Wendy Nielsen: On Teaching Singing

Interview

Originally from New Brunswick, Canadian soprano Wendy Nielsen has enjoyed a multi-decade career as a singer and as a teacher. Roles like the Countess Almaviva, Fiordiligi, and Donna Elvira are staples of her singing career, which has taken her across Canada, and includes twelves seasons at the Metropolitan Opera.

Tom Diamond: On Directing Opera

Interview

Winnipeg-born Tom Diamond is one of Canada’s busiest, most sought-after opera directors. His work has earned him both Dora (Chan Ka Nin’s Iron Road) and Gemini awards (Bathroom Divas: So You Want To Be an Opera Star? on Bravo!), and he’s in huge demand as an operatic acting coach to young professional singers.

Talking with Agents: Alia Rosenstock

Interview

Alia Rosenstock is an Artist Manager with Dean Artists Management, Canada’s biggest and most successful agency for classical singers. She studied voice at the New England Conservatory and she holds a law degree from Dalhousie University; these days, she’s melding her musical, administrative, and law skills into one very neat job representing Canada’s exciting talent. I asked her what she loves about it.

Chris Enns: Rags to Reasonable

Interview

Canadian tenor Chris Enns is the creator of the new blog Rags to Reasonable: Personal Finance for Artists & Storytellers. It’s great, I’ve already learned things, and Chris is writing about a really important topic for us artsy types. He was nice enough to sit down with me and tell me why he created Rags to Reasonable, and what it can do for today’s generation of professional artists.

Talking with Singers: Jennifer Holloway

Interview

American singer Jennifer Holloway is currently in Toronto, all set to make her Canadian Opera Company debut as Donna Elvira in Dmitri Tcherniakov's production of Don Giovanni, which opens January 24th. She was kind enough to sit down with me and talk about the character of Donna Elvira, about sympathizing with the Don, and about Mozart's sense of feminism.

Talking with Valkyries: Rihab Chaieb

Interview

​Tunisian-born mezzo-soprano Rihab Chaieb is a graduate of the COC Ensemble Studio (Semele, La clemenza di Tito), and she's currently in Toronto to be a Valkyrie. She sings Waltraute in Atom Egoyan's production of Die Walküre, opening January 31st at the Four Seasons Centre. I asked her about being the production, and what she's learned about the art and the business of opera.

Advice for Young Musicians, from Young Agents

Interview

By some fortuitous chance, I had the opportunity to talk with two young agents about getting work in the opera and classical music industry. Alia Rosenstock is with Dean Artists Management, and you may have seen her earlier interview with me about her work representing opera singers. Percussionist Allison Bent was an artist representative with Andrew Kwan Artists, and is now the Orchestra Personnel Administrator for the TSO.

Allison Bent: Advice for Young Musicians

Interview

Allison Bent is Orchestra Personnel Administrator for the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, and was an Artist Representative for Andrew Kwan Artists. I asked her about advice she could offer young musicians entering or new to the professional world.

Michael Mori: On Contemporary Opera

Interview

Among the Artistic Directors of North America’s opera companies, it’s fair to say that Michael Mori has a unique vantage point on the industry of opera and its future. I ask him about what Tapestry does, and why historical works don’t always mean cultural relevance.

Opera da Camera: Xerxes is the new Elvis

Interview

Opera da Camera is hard at work, getting ready for their upcoming production of Handel’s Xerxes, running February 19, 21, 28 and March 1st. What’s with the Elvis get-up, you ask? I asked co-Artistic Directors Meagan Zantingh and Kathrin Welte about all that gender fluidity in Handel’s operas, and how Opera da Camera is answering the big question of audience accessibility. #viveleroi indeed!