Interviews and Conversations

Interviews with opera singers, directors, conductors and others involved in opera production and performance.

The 30th Anniversary Interview with San Diego Opera’s Ian Campbell – Part 2

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For Part One of this interview, see: The 30th Anniversary Interview with San Diego Opera’s Ian Campbell – Part 1. [Photo: San Diego Opera General Director Ian Campbell; edited image, based on a photograph, courtesy of the San Diego Opera.] Wm: As Europe sorts through their financial problems, do you see their governmental subsidies being in … Read more

The 30th Anniversary Interview with San Diego Opera’s Ian Campbell – Part 1

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Note from William: In observance of the 30th anniversary of Ian Campbell’s appointment as General Director of the San Diego Opera, I scheduled the following conversation with him: Wm: Thirty years ago you took over management of the 18-year old San Diego Opera, known for an ambitious repertory but with obvious financial problems. Over three decades … Read more

Mezzo Mastery – An Interview with Ruxandra Donose

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The following interview took place in the Sir Vernon Ellis conference room of the London Coliseum. The facilitation of this interview by the English National Opera is deeply appreciated.   [Below: Mezzo-soprano Ruxandra Donose; edited image, based on a  J. Henry Fair photograph, courtesy of Ruxandra Donose.] Wm: What kind of music first influenced you? … Read more

A Maestro of Music and Metaphor: An Interview with Nicola Luisotti

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The following interview was conducted in the administrative offices of the San Francisco Opera, whose facilitation of the interview is gratefully acknowledged.   [Below: San Francisco Opera Music Director Nicola Luisotti; edited image, based on a Terrence McCarthy photograph, courtesy of the San Francisco Opera.] Wm: You sang in church choirs in your home province of … Read more

Rising Stars: An Interview with Sean Panikkar, Part 2

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The facilitation of the interview by the Glimmerglass Festival is gratefully acknowledged. See: Rising Stars: An Interview with Sean Panikkar, Part 1.   [Below: Tenor Sean Panikkar; edited image, based on a Kristina Sherk photograph, for img_artists.com.] Wm: Your agent is Bill Palant, whose conservative approach to building the careers of young tenors you have noted. Several … Read more

Rising Stars: An Interview with Sean Panikkar, Part 1

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The facilitation of this interview by the Glimmerglass Festival is gratefully acknowledged.   [Below: Tenor Sean Panikkar; edited image, based on a Kristina Sherk photograph, from imgartists.com.] Wm: You were born and raised in Bloomsburg, a small city in a rural part of Central Pennsylvania. Nothing in your early experiences would have suggested an operatic … Read more

Rising Stars: An Interview with Brian Mulligan

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The following interview took place in the War Memorial Opera House in San Francisco. The facilitation of this interview by the San Francisco Opera is gratefully acknowledged.   [Below: Baritone Brian Mulligan, resized image, based on a copyrighted Peter Ross photograph, courtesy of Brian-Mulligan.com.] Wm: You grew up in Endicott in South Central New York … Read more

Rising Stars: An Interview with Danielle De Niese, Part 2

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The following interview was conducted in the administrative offices of the San Diego Opera, whose facilitation of this interview is greatly appreciated.  For the first part of the interview, see: Rising Stars: An Interview with Danielle De Niese, Part 1. Wm: Your career differs from that of almost every other artist in that you were simultaneously … Read more

Rising Stars: An Interview with Danielle De Niese, Part 1

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The following interview was conducted in the administrative offices of the San Diego Opera, whose facilitation of this interview is greatly appreciated:   Wm: You were born and your early childhood was spent in Australia, the country that has evolved as the second homeland for the Sri Lankan Burgher Community, whose ancestral lines were Dutch, … Read more

Rising Stars: An Interview with Charles Castronovo

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The following interview was conducted under the auspices of the San Diego Opera, whose facilitation is gratefully acknowledged:   Wm: What are your earliest memories of opera. How did you become interested in pursuing an operatic career? CC: For me, besides hearing themes from Rossini’s “Barber of Seville” in Bugs Bunny cartoons, I did not … Read more

American Orpheus: An Interview with William Burden

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The following interview was conducted within the administrative offices of the Seattle Opera, whose facilitation of this interview is deeply appreciated: Wm: What were your earliest memories of operatic music? What led you to pursue vocal studies and an operatic career? WB: My earliest operatic memories were from the Miami Boychoir, in Miami, Florida. We … Read more

The Festivities of the Santa Fe Opera Festival: An Interview with Joyce Idema

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Wm: Although I work with the press offices of all of the opera companies whose performances I review, and in the arrangement of interviews with particular artists, I have never posted an interview with an opera company press officer. As part of my occasional series on opera festivals, which includes reports on the Santa Fe … Read more

Basso Nobile: An Interview with Vitalij Kowaljow

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Wm: The following interview with basso Vitalij Kowaljow (pronounced Vee-TALL-ee Ko-VOL-yov) was conducted at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, home of the Los Angeles Opera, the day before the first night performance of Verdi’s “Simon Boccanegra”. The facilitation of this interview by the Los Angeles Opera is gratefully acknowledged:   [ Below: Basso Vitalij Kowaljow; resized image of … Read more

Living the Seine to Santa Fe Circuit: An Interview with Frederic Chaslin

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The following interview was conducted at the Santa Fe Opera “ranch” in August, 2011. The facilitation of this interview by the Santa Fe Opera is very much appreciated. [Below: Conductor and Santa Fe Opera Music Director Frederic Chaslin.] Wm: You were born in Paris. What were the influences that led you into a career with … Read more

In Memoriam: Tenore di Forza – My Interview with Salvatore Licitra

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[Note from William: Tenor Salvatore Licitra died September 5, 2011 from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident near Ragusa, Sicily on August 27, 2011. In his memory, I am re-posting the interview I conducted with him in November 2009 in Chicago, with hyperlinks to my reviews (with production photographs) of four of his recent performances. … Read more

Born to the Theater: An Interview with Francesca Zambello

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The following interview took place at the 2011 Glimmerglass Festival. [Below: Francesca Zambello at Glimmerglass, New York; edited image, based on a Claire McAdams photograph, courtesy of The Glimmerglass Festival.] Wm: How did you become interested in opera, and in opera production? FZ: Because my mother was an actress, I basically was interested in theater … Read more