to "be ready" and gave it his
best shot.
"Many people told me I
was too young and not ready. I'm not the one to sit around and calculate all
the time," he noted. "It takes a lot of time and people will pass me.
I can calculate while I am in the fire. A lot of people don't want to jump in
the fire. They want to stand on the sides and look at it. I jump in it and I
try to figure out how not to get any burns."
The Council Auditions are
held every year, but the year that Fabiano chose to compete was special; the
process was being documented by filmmaker Susan Froemke.
Fabiano notes that the
depiction of his character in this particular film really highlights his
"edginess" but he also notes that it fails to truly describe why he
brought such a competitive spirit to the process.
"When I was in high
school I was in debate mock trial. I never did artistic things save being in
choir. I always had a competitive edge and I had an instinct of right and
wrong. When I made the shift to some intellectual field, I still maintained
that edge," he explained. "When I did this competition I was
conscious that I was doing a competition. I wasn't making wonderful art or
painting rainbows. That's not what it's about. In that moment it was about
competing and I had to do my best. It's nice that there are other artists here
but it is my chance to try to shine. Roger Federer would never show up to the
US Open without his game face on and that's exactly how I handled it.
"That is what troubled
me with the film. It makes it clear that I had this edge. It happened to be a
performance but it was a competition," he added. "People win and
people lose. That is the way society works. We live in a free market society
where some businesses win and some lose because some businesses have more
competitive prices, etc. That's the way of the world."
Fabiano wound up being among
the winners in the competition and he attributed his success to this fiery
intensity that drives him forward at every turn.
He did note however that the
"edge" only goes so far. Once he is in the working world, he knows
that a different quality is of utmost importance.
"You have to be
diplomatic. You have to form bonds with colleagues; it is so different from
competing," Fabiano explained. "It is important to work and build
like a team. And come together and build
something special because at the end the final product is most important and
not just me. The whole world is more important and ultimately the public is
more important than anything that I do. I am just auxiliary to that."
Mentors
The tenor made his formal Met
debut in 2010 as Raffaele in Verdi's "Stiffelio." He recently
appeared in Verdi's "Otello" alongside Johan Botha and Renee Fleming.
When talking about Fleming, Fabiano notes that she is among the most important
role models in his burgeoning career. Prior to the Met "Otello,"
Fabiano sang with Fleming in the same opera in Paris;
he also shared the stage in Gaetano Donizetti's "Lucrezia Borgia" in San Francisco.
"Renee Fleming has been
very good to me. During the Paris
[run of 'Otello'] she took a big leap of faith with me," he stated.
"And there were moments when we would have time to talk and I would be
able to listen to her and learn. Even small moments, three minutes or six
listening to an expert is magnificent. It is something that you don't get with
others. To talk with someone so special like Ms. Fleming and understand what is
running in her mind about the business and how she sings and the pressures of
it. Those kinds of moments are priceless."
Another major influence on
his life has been soprano Aprile Millo; the tenor noted that he met Millo
during a master class at age 21 and has kept in touch with her since.
"She is a wonderful
soprano who has been a dear friend and given me very wonderful advice
throughout the last several years," he stated. "I look up to her for
the old tradition of singing. The grand opera tradition. Because she was part
of that I think more of that is needed today."
Fabiano is also quick to
praise his teachers and coaches for their contributions to his success.
He noted that his first
teacher was George Shirley and he currently studies with Bill Schuman, his
teacher of the last nine years.
"[Schuman] teaches a school
of singing that I don't think everyone teaches. It involves using your whole
instrument to sing," Fabiano elaborated. "Using all the apparatus of
your body to project, not just some of it. When I was young, he always used the
phrase with me 'young singers need to be treated like wild horses, they need to
be allowed to run free."
He noted that Schuman taught
him to sing open and let his voice run free; a teaching method that Fabiano
himself advocates strongly.
"The work to open it up
is much harder than it is to close down, which I have done. In time, I've
learned to gather my voice," Fabiano noted. "I think more like a
cylinder when I sing, straight up and down rather than just an open area."
"If you bring an individual to a gym for
the first time and tell them to pick up a 45 pound dumbbell and do a set of 20;
there is no way that that person can do that," he explained. "It's
like telling a singer to sing really closed because that is the way to sing. It
won't happen. It will sound terrible. And they will train themselves to sing
close in time but they will sing tight, the position of their throat will be
messed up. They may not be able to breathe.
He also listed his coaches
Laurent Phillipe and Danielle Orlando as other major mentors.
"I chart my path with
them on my arms," he said. I'm fortunate that I've had these mentors
around me to council me and give me the advice and support that I need."
Of course Fabiano did not
overlook his own family's contributions to his success.
"I am fortunate to my
family as well for being supportive. That's a huge blessing that a lot of
people don't have. I count my blessings," he noted. "My grandfather
always said that it was a blessing to have work and it's a double blessing to
love your work. And I do love my work."
Getting Burned
Fabiano noted that jumping
into the fire carries its risks and in the opera world, getting burned is
costly.
When asked about his past
difficulties, the tenor noted that one instance in which his path led him
through a tumultuous road was during his first performance stint in Italy.
"Working in an Italian
environment is difficult. Especially as a foreigner," Fabiano explained.
"There is a prestige with working in Milan or Naples.
Because it has been one of the anchors of this art form, there is an expected
level that you have to attain. The first few times that I went, I didn't know.
I didn't have a full grounding in the language. I didn't speak Italian
beautifully."
Fabiano noted that his lack
of preparedness often put him in difficult circumstances with colleagues. He
soon learned to face these difficulties with astute diplomacy.
"I learned working in a
hostile environment to be diplomatic. Arguing is easy, diplomacy is not,"
he noted. "It was rewarding but tough. Working in Italy is a
unique experience but it is a completely different world."
2013 and Beyond
On New Year's Eve, Fabiano
will sing his first performance of the new Met "Die Fledermaus" as
well as his final performance of what has been a terrific year for the tenor.
He has traveled around the United States
to such cities as Kansas City, Seattle,
San Francisco, Santa Fe,
New York, and Washington
D.C. to perform at such venues as Carnegie
Hall and the Kennedy
Center among others. He
also sang in Paris, Oslo
and Toronto
throughout the calendar year.
When looking back on his run
in 2013, Fabiano was quick to pick out a few major highlights.
"I'd say [Verdi's 'I
Lombardi alla Prima Crociata]," he noted first and foremost. "I
didn't expect it to be as successful as it was. It was something that I'd never
had in my life. I did it and I could not believe what was happening. It's rare
that ovations happen like that. I was very fortunate."
The performance took place at
Avery Fisher Hall with the Opera Orchestra of New York. Regarding Fabiano's
performance, Steve Cohen of The Opera Critic wrote, "New York audience members had not previously
seen Fabiano in leading roles and they responded with exuberant surprise to his
fine singing and to his dramatic persona. He threw himself into his character
and ignored his music stand, showing that he had the part totally in his
memory... He's ready for leading tenor parts at the Met. In fact, he would have
been an asset in this season's performances of 'La Traviata' there."
Fabiano also noted that he
was particularly fulfilled by his experience of working with Michael Tilson
Thomas in Beethoven's "An die ferne Geliebte" in San Francisco.
"It was a joy. He's one
of my favorite conductors," said Fabiano. "I have immense respect for
him. What an incredible musician."
He also brought up his experience
of debuting Edgardo in Donizetti's "Lucia Di Lammermoor" in Paris.
"Singing Edgardo in Paris was also a juicy
experience for me. It was the other big highlight because Paris is a wonderful opera house with a great
history. We had the fortunate of singing with great colleagues and a wonderful
maestro Maurizio Benini who is a terrific Belcanto specialist. I like
conductors that are clear and he is one."
Singing in Paris brought more a few unexpected twists
and turns. Fabiano revealed that the opening night of the production featured a
strike that forced the singers to perform on a blank stage with no set.
"We were notified an hour and a half
before. It was a bit scary, especially for a debut of a role that
important," noted Fabiano. "However, as it progressed it got really
fun. And I had to be creative and impromptu on what I was doing and use the
stage in a way that I wasn't able to do before. It was a great challenge."
Fabiano also lists his
experience of singing Giacomo Puccini's "La Boheme in Toronto," though it was actually a
surprise appearance as he stepped in for an ailing colleague.
"It's nice to work in a
city where there is an audience with an interest in the art form," said
Fabiano of working in Toronto.
"It makes us want to give more for [the audience members]. For their own
betterment and for their own sense of being a part of something
wonderful."
Now Fabiano heads to the Met
Opera to take on the rambunctious tenor Alfredo in "Fledermaus." The
character is known for his larger-than-life persona as well as the traditional
portrayals that have him adding music that Strauss never actually put in his
score.
"If you are an operagoer
then you know that Alfred is known for being a bombastic tenor and he sings a
lot, in addition to his written music," Fabiano noted. "There is a
lot of that going on offstage of me just singing to the benefit of Rosalinde or
singing to myself. There are many moments where I get to show off."
When asked which opera arias
might make cameo appearances throughout the night, Fabiano remained
tight-lipped.
"I'm not telling
you," he smirked.
Taking on Alfredo has its own
challenges for the 29-year-old, most notably the preponderance of spoken
dialogue. The original version of Fledermaus is sung and spoken in German. This
version is completely in English with new dialogue added by director Jeremy
Sams.
"It is a new pattern for
me. Intentions are always the same but there is a different way of
communicating when speaking than when singing," explained Fabiano.
"Thankfully I was trained to sing with a lot of chest voice and use my
whole body as well. When I speak, it applies as well. I speak on the core of my
instrument so I think my voice will be very well heard.
"If you are maintaining
an edge when I am singing and speaking, it will all be communicated well."
Fabiano also spoke briefly
about the production and issued a great deal of praise on some of the
choices.
"It is turn of the
century 19th century. It is a choice to change the period slightly and I think
that the costumes in that period are more progressive, in a positive way,"
he stated. "[They are] more beautiful and elegant. I think it looks
beautiful. It will be a fun night for everybody."
After Fledermaus, Fabiano
heads to Washington D.C. for a concert performance of Verdi's
early work "Il Corsaro." Fabiano notes that Verdi has always been a
major part of his repertoire and that his plan is to continue learning more
works from the venerated composer, especially his early ones.
"I love early Verdi.
Verdi is where I see my career really going. In the next three seasons I am
going to roll out several Verdi roles. My voice settles well in it," he
enthused. "I enjoy being elevated but I don't need the raucousness of
Puccini orchestra all the time. I can soar high and then glide in Verdi; it's a
bit different from Puccini. I also enjoying singing contrasting scenas where
there is a beautiful cavatina where I can do something intimate and elegant and
then get right into something more energetic, a great big cabaletta."
Among the Verdi roles that he
hopes to learn in the future are "Luisa Miller," "I Due
Foscari,"
"Ernani," and "Un Ballo in
Maschera."
"I am looking forward to
'Attila' if I get the opportunity," he added.
Fabiano also noted that he
had ambitions of singing more rare Donizetti works in the future and even
hinted that he might have a few lined up.
"I'd like to do more of
the big Donizetti. Really explore 'Roberto Devereaux,' 'Caterina Coronaro,'
'Poliuto,' 'La Favorita,'" he revealed. "There are a few in there
that I will be doing, but I can't really talk about where and when."
After "Corsaro,"
Fabiano heads to Amsterdam
to sing his first French opera professionally. The tenor will take on the title
role in Charles Gounod's "Faust" and revealed it was the first time
that he was singing French since taking on Jules Massenet's "Manon"
in college.
"It's very weird to
think that I've done more operas in Russian than in French," he added
before noting that he has already sung three operas in Russian.
Fabiano went on to elaborate
about the differences between French opera and Italian and hinted that
Massenet's "Werther" could be a part of his future.
"The French style is
more linear than Italian. I think that Gounod requires a more inherent use of
piano. I mean that in the crudest sense," he stated. "With French, it
has to be even more linear and cleaner. There has to be sheen on the music that
there isn't in Italian. There is a refinement, even an explosive opera like
[Massenet's] 'Werther.'
"We are not eating Pasta
Marinara; we are eating a fine foie gras."
"I think it is a very
different sensibility," Fabiano continued. "And the way that someone
comes off a phrase has to be in that romantic but classical style. 'Werther' I
am looking forward to doing in future seasons."
More than just an opera
singer
While Fabiano is completely
dedicated to his art, he also has a wide range of interests outside of opera.
"I'm a baseball fanatic.
I was an umpire for 10 years. So that was one of my ways to get over being
bullied for being fat. I got back at the bullies behind the plate. I learned
the game very fast and I know the book perfectly," he revealed. "I'm
a Yankees fanatic."
Fabiano also mentioned being
in love with cars and airplanes.
"My parents always say
that I could always walk up to any car when I was two and say 'I know what that
is. That's a Chevy, that's a Buick, that's an Acura,'" he stated. "I
drive an Audi S4. I shouldn't even have a car in New York City, but I do because I love cars.
When I get out of rehearsal, I am going to go in the car because I love
driving."
There is also a big interest
in history, particularly American history. Fabiano noted that he keeps up with
current events and actively posts his opinions on a blog that can be found on
his official website.
"I love to write. I think it's important
to show that even though I am opera singer I am dynamic, I have opinions and I
can think for myself," he noted. "To be able to write and communicate
ideals and opinions about many things is important because it cultivates an
audience.
"Sometimes people don't
agree with me. But that's okay. We don't live in a dictatorship. We live in a
free society where people have a lot of different opinions. Everybody has an
opinion and every opinion is valuable and fine," he continued. "I
think it is important to have a constant dialogue, even with my fans. Even with
ones who have disagreement with me because it builds mutual respect and
love."
Michael Fabiano
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Fabiano
Michael Fabiano (born 8 May
1984) is an American operatic tenor. Born in Montclair, New Jersey,
he has performed in leading opera houses throughout the world, including the
San Francisco Opera, Metropolitan Opera, La Scala, Paris Opera, English
National Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Dresden Semperoper and Teatro San Carlo.
photos
https://www.google.hr/search?q=michael+fabiano&client=opera&hs=Kmc&channel=suggest&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=bKEYU6TIGKq7ygPaw4CwCw&ved=0CC8QsAQ&biw=1024&bih=623
Michael Fabiano sings La
Traviata
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbeS9O42KjI
Michael Fabiano sings
"Che gelida manina"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sp505Xr5z_s
Michael Fabiano sings Una
Furtiva Lagrima
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPdEx2Yo350
Michael Fabiano is
interviewed by Fanny Kiefer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJJIfUao12g
Fanny Kiefer
http://www.shaw.ca/shawtv/vancouver/studio4/
Fanny Kiefer is a compelling
conversation about the arts, politics and social issues featuring guests from Vancouver and around the
world.
Named one of twenty-five most
influential Canadian women by Chatelaine magazine, host Fanny Kiefer brings her
inquisitive mind and sharp insight to in-depth discussions with:
Canada’s political elite,
such as former Prime Minister Paul Martin,
global influencers, such as UN Special Envoy for AIDS in Africa Stephen
Lewis, acclaimed authors, including Salman Rushdie &, Margaret Atwood,
visionaries like motivational Speaker Deepak Chopra, artists and creators, such
as filmmakers Charlie Kaufman, Paul Gross, and tenor Ben Heppner and more.
Always entertaining, intimate
and informative, Fanny Kiefer reflects the energy and dynamism that is Vancouver.