BELISARIO
JOYCE EL- KHOURI
London, 27/10/2012
This recording is happening this week in London, with the record label Opera Rara. Joyce El- Khouri is singing the role of Antonina in Donizetti's opera "Belisario", a role that Leyla Gencer used to sing. On 28th October, she is performing this rare opera at Barbican Hall. Enjoy this exclusive interview!
By @kassandra_dimopoulou_official
By @kassandra_dimopoulou_official
What was the thing that made you decide you want to be an opera singer?
I didn’t always want to be an opera singer. I grew up wanting to sing Pop music, and of course, during my teenage years, this is exactly what I did. When I was 14, I desperately wanted to begin taking singing lessons. I was advised by a singer friend to contact Karen Spicer, a voice teacher in my hometown of Ottawa. I started taking lessons with her, and, although she taught classical voice technique (which at that point I had little interest in), I decided that it could only benefit me in helping improve my Pop singing. Five years later, when the time came for me to apply for university programs, I was surprised by the choice I made. I had made all the plans necessary to go to nursing school. I was working at CHEO, which is the Children’s Hospital in Ottawa and I loved it. All was in place. My parents, however, instinctively said to me: “Joyce, you have a voice. You should be singing...” They, along with my voice teacher, encouraged me to apply for the Music program at the University of Ottawa. I agreed, and was accepted. The first opera I was involved in at the U was Bizet’s Carmen. From then on, I was hooked on opera, and I have not looked back since!
Is there a role you love the most and why?
I have to say in all honesty that I don’t have a favorite role. Usually, when I am working on a role, I become so immersed in it that I am convinced that it is my favourite... until the next one. Whatever I am working on at the time becomes my favorite role.
You've sung many times Verdi's “La Traviata”. What is special about this role for you?
What I find both exciting and challenging about Violetta is that it requires 3 different types of singing throughout the opera. The first act demands the technique of a coloratura soprano, the second act a verismo singer, and the third, a more lyric approach. The beauty of this opera, and why it is so easy to fall in love with the character of Violetta is due to the fact that we, as audience members, really have the chance to get to know her and take the journey with her. From the get go, we are immersed into her world and we are allowed the privilege of bearing witness to her very powerful yet intimate lyric monologue: “E strano.... Ah, fors’e lui... Sempre libera”. We then see her suffering as the opera goes on and our heart goes out to her because we know where she’s come from and where she’s going. There is a huge dramatic arc in this opera, and this gives many opportunities to see different aspects of her personality. She is a very complex woman, and with each performance of La Traviata that I do, I discover something new.
How do you approach a new role? What is your process of learning?
If I’ve been offered a role that I haven’t had the chance to study before, I begin by asking my mentors, voice teacher, and coaches their opinion of whether or not I should attempt it. If we are all in agreement that I should proceed, I start at the very beginning. For me, this means research. I do as much reading as possible about the composer, the story, and the characters. Of course in the case of Belisario, it was fairly easy to find material because Belisarius is an historical figure. Then I begin studying the libretto to make sure that I understand the plot and the characters. I translate the opera if I have to (I luckily don’t have to translate French or Italian). Then... the music! Note by note, page by page... I sit at the piano and learn. This is the most exciting part of the process for me because anything is possible. I love to sit in a studio for hours, just studying. I think the student in me will always exist. There is always so much to learn. Once I’ve learned the music as best I can on my own, I take it to my teacher and coaches. Bit by bit, the role comes to life!
Is it difficult to approach personalities (roles) when you have no similar life experience with them? What do you do in order to make them real on stage?
This is the actor’s greatest challenge, I believe. It is very rare to come across a character whose circumstances I can truly understand and have lived through. However, as human beings, we are all more linked than we know. We have different life experiences but emotionally we can all relate to one another. For example, we watch Suor Angelica endure excruciating emotional pain as she finds out that her child is dead. Now, we don’t all know what it is like to lose a child, but we do all know pain. During my role preparation, I look for the basic emotional and psychological state of the character and then find a personal experience of my own where I shared a similar emotion, and I play that. Once I’m “reliving” this experience on stage, it becomes more real for the audience because they are experiencing something real that is coming from me.
This week you recorded Donizetti’s rare opera “Belisario” with Opera Rara and the BBC Symphony Orchestra and on Sunday, October 28th you will perform this at Barbican Hall. Tell us about this debut and the role of Antonina.
I’m absolutely thrilled about the role debut. I am tremendously honored to be affiliated with Opera Rara. They have such a distinguished reputation because of their commitment to providing the opera world with something that it needs and values. I’m thrilled to be featured in this important recording! This is my first time singing Donizetti’s music and I am finding that his kind of writing really suits my voice. Antonina has very exciting music to sing. It is almost Verdian in regard to its demands of the singer. She is very powerful, and possesses an unapologetic, strong personality, and the music that Donizetti gave her matches that. The challenge in performing this is that, unlike Violetta, Antonina does not have the benefit of a dramatic arc throughout the opera. We see her at the beginning of the opera and then again at the end. We don’t have a chance to really get to know her, understand her, and empathize with her. All the psychological and emotional facets of this character have to come to light during her two scenes. This is not an easy task, but I hope that the combination of my discipline and my love for this music will convey the passion of this character.
Leyla Gencer was one of the few and very important performers of the role of Antonina, which you are going to record on 28th of this month. What does this responsibility mean for you?
Leyla Gencer is an artist for whom I’ve always had respect and admiration and of course, I feel very fortunate to be singing the kind of repertoire that she did. I think that any artist coming into a role, unless they are premiering that role, is coming in on a pathway established by other people. That being said, It is my responsibility and my duty to serve the music as best I can, and this is my main focus when I study. My goal is to give the most genuine interpretation possible, and to remain as true to myself as a performer as possible. One must look at the score as having a clean slate. This is the only way to offer the audience something authentic.
How is working with a great musical director such as Lorin Maazel?
I’ve been very fortunate to have a mentor like Maestro Lorin Maazel. He has been very supportive and generous in giving me a lot of performing opportunities. My first Mimi, Lauretta, Suor Angelica, which were all done at Castleton Festival, were under his baton. While I was in the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Program, I had the privilege of also working with Maestro James Levine, which was an invaluable experience. He has since become one of my mentors as well. I have learned so much about this art form from both of them.
When was the moment you felt the most excited before going on stage and why?
There are two instances that come to mind and they are both equally memorable to me. During the summer of 2010, I was engaged by Maestro Lorin Maazel and the Castleton Festival to sing Lauretta in "Gianni Schicchi" and cover the title role in "Suor Angelica". I was, of course, thrilled, and jumped at the chance to work with Maestro Maazel and sing repertoire that I love. I had been studying Suor Angelica for 3 years by then because I felt very passionate about this opera. It was never suggested to me as a role that I should prepare, but in my obsession with this work, I came to know every note of this opera. On opening night, I was asked to step in and sing the title role in Puccini's opera "Suor Angelica". I was excited about this beyond belief, but I was also extremely calm because I had spent so much time with this opera, and I felt completely prepared. The other instance was more recent. It was in 2012 when I made my European debut singing Violetta in La Traviata with Welsh National Opera. Again, this was a role that I had been working on for years and had performed twice before. However, this time, the excitement stemmed from working at a respected company like WNO, and making my European debut in a stunningly gorgeous production by Sir David McVicar, with breathtaking costumes!
If you could describe yourself with a piece of music, this would be...
Maurice Ravel’s Sheherazade is a piece that I’ve always felt deeply connected to. I love this piece not only for its alluring musical colours, but also because of the origins of the poetry. "Sheherazade" is the story teller of “One Thousand and One Arabian Nights”, upon which the 3 poems are based. Musically, Ravel was able to communicate the mystery and exoticism of the East with colors that he created in the music. Having a Lebanese background, I find myself drawn to the text and imagery that is evoked by this piece. The songs each tell a different story, and the music is so multi-faceted that it is almost impossible to describe in just a few words. We hear warmth, strength, darkness, joy, positivity, hopefulness and wonder within minutes. According to legend, Sheherazade was a survivor, who knew how to take matters into her own hands and change her fate. She was independent and highly individualistic and this is why I am fascinated by her and this song cycle. The piece speaks to me on a purely musical level, and also on a cultural and emotional level. It was a joy to sing this piece, and would love to do so again in the future.
How do you see yourself in 10 years?
I’m really keeping busy focusing on the now, so I can’t really see that far yet. What I do hope to be doing in 10 years, however, is to be singing more Verdi and Donizetti roles: Desdemona, Amelia (Simon Boccanegra), Luisa Miller, Anna Bolena, Lucrezia Borgia...
I didn’t always want to be an opera singer. I grew up wanting to sing Pop music, and of course, during my teenage years, this is exactly what I did. When I was 14, I desperately wanted to begin taking singing lessons. I was advised by a singer friend to contact Karen Spicer, a voice teacher in my hometown of Ottawa. I started taking lessons with her, and, although she taught classical voice technique (which at that point I had little interest in), I decided that it could only benefit me in helping improve my Pop singing. Five years later, when the time came for me to apply for university programs, I was surprised by the choice I made. I had made all the plans necessary to go to nursing school. I was working at CHEO, which is the Children’s Hospital in Ottawa and I loved it. All was in place. My parents, however, instinctively said to me: “Joyce, you have a voice. You should be singing...” They, along with my voice teacher, encouraged me to apply for the Music program at the University of Ottawa. I agreed, and was accepted. The first opera I was involved in at the U was Bizet’s Carmen. From then on, I was hooked on opera, and I have not looked back since!
Is there a role you love the most and why?
I have to say in all honesty that I don’t have a favorite role. Usually, when I am working on a role, I become so immersed in it that I am convinced that it is my favourite... until the next one. Whatever I am working on at the time becomes my favorite role.
You've sung many times Verdi's “La Traviata”. What is special about this role for you?
What I find both exciting and challenging about Violetta is that it requires 3 different types of singing throughout the opera. The first act demands the technique of a coloratura soprano, the second act a verismo singer, and the third, a more lyric approach. The beauty of this opera, and why it is so easy to fall in love with the character of Violetta is due to the fact that we, as audience members, really have the chance to get to know her and take the journey with her. From the get go, we are immersed into her world and we are allowed the privilege of bearing witness to her very powerful yet intimate lyric monologue: “E strano.... Ah, fors’e lui... Sempre libera”. We then see her suffering as the opera goes on and our heart goes out to her because we know where she’s come from and where she’s going. There is a huge dramatic arc in this opera, and this gives many opportunities to see different aspects of her personality. She is a very complex woman, and with each performance of La Traviata that I do, I discover something new.
How do you approach a new role? What is your process of learning?
If I’ve been offered a role that I haven’t had the chance to study before, I begin by asking my mentors, voice teacher, and coaches their opinion of whether or not I should attempt it. If we are all in agreement that I should proceed, I start at the very beginning. For me, this means research. I do as much reading as possible about the composer, the story, and the characters. Of course in the case of Belisario, it was fairly easy to find material because Belisarius is an historical figure. Then I begin studying the libretto to make sure that I understand the plot and the characters. I translate the opera if I have to (I luckily don’t have to translate French or Italian). Then... the music! Note by note, page by page... I sit at the piano and learn. This is the most exciting part of the process for me because anything is possible. I love to sit in a studio for hours, just studying. I think the student in me will always exist. There is always so much to learn. Once I’ve learned the music as best I can on my own, I take it to my teacher and coaches. Bit by bit, the role comes to life!
Is it difficult to approach personalities (roles) when you have no similar life experience with them? What do you do in order to make them real on stage?
This is the actor’s greatest challenge, I believe. It is very rare to come across a character whose circumstances I can truly understand and have lived through. However, as human beings, we are all more linked than we know. We have different life experiences but emotionally we can all relate to one another. For example, we watch Suor Angelica endure excruciating emotional pain as she finds out that her child is dead. Now, we don’t all know what it is like to lose a child, but we do all know pain. During my role preparation, I look for the basic emotional and psychological state of the character and then find a personal experience of my own where I shared a similar emotion, and I play that. Once I’m “reliving” this experience on stage, it becomes more real for the audience because they are experiencing something real that is coming from me.
This week you recorded Donizetti’s rare opera “Belisario” with Opera Rara and the BBC Symphony Orchestra and on Sunday, October 28th you will perform this at Barbican Hall. Tell us about this debut and the role of Antonina.
I’m absolutely thrilled about the role debut. I am tremendously honored to be affiliated with Opera Rara. They have such a distinguished reputation because of their commitment to providing the opera world with something that it needs and values. I’m thrilled to be featured in this important recording! This is my first time singing Donizetti’s music and I am finding that his kind of writing really suits my voice. Antonina has very exciting music to sing. It is almost Verdian in regard to its demands of the singer. She is very powerful, and possesses an unapologetic, strong personality, and the music that Donizetti gave her matches that. The challenge in performing this is that, unlike Violetta, Antonina does not have the benefit of a dramatic arc throughout the opera. We see her at the beginning of the opera and then again at the end. We don’t have a chance to really get to know her, understand her, and empathize with her. All the psychological and emotional facets of this character have to come to light during her two scenes. This is not an easy task, but I hope that the combination of my discipline and my love for this music will convey the passion of this character.
Leyla Gencer was one of the few and very important performers of the role of Antonina, which you are going to record on 28th of this month. What does this responsibility mean for you?
Leyla Gencer is an artist for whom I’ve always had respect and admiration and of course, I feel very fortunate to be singing the kind of repertoire that she did. I think that any artist coming into a role, unless they are premiering that role, is coming in on a pathway established by other people. That being said, It is my responsibility and my duty to serve the music as best I can, and this is my main focus when I study. My goal is to give the most genuine interpretation possible, and to remain as true to myself as a performer as possible. One must look at the score as having a clean slate. This is the only way to offer the audience something authentic.
How is working with a great musical director such as Lorin Maazel?
I’ve been very fortunate to have a mentor like Maestro Lorin Maazel. He has been very supportive and generous in giving me a lot of performing opportunities. My first Mimi, Lauretta, Suor Angelica, which were all done at Castleton Festival, were under his baton. While I was in the Metropolitan Opera’s Lindemann Young Artist Program, I had the privilege of also working with Maestro James Levine, which was an invaluable experience. He has since become one of my mentors as well. I have learned so much about this art form from both of them.
When was the moment you felt the most excited before going on stage and why?
There are two instances that come to mind and they are both equally memorable to me. During the summer of 2010, I was engaged by Maestro Lorin Maazel and the Castleton Festival to sing Lauretta in "Gianni Schicchi" and cover the title role in "Suor Angelica". I was, of course, thrilled, and jumped at the chance to work with Maestro Maazel and sing repertoire that I love. I had been studying Suor Angelica for 3 years by then because I felt very passionate about this opera. It was never suggested to me as a role that I should prepare, but in my obsession with this work, I came to know every note of this opera. On opening night, I was asked to step in and sing the title role in Puccini's opera "Suor Angelica". I was excited about this beyond belief, but I was also extremely calm because I had spent so much time with this opera, and I felt completely prepared. The other instance was more recent. It was in 2012 when I made my European debut singing Violetta in La Traviata with Welsh National Opera. Again, this was a role that I had been working on for years and had performed twice before. However, this time, the excitement stemmed from working at a respected company like WNO, and making my European debut in a stunningly gorgeous production by Sir David McVicar, with breathtaking costumes!
If you could describe yourself with a piece of music, this would be...
Maurice Ravel’s Sheherazade is a piece that I’ve always felt deeply connected to. I love this piece not only for its alluring musical colours, but also because of the origins of the poetry. "Sheherazade" is the story teller of “One Thousand and One Arabian Nights”, upon which the 3 poems are based. Musically, Ravel was able to communicate the mystery and exoticism of the East with colors that he created in the music. Having a Lebanese background, I find myself drawn to the text and imagery that is evoked by this piece. The songs each tell a different story, and the music is so multi-faceted that it is almost impossible to describe in just a few words. We hear warmth, strength, darkness, joy, positivity, hopefulness and wonder within minutes. According to legend, Sheherazade was a survivor, who knew how to take matters into her own hands and change her fate. She was independent and highly individualistic and this is why I am fascinated by her and this song cycle. The piece speaks to me on a purely musical level, and also on a cultural and emotional level. It was a joy to sing this piece, and would love to do so again in the future.
How do you see yourself in 10 years?
I’m really keeping busy focusing on the now, so I can’t really see that far yet. What I do hope to be doing in 10 years, however, is to be singing more Verdi and Donizetti roles: Desdemona, Amelia (Simon Boccanegra), Luisa Miller, Anna Bolena, Lucrezia Borgia...
