Maestro, hello. Nice to meet you.
Frédéric Beigbeder says that love lasts three years, but the same can’t be said for opera: with each passing year, interest and emotion only grow. If you fall in love with it, you never fall out of love. Is that true? Do you still discover something new in opera every year? If so, could you give an example?
So, your first statement could not be further from the truth. Love, true love, lasts forever. As to opera, I did “fall in love” with it when I was in university. And just like in any “relationship” there are things you continue to love, things that you don’t love very much, and things you really DON’T love at all. And with every passing year, all 3 of those things happen.
If someone falls in love with opera, during which aria might it happen?
Ohhhhh, so many examples! Violetta’s “Sempre libera”, Donizetti’s “Una furtiva lagrima”, Rossini’s “Non piú mesta”, Giordano’s “ La mamma morta”, Puccini’s “O mio babbino caro” and “Nessun Dorma” to name just a few.
For me, it was “Una furtiva lagrima”.
Could you share some advice with our readers? What opera would you recommend for a first-time experience?
I would say, choose something either comic (Barbiere, Marriage of Figaro, Cenerentola, Falstaff) or really moving (Pagliacci, Carmen, Traviata).
Which one is best for a romantic date…?
I pick two: Traviata or Bohème.
And what would be a good choice for an evening with a close friend?
Norma, Faust or perhaps Trovatore…but with great singers!!
Finally, could you tell us about your musical tastes outside of classical music?
I’ve always preferred jazz, old school…Oscar Peterson, Dizzy Gillespie, Chet Baker, and of course, classic rock from the 60’s and 70’s. More recently, I’ve become a fan of Country music from old to new. And I like classic standards from the American Songbook…a perfect example is:
https://outhere-music.com/en/albums/then-and-now – One of my favorites…😉
Thank you very much for your answers, Maestro!
It was my pleasure and thank you for asking! All best, Dmitry!