Stage Talk with Rick Koster
Where every show has something to say.
The Blissful Mathematics of Opera
Math is a peculiar thing. That’s why, when the Garde hosts “The Three Italian Tenors” on Friday, March 20, you’re actually going to see and hear FOUR outstanding young Italian tenors!
Count ’em and see if I’m wrong: Gianni Leccese, Ugo Tarquini, Alessandro Fantoni and Gaetano Amore.
Yep! That’s four!
How does that work, you ask?
Well, let’s see: four divided by three multiplied by a dazzling array of classic arias from Italian composers equals … WAIT! I think we just solved the Poincaré Conjecture — and at the same time it sounds gorgeous!
Now, as long as we’re arithmetic-ing along, let’s add a fifth name to our equation. It’s Fabrizio Mocata, a virtuoso classical and jazz pianist who will accompany the Tenors. This is particularly important when you remember the premise of the show is that the singers are relaxing in a late-night café and they start to banter — and then sing! — with the in-house pianist. The evening thus unfolds in echanting fashion.
We recently conducted email interviews with all FIVE performers. Each fielded a respectively individual set of questions, and their answers were so interesting and charming that we’re gonna share ALL of them for your enjoyment and edification.
UGO TARQUINI
Garde: If you were going to introduce a younger person to the joys of opera — or even someone older that might be particularly familiar with the repertoire — what three or four recordings and artists would you recommend?
Ugo: I believe I would invite them to a live performance, because the magic of theatre cannot be recreated on the same level in a recording. It is perhaps this that preserves us from new technologies such as artificial intelligence because the emotional bond created between spectator and performer is unique!
The Garde: You’ve performed incredible roles in some of the most prestigious venues in the world. Is it fun to tour America and sing for audiences that perhaps aren’t as familiar with opera, and is it rewarding when you can look out in the crowd and see them “starting to get it”?
Ugo: First, hello Garde lovers! In fact, it’s not entirely true that American audiences are unfamiliar with the musical genre, especially since during concerts we get to see the presence of many Italian American people, and it’s very nice to give them a return to their traditions!
Apart from that, the whole audience is perfectly connected with the repertoire, because what we propose is an evening of music I would define as belonging to universal beauty, independent of the time and place of performance.
Garde: What’s your favorite part of each night’s concert with your fellow tenors and Fabrizio?
Ugo: Certainly the finale of the concert, where we always find the highest point of affection and the warmth of the audience.
Garde: Can people in America make competitive Italian food?
Ugo: Generally, when I’m outside of Italy, I don’t have the urgency to consume Italian food; I can wait until I get home. During this tour there have been a few opportunities to eat in the Italian style, and on some occasions, I found a lot of refinement in the preparation. Perhaps, however, the raw material of the ingredients doesn’t have the same characteristics because each land has its own peculiarities.
ALESSANDRO FANTONI
Garde: Of Puccini, Monteverde, Verdi and Donizetti, which would you like to greet you at the Gates of the Afterlife and why?
Alessandro: Probably Verdi because he’s the composer whose work I’ve performed the most so far and I feel he’s very close and true to my singing style. But I really hope Puccini will also be there. They’re both my favorites.
Garde: Who determines what material any one of you perform in this show, and is it fun to just sometimes watch your fellow singers during their solos?
Alessandra: We designed this program by choosing the songs and the divisions of the parts together, trying to create a balanced order based on everyone’s vocal needs and so that we could sing more or less the same amount of time. Yes, we sometimes look at each other during the performance. It’s interesting and fun; we understand each other with our eyes and we learn from each other. It’s when one of us makes a joke that it becomes difficult not to laugh in front of the audience.
Garde: What, to you, is the most demanding role for a tenor, and what part would you love to do onstage that you haven’t?
Alessandro: There are two roles that I find most difficult and demanding, but truly intense and satisfying, and I can’t wait to debut them: Umberto Giordano’s Andrea Chenier and Giuseppe Verdi’s Otello.
Garde: If you could have been the lead singer of any rock band, which would it have been?
Alessandro: They’d probably be an Italian rock band, but I don’t think they’re known worldwide. So, I’ll say the most famous ones that I really liked: Europe and Pink Floyd.
Gianni Leccese
Garde: A lot of younger audiences probably expect a very formal and solemn sort of experience. But this tour is pretty light-hearted, right? Talk about that.
Gianni: Yeah, those are probably the expectations (from the listeners). I always put myself in others’ shoes to understand what their reactions could be: What reactions would I have if I was in the audience attending an opera. Bad? Good? Boring? Joyful? I recall a show by a famous soprano Natalie Coquette, who always played gags on the orchestra before singing like a goddess. People would laugh — and then she’d sing! Suddenly it was “WOW!”
For this show, we’re unpredictable and all of us interact together including with maestro Mocata at the piano. There’s a lot of fun to share and we make sure the concerts are suitable for children as well!! LOL!
Garde: When did you become aware of opera and at what point did you realize you wanted to explore it? More importantly, when did you realize you had the voice to actually do it?
Gianni: I always found it an attractive idea to use my voice as an instrument. I had hard time training for it. My father didn’t want me to sing. He was a very stubborn guy from the deep south of Italy and believed that Arts in general were made for those who can afforded them.
Well, I was as stubborn as him and I proved him wrong! At first, I wanted to sing rock and pop songs, but I ended up singing opera!
As for when I realized I could sing opera, it happened at my first voice class. My teacher told me, “Okay, I’ll play a chord at the piano now, and feel free to sing one single note (from the chord).” And I did and it was a big, huge high C! I was totally unaware of it!
She replied, “Well, undoubtedly you are a TENOR — and you just saved me the job of investigating what type of voice you have!”
I left my class so happy that day! 🙂
Garde: I assume that an opera singer’s backstage hospitality rider is significantly different than what might find for a metal or hard rock band? What is in your rider? And do you indulge in a beer or a glass or wine after a performance?
Gianni: Well, I must say that each theater we’ve visited has been so kind to us. We love ’em! They set up lunch as soon as we arrive for rehearsal, then dinner after the show. Yes, we have to be very careful about eating. We work mostly with no microphones and use everything in our bodies to get the sound to the audience. Eating the wrong stuff could start inflammation processes we might not immediately be aware of, so we prefer light dishes such as vegetables, low fat meals and chicken…
But! Let’s be honest. We have beers and wine and whisky as well! Maybe not like a metal band but … very close! 😀
Gaetano Amore
Garde: We suspect opera singing is a very competitive profession in a very respected classical art form. Is that accurate?
Gaetano: Well… this is a sore point. In Italy and around the world, opera is the prerogative of a select few. Look around — the names are always the same. You audition, the artistic director compliments you, even in an embarrassingly positive way — then he calls on those from the big agencies to sing without giving you an explanation. I’m bitter but not defeated.
And this (reliance on a relatively small number of stars) doesn’t mean that audiences aren’t interested in opera. On the contrary! Understand, Timothée? (GARDE NOTE: Gaetano is apparently referencing the recent quote from actor Timothée Chalamet, who said, “I don’t want to be working in ballet, or opera, or things where it’s like, ‘Hey, keep this thing alive, even though like no one cares about this anymore.’”
Garde: Besides performing as an international touring tenor, you’re also an actor and an educator. How have your onstage experiences helped your approach to teaching?
Gaetono: As far as I’m concerned, it can be summed up in just one word: Experience. In anything I do onstage, I try to capitalize on a lot of experiences I’ve had over the years: assistant director, stage manager, stage manager, set designer and general secretary. We mustn’t forget that we were “walking players” before we were “tenors in bow ties.”
I believe these experiences, even if they were originally experiments that helped me decide that my calling was that of a “performer,” were fundamental in my approach to performance. This leads me to pass on to others that they are doing something that combines technique with emotion. As the great Irene Papas used to say, “It’s technique.” I’m grateful to all of MY teachers for this.
Garde: What would you tell the prospective Garde audience, some of whom are maybe a bit intimidated by opera. What will they experience that maybe they aren’t expecting?
Gaetano: They’re not going to see a concert; it is a full-fledged show. There are plot twists. We are “four friends at a bar” who encounter a sui generis pianist—an excellent pianist — and we all just have a good time. And, from the moment we step onto the stage, all our fatigue vanishes — even after very long journeys because, boy, is the U.S.A. big!
Garde: What’s the best thing about touring and performing with Allesandro, Gianni, Fabrizio and Ugo?
Gaetano: Ugo’s portable coffee maker… We Italians are a bit finicky about our coffee and drink it very, very strong! But aside from that, what really thrills me is the fun and the unpredictability each night. Gags spring up out of nowhere. I swear it!
For example, Gianni never gives me a heads-up as to whether he’s going to launch into a version of “’O Sole Mio” in Neapolitan or in English (that beautiful version by Elvis) — so I have to keep my response ready, adapting it the moment he starts singing. Alessandro is the “lighthearted” one of the group. He never complains about anything, and if a problem arises — of any magnitude — he just laughs. That is a huge asset because the logistics of a tour like this mean it’s certainly no walk in the park. In return, I try to show them my respect for their professionalism, as well as offer them my own “Neapolitan flavor.”
Fabrizio Mocata
Garde: Talk briefly about playing with four different singers each night. Does each require a certain dynamic or emphasis or is your own interpretation of the score part of what makes the magic happen?
Fabrizio: The fact that it’s the same four every night makes things easier. The first thing I learned about music is that, if you want to play, you have to be able to listen. Your focus is not your performance but trying to do your best to make the music work with everyone onstage with you. That’s my rule, and I can assure you the magic happens!
Garde: We’re fascinated that you’ve recorded jazz arrangements of opera. That almost seems a contradiction in terms of the rigidity of opera and the freedom of jazz. Talk a bit about that.
Fabrizio: First of all, I consider opera with all respect, and I try to see the music as it was written and intended. But the great composers of the past also offer me wonderful melodies, and I just make them swing with modern chords. Once you can do this, you can improvise on it, and the result is something that is similar but totally different. I called one of my albums Free the Opera! because I think that improvisation and melody are closely related.
Garde: Which of the five of you dislikes wearing tuxedos that most?
Fabrizio: I think it’s myself. I feel goofy but some people say I look good! I don’t know what the truth is!
Garde: What do you enjoy most about this tour in terms of audience reaction? I suspect it’s quite a bit different than European crowds who might typically be a little more aware of opera.
Fabrizio: On this tour, the people are really nice! They listen seriously and are ready to interact and have fun. They laugh and cry together with us, and that makes the concerts really interactive and intense. The most important thing for the audience is, if you don’t know much about it, just be open to listening!