This is the last part of our interview series for The Elixir of Love. We will have more updates about the Detroit Opera House later this week! Enjoy.
Stephen Lord
What steps do you have to take in order to prepare for the show?
In order for me to prepare for this show, I have to know the singers- In this sort of music you have to know what the singers can and cannot do- you have to rehearse with the singers and have the same common goals. And hopefully the acting will come as we continue to rehearse.
When people start gathering for the production, what is a typical day like for you?
I have to be with the singers individually so we get to know and trust each other. So my typical day I will have an hour or hour and a half with just me the piano and the person and I can hear how they sing it and we come to an agreement. Then we start putting people together so they get to know each other. This is usually a two day process. If we don't establish that rapport in the beginning you don't get a complete product.
How would you compare Elixir of Love to other operas you may have conducted?
To quote Benjamin Brittan “the notes are all the same, they're just arranged differently.” This is a comedy with a lot of heart and I try to find the operas with the most honest sentiment. Its funny, but its also about a lovers misunderstanding. It has its own life in itself. I wouldn't conduct it if I didn't love it.
What is your favorite score of music to conduct?
My favorite operas to conduct are Norma, Salome, and the Marriage of Figaro.
What do you find most fulfilling about your job?
Communicating with my performers. When we're all on the same wave length, theres no feeling like it. Its a love fest. Its the give and take between us as performers. Its the unsaid things thats the most fulfilling part of it.
Is there any kind of unique story you could tell that you have experienced?
I started my career here- my first job is at the MOT doing the barber of Seville on tour. We opened in Alpena, MI, that's where my career started. I'll always be very thankful for starting me on this wild path. And I've been doing this for 35 years. In Michigan I made some of my most significant professional friends first and we've stayed friends this 35 years.
I read in your bio that you have conducted both traditional and contemporary works- Do you favor one style over another?
Yeah, I favor the traditional ones because they're the ones that need the most help. They've become cliché written, you have to invent the musical demands opposed to contemporary. You have to find out whats behind the notes and not just do the notes.
What kind of relationship do you have to have with the singers in order for the score to come together?
I'm reuniting myself with old friends, but I have several cast members I've never met before, but its establishing new relationships and its very wonderful once you've been in the business for a long time. And I hope it shows to the public. We cant forget in opera that we have the singers but we also have the orchestra, and we have to bring them into the family as we do it.
Anything else you would like to share?
Historically people have found relief from the grind of everyday and the hard times that they have they found it through art and hopefully In these bad times, we can give them back some of what they have invested in by spending money thats hard to come by. Hopefully they'll feel rewarded by us.
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