Bravo Cura
Celebrating José Cura--Singer, Conductor, Director
Concerts 2011 - 2013
2011 - Berlin Open Air Concert
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Elbland Philharmonic Orchestra inspires Berlin
Sächsische Zeitung Susanne Plecher 11 July 2011
The musicians from Riesa performed with Barbara Krieger and José Cura at the Classic Open Air at the Gendarmenmarkt on Friday. Dense rain clouds hang over Dresden as Bus 2 from Pirna rolls up to the Main Station. Several musicians of the New Elbe Philharmonic are already on board; nine from Dresden get on. The cellos are stowed away in the baggage compartment; flutes, oboes, violins are put into the baggage nets inside the bus. At ten before ten, we drive off. The atmosphere is relaxed—still relaxed, that is. Because tonight the orchestra will perform for the first time in the prestigious Classic Open Air at Berlin's Gendarmenmarkt Square and play Italian opera. Bellini, Verdi, Puccini. These are not usually in the program of the Riesaer Philharmonic. Five thousand guests who want to see opera stars Barbara Krieger and José Cura are expected. That is after all reason to be excited and jittery, especially considering that at the two rehearsal dates, there was not time enough for all selections. “It's a touch and go case; torrid” says Matthias Teubel, the flutist. But football (soccer) and children's report cards are still the more interesting topics. And the district council session of the previous day where District Administrator Arndt Steinback had made provisions for leeway in the negotiations over 86 musicians for the new orchestra. “One must block out political and existential fears, or else one can't feel like a human being any longer,” says Teubel. By now, the 54-year old has already experienced the fourth structural change to the orchestra. Sixty-eight musicians are along today, many of them 'borrowed'. The “Italian Night” requires a larger cast than the 50-member traveling orchestra can produce on their own. Eighteen degrees centigrade, drizzle in Brandenburg. The bus reaches the Gendarmenmarkt square at 12:57. Bus 1 from Riesa had only a few minutes lead. The musicians hurry to the Concert Hall. Sound check starts in three minutes, then rehearsal. But which way to go? Where are the dressing rooms? And how, pray tell me, does one get to the stage? The organizers take an easy-going approach. It seems no one took the arrival of the musicians into account. At least now you can see the sun, there's not a trace of the mountains of clouds left. While the musicians of the Philharmonic still orient themselves, Soprano Barbara Krieger cycles past us with a smile and a friendly greeting. “Mrs. Krieger is not aloof; she acts like one of us,” that's how director Christoph Dittrich's assesses this singer of world fame. So there will be no diva tonight? “Then opera would not be opera! Let’s not kid ourselves,” says Dittrich, laughing. The Diva is male, has hair mixed with gray and an engaging stage presence, Argentinian and, above all, a star on the opera stages of the world. But José Cura does not want to shine only as a tenor today. He will also conduct whenever he is not singing. The rehearsals last until 4:30. Then the musicians have time for themselves. Annerose Köhler runs up to the Brandenburg Gate. “I simply have to move,” says the violinist. Matthias Teubel is meeting friends, while others sit in a sidewalk cafe, enjoying the bustle of the capital. Christoph Dittrich, meanwhile, negotiates with the organizers. Today’s appearance should not be the only one. The concert begins promptly at 7:30. Almost all the seats are occupied. Incredibly, here 5,000 people attend a classical concert and pay from 47 to 190 Euros for it. Brilliant even without conductor Cura arrives on stage and apologizes to the audience: After all these years he can say only one German word, ‘potato.’ The audience listens attentively to the music. During the interval, the exhibition begins, with clothes and jewelry shown off, small talk exchanged. The second part of the concert adds more emotion and tension. Krieger and Cura sing out full throttle and whisper, writhe with love’s agony, rage with jealousy. The audience melts away and is not at all aware of the dicey situations in which the orchestra finds itself on occasion. Mistakes in Mario de Rose's conducting cause confusion. But when José Cura leaves the podium and stage in the middle of Puccini’s "La tregenda", we stop breathing. Of all times, the conductor leaves the Orchestra alone during this difficult piece, one which already had been causing cold sweat on the musician's brows for days. The experiment, for which the musicians were not prepared, turns out well. “However, it could have also gone wrong,” said Matthias Teubel afterwards. Director Dittrich, too, is full of praise: “They played with great charisma and love of music,” he says, obviously pleased. “The orchestra handed in a truly excellent calling card.” The audience sees it the same way. At the encore, the drinking song from Verdi’s La Traviata, they no longer stay in their seats. 5000 spectators clap to the beat, sway and sing along. Torrents of applause and standing ovations for both singers and orchestra. By 10:30: the concert is over. The Berliners flock to their nocturnal activities, the Saxons go home. Fifteen minutes after the concert, we are all sitting in the buses; the post-work beers are opened; vacation time is toasted with champagne. “Now I feel much better,” says Matthias Teubel. “But Cura has caused us to work up quite a sweat.”
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It is not easy to hold one's own next to José Cura "Did you bring your sunscreen?" José Cura calls into the audience. In fact, the atmosphere could hardly be more Mediterranean than at the warm, cloudless "Italian Night." Great tenors belong with the inventory of the Classic Open Air festivals. It was no different with the 20th anniversary. The Argentine leaves the stage already during the first aria, seeking contact with the audience. “Vesti la giubba” from Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci comes along with violent outbursts. Barbara Krieger sings the great soprano arias “Casta diva” and “Vissi d’arte”. It is not easy for her to hold her own next to the superstar. Both artists perform on home turf in Berlin. Barbara Krieger has been living here for years. José Cura has sung here often, most recently in Samson et Dalila at the Deutsche Oper. The two are an unlikely pair yet harmonious. José Cura has been singing on the great stages of the world for many years. Barbara Krieger had a fantastic start in the ensemble of the Vienna State Opera. A serious accident resulted in a long career break. Now she again gives concerts and records CDs. She has a beautiful voice and great passion. She sings with devotion, delves fully into the emotional state of her opera characters. Cura clearly has the advantage of routine, of aplomb over her. Naturally also that of his huge steely voice which picks up a volley of bravos without difficulty. Program changes were announced by festival director Gerhard Kämpfe. He made the funny comment that the scores were not received in time from Italy. As if one could acquire "Lucia di Lammermoor" only in Italy! No matter .... [...] He is touchingly concerned about her, brings a glass of water on stage during a duet. She sings so heartbreakingly that one hardly wants to admit that the voice is sometimes a bit fragile and uncertain. Sometimes her desire for characterization is vehemently hoping to pass over the small technical irregularities. Occasionally she seems as if intimidated by the powerful tenor who simply strolls in delightful relaxation through the famous tenor arias. More than that: time and again he also steps before the orchestra as a conductor, and this is far from only a show effect. The all-round musician Cura can also compose, direct, and design sets. Barbara Krieger looks calmer in the second half of the program. He puts his arm around her. “Mario, Mario” is the name of the tear-laden duet in the sunset's glow. The encore “Nessun dorma” at the latest sent shivers down the backs of the 7000, and with the “Libiamo” from La Traviata there was no more stopping it – even the audience sang along. |
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CLASSIC OPEN AIR - An Italian Night 20th Classic Open Air 2011 in Berlin
Back Again – Das Unabhagngige Musikmagazin Maximilian Nitzschke
[Translated by MB]
"Una Noce (sic) Italiana - An Italian Night" -- Laid-back, Luscious, Light, Likeable!
Under Friday evening's glorious blue sky, members of the Berlin audience were made to imagine themselves in the midst of Tuscany and the Italian feel for life. The crowd got to listen to the ebullient emotions and passions of the Italians of old, rapt, and got to love and suffer with Lucia, Tosca, Aida or even Madame Butterfly. Mio dio quel grande opera!
[…]
On the other hand, conductor Mario de Rose, an Italian born in Buenos Aires, plays quite an important role in the course of the evening, for it was he who guided the orchestra through the evening with dignity and the tact(fulness) of his baton. He completed his conducting studies at the School of Music of Argentina's Catholic University and was awarded several first-place prizes at international competitions. He has already been chief conductor of the Symphony Orchestra of Avellanda and Music Director of the La Plata Theater, the second largest Opera House in Argentina. Since 2005, Mario de Rose has been working with the star tenor of the evening, José Cura, providing support on his concert tours through France, Holland, Portugal, Italy and last but not least Germany. He has already gotten to conduct big operas like Carmen, Otello, Lucia di Lammermoor, and Turandot in which José Cura sang the starring role. His (José Cura's) is the first vocal number here in that he celebrates the 'Prologue' from Ruggiero Leoncavallo's (1858-1919) opera Pagliacci with a charismatic voice that is instantly appealing and memorable. The audience delights in this and in the midst of this splendid setting feels momentarily transferred into a Mediterranean landscape, say Rome's Piazza di Popolo. Pleasantly relaxed, easy-going, casual-- that's the way José Cura deals with the texts and also with the audience, for he leaves the stage area and goes into the stalls of block A in order to flirt a little and spread a mix of Argentinean fire and Italian charm.
Perhaps it is exactly this blend of fire and passion-in-action that allowed José Cura to become one of the most sought-after singers at the world's opera houses within just a few years. He gained true world fame through his (different) ways of interpreting his characters, where especially Otello in Verdi's opera by the same name and Samson in Saint-Saens' Samson and Dalila stood out. Something special in the course of his concerts is also the fact that he does not let Mario de Rose conduct all the program selections himself, but rather gives prove of his capabilities as conductor, too. In so doing, José Cura may well be the first opera singer ever to switch so unproblematically from singing to the conductor's podium.
[…]
"We have not yet sung together on this stage at the Gendarmenmarkt; that's indeed different. To be sure, artists do have their personalities; the audience is familiar with them and knows to a certain extend what to expect, but when two singers are on a stage together for the first time, the chemistry, the formula is a different one, and the result is naturally also different," Cura told the newspaper Berliner Morgenpost in an interview.
Barbara Krieger and José Cura harmonized perfectly on stage, dissolving completely into vocalized passion, tragedy, devotion. And it was devotion and love that José Cura promised the Berlin audience in the interview and which the audience on the Gendarmenmarkt square felt instantly. He showed discretion in keeping a low profile when Barbara Krieger sang alone as for example the aria 'Pace, mio Dio' from Vincenzo Bellini's Norma. On the spur of the moment, he—quite the gentleman—dashed backstage to be able to hand his partner a glass of water afterwards. Shortly before the break, the two sang the beautiful aria 'Pur ti riveggo', a duet from Verdi's opera Aida, and the Gendarmenmarkt (audience) continued to applaud well into the intermission.
After the half-hour break, we heard the' Easter Hymn' from Pietro Mascagni's opera Cavalleria rusticana which José Cura himself conducted. It was followed by Barbara Krieger's rendition of 'Voi lo sapete, o mamma'. One could tell by looking at the two that here the arias of the 19th century were not presented in an uptight, tense, stiff fashion but that this was rather a display of the joy of singing and the shared devotion to opera in an easy-going, you might say cool, manner.
While the Berlin audience is generally known to have the reputation of being rather flippant, something that is perhaps attributable to the fact that, when it comes to culture, it is plain spoiled, there was no trace of it whatsoever on this evening. One could have thought one was in the South of Italy right here in this square in the heart of Berlin. José Cura had this to say in his interview with the Berliner Morgenpost: "If one does something truly in the spirit of love, then it comes across, no matter what circumstances hamper the performance. That's my experience- especially with audiences in Germany!" Oh yes, the audience had gotten to feel the love for music, for music-making, in this over two-hour-long concert; and so it was no surprise that after Giacomo Puccini's Madame Butterfly and the aria 'Viene la sera, Butterfly' sung by both artists, the applause would not subside. This was a grandiose evening celebrated in midst of a magnificent setting by bloody good artists. Bellissima!
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Crystal Ball Bratislava
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José Cura: Secret star requests! Pluska Jeden Deň 08 February 2011
He is one of the five best tenors in the world and will soon fly to Bratislava for the prestigious Crystal Ball of the Slovak National Theatre. Opera singer and conductor José Cura, however, has special celebrity demands that the prom organizers have to meet. He faxed the list to Bratislava and we got exclusive access to it. José Cura is one of those who can choose where to sing. His diary is packed with performances in the most famous opera houses around the world. Bratislava will host him at the Crystal Ball of the Slovak National Theatre on 5 March this year. He will fly to the Slovak capital for 48 hours. "He requires a presidential suite in a five-star hotel and he wants to have a luxury chauffeur-driven limousine at his disposal at all times. He also wants a dressing room with a piano and a shower. When he arrives at the airport, he needs to be arranged to arrive at the VIP terminal," our source from the prom organizing team told us. Strangely, he has no celebrity requirements when it comes to food and drink. "All he wants is mineral water," our source smiles.
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José Cura: The Man and His Voice Grows Older
Jena Opoldusová Pravda SK 7 March 2011
[Computer-assisted Translation] You have already tried film directing. Why? I hope that one day I will work as a film director. I have already prepared several projects. So far I've only filmed the opera Samson et Dalila. But not in a film studios, but the play as staged in Karlsruhe. Now I am completing work to bring it out on DVD. What compels you to enter the world of film? As always in my life, I have a sense of curiosity and an appetite to do what I have not yet done. And I had the opportunity. I hope that when it's time to meet again, I can tell you about my new movie. What about the idea to issue a book of photography? I call it Espontáneas, which means spontaneous. The photographs are not stage, they happened spontaneously. I am very fond of photographing people. In London, Japan, Germany, New York, Australia. Their emotions, psychologies, stories are in their faces. I would say that it is more a social photography. Do you still think of the time when you discovered your singing talent? Very often, although a lot of time has passed. I studied composition and conducting at the University. Within the curriculum we had voice. Once, when I sang, one of my teachers told me: you have a very interesting tenor. You should be a singer, not the conductor. I got a chance and I took advantage of it. And therefore you are more of a singer than a conductor? Yes. Indeed I can conduct up to death, but singing is quickly used up. A man grows older and the voice with him. It is like with dancers, the moment comes when the body will say enough! And you must stop. In that moment the dancer becomes a choreographer. When I stop singing, I'll become a full-time conductor. Sometimes you perform as both conductor and singer. It is a challenge and at the same time an extremely difficult task. However, it provides the opportunity to make a more attractive concert show. It offers the audience a different artistic experience. You cannot, however, conduct and sing at the same time every day. In April it has been twenty years since you moved from Argentina to Europe. What was the hardest part of building an artistic career? The beginning was difficult. Once a man has become established and obtained success, it is then most difficult to endure. So to keep you on top you have to be better and better and actually distribute high-quality art. Today, a man may quickly become famous but in a year or two no one knows him. The best test for the artist is that he stays on top for a very long time. Besides classical, what kind of music do you like? Good. It does not matter whether it is jazz, late romanticism, or pop. But in truth, the most beautiful music for me is absolutely silent. In my house we don’t play any music. When I get into a taxi, I ask the driver to turn off the radio. All my life I work with music, so when I am not working I prefer silence. You have received many awards and honors. What do they mean to you? It’s a nice complement when you receive an award. The next minute the feeling is gone because you still have to prove you deserve the prize. And your qualifications. That is the hardest Which opera character do you like best? The one that allows me to tell a story. I hate to be on stage when I feel like an idiot because of a bad libretto. The great librettos are Puccini and Verdi's late operas. Those I like, because on stage I create red-blooded human characters.
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José Cura: Gifting the Prime Minister with a Book of Photographs Aktuality
6 May 2011
[Computer-assisted Translation] World famous opera singer José Cura visited Slovakia on Friday. At a press conference he spent nearly an hour answering questions asked by curious Slovak journalists. He surprised with his sense of humor, good nature, and his wife of thirty years, Silvia, who accompanied him to Bratislava. José Cura was born in Argentina, but he longed to stand on the most prestigious opera stages in Europe. He and his wife sold their apartment, used the money to buy plane tickets to the old continent, and left loved ones behind in South America. "On 16 April it will be exactly twenty years since we landed in Europe," recalled Cura, who settled in Verona, Italy, two decades ago with his wife and then three-year-old son José Ben. "Of course, it took a while to start. Today, Europe is my home. Two of my children were “made” here," he said with a wry smile. José Cura is in Bratislava for the first time and seems to really be enjoying his stay. "It's wonderful that after twenty years in Europe and altogether more than thirty years on stage, you can come to some new place." He will be one of the guests of honour at the first edition of the Crystal Ball in our capital. And although José Cura often performs at balls and has sung in Budapest and Vienna, he is definitely not a lion of the floor. "This book of photography which I released three years ago is based on people. On faces. On stories behind the expressions. I focused on people's faces and stories behind them. "I'm a terrible dancer. My wife knows I hate dancing. When we were younger, we only went to the disco twice. With a friend who, like me, doesn't like to dance and with his wife. It ended up with our wives dancing and us watching them," he revealed with a laugh. José Cura will also meet Prime Minister Iveta Radičová at the Crystal Ball. And since he is not only a singer, but also a conductor, painter, director and photographer, he has prepared a personal gift for her - he brought her a book of his own photographs. "I published it three years ago and it focuses on people's faces and the stories behind them. I don’t think it is a coincidence that I am curious of the human soul because I think to be a good actor you need to understand the human soul." Cura has three children, José Ben, Yazmine and Nicolás. The oldest son is 23 years. He describes their relationship to opera with a smile. "Opera pays for their school fees, for example, so although they are not fanatics about it, they have no reason to criticize it." His children have been raised to freely express their views on any form of art. He taught them that if they attend a performance they liked, whether it is classical or pop, they should react and if they didn’t like it, then they should sit quietly. "I am very happy when young people come up to me after a performance. Young people never speak about the singing. What they tell me is that they enjoyed it because they believed it." Cura is an artist in body and soul. He argues that one needs opera more than one needs food. People need art simply to live. "It doesn't matter if you're a Christian, a Muslim, a Jew. We are all equal before art. The only thing that holds the human race together is the love of beauty. If we lose it, the only thing we'll be left with is you *** Facebook. I'm sorry, I'm temperamental about this because I really don't understand what's going on in the world in this regard," he shook his head. Since one could speak with José Cura for hours and not get bored, it is positive news that we might have a chance to meet him in Bratislava more often in the autumn. He could appear as a guest in a new production of Otello at the Slovak National Theatre. "Everything is still under negotiation, because the date of the premiere and his commitments cross a bit," said the theatre's director Ondrej Šoth. "If you need me and I am able to be here, I will spend as much time as necessary," added José Cura optimistically. |
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Famous Argentine singer José Cura Guests at Slovak National Theater Ball
SME Zuzana Uličianska 5 March 2011 [Computer-assisted Translation] BRATISLAVA. "This is my first visit with you. It is strange that begins with a party. Usually the reception comes only after some work, here it begins with a celebration," laughed the famous Argentinian tenor José Cura at yesterday's meeting with journalists. He added that it says a lot about the spirit of the country. He apologized, saying he has revealed perhaps too much, but confirmed that he has been invited to perform at the premiere of Otello that SND prepares for autumn. Although he is not yet free, Cura hopes something will work out. He would like to return to Bratislava, primarily because he has such short of time in Slovakia (this time). He is pleased that after thirty years on stage and twenty years in Europe there is still a place where he comes to for the first time. A lover of beauty At the Crystal Ball he will be Prince Calaf singing the aria “Nessun dorma” from Puccini's opera Turandot. It is a ball but it will certainly not be Cura who will begin a waltz, since indeed he said he cannot even break into a tango. Referring to his Argentine origin he says he is a "failed Latin" who only watches at discos. Cura’s famous temperament and spontaneity, however, surfaced during a discussion on the theme of the importance of art. “We are all same in front of art. So apart from God, in whom you may believe or not, the only thing that keeps human beings together is the love for beauty. If we lose this love for beauty, the only thing that will keep us together is Facebook. I get temperamental about such things but I cannot believe what is going on in the world of culture,” he adds. Art is a privileged profession in his sight, offering people beauty and love. He plans to present our Prime Minister with a book of photos which he published three years ago and which is full of human faces. "To be a good actor, you have to understand the human soul," he says. He sings in Italian and French, yet so far refuses offers of any German opera. "It’s not only about phonetics and speaking like a parrot but about the perfume of the words. To smell and transmit the perfume of the words you need to dominate the language. If you want to grab new a new public, you have to grab them where they feel the most…you need to grab them [by the heart],” he said.
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José Cura does not plan to dance in Bratislava but he may sing Otello Pravda Ivan Majerský 5 March 2011
One of the world's most acclaimed tenors, José Cura, who will perform on Saturday as part of the first annual Crystal Ball at the Slovak National Theater (SND), may also introduce himself to Bratislava audiences in the opera Otello. His premiere on SND stage is scheduled for November. The artist himself indicated this at a press conference on Friday but added that his performance is still being negotiated. "I have been invited to make a guest appearance for the premiere but at present I already have something scheduled on that date," said the opera singer. "I will be happy if it is finally worked out," added Cura, who would like to return to Bratislava again in any case. The native of Argentina will stay in Slovakia until Sunday when he and his wife will fly out in the morning. In addition to the performance at the ball, he also plans to meet with Slovak Prime Minister Iveta Radičová. He would like to give her a little present. "I would like to give a copy of my photography book to your prime minister," Cura revealed. However, he does not plan to dance at the ball. "I am the most terrible dancer you have ever seen," he told reporters on Friday. His wife agreed with a quiet smile. The handsome couple has been living with their children in Europe for two decades. "On the sixteenth of April it will be exactly twenty years since we came to Europe. And we stayed here because it was worth it. It would be really stupid if I stayed here for twenty years and was not successful," the tenor laughed during the Friday press conference. "It took a few years for my career to take off. But compared to those who will never experience success, I was given this privilege," Cura reflected. "If it hadn't worked out, we would definitely have gone back to Argentina. At least so we could be with our family, our countrymen. Being away from home and being successful is one thing, but being away from the homeland and just surviving without growing would be suffering," added the native of Argentina, who also added that he now considers Europe his home. "And by the way, my wife and I had two of our children in Europe," he added. It is his children, now adults, who are said to have nothing bad to say about the opera. "They can't really. Opera pays for their school and thanks to it they can afford what they have," joked Cura. On a more serious note, however, he added that he tried to raise his children so that they "can appreciate a good show, whether it's an opera or some popular genre". In his view, there is insufficient effort in the world to attract young viewers to high-quality art. "To gain a young audience, it takes more than a singer standing on the stage like a potato. You need to grab those people and most importantly come out to meet them," he said. However, the forty-eight-year-old Cura, who has been active on the opera scene for almost thirty years, does not like the direction opera and the whole culture in general are going. "I don't know what's going on with culture these days. It's the love of beauty and therefore art that unites people. It looks like we'll only be left with a stupid Facebook. Everyone thinks that we can't eat from culture, but in my opinion we also can't survive without it. We’ll end up killing each other here," said the man, who, in addition to singing, is also involved in photography and conducting. However, he has put his conducting "on hold." "I don't conduct as much as I'd like. But sooner or later the voice will go, and then I'll have plenty of time for it, until I die," he said with a laugh. In recent years, he has also become interested in directing. In 2007, he directed the world premiere of the opera show La Commedia e finita. He also won acclaim from the audience and critics for his direction of Saint-Saëns' opera Samson et Dalila.
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José Cura broke hearts in the Slovak National Theatre
WebNoviny Lea Podstanická 6 March 2011
[Computer-assisted Translation]
The premiere Crystal Ball on Saturday definitively closed the season of social entertainment. The star of the evening was the charismatic tenor José Cura
"I need to feel free in this piece," said Cura, who wowed guests with a unique performance of an aria from Giacomo Puccini's Turandot.
BRATISLAVA - Just a few hours ago, the first ever ball - the Crystal Ball - ended in the new building of the Slovak National Theatre. Guests praised the thoughtfully furnished and spacious premises, the relaxed friendly atmosphere, but most of all the unique program. The star of the evening was definitely the personable Argentine opera singer José Cura, who came to the capital of Slovakia with his wife. He "broke" many women's hearts, mainly with his legendary immediacy. He literally threw off any pretentiousness together with his bow tie, tossing it onto the dance floor before his performance. "I need to feel free in this piece," said Cura, who wowed guests with a unique rendition of an aria from Giacomo Puccini's opera Turandot.
"José Cura definitely appealed to me the most. I was very much looking forward to him," said Jana Prágerová, the organizer of the OTO poll, about one of the world's most respected opera singers. His charisma also won over the recently married Sisa Sklovska and the actress Kamila Magálova. "He completely got me. He's so charismatic. Although he has put on a little weight, I remember him as a big handsome man," revealed the singer, who also performed at the ball. "He gave me chills," added Magálová.
[…]
The bar has been set very high for next year’s ball….
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2011 Saaremaa Estonia
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The world leading tenor rehearsed with the Estonian orchestra
Postimees Teelemari Loonet 21 July 21
[Computer-assisted Translation]
Invited to perform at the Saaremaa Opera Days, world leading tenor Jose Cura from Argentina rehearsed today with the orchestra and choir of the Estonian National Opera. Cura, who is considered the heir to the mantle of three famous tenors, is also a conductor, composer and teacher as well as a singer and at Saturday's concert in Kuressaare he will perform as a singer and conductor, reports ERR Uudis. Highly acclaimed in the world's most famous opera houses and concert halls, Cura praised the Estonia choir and orchestra after the rehearsal.
The tenor is often accompanied on tours by his family—they also accompanies him in Estonia—fame comes and goes but the family stays, says the singer. "Nowadays, fame doesn't mean anything to anyone," Cura said, adding that what really counts is professionalism, hard work and consistency over the years.
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Tenor José Cura: Idols are dangerous!
Kroonika Riina Jussila 31 juuli 2011
[Computer-assisted Translation / Excerpt]
“Estonia is a wonderful place!” José Cura, the world-famous tenor from Argentina, enthused. Now living in Madrid, Cura (48) tour of Estonia began in the old city. Then the singer took to the Kajsamoor schooner for a view of the beautiful Capital. Q. What are you looking for and appreciate in music? In today’s individualistic world, it is an incredible feeling to go on stage with 100-150 people who share a common desire to create something beautiful for all who are present. It is a feeling that can’t be put into words. I am not the most important thing on the stage. The most important thing is that we all enjoy what we do. The singer is also one of the musicians, his instrument is his voice. Q. Who do you admire? I have no idols, not in religion, art, or music. If you have an idol, you lose your personality and you start to identify with him. You start imitating your idol instead of being yourself. Idols are dangerous. Q. How do you understand the word “world famous”? It is a strange word. In today’s world you can be famous for five minutes—you put a picture or video on the internet, and ten minutes later you are the most famous person in the world. Celebrity does not mean anything in the world today. What matters is professionalism, hard work and the belief in yourself. Many young people imitate their idols whom they see on the internet. They want to be like them, and that’s wrong. It is important to be yourself, because in life there are already too many copy cats. Children often don’t bother to do their own homework. They go to the computer, google and copy the answers. They do not learn anything, they do not think about things in their own heads. My motto comes from Oscar Wilde, who said, “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.” Q. What recommendations do you have for those who dream of a career as a singer? We shouldn’t be afraid to experience new things and we shouldn’t model ourselves after others. People are afraid of criticism and become discouraged. We have a lot of talented souls who are afraid to show their real skills because they are afraid of bad words. I’ve received a tremendous amount of criticism—a great deal of bad but also a lot of good. One thing is for sure—you can never please everyone. Enjoy and believe in what you do. Q. Are young people able to access classical music? There is talk that classical art is dying and is no longer being enjoyed. They say classical art is boring. That’s a lie! It is we who perform it who are boring! Ballet is cool, painting is great, and so on. If you go to a museum, for example, and a beautiful piece of art is covered in a thick layer of dust, it's not the artist's fault - it's the museum's fault for not taking care of the picture and not knowing how to display it. Artists, too, are custodians and agents of art. If we do not know how to offer our work, it will not be appreciated and received well. It has to be made exciting, and the person presenting it has to enjoy it. If it is being performed only for money, it is immediately obvious and has no soul. Classical art must be treated as a beautiful young woman or man, not a thousand-year-old exhibit. Q. You are a former athlete and you have a black belt in Kung-Fu. What sports are you currently doing? This here is my present day (pats belly). I was a tough athlete when I was 20 kilos lighter. As you get older, not only does the hair go gray, but one morning you wake up and you find you have a big belly. You can diet and lose weight all over, but the stomach is still there. Now that’s a miracle! Q. You have a busy life. How do you make time for family and children? I have been with my wife for 32 years and we have three lovely children ages 23, 18, and 15. We are a very happy family. Although I travel a lot, I am always there for them. During the summer, when school is out, my family often comes with me to my performances.
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José Cura: Your Bread is Excellent Saaremaa Raadio/ Meie Maa [Computer-assisted Translation / Excerpt]
Today, the most famous guest of the Saaremaa Opera Days, tenor José Cura, will perform in the Kuressaare castle courtyard. In an exclusive interview with Meie Maale, he said that he had entered paradise on the island of Muhu.
Yes.
Q. How did you pass the night?
We slept very well.
Q. How difficult was it to get you to come to this quiet place to perform?
It wasn’t difficult at all. I was invited and I accepted immediately. I’m almost 50 years old and have been singing for a long time. I have been all over the world and there’s one thing I’ve most enjoyed this year—performing in non-traditional venues. After all, people are nice everywhere and they want to listen to music. And if people want to listen to music, it is nice to sing for them. If I didn’t have that attitude, then I wouldn’t come to a small place like this. My family and I love it here. (Cura is here with his wife and two youngest children.) This is a true paradise. Q. Did you come by ferry?
We came by ferry and it was a very beautiful trip.
Q. Do you always travel with your family?
In the summer, yes. In winter, the children go to school. My eldest son just completed university in London. This place here is great for family travel – so beautiful and lovely. Of course, we are very lucky with the weather here in paradise.
Q. Why do you live in Madrid rather than in the land of your birth, Argentina?
To get from Argentina to Europe takes 24 hours. If you live in Argentina, you cannot work in Europe. It is so far away. The same with living in Australia.
Q. Where are your favorite places?
Any place with good energy is my favorite. Q: Is there a big difference between performing in a theatre and outdoors? Of course. When you perform in a theatre, you are in control of your voice. What you sing with your voice is what is heard. When you sing into a microphone, your voice goes through an electronic system, which can be better or worse. Even if it's perfect, the final authority is still the sound engineer who determines how your voice sounds. And it may not be quite the sound you want. After all, you're in the hands of a third person who will bring your voice to the audience. Sometimes it happens that I'm singing loud, but they turn my voice down and I have no control over the volume of my voice. If I sing too softly, the sound engineers think I'm singing too softly and they turn up the volume. So I am no longer the master of my voice. Of course, if you have a very good sound engineer, less is lost, but I'm still always like a third person on stage. But it's the only way I can perform in big venues.
Q. Will your family be here to listen to your concert, too?
Yes. They know all my songs and in the end they always have an opinion.
Q. What are your plans for your free time here? We're getting to know your island inch by inch.
Q. Have you tasted the food here?
We enjoyed it too much! Terrific—I’m probably gaining back all those kilos I’ve fought hard to lose in the last three or four months.
Q. Are you yourself a good cook? Yes, but everyone here is a very good cook. We were cooked for today (at the Namaste tourist farm) right in the kitchen. We could watch it all prepared in front of us and ate everything. Your bread is excellent. Q: Are you the fourth tenor alongside the three greats, Pavarotti, Carreras and Domingo? No, that's a very funny definition. These three tenors, of whom only two are still alive, were made famous above all by the media. These three are great artists, of course, but that does not mean that they are the greatest tenors of all time, or the only tenors on the planet. Some of the other tenors of the same generation - and I don't mean me! - are also very professional and excellent.
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Tenor José Cura: I could sing my dream role in Estonia Posttimees 22 July 2011
[Computer-Assisted Translation]
According to the singer, the first impressions of Maarjamaa by the world-famous conducting tenor José Cura, who arrived in Estonia a few days ago, were brilliant: a long tour of the old town and a sea trip on the schooner Kajsamoor ("We felt a bit like pirates of the Caribbean," he jokes), then a rehearsal with soprano Aile Asszonyi, the National Opera Chorus and with the orchestra. "Wonderful country and great musicians," sums up the star's first impressions. "Our collaboration is going well, I appreciate their professional skills, and we have developed a very good rapport on a human level as well - I think that Saturday's concert will be a real treat."
The artist has no previous experience with Estonian music or musicians, but he does not rule out the possibility of performing Estonian music one day. "If only I could pronounce your language," he grins. "The current collaboration with the musicians here is brilliant, and if Estonian music composition is the same, it would be a pleasure to get to know it."
But what is he looking for in music? "In today's increasingly individualistic world, it's a great feeling to create something extraordinary on stage with more than a hundred people - an experience for those watching from the hall. It's an old-fashioned feeling that we shouldn't really lose," he says.
Critics are not short on superlatives in their characterisation of Cura - a velvety voice polished to a ringing brilliance, he is described as the king of verismo (a realistic style of imagination that emerged in late 19th century opera).
Indeed, verismo operas play an important role in Cura's oeuvre, as he has shown himself to be a multi-talented conductor as well as a singer as when he first conducted Cavalleria rusticana and then performed the role of Canio in Pagliacci at the Hamburg Opera in 2003.
However, he considers himself first and foremost a singer—for now. "It is possible to conduct as well as sing - no one is surprised if a pianist conducts a concert but people are surprised when a singer does. “It's a stereotype - singers are not considered musicians, interpreters, yet their instrument is the voice. For me, the most important thing about conducting is the human contact and the pleasure of making music together."
The famous tenor says he has no role models in any field, and he considers it wrong to imitate anyone. "My motto comes from Oscar Wilde: be yourself, because everyone else is already taken. In other words, be yourself, don't try to imitate anyone. There's too much copy and paste in the world anyway.
“I think we shouldn’t be so persistent in trying to compartmentalize things too much in terms of importance and meaning, and shouldn’t be swayed by what others think of us - we should find our own way and follow it.
“You can never please everyone anyway. I'm going to be 50 soon, I've been doing this job for years, and the most important thing for me is that I still go on stage and enjoy what I do."
While audiences have enjoyed almost every role Cura has ever sung, be it the title role in Verdi's Otello or any other, the singer himself dreams of the title role in Benjamin Britten's opera Peter Grimes.
In London? "Oh no, the English would never accept my accent," the man laughs. "Why not do it in Estonia instead?"
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The wishes of the Star Forced the Organizers to Change Concert Venue Unfortunately, one often has to dance to the tune of big stars, despite the inconvenience caused to opera lovers. Saarte Haal Hendrik Kuusk 26 July 2011
[Computer-assisted Translation]
Shortly before José Cura's performance, the concert that was to have been held in the Kapiitlisaal at the Saaremaa Opera Days had to be moved to the Kuressaare Cultural Centre, as the maestro wanted to rehearse on the main stage at the same time as another event was taking place. The organizers of the Opera Days tried to change their advertisements and the last tickets were sold with the new venue identified but the updated information did not reach all those who had already purchased tickets. The change had to be made because maestro José Cura wanted do a sound check rehearsal right before his performance but that was impossible to accommodate since there was already a concert scheduled in the main hall at the same time. "We were unable to negotiate with the maestro. Stars are stars," said Marika Pärk from the Saaremaa Opera Days organizing team. The concert [that took place immediately before Cura’s] featured excerpts from Mozart, Schubert and Liszt, was scheduled to take place on Saturday at six o'clock in the Kuressaare castle chapter hall. Those who had bought tickets had counted on being able to make it to the José Cura performance in the same courtyard of the castle, starting at eight o'clock. For those who came to the castle courtyard in anticipation of attending both concerts, it became a problem to get from the first venue to Cura’s venue, which was scheduled for the main stage. Jüri Sepp, who went to both concerts, said that many people were forced to leave the cultural center before the last notes were played, fearing to be late for Cura's performance. Pärk said that there was an estimated 25 minutes between the two concerts, which should be enough time to get back to the castle yard from the city center. The organizers said they had also taken into account those people who had bought tickets for both consecutive performances. Pärk said the estimated time between the two concerts was 25 minutes, which should be enough time to get from the city center to the castle courtyard. According to Pärki, the organizers themselves took people who came looking for the concert in the Kapiitlisaal to the new venue. Tickets were refunded to those who requested it. Marika Pärk said that she was very sorry for what happened and apologized to the visitors for causing inconvenience. Arne Mikk, the artistic director of the opera days, said that next time they will be smarter about such things.
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2011 Savonlinna Finland
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Tight packaging Sara Riitta Pietilä 26 April 2011 [Computer-Assisted Translation / Excerpt] José Cura, 48, is known as the sexiest tenor in the world. In reality, this world star is so much more: a breathtakingly versatile man with a hunger for life. I'm sitting in the dressing room of the Zurich Opera House, opposite a man who is sighing in love. It's a happy sigh, even though the same man sings operas for a living, where love ends unhappily night after night. For example, just yesterday, in this very house, Alfio first stabbed Turiddu in Cavalleria rusticana, then Canio stabbed Nedda in Pagliacci. In the world of opera, this is called verismo, which means striving to be realistic. The man in front of me, the world-famous tenor José Cura, calls last night's performance 'magical' and uses several derivatives of the word 'love' to describe what happened. First of all, the audience was 'loving' and full of 'good energy' and second, it was not even a question off an evening at the opera but of lovemaking. “The public’s love is absolutely essential. Without it, there is no interaction. If I give people love when I’m singing on stage but I got nothing in return, then singing will become only a job done to make money,” he said. Ten years ago, in Madrid, things went a little too far into in the opposite direction when our hero apparently couldn’t sing a high C. Some members of the audience booed during the Il trovatore performance, prompting Cura to lecture them with apparent fury - there are different versions of the incident, but they all refer to the word 'stink'. That is, that Cura implied that [at least part of] the audience stinks. “We artists are part of a big machine, where our job is to convey beauty to the audience. Sometimes that means we provoke. Your job as a journalist is to convey my ideas to the readers. The job of the person sitting in the audience is to love and encourage the singers to make the performance a success," Cura explains. “I'm not a star twinkling in the sky by myself. I'm just one link in a chain of human communication. If people don't treat each other with respect, I can't work,” he says, justifying his famous rant. (Although he did publicly apologize for the outburst.)
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Argentine Star Tenor Shined at St Olaf’s Castle HS.fi Vesa Sirén 18 July 2011
[Computer-Assisted Translation]
Savonlinna. Star tenor José Cura both succeeded handsomely and failed horribly during the same concert at the Savonlinna Opera Festival. The star was at his best in the opera arias and demonstrated the reason for his world-wide fame. Leoncavallo and Puccini are his natural composers. As an entertainer, he was a shameless comedian, chatting with the audience, running around the stage, flirting with the concert master of the city orchestra and strumming his guitar while singing a version of Paul McCartney's Yesterday with Tarja Turunen, who received classical singing training and left Nighwish for a solo career. The entire second half of the concert was sung with microphone. Turunen and Cura sang pop numbers, with Cura singing music by the Argentine Carlos Guastavino and the Mexican Armando Manzanero, but these numbers were not particularly successful. Only one rehearsal with the orchestra was clearly insufficient, and Cura did not seem to be very familiar with the lighter fare. Sound issues continued when Cura returned to opera arias at the end of the concert. A wonderfully handsome rendition of Puccini’s Nessun dorma left the audience truly excited. But the star has finally come to Finland and even with questionable acoustics his is a rare natural tenor voice the sound of which we want to listen to more often.
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''I met Maestro Cura a night before our rehearsals during the intermission of the opera “Tosca”. I immediately felt that he is a great man, with good spirit and warm heart. During our performance I had a roller coaster ride through great emotions! It was an unbelievable honor to sing with Mr. Cura. He treated me nice, with respect and kindness. I will never forget it. Thank you Olavinlinna for so warm welcome! I can still remember the BRAVO shouts that not even a deaf would have missed. It felt so amazing! Muchas gracias José!'' -- Tarja Turunen
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José Cura Came and Conquered Itä-Savosta Leena Lempinen-Vesa 19 July 2011
[Computer-Assisted Translation / Excerpt]
José Cura is a first rate singer who combines a great voice with an appealing presence, charisma and intelligence.
José Cura charmed the audience from the beginning. Dressed in jeans and a black shirt, he ran onto the stage like an athlete.
“I did not get my evening clothes back from the laundry. Jari left his jacket off out of solidarity as well,” he said uninhibitedly. Then he asked the audience to fill any of the empty seats in the front so they could see better.
The audience laughingly complied.
So, a complete showman who has the nerve to make direct contact with the audience. But what about the famous songs? Cura started the concerts by singing both the Prologue and great aria from Pagliacci in a show stopping manner. The Prologue is sung by a baritone but was no problem for Cura. Always pleasing [to the ear], the powerful voice operated consistently through both ranges. The Prologue calls for us to follow the destinies of life: the loves, the hates, the deaths. Cura gave the words meaning, whispering them, sighing, crying, shouting, beguiling. Pagliacci’s aria exudes the despair of an aging artist. Cura generated big emotions, immediately captivating the audience. The concert’s first half was a feast, even if the Kuopio orchestral struggled in places. To the soloist, this did not matter. He gave the orchestra constant praised and drew attention to the musicians when solos were nicely played. Cura took to the Puccini arias as naturally as breathing, as living. E lucevan le stelle, the famous tenor aria from Tosca, was riveting, the interpretation dripping with intense despair. The sound was fresh and strong, an impressive package. The audience was spellbound. Such is opera: an intuitive, effective human voice backed by an orchestra which supports intense emotions with skill and natural sounds. But then what happened? After the interval Tarja Turunen stepped in front of the orchestra to sing Grieg’s Solveig’s Song – into a microphone! This cannot be happening. This is a classical song. Why the microphone? But with the microphones on stage, there was no turning back. Cura sang Argentine pop songs in a hushed voice into the microphone as Tarja’s partner. He sang with the aid of glasses to see the score on the music stand. He was clearly not accustomed to singing them. The atmosphere turned sour. Why on earth was this world-famous opera star partnered with Tarja Turunen? She is certainly good in her own genre [of music] but not the equal of Cura; the singing became imbalanced. Duets were strained. During the encores, Cura was applauded like crazy; Tarja was applauded politely. There were several encores. For the third, Cura grabbed a guitar, sat down on the conductor’s podium, and started to play Yesterday. Then he forgot the lyrics. Whoops! The concert was rescued with the last encore, Puccini’s number one hit Nessun dorma. However, even then Cura sang into the microphone, for whatever reason. Such a thing has never been seen before at St Olaf’s Castle: one of the world’s top Calafs singing Nessun dorma into a microphone! It would have been wonderful to hear the aria in in purest form. Still, the audience loved José Cura. As soon as “Nessun dorma” ended the audience was on its feet, roaring it’s support. The ovation seemed to cry out that José Cura had the hearts of the audience. He is a great singer with great class and a perfectly charming stage presence. But what a strange concert. On what premises was it planned? Why did José Cura have to sing into a microphone at the most important opera festival in Finland? Does the opera festival no longer believe in opera?
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José Cura ExcitesItä-Savosta 18 July 2011 The Argentinean tenor José Cura raised such a storm of applause at St. Olaf’s Castle on Sunday evening such as never before experienced. Cura offered an uncomplicated and warm stage presence as well as touching [way] with songs that melted the audience. The encore of the Nessun dorma was cheered with the whole audience on their feet and yelling. The second soloist of the concert, Tarja Turunen, received a cooler reception. Confusion was caused when Cura sang opera arias only in the first half. In the second half, most of the songs were sung into a microphone—Turunen even sang the classical Solveig’s Song [into the mic]—and the atmosphere changed from an opera spectacle to a mediocre concert.
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2011 Santander Spain
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It is our Responsibility to Pass on Works of Art like Opera and Painting
Juan C. Flores-Gispert 1 August 2011
[Computer-Assisted Translation]
He is one of the best tenors in the world. Tonight in Santander he gives life to one of the most famous opera characters.
He doesn’t remember the number of times he has presented his Otello to the world but, by dint of getting into the character of the Moor of Venice it is clear to him that the story told by this opera is fully valid because it speaks of racism and the use of people.
It is sad that everything remains the same….
José Cura: The story behind the operas remain. Sometimes, because of the beauty of the melodies, we are left with the tunes and wonderful musical moments and we don't pay attention to the words, to what the opera says, no matter how many times we repeat it. And that has a lot of value in itself.
Would you say that the public doesn’t see beyond the story to the truth?
José Cura: The great majority of operas are the vehicle of social proclamation that the composers of the time used to say what they wanted. Art in general is just that, a proclamation. Puccini, Verdi, Leoncavallo, Shakespeare…. with their works they denounced the things of their time. After 600 years it is an open denunciation.
As in the case of racism….
José Cura: There is still racism and xenophobia against foreigners, from white to black and black to white. And people are still being used. In Verdi’s Otello, you don’t see it because the first act of Shakespeare’s text is missing, but in the original, when they find out Othello has secretly married Desdemona and her father wants to recover her from the arms of the Moor, the Venetian Council said, “We need him at the moment to control the Turks. When we have our victory we will see what is to be done with Othello.”
So we shouldn’t see opera only as a show, but we should also see what is behind it.
José Cura: You have to see its message. You have to know a lot about opera to enjoy its maximum expression. It is not enough to go to listen to the melodies. But that’s true about all classical art. If you stand in front of La Gioconda, at first glance you see only a chubby lady who seems to smile at you—until they explain to you the wonder of the strokes, the use of perspective, the depth, the brightness…and then you get the piece. To understand classical art you have to study. It isn’t a gift. Art demands sacrifice on the part of the public.
Just like the singers and artists.
José Cura: That’s it. Just as we professionals need to sacrifice and do the big job in tackling the technical difficulties we face, the audience needs to be professional in the sense that they take the time necessary to analyze the show before they see it to understand it at its best. This is not a changing art.
Does it never change?
José Cura: This art is like that. In its essence, because they are masterpieces, they are sculpted like this forever. They will never have a note more or less, not one color more or less. Generation after generation we pass on the responsibility of maintaining these masterpieces with the same brilliance as always.
How a singer does like you keep your voice (in shape)?
José Cura: The day-to-day life of a singer is more normal than you might think. The worst thing is the travel because you get on a plane in a city where it is 35 degrees and you get off two hours later in a place that is 10 and with the air conditioning on the plane, the lady next to you coughing, the man behind you sneezing….none of this can be controlled. Last week I worked in Finland, 300 km from the North Pole. I hopped on a plane back to Madrid, where it was 40 degrees. And from there I drove to Santander, where I was told it was almost winter. Luckily a few days were very nice. There are a few things we can control, we must be careful not to eat junk food, to get enough rest the day before the performance….
The purists will complain that Santander is presenting Otello in concert.
José Cura: I want to emphasize the fact that the Festival is determined to celebrate its sixtieth anniversary with something special. For the performers, it is difficult to present Otello in concert. Not have it staged is highly emasculating. Not only does the audience suffer, but we do as well…
How will you manage it?
José Cura: Barbara Frittoli and I have often worked together to bring life to Otello and Desdemona. There is a special chemistry between us and although we will be dressed in street clothes we will create a micro-environment on stage.
Your particular style has its detractors….
José Cura: I am aware that it bothers many, because I go beyond words and gestures and use stage and vocal attitudes that do not match what people expect from a work they have seen and heard many times. But that's what it's all about, getting the artistic bandwagon moving, experimenting and working, because classical art has a future, as long as we don't stop taking risks. If we continue doing classical art the same as we did 100 years ago, the audience will leave the theaters. With one hand we have to hold on to tradition and with the other we have to pull towards novelty, towards today's society. ` |
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Otello with José Cura and Barbara Frittoli open the FIS El Diario Montañes 31 July 2011 John C. Flores-Gispert
[Computer-Assisted Translation / Excerpt] The couple is an expert in giving life to the Moor of Venice and his wife, roles they have played together many times since 1997 Tenor José Cura faces the opening of the Santander International Festival (FIS) on Monday like a bullfighter facing a bull. As he said yesterday "opera is very similar to bullfighting, because we perform the roles without a net, as in the arena." When the spectator "is waiting for the tenor to face the wall when the high note comes" it is "the same" as when the bullfighting crowd waits to see what happens to the bullfighter when he "makes a veronica or is going to kill the bull." On Monday he gives life to Otello, the Moor of Venice. The tenor from Argentina and Spanish nationality doesn’t know how many times he has played Otello, but each times he does it with the same sense of responsibility as the first time; this time he opens the sixtieth edition of this festival which he described as a model, "that has very few rivals in the world, which is morally unimpeachable and of high artistic and intellectual quality." Cura, with soprano Barbara Frittoli, will play Otello and Desdemona, roles they have performed together in theaters around the world on many occasions since 1997 so their harmony is complete: "We can wrap ourselves in a particular halo, because we know each other very well, that just by looking at each other we understand the other," even though this time it is presented in concert version, without scenery, costumes or stage movement. Along with Cura and Frittoli will be in the role of Iago the Georgian baritone Lado Ataneli, who has come to replace Vladimir Stoyanov due to illness. The Argentinean conductor Mario de Rose will be in charge of the performance. "There is no better Otello than this one and no better Desdemona than the one Barbara will perform," said José Luis Ocejo yesterday, at the presentation of the first show of the 2011 festival. Maestro De Rose agrees in his praise: "This is a great team. No conductor could have better interpreters than these two." For Cura the value of opera "cannot die, it is up to us to keep it as bright as possible" and he maintains that it is the responsibility of artists and cultural managers to ensure opera does not become "a museum with sculptures full of dust," because both are their "guardians." Otello, says Cura, is "much more than a story of jealousy over a little handkerchief" because behind Shakespeare's play there is "an enormous denunciation of falsehood, of the use of people, of racism that today, after 600 years, is still current." In his opinion, the third act of this opera is "nothing more than the masterly musical development" of an act of gender violence. In addition, he believes that the work has "a different reading" since September 11, 2011 because it also speaks of fundamentalism, of those who defend their ideas by violence "whether they wear a turban or a tie".
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2011 Daejeon South Korea
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2011 Nancy
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2012 Istanbul
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José Cura wows opera festival fans Today’s Zaman Alexandra Ivanoff 16 July 2012 The İstanbul International Opera Festival, which opened on July 7, is in the midst of its third incarnation. Originally conceived as one of the many cultural events for the 2010 European Capital of Culture celebrations, the festival this year presents 10 performances of five different productions, and one gala concert, at Aya İrini, Topkapı Palace, the Kadıköy Süreyya Opera House, the Haliç Congress Center and the Bahçeşehir Culture and Arts Center. In the middle of the festival’s performance schedule, the noted Argentinean tenor José Cura performed in a solo concert on July 12 at Aya İrini, accompanied by the İstanbul State Opera and Ballet Orchestra, conducted by Mario de Rose. Cura has been referred to as the potential “Fourth Tenor” of the successful act “The Three Tenors,” comprising Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo and Jose Carrera, a trio that broke all classical recording sales during the 1990s. Cura’s luminous voice and good looks certainly would have fit right in. The venue was completely filled, and with people of all ages. Children, young people and adults sat together and roared their approval of Cura as if he were a rock star. The slogan “From 7 to 70” has been a big success. American producers and presenters of classical music, who are wringing their hands in desperation at their graying audiences, should examine the model operating in Turkey. Cura’s a creature of the stage Known for his unconventional and innovative concert performances, Cura brought his bold stage charisma to İstanbul and, by all accounts that night, won hundreds more fans. His off-hand charm, spontaneous theatrics and selection of eight of the world’s most popular tenor arias proved a winning formula for Cura and this sold-out audience. Closer to Domingo in terms of his training -- he’s a composer and conductor in addition to his singing -- he strutted his stuff both on the podium and off. Starting his first aria (the prologue from Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci) from the back of Aya İrini, Cura walked up and down the aisles as he sang, treating it like his own living room, greeting audience members on the way, embodying the character of the itinerant actor of the opera plot. Not only was it good theater, it was good acoustics in action. His radiant voice sounded absolutely glorious in that large venue. Chatting with the audience at every opportunity, Cura talked about how uncomfortably hot it was that night, saying, “I know you’re very elegant, but please don’t be afraid to take off some clothes!” His informality was heightened on one occasion when he stepped up to the podium to conduct, but forgot his score. After some scrambling for the music and ad libbing with everyone, the music got under way. His conducting was clear and direct, eliciting the essentials from the score with no excessive actions. Later, he was disturbed by the lack of light in the audience, so he asked for the lights to be turned on for us, despite the amount of heat they may have generated. This was a touching moment when he revealed how much he needs to be connected to everyone. For much of the evening, he shared the vocal spotlight with Turkish soprano Feryal Türkoğlu, who sang arias by Mozart, Bizet and Puccini and two scenes and duets with Cura. Her most successful moments were the dialogues with him in Tosca, where she abandoned stock actions, pressed high notes and scooping into every phrase, instead favoring real acting and unaffected vocalism. Naturally, her voice followed suit with a more alluring tone. One particularly enjoyable scene was where she resisted Cura’s incessant clowning in the duet between Tosca and Cavaradossi, keeping her character’s propriety intact, even though he was irresistibly charming. Cura’s eight bravura Italian arias were potboilers, but nevertheless enjoyable because of his warm sound and realistic drama, particularly in Otello’s death scene (Niun mi tema -- “That none shall fear me”) where his voice became practically a whisper and his characterization felt truly connected to the Moorish general’s letting go of his need to conquer. Throughout his singing, he tends to darken his upper notes by changing the vowel shape and placement; as a result, clarity and brilliance is sacrificed. It’s his natural and authentic drama that saves him from having to negotiate the vagaries of singing long-held high notes, as most tenors love to do. But Cura, the tenor, the personality, the conductor, the composer, the actor and stage director, loomed large and certainly lit up İstanbul that night as the sparkling centerpiece of the 2012 Opera Festival. |
2012 Moscow and St Petersburg
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Singer José Cura: “If an artist does not speak the truth from the stage, then he is a coward” Novye Izvestia Yulia Chechikova 21 June 2012
[Computer-Assisted Translation // Excerpt]
Today, one of the most charismatic opera singers of our time, Argentine tenor José Cura, will perform at the State Kremlin Palace. It is noteworthy that he began his career as an orchestra conductor, and during his studies at the conservatory he came to realize his true place in the musical world. Maestro Cura has a very rich repertoire, because his vocal range allows him to sing both tenor and baritone roles as well as conduct. In Moscow, Cura will give a concert at which he will appear in both guises - singer and conductor. On the eve of his performance, Cura gave an exclusive interview to Novye Izvestia. Novye Izvestia: Which of your relatives had the idea of sending little José to study music instead of, say, soccer? José Cura: My father. He really wanted me to pursue a career in music. When I was a child, I was taken to a piano teacher, but he thought I should find another hobby. However, his recommendations were not heeded, and at the age of 12 I started playing classical guitar. At the conservatory I studied conducting. There was an optional discipline there - opera singing. When I started attending, I discovered that I could sing opera parts. NI: Did your family support your aspirations? JC: Of course, like any parent would. Especially my dad. In general, 35 years ago it was thought that an artistic career was something strange, because then it was more prestigious to study to become a lawyer or a doctor. But my life turned out in such a way that I became a singer and even achieved success. One day my father told me: “Son, I wanted you to become successful, but not that successful!” NI: Was there a person in your life who predicted that you would be a singer? Perhaps among your teachers there was that seer who uttered the phrase: “My boy, you will become great”? JC: There were several of those people, and they were all from the conservatory. The teachers noticed me and told me that I should seriously study vocals. NI: Has luck favored you? JC: When you work round the clock for many years to achieve a result and finally achieve what you desire, it is not luck but the result of your labors. When a man is dying of thirst in the desert and suddenly it starts raining, that is luck. But if he does not have a glass to collect that water, no matter how heavy the downpour is, he will still be thirsty. NI: You are called the successor of Placido Domingo... JC: We first met at the Operalia competition, but then I was a contestant and he was the chairman of the jury. Now we are colleagues. There is a professional relationship between us, but nothing more. For example, our families are not friends. And he doesn’t reveal his professional secrets because every truly great maestro never interferes in the work of his colleague. NI: As a conductor, you released a disc with a recording of the Second Symphony of Sergei Rachmaninoff, whom many musicians consider the most Russian composer. What did you discover about this piece? JC: Rachmaninov is a very complex composer. I love solving the puzzles found within his scores. With Rachmaninoff, both the main and all the side parts are of the same musical level, and they are all beautiful. The stunning melodic character of his works results in the most complex polyphony. Rachmaninov's music is much more complex than people realize. They used to say about Verdi - yes, he is a serious composer, but Puccini is just a writer of beautiful melodies. But such an opinion is usually held by laymen. Until you start working with the works of Rachmaninov and Puccini, until you learn to see the composer’s intention, you will not understand the specificity and uniqueness, the hidden beauty. NI: Is there an opera part or symphonic work that you have dreamed of performing all your life, but deep down in your soul you know that this dream is impossible? JC: I have a lot of dreams but I won’t tell you about them, because I believe in omens: if I tell you about a dream, it won’t come true. I will tell you one in confidence, though – I really want to work on Benjamin Britten’s opera Peter Grimes. NI: Speaking of Britten, his opera A Midsummer Night's Dream premiered in Moscow this month. Passions boiled around it - before the premiere, the production was accused of promoting drugs and other grave sins. In your opinion, as a musician with experience as a director, should the theater bring such social problems to the stage? JC: Artists have always been the people who captured the spirit of the times in a specific art form, highlight the problems of society from the stage. Those artists who fail to fulfill this function, engaging only in the celebration of beauty, cannot claim to be called modern. If an artist does not speak the truth from the stage, then he is a coward, and posterity will reproach him for this. On the other hand, those people who shout only about problems, doing it without an aesthetic component, to the detriment of art, are devoid of talent. NI: You once said that you always try to create "three-dimensional" stage images, looking for positive and negative aspects in a character. How do you work with heroic characters like Cavaradossi? JC: None of us is pure villain or hero. Baron Scarpia from Tosca, for example, is always portrayed as a scoundrel—in the directors' mind he just has to be nasty—and Floria Tosca is stupid. And Cavaradossi is like that (smiling deliberately broadly). But if you make an opera with characters drawn so roughly, you can't count on success. The performer's task is to create an accurate psychological portrait of the character, to understand what he can live with, what passions capture his mind and heart, what gnaws at him or what can bring him happiness. I was often criticized for the fact that my Otello is an unhappy. The audience is used to seeing him as a hero, but in my opinion he is not! That doesn't mean that you have to make something up and twist it, distorting the canon. To make a statement, you don't have to come up with something weird and shocking. It is enough to play the role in such a way that the essence of the character is visible, without make-up or retouching. Beauty only exists because there is ugly in the world. NI: Does your view of the dramatic component of the characters you perform change over the years? JC: When I first performed as Otello, I was 34 years old. Back then I had to learn to behave like a 50-year-old man. Now that my age is approaching the half-century mark, that need has disappeared by itself. NI: But despite this, young girls are buying tickets in the front rows of your concerts! By the way, speaking of young people, from the height of your worldly wisdom, can you tell me, please, what ways are there to attract the new generation to opera? JC: The fact that young people have stopped being interested in opera is not their fault. It is we ourselves, the performers, who have created a false veil of seriousness, inaccessibility and pomposity around classical music. People have forgotten that painters, sculptors, artists were ordinary people. They did not go out on the street in chemical protective suits, so that, God forbid, they would not touch anything and become infected. Beethoven was a genius, but in his last years he was simply unbearable for others to be around. He refused to bathe and he smelled bad. Mozart swore horribly, which was his usual vocabulary. Bach had 20 children, though not all of them survived... But still, what does that say? A gentleman, whose works are usually performed in a very boring manner, because the canons require it, every time he came home he would say: "Hey, wife, let's get undressed!" Because you can't make so many children any other way. These composers were geniuses, but they were also mere mortals. NI: What do you mean by the term “genius”? JC: It is the phenomenon that consists of being an ordinary person, of fighting against contrived seriousness, boredom, primness, and ultimately defeating all of them. People went to theaters to live out some of their lives there - they ate there, made love in the boxes. The theater was the center of city life! What I have just said is, of course, the other extreme - we are more civilized, but that is the problem. It is now common to go to the theater as if we were going to the Vatican. A man applauds between parts of a piece - and everyone looks at him disdainfully. Someone coughs and others send curses in his direction. Classical music is losing its young listeners for the same reason that the Church is losing its young adherents - not because the music itself, the composers, God – but because it's all boring, because the musicians and priests are boring.
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Argentine Tenor Performs At Theatre of the Kremlin in Moscow José Cura: I wish I could sing in Russian Diario da Russia 22/06/2012
[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]
The Argentine tenor José Cura will perform at the Kremlin and once again praised the Russian audience for whom he has performed with some frequency. The singer said he likes to sing in Russia and enjoys coming to Russia in the summer because you can enjoy the city in all its splendor. José Cura praised the citizens of Russia. “The Russian audience is very special. The applause of the Russian audience is not just applause but a real storm. Whenever I introduce myself in Russia, I have the same impression: the Russians are highly educated and have a genetic predisposition to the music.” The singer said he would like to be able to sing in Russian. “I haven’t presented myself in Russia in an opera because I don’t sing in Russian. I confess I wish I could learn the language.” Born on 5 December 1962 in Rosario, Argentina, the singer José Cura often conducts the orchestra as well. The critics define him as a great and charismatic artist. |
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Cura in Moscow
Muzklondike 18 June 2012
[Computer-Assisted Translation // Excerpt]
On June 18, ITAR-TASS held a press conference dedicated to the only performance in Moscow by world opera star José Cura. The famous tenor will perform on 21 June 2012 at the State Kremlin Palace. The concert will also feature Bolshoi Theater soloist Dinara Aliyeva and the Moscow Symphony Orchestra “Russian Philharmonic.” The program includes opera arias and duets.
“We are honored that an Argentine artist is performing in Russia. José Cura is a great representative of the culture of our country. The economy and culture of our states go hand in hand,” stressed Argentine Ambassador Juan Carlos Krekler in a conversation with reporters at a press conference in ITAR -TASS.
“Giving a concert for the Russian audience is a special occasion for me. When a Russian audience applauds, it’s not just applause, but a real storm. A Russian listener is a listener with great culture. Many great works originated in Russia. In my opinion, Russians have some kind of genetic predisposition to music,” Cura said in response to questions from the assembled journalists.
According to the musician, he has never performed in an opera performance in Russia and has never sung in Russian. “Singing in opera is the pinnacle of creativity. I would love to perform in Russia in this capacity, but so far I have not been invited. I hope there will be such an opportunity,” the singer noted.
The famous artist has no special secrets for achieving success on the opera stage. “Rule number one is to rest as best as possible before a performance, because for an opera singer a concert is not only an intellectual task, but also a great physical strain,” he says.
In the conversation with journalists, Cura expressed his opinions about modern processes taking place in society. "We live in an increasingly cosmopolitan world, in the era of globalization. If this continues, then in 50 years countries will lose their national identity. Soon we will all become the same, losing our individuality. Globalization is an interesting process from an economic point of view, but dangerous from a cultural point of view. In classical music, we still follow the canons and reproduce what remains from those times when individuality was not yet lost. Listening to modern popular music, it seems that all these performers are from the same country," stated the singer.
Bolshoi Theater of Russia soloist Dinara Aliyeva and the Moscow Symphony Orchestra Russian Philharmonic under the baton of conductor Mario de Rosa will also participate in the concert at he State Kremlin Palace. “Creative collaboration with Maestro Rosa is not only a great pleasure and honor, it is offers a great peace of mind and confidence. I have worked with many conductors, but I give preference to him,” the singer noted.
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2012 -- Olomouc Czech Republic
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The amphitheater for the Olomouc concert of the star tenor can accommodate 2,800 people
iDNES Michal Poláček 25 January 2012
[Computer-assisted translation // Excerpt]
Olomouc awaits an exclusive open-air concert this summer by the world's top contemporary opera singer and the successor of the legendary trio of tenors Pavarotti, Carreras and Domingo. On 2 June, the famous Argentinian tenor José Cura will perform with the Olomouc Moravian Philharmonic in front of specially built stands that will hold almost three thousand spectators.
"The idea of a concert by one of the fbest opera singers in the world in the center of Olomouc arose two years ago. This year it will be the only concert José Cura will perform in Central Europe. We expect that his fans from Poland, Austria and Slovakia will also want to attend," Vladislav Kvapil, director of the Moravian Philharmonic in Olomouc, explained.
Together with Cura, about sixty philharmonic musicians will also perform on Saturday evening on Horní náměstí. The Argentinean singer, who has lived in Spain for many years, has prepared the most famous arias and duets by Verdi and Puccini for his joint performance with the young Korean soprano Wonsin Lee.
"Cura is the successor of the legendary trio of tenors Carreras, Pavarotti and Domingo. At Cura's concerts, he always surprises as part of the encores. As a rule he often sings one of the songs of his native Argentina," Kvapil said in way of introduction of this top of world opera singer.
A large amphitheater will be built for spectators on Horní náměstí
Cura's performance in the center of Olomouc will be attended by 2,800 spectators, for whom two tiered stands will be built in the space between the town hall and the Moravian Theater building.
The stage measuring 14 x 14 meters will stand by the Column of the Holy Trinity, flanked by two large-screen screens. Part of the square will be closed and only people with tickets will be allowed inside.
"The cost of the concert is around 4.5 million crowns. The city itself will pay about a quarter, the rest we have to get from our partners and sponsors. The price of the tickets is set relatively low considering the quality. If we needed to pay for the concert using only the proceeds from ticket sales, the ticket prices would be much higher," he added.
The tenor will have a VIP trailer and his favorite tea
A VIP caravantrailer will be prepared for José Cura on the day of the concert in the center of Olomouc, in which the famous tenor will prepare for his performance. "Inside, he will have a mini-living room with an electric piano and headphones at his disposal. Considering his fame, these seem to be completely reasonable requests. The only thing he insists on is a specific type of tea," smiles Vladislav Kvapil.
Cura will arrive in Olomouc the day before the concert, on the morning of June 1; the head of the Philharmonic will pick him up at the Vienna airport. In addition to meeting journalists, the world tenor will have a dress rehearsal with the Philharmonic in Reduta.
"Of course, we wanted to show him Olomouc after the concert, but he has a really busy schedule. The very next day at 9 a.m. he flies out of Vienna for his concert in Madrid," says Kvapil.
He emphasizes that the event does not have a so-called wet version. That means the tenor will perform in any weather. If it rains, the organizers will distribute raincoats to all spectators.
"According to my information, Cura has never performed directly in the historic center of the city but always in halls or various amphitheatres. I believe that it will be a powerful experience for him as well," says Kvapil. |
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José Cura in Olomouc Opera Plus Zdena Plachá 2 June 2012
[Computer-Assisted Translation // Excerpt]
If you have been in Olomouc in the past few weeks, you certainly could not escape the posters inviting all to the Dvořák's festival with the face of one of the world’s leading opera stars—José Cura. I don’t even know how many times I walked past him, with thoughts of my own slogan on my lips: José Cura, the face of the Moravské filharmonie Olomouc.
The highlight of this year’s festival will be a recital by the Argentine star who, together with South Korean soprano Wonsin Lee, will perform in the Upper Square in Olomouc. The first Saturday in June is when the Moravian city—I’m not afraid to admit it—will experience the cultura event of the last few decades. A few tidbits from Cura’s Press Conference on Friday: About concerts under the stars... For a singer, of course, the closed environment of a theatre or a concert hall is ideal, but do you have a hall for two and a half thousand spectators here in Olomouc? You don't, and that's why such events are organised.For an opera singer, the microphone and sound system of an open space are not ideal, on the contrary. While during an opera performance I can easily clear my throat while singing, covered nicely by the sound of the orchestra, in front of the microphone any such sound is out of the question. About the workload of opera stars… Yesterday I sang in a performance of Tosca in Cologne, and today I arrived in Olomouc at around 5 p.m. In a few minutes I will have a rehearsal with the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra and then I can only hope that tomorrow I will be able to sing in a tailcoat and not in a thick woolen sweater with a scarf around my neck! The weather forecast for tomorrow is not the best and I have to be fit because next Thursday I have another Cavaradossi, this time in Oslo. About Czech and the possibility of opera in Czech… Czech is very difficult for me. Many years ago I sang Antonín Dvořák's Love Songs in the original [language]. I opened the score and found I was supposed to sing the words without a single syllable! It was really very difficult. Luckily I was in the studio and I managed it, but on stage... I'm afraid you probably won't hear me singing in Czech on stage. On Czech cuisine… I love Czech food, but in the winter. It is heavy and with lots of calories! On his other Czech projects... This year, in the summer I come back once again to Český Krumlov, where I will sing in Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci conducted by my friend Mario de Rose.
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“Good evening, Olomouc,” greeted José Cura CT24 JH 3 June 2012
[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt] A full square in Olomouc last night heard a concert Argentinean tenor José Cura. The open-air concert attracted 2,600 paying audience but people also stood along the restricted area while residents watched from the windows of houses in the square. The weather also worked out well for the organizers. Along with one of the world's top tenors, Korean soprano Wonsin Lee also performed. "It would be nice if it became a rule and the city organized such events at least once or twice a year. It would certainly make Olomouc residents happy," said one of the attendees. Tickets for the only Cura concert in Central Europe this year were hopelessly sold out. Cura, dressed in a black shirt and trousers, came on stage down the aisle among the audience and greeted them with the Czech phrase: "Good evening, Olomouc." Listeners in the far rows could watch the tenor on two giant screens on the sides of the stage. Cura sang towards the town hall, with the Holy Trinity column behind his back. The weather was also favorable for the concert, with temperatures around 18 degrees Celsius before it began. Still, some listeners brought a blanket or winter jacket. Arias from Verdi's operas La forza del destino and Otello and Puccini's Tosca, Manon Lescaut and Madam Butterfly were performed, with repertoire chosen by the organizers, according to Cura. The concert was conducted by the Argentine Mario de Rose, and Cura was accompanied by the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra, which also performed with the tenor 12 years ago on his tours in Germany and Austria. The concert was a great event for the audience. "Our son, who doesn't listen to classical music but plays guitar and really wanted to see Cura, made us want to do it. So we decided to invest in tickets and the whole family went," revealed one of the concert-goers. Cura will return to the Czech Republic in two months, performing in Ruggiero Leoncavallo's opera Pagliacci in Český Krumlov. The 50-year-old tenor began singing professionally at the age of 28. He has performed at the most prestigious theatre venues including the Metropolitan Opera, the Vienna State Opera, the Royal Opera House in England, the Zurich Opera House and La Scala. He has also made a name for himself around the world with numerous television opera productions and concerts.
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José Cura: My concert will be exactly tailored to the Olomouc audience Olomouc Jan Procházka 2 June 2012 [Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt] Today's concert by the world-famous singer José Cura is completely sold out; the final preparations are already underway at Horní náměstí, where it will take place. Cura himself arrived in Olomouc on Thursday and met with journalists yesterday. He revealed that the program will be tailored to the tastes of the Olomouc audience. José Cura gives concerts in the Czech Republic every year; however, each one of these are unique events each time. "I like the Czech audience very much. The people here are musically educated and that's why the performances are always very pleasant. I've never been to Olomouc before, but ten years ago your philharmonic accompanied me on a German tour," revealed Cura at yesterday's press conference. The concert, which will start at 20:00 on Horní náměstí, will be tailored to the tastes of the Olomouc audience. "The promoter knows the local environment so he is preparing the program. That way the audience can get exactly what they want," mentioned Cura. Listeners can look forward to, for example, arias from Verdi's operas La forza del destino, and Otello and Puccini’s Tosca, Manon Lescaut and Madame Butterfly. There will also be songs from Cura's native Argentina. His friend and compatriot Maria de Rosa will conduct the Moravian Philharmonic. De Rosa has already completed several rehearsals with the ensemble while the singer joined them only yesterday evening. "It's always an advantage to work with a person whom you know very well and have a clear understanding. You don't even have to speak, just a small gesture and it's understood," explained José Cura. He had only one encore planned. "But we'll see how many there will be. It depends on how it goes," smiled the singer, who sometimes takes the baton himself and conducts large orchestras. And among other things, he is also involved in photography, theater directing and composing music. Having a broad scope is very important to him these days. "Today, everyone is narrowly specialized and that does not allow them to have broader overview. In my opinion, this is wrong. And this is doubly true for artists," he emphasized. In his opinion, an artist should also cultivate sport; he himself is very fond of it and used to play rugby in his youth. "Ask the Greeks. In ancient times, artists were also Olympic champions. And today? Athletes can't speak and artists are overweight..." philosophized the world-famous singer, who would like to find time in his busy schedule to tour the city. "I've only seen a little bit so far and I like it very much. I'm very fond of history," he remarked. He came to Olomouc after a performance in Cologne and in a few days he will be performing in Oslo. But he doesn't need to prepare in any special way for tonight: "I don't have any rituals. I just need a lot of sugar, just like an athlete before a performance. And maybe I'll light a few candles for St. Peter so that the weather will hold out." Since there is no hall in the city to which the event could be moved in case of rain, there is no wet option. "But it won't rain," Cura promised in conclusion. |
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José Cura will sing in front of a sold-out audience in Olomouc České Noviny ČTK 3 June 2012 [Computer-Assisted Translation // Excerpt] One of the world's best tenors, José Cura, will perform in front of a sold-out audience on Saturday in the center of Olomouc. According to the organizers, all 2,600 tickets were sold for this year's only concert of the Argentine singer in Central Europe. It will also feature the Korean soprano Wonsin Lee. The tenor will return to the Czech Republic in two months, when he will perform in Ruggiero Leoncavallo's opera Paglicci in Český Krumlov. The famous artist will be accompanied on Horní náměstí by approximately 60 members of the Moravian Philharmonic. The Olomouc concert will take place under the baton of Argentine conductor Mario de Rosa. Listeners can look forward to arias from Verdi's operas La forza del Destino and Otello and Puccini's Tosca, Manon Lescaut and Madame Butterfly. "It's a program that the organizers wanted. They know their listeners, that's why I adapted so that the Olomouc audience gets what they want," said Cura. The concert will take place in any weather. A so-called wet version could not be prepared because there is no suitable hall in the city. "Singing for people is both my job and my pleasure. But concerts in an open space are challenging. The singer has to sing into the microphone, which is such a little enemy of ours. The electronics are so good that they pick up every sound," said Cura. He didn't rule out the possibility of having to bundle up, given the expected cold weather. "For the audience, the concert will be over tonight but I have to sing an opera in a few days. If I catch a cold here, it would be a problem. So if I wear a thick sweater and a scarf instead of a tailcoat, that's why," added the tenor. He will have his first rehearsal with the orchestra tonight. Although he is also a conductor, he will not present himself in this role in Olomouc. "I didn't have time to prepare for it with the orchestra. I'll just sing," reasoned Cura, who just performed in Tosca in Cologne on Thursday and will have this task again in Oslo on June 7. According to the director of the Moravian Philharmonic, Vladislav Kvapil, Cura's demands were no different from the wishes of other big stars. For example, he will have a VIP trailer parked on the square with a supply of fruit or tea. "When you sing, it's as demanding performance as a sport. That's why I have to drink and eat a lot of sweet things to keep my energy up," said the singer. He did not order any special Czech food. He reportedly likes Czech food, but mostly in winter because it is very high in calories. He is not even going to try Olomouc tvarůžky (ripened soft cheese). The 50-year-old Cura performed in the Czech Republic, for example last year and the year before in Český Krumlov and earlier in Prague. He only started singing professionally at the age of 28. He performs on the most prestigious theater stages including the Metropolitan Opera, the Vienna State Opera, the Royal Opera House in England, the Zurich Opera House and La Scala. He also became famous around the world thanks to numerous televised opera productions and concerts.
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José Cura delighted Olomouc
OperaPlus Zdena Plachá 4 June 2012 [Computer-Assisted Translation // Excerpt] When I learned more than a year ago that José Cura would be singing in our Upper Square, I thought it was a joke. One of my favorite opera superstars and in Olomouc? On Saturday evening, June 2, it really happened. This year, José Cura's only open-air concert in Central Europe was neither in Vienna nor in Berlin, but in Olomouc. The packed auditorium thus met the great world of opera and I dare say certainly left fascinated by the magical experience. I've been thinking a lot about why the world's singers embark on such projects in exactly the way José Cura talked about: they take to the stage in front of a microphone (which they don't normally need for their work), risking a possible cold and therefore danger in their profession, in order to fight in their "jungle" and become kings of the situation. The fact is that such events attract people who are not regular visitors to opera houses. I have verified that even these "uninitiated" spectators leave very strongly affected by a profound experience of the splendor of opera, without which most lovers of this genre cannot even imagine their lives. For me personally, however, most of such programs are like a pop concert [with its string of hits] and this was also the case during Saturday evening in Olomouc. How else to start than with a prologue and an aria from Pagliacci? And then, throughout the evening, one beautiful piece of opera was replaced by another and another... After the concert, I left surrounded by a huge euphoria of all the opera emotions and suddenly I was in a bit of a panic. What is there to write about all this? You can't really look for faults in stars of this type in the conditions of Olomouc, because you simply won't find them. That's exactly what last night looked like. I listened with interest to the arias from Otello, which were, in my opinion, the highlight of the evening. Mr. Cura's voice and vocal development has transitioned from Alfredo in La Traviata live in 2000 to one of the most challenging tenor verismo parts, with his distinctive timbre and rich color are also suited to the heroic Cavaradossi. There was also a deep sense of experience in every aria, so that José Cura literally transformed before our eyes not only into the jealous Canio and Otello and the determined Cavaradossi, but also into the soothing Calaf and the lovelorn Pinkerton. The strength of the world's opera stars lies, of course, also in the very strong charisma with which they are able to captivate the audience, so all of this was fully included in Saturday's concert. What pleasantly surprised me was the warm contact that the Olomouc audience received from maestro Cura. Right at the beginning, he expressed his joy at the fact that it is not raining on the square in the evening: "Tonight it is clear that God is Czech!" He clearly entertained everyone with this message and broke the barrier between the audience and the stage right at the beginning of the concert. He continued to speak throughout the evening. First of all, he recalled his relationship with the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra in Olomouc, which accompanied him on his first major European tour thirteen years ago. At that time, his European opera career was still not long from its beginning and he also conducted on that tour, which did not happen this time due to time. As José Cura had explained the day before in a meeting with journalists, there must be at least a few rehearsals between conductor and orchestra for both parties to get used to each other and find a common language; when the relationship becomes supreme in a long-term collaboration, when the conductor no longer needs gestures and only eye contact to achieve the desired result. Cura's friend and conductor Mario de Rose succeeded perfectly in creating the conductor-orchestra relationship in just a few days of preparation. The Moravian Philharmonic literally shone in all of its individual numbers and was exactly "on hand" for the conductor. José Cura did not forget to thank the orchestra after each aria, always calling all the soloists to rise and sharing the applause with his fellow performers in a completely spontaneous manner. And when he asked how many players he remembered from his tours, he was surprised to find that the Moravian Philharmonic Orchestra had been greatly rejuvenated, with people the age of his children already sitting behind the music stands. The maestro spontaneously lamented his growing grey hair... José Cura took turns on stage with Korean soprano Wonsin Lee throughout the evening. She surprised us with her fragile appearance and very nice dramatically colored voice. I always wonder on occasions like this how many beautiful voices are scattered around the world and how few of them manage to "break through" to the top of the world. Both protagonists should also be admired for the fact that they sang the whole concert in amazing vocal form, even though José Cura did not hide the fact that the temperature that evening was definitely not ideal. And so as the concert cooled down, the members of the Moravian Philharmonic received one more huge compliment from him: he said they were the only orchestra to remain with him on stage despite the cold for the entire long concert until the end; when the temperature drops below 16 degrees in other places, the musicians are said to simply get up and leave in the middle of an aria. If it is as José Cura claims, then we have in Olomouc the hardiest musicians in Europe. In spite of the cold, the Olomouc orchestra had a perfect sound throughout the concert. And one more thing: Cura thanked the audience for their endurance. What you wouldn't find in the concert program were, of course, the encores. Cura introduced us to his homeland and his "sexy" native Spanish with two Argentinian pop songs from the Bolero album, Somos novios and Esta tarde vi llover, while Wonsin Lee added the popular O mio babbino caro. The evening ended with Nessun dorma. I deliberately use the term song because whenever I hear this aria without the chorus, I realize how much this particular tune is helping to popularize opera around the world. The Olomouc people said goodbye to José Cura with a long applause and a standing ovation.
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2013
Sicily -- January 2013
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Tickets sold out in a few hours and the theater will be filled tomorrow evening for Bellini's concert in honor of the Patron Saint of Catania, Sant'Agata. The conductor José Cura, who is currently engaged in performances of Un Ballo in Maschera, Giuseppe Verdi's opera with which Bellini inaugurated the 2013 opera season, will take the podium as are two of the concert's soloists: soprano Dimitra Theodossiou and tenor Marcello Giordani. Also singing in the concert will be Giovanni Guagliardo, Clara Calanna, Angela Nisi, Pablo Karaman. Marcello Giordani will turn 50 tomorrow and to celebrate he wanted to dedicate the concert to the Patron Saint of Catania; both José Cura and DimitraTheodossiou agreed. The program includes music from operas by Vincenzo Bellini (Norma, I Puritani), Camille Saint-Saens (Samson et Dalila), Giuseppe Verdi (La forza del Destino, La traviata, Rigoletto), Pietro Mascagni (Cavalleria rusticana), Giacomo Puccini (Turandot) and songs by Gaetano Emanuel Calì (E vui durmiti anchor) and Joaquin Rodrigo (En Aranjuez con tu amor). - Giornale di Sicilia // 24 January 2013 |
Moscow -- May 2013
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José Cura: "I’ve been restless all my life"Ria Novosti María Dunáeva 29 May 2013 [Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]
An interview with Argentinean tenor, conductor and composer José Cura The tenor, conductor and composer José Cura once again surprised Moscow with the numerous facets of his artistic personality. He participated as a singer in the Moscow edition of the Vienna Ball and conducted the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra, introducing the Russian capital to the works of Argentine composers. His life and his art, opera and modernity were discussed in the interview he gave to RIA Novosti.
What are your impressions of Russia? This isn’t your first time here, right? - It is not the first time but I cannot give impressions of "Russia" in a country as huge and so varied, so different from west to east and from north to south. There are a thousand countries within Russia. What I can do is give impressions of Moscow—but a capital generally does not represent the people. If you go to Madrid and you are guided by how Madrid is and say: “Spain is like this,” it will turn out not to be true. If you go to Buenos Aires and and say, "All of Argentina is like this," it is also not so. Let’s not even talk about Paris. What I mean to say is that it would be difficult to give an impression of Russia simply by being in Moscow. I can say how I feel in Moscow. I feel a people very... agressive is not the right word but a people who are very solid, very strong, like a people who has suffered a lot and now, suddenly, all this new reality makes them have a particular attitude towards life. At first, it seems a little shocking because you say, “Why do you overwhelm me with your attitude, with your words?” Then you see that it depends on the age. Young people are no longer like that because they had been born into a different reality. The older ones are tougher because they have scabs from so many years spent under communism. In any case, there is a very great mix of attitudes in the personality of the Muscovite that is interesting to see. Apart from this, I feel very good here because the people are very passionate and I love that. For me, and I’m a very fiery person, very Latin, Russia is almost like northern Latin. And I like that a lot. What is the Russian audience like? - One characteristic of the Russian audience is that when they applaud, it is not applause, it is like a slap, like a wave. When the Russian audience likes what they have seen, the applause is massive and that is impressive. I think it's part of the temperament of the people: when they don't like you, you'd better leave; if they love you, if you like them, if you identify with them, the warmth is enormous. You have recorded an album of Rachmaninov as a conductor but you've never sung any Russian opera. Why? Just as I dare not sing in German - I hesitate to sing in Russian because of the language. There are two ways of singing. You can sing phonetically or by the process of mastering the language and understanding not only the meaning of the word but its perfume, which goes far beyond the meaning of the words. I think that if you don't master the language, you will never understand the perfume of the word. What you transmit will be very limited. You can convey the music and a dictionary translation but not the truly profound feeling of the text. This is why you have to master the language. And I haven’t mastered Russian at all. In an interview you said you analyze your characters, looking for why they do what they do. This reminds me very much Stanislavski system. In your opinion, to what extent is a singer an actor? - Very much so. Everything is a matter of traditions, definitions and snobbery. The actor has the word and nothing but the word. And the “music” of the word depends on what he does with it. The singer has the words and music which adds an element. But why hide [the words] behind the ease of music? The music helps to solve many problems. You don’t have to decide on an expression, a tempo, many things because the music does it for you. But why simply relax into that and not push further? I think it's a sin. I also think opera singer is a very dicey term. An opera singer is not just a singer who stands and sings at a concert. An opera singer is an actor who sings. Ideally he should be as good an actor as an actor but with singing, which would make the opera singer from an interpretive point of view a kind of miracle. If you achieve the intensity of the prose actor and add to that the music that the prose actor cannot access, the result is sensational. Why deny it? Why hide from it? It’s one thing to say I cannot act, I do not care to act, I'm not equipped to act, I just make music. Okay. So, you're not an opera singer, you're a singer. Unfortunately, the definition of "opera singer" has always been misused. An opera singer is an actor who sings. An opera singer who can sing but not act should not be called opera singer. The thing is that having a certain voice is a very special thing and almost a miracle. An actor can have a bad voice and still be a great actor. Moreover, many actors are great actors precisely because they have a special voice, not beautiful, but very expressive. On the other hand, a singer must have a specific voice by definition because if he doesn’t he won’t even get a start. But if you have that special voice why stay hidden just in the voice? I think it's restrictive. It is also only my point of view. I am not the pope. I have not the gift of infallibility. - You are a singer, actor, orchestra and stage director. Everything at once. - Not at the same time, no. It's not possible. But it’s my way of seeing art. My idea of art is holistic, complete art, art as an integration of disciplines. I believe that the more disciplines are integrated, the more art is enriched. Now, you have to have the energy, the curiosity, the interest and the talent to be able to do all those disciplines because it is difficult. And I think the best judge [of your success] is your work. We can all say that we are something. It's not a matter of saying what you are but doing it. If when you direct, you direct well and when you sing, you sing well, it means you can do both well. Maybe you are not the best but then you don't have to be the best. You have to be the best you can be. - When you act as a singer, isn't it difficult for you to submit to the will of a director? - It depends. It's like dancing, like having a dance partner. If the person who dances with you dances badly, you say: “Don't step on my feet because it hurts.” But if the person who dances with you dances well, you let yourself go and enjoy being led by the other person because he offers you his point of view, which may be different than yours, and you learn something new. The important thing is in accepting that the other knows how to dance. And what advantages does it give you to do so many disciplines at the same time? - For me personally, it gives me a very important first advantage: avoiding routine. All my life I have been a very restless person. I have been on stage for 35 years. Imagine 35 years just singing. There are people who can do it. I admire them, really, so this isn’t meant as a criticism. I just could not. I think that routine would have destroyed me. It would have destroyed my way of performing, my art. It would have turned me into a boring person. So, doing two or three different disciplines keeps me fresh. Every time I go on stage to sing, it feels new for me because, for example, I haven't sung for a month because I've been directing. There is also an intellectual advantage in addition to the emotional or personal one. Doing a show, for example, directing a show while also knowing the singer’s and conductor’s perspective, knowing what each one needs, makes the work much more complete and interesting. When I direct shows, generally both singers and conductors are very happy and very relaxed because they know that I know what each one needs because I have been through it. It's not because I have a crystal ball but because I've lived it. I have lived for thirty years knowing what a singer needs. I have lived for many years knowing what a conductor needs. So, I can anticipate the need. On the other hand, I also know what is possible and what is not possible. So, working with me can be a problem. You can't tell me: "That can't be done" because I will tell you "Yes, it can be," because I have seen it or because I have done it. I'd rather you tell me, "I don’t know how to do it," and we look for a solution together. - What guides you when choosing your works? Do you care more about the human dimension or the music? - For me the first thing is to honestly determine whether I will be able to produce the chosen work. If the project is beyond me because I don’t currently have the technical background to be able to carry it out then I won't do it, because I don't want to be ridiculous. If technically I can carry it out but I don't feel a connection with it or I don’t feel I have anything to say with it and all I’m going to do is parrot something on stage, I’ll try to avoid it unless it's a big commitment or a promise I made to a theater. But if it’s not, I try to avoid it because artistically it's not honest. I think the number one characteristic of any artist has to be intellectual honesty. If you lose intellectual honesty on stage, you're fake. And that shows. And when I, as a member of the audience, I see that the artist on stage does not identify with the character and is not intellectually honest with what he is doing, I notice it very much. In contrast, when that union takes place, the concert, the opera, the ballet or whatever it is, it is a kind of miracle. That is what makes us continue making this usic todays, after centuries, because when the right combination is present, the night is magical. - Does opera have to change following the tastes of the time or not? - Does religion have to change to follow the tastes of the time? I believe that changing the basis of religion is impossible because it would be to renounce what has been believed for two thousand years. If you are a Christian, a Muslim, a Buddhist or any other, it doesn't matter, changing the basis of your faith means admitting that it was wrong. And it would be a little complicated. But what you can do is read the attitude through a modern mentality, try to understand where things are going. The same thing happens with opera. The big problem with opera is when you sing it and that's it. If it is sung and that is enough, there is no one to save opera because we live in a time where all the great operas have been recorded and there are four, five, ten, twenty very good versions of each title. What drives a person to come to the theater, to pay for a ticket, to dress up, etcetera, to listen to music that they can listen to at home, no longer just on a CD, but also on a DVD watching it perfectly in a four thousand inch monitor as if they were in a theater. What is the difference? The difference is the human factor. The human factor means "I, as a man, sit here to see you, a fellow man, offer me something: suffering, sweat, laughter, tears. Then I identify myself with you as a human being without a machine in the middle, without a computer, without a television, without a microphone, without anything. It is just you and me. As an act of love, sexual even, physical. As long as that continues to exist, no one can kill classical art because of the human factor. The same thing happens at the sexual level. People today no longer flirt. There is no more, “I'm going to meet a certain girl. I'm going to bring her a bouquet of flowers. I'm going to seduce her and tell her a story." No. Now it's online via chat. All that magic is gone. But we haven’t managed to kill it completely. Because if we did, the human race would becomes extinct. When we stop making love, no more people are born. So that balance still exists. If your relationship with classical art is to watch a DVD, you are doing it wrong because the secret of classical art is to go see another human being doing something for you live. As long as that [live connection between people] exists, opera or, in general, classical art is not going to die. And what do you think about singing contests on TV? Could they introduce a person to classical music, help him or her become a singer? Or not? - Everything is valid and nothing is valid. It’s valid because there are often surprises. But the spirit behind it is really not to look for the surprise but to find someone you can milk for five years to get as much money out of them as you can and then throw them away and find someone else. That's the true spirit. And anyone who says otherwise should prove it. That said, contests of this style that stimulate people's desire to improve themselves are worth more than other kinds of stupid or more banal contests. Anything goes as long as the purpose is good. It has happened in Spain. For example, the famous Operación Triunfo, a contest for pop music, has given us kids who have lasted a year or two in those ten years that it has been going on, and that's enough. But one or two of them have made a good career and have surpassed themselves as artists. Even knowing that their backgrounds were a little dubious, they have overcome, they have studied, they have made an effort and today they are good artists, good representatives of pop music. David Bisbal, for example. He is a guy who knows what he can do and what he cannot do, he has good taste and what he does, he does well and he has shown after ten years and so much hard work you can achieve success. - What or who influenced you the most in your artistic career? - Professionally as a soloist at an international level I started singing at 29. But that was a result of a series of things. People in Russia probably identify with me, Europeans understand this less. But those of us who have gone through dictatorships - like Argentina, like Russia - understand what it means when the dictatorship ends overnight. It is true, repression ends but protection also ends. Two things are finished. The Russian people have been through it and have lived it and continue to live it. In Argentina, the same thing happened. My generation is the generation that voted for the first time in 1982 and who fought in the Malvinas war. I have companions of mine who went to war. Luckily, they came back. I didn't go because at that time there was a surplus, and there was a draw to see who would go and who wouldn't go, and I was lucky and they didn't draw me. If not, maybe I wouldn't be here talking. In those days everything was very hard. Surviving as a conductor or as a composer was practically impossible. It is still so today in 99% of the world, not only in Argentina. But back then everything was still to be done. There were few orchestras, few choirs. Many things had to be started from scratch. Just having a tenor voice helped me a lot to make a living. It didn't even occur to me to transform into what I am today. It was about making a living, surviving, eating, paying my bills. I got married in 1985, I was 25 years old. I had to support my family. A lot of things that happen in your life take you to places you might not even think of going. One day it happened to me and it worked out for me but there were no guarantees. It could have turned out badly, as it did for so many whose plans didn’t work. In that sense I think that many Russian singers of the new generation know what I am talking about, many who have trained very hard during the regime era and who have great voices and who are now flooding the international market with very impressive Russian voices. - What are your artistic plans? - I have many plans but as you know, God is the one in charge. One day you wake up and life changes. It all depends on many things, like health. My plan, if things go as I would like, is to sing less and less. I have been singing for many years and I want to dedicate myself more to conducting, both in the orchestra and on stage. I want to continue to sing but on special occasions and no longer as a routine. I want to make that change. I am fifty years old now and it is a change that will take me several years. I'm not going to be able to do it in two days. If I manage to make that change in the next four or five years, it will mark a very interesting turn for my career. It will depend on whether the market believes in me and hires me. If not, we'll see. - It is already confirmed that the market believes you... - Changes are very hard and when you are a tenor, change is dangerous. A friend of mine, an orchestra conductor, told me that once, not long ago, after he listened to the Rachmaninov disc. He was very impressed and said, "You know what your problem is? You have a little sign on your forehead that says "tenor." Everywhere you go you're going to have that sign for the rest of your life. If you didn't have that sign, perhaps today you would be one of the most important orchestra conductors." The tenor is always a suspected animal. The voice, fine. But then people think that because one is a tenor there are a whole series of attributes such as intelligence or other abilities that are in the background. It's folklore; it’s clichés. But it happens a lot. It happens to me that when I stand in front of an orchestra for the first time, even today, after years of conducting. They look at me a little bit like "let's see what the tenor can do." Five minutes later everyone has forgotten that I am a tenor and they are already committed and working with me as a conductor. But the word tenor always comes first. That's why I say: let's see what the market wants and decides and likes because maybe the market insists on only the tenor and it will be very difficult to change people's mentality. In five years we will talk again. |
Anatolia -- June 2013
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Soria -- September 2013
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José Cura Sings for the First Time in Soria, the Province from Where His Family Came
Europa Press 26 September 2013 [Computer-assisted Translation] The Argentine tenor José Cura will arrive at Soria Friday afternoon to offer his only recital this year in Spain, as part of the programming of the Otoño Musical Soriano. Appearing with him will be pianist Juan Antonio Álvarez Parejo, who usually accompanies Teresa Berganza. Cura comes to Soria, the land of his ancestors, preceded by “an immeasurable recognition” world-wide following his recent production of Verdi’s Otello at the Metropolitan Opera in New York and at Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. José Cura has been quoted as being “especially excited” by the fact that his maternal grandparents were natives of the town of Soria Herreros. The name José Cura achieved wide recognition after winning the ‘Operalia’ competition in 1994, after just being founded by the renowned Plácido Domingo. Although he had already established a solid career, his career underwent a ‘meteoric’ rise that has led him to act in the ‘most prestigious theaters’ with an extensive repertoire, from Verdi’s Otello to Saint-Saëns’ Samson. [Add to that] the public and critical success of his productions of La Rondine at Ópera de Lorraine in 2010 and his Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci at the Opera Royal de Wallonie and his recent premieres in Otello in New York and Buenos Aires. According to the same sources, the Soria audience will have the opportunity to listen to a much more intimate José Cura as he has chosen “the best of contemporary Argentinean song” for his presentation at the fall musical festival. The usual names of Ginastera, Guastavino and Lopez Buchardo will be joined by those of José Cura, who, as a composer, put music to a series of sonnets of the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda and presented them in 2009 at the Santander Festival. The performance of José Cura will take place in the Palacio de la Audiencia on Friday, 27 September at 20:30. |
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Tenor José Cura Ready to Return to the Teatro Real with Its New Director
EFE / lainformacion.com 27 September 2013
[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt] Spanish-Argentine tenor José Cura today expressed his interest in returning within a few years to the Teatro Real, where he sees a new era beginning with the appointment of artistic director Joan Matabosch to replace Gerard Mortier, who had canceled some of Cura’s proposed performances in the Madrid theater. Cura acknowledged in an interview with EFE before his performance today in Soria that he would like to sing at the Teatro Real, although the performance would have to be in a few years since programs are scheduled [years] in advance. “If it were possible, we would speak of two, three or four years. It would involve a very long conversation with Matabosch, but I would like it have it,” said the recognized artist who enjoyed great success is his recent stint in Otello at Metropolitan in New York. The Spanish-Argentine tenor, who turns 51 next December, stressed that the appointment of Matabosch as director of the Teatro Real will bring about a number of changes that he hopes will ‘be for the best.” Cura has said the opera world in the capital of Spain is currently experiencing a “little shock” by the change of artistic direction at the Teatro Real. “Matabosch has a well known reputation as an effective administrator after many years at the Liceu, and I hope the Teatro Real can take advantage of his experience,” he said. In December 2001 Cura starred in one of the most controversial performances since the reopening of the theater, when in the last performance of Verdi’s Il Trovatore the tenor and [a few members of the] audience, unhappy with his performance of the aria Di quella pira, clashed, triggering an avalanche of reactions. Upset by the reaction of part of the audience, the tenor decided to cancel the performances he had planned for the following two season of the Teatro Real. Cura today offers his only concert in Spain during 2013 at the Otoño Musicial Soriano after receiving international recognition with his recent performances of Verdi’s Otello in New York and at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. In the recital features Argentine music and sonnets by the Chilean poet Pablo Neruda put to music by Cura, who hopes to bring the program to other parts of Spain, he will be accompanied by pianist Juan Antonio Alvarez Parejo, the usual accompanist for Teresa Berganza. “It’s a dream I’ve had for many years and Soria will be the start of it,” he assured.
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Tenor José Cura Returns to Sing in Spain after his Success at the METEFE 25 September 2013
[Computer-Assisted Translation // Excerpt] Following his runaway success with Otello at the Metropolitan Opera in New York and the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, the Spanish-Argentine composer and tenor José Cura will offer one recital that will connect him with his roots in Soria (central Spain). Cura, who, beginning with the world premiere of La Commedia è finite, is also artistic director and set designer, will offer a recital with pianist Juan Antonio Alvarez Parejo featuring music by Ginastera, Guastavino, Walsh and Panizza at the Festival Otoño Musical Soriano. The musician, who has ancestry from Soria (though this is the first time he has sung in the land of his ancestors,) starred for the first time Otello last March and did so at the Met with overwhelming success, thus adding his name to the list of the "greats" who have played that role. Success also accompanied him on his return to Buenos Aires with the production of Otello, for which he was artistic director and set designer. The effort marked the return of tenor to Colón after thorough renovation of the theater for the first time since 1999.
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Stepping into the Past
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Paris -- October 2013
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A Musical Journey to Italy
Via France 8 October 2013
A long-standing complicity unites these two natives of Argentina: the Conductor (and composer) Mario De Rose and the charismatic tenor (and CEO) José Cura, who is sometimes—unwillingly—called the "fourth tenor" in reference to the famous "three tenors" (Plácido Domingo, José Carreras and Luciano Pavarotti).
These seasoned artists naturally offer for this Parisian evening a program that draws on their repertoire of choice, that of Italian opera: recently, you could hear them both in Otello at the Festival of Santander, in a hot "Italian night" Festival Classic Open Air of Berlin or in Moscow.
They are joined for the occasion by the National Ile-de-France Orchestra and soprano Camilla Nylund, acclaimed in Paris in autumn 2009 for her masterful interpretation of the role of Salome in the eponymous Strauss opera.
The program:
Ruggero Leoncavallo: "Pagliacci" - Prologue "Pagliacci" - Intermezzo "Pagliacci" - Aria di Canio "Vesti la giubba" "Pagliacci" - Aria di Nedda "Qual Fiamma avea nel guardo!"
Giacomo Puccini: "Manon Lescaut" - Intermezzo "La Fanciulla del West" - Duo of Minnie and Johnson
Intermission
Giuseppe Verdi: "Otello" - Act I Duet from Otello and Desdemona "Già nella notte densa..." "Otello" - Act III Duet from Otello and Desdemona "Dio ti gioncondi, o sposo" “Otello” - Act IV (full)
With: José Cura (tenor) Camilla Nylund (soprano) National Ile-de-France Orchestra Mario De Rose (musical director)
Tuesday, October 8, 2013: 20:00 to 22:00
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Interview with José Cura France Musique Interviewer: Jean-Michel Dhuez 8 October 2013
Transcription / Computer-Assisted Translation
J-MD: Our guest at France Musique this morning, José Cura. Good morning! JC: Good morning! J-MD: Thank you for being with us. You will be in concert tonight in Paris at the Pleyel Concert Room, in recital for the “Great Voices” with soprano Camilla Nylund. The program will include among others, arias from Pagliacci, La Fanciulla del West by Puccini and then Verdi’s Otello which is perhaps one of your signature roles. (An aria from Otello is aired.) J-MD: This aria is from Otello in the 3rd act, José Cura conducting the Philharmonia Orchestra. This was 14 years ago. Have your perceptions of the character changed now after 14 -15 years? JC: Oh my… Obviously, this sounds completely different nowadays. I don’t mean that it sounds more or less beautiful, that remains a point of view, but obviously, the sound today is more mature. Back then, I pretended to know what a 50-year-old guy could feel in his skin. Now I do know because I have reached that age. J-MD: And what to you know now? JC: Evidently, the psychological fullness of the words is above all very different. J-MD: Which means? JC: Which means that we can perhaps say that the voice I now have is not the one I had in that period because it has lived more, experienced more, it may be more fatigued if you want, but there is something inside of it. And Otello’s drama is one of a man who has gone through a lot, suffered, etc. During that period I was 35-37-39…well yes, by that age you have gone through a pretty good number of things but there are still a lot of other things that you know only because of what you have heard. But then, when you get to 50, you begin to have experience in your own skin and then you can begin to talk about things not only after hearing about them. And this changes a lot in a life. There is more depth, more suffering you have felt in your skin and so you express it differently having experience it than when you have only been told how this pain should feel. So this changes a lot of things, yes. J-MD: So, as we said, Otello is one of your signature roles and the first time you sang it was with Berlin’s Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Claudio Abbado…you were 34 years old? JC: Yeah… J-MD: What memories do you have? JC: Madness… J-MD: Is it far away? JC: That’s far away…it’s hard to believe it was in the last century … J-MD: So we should not mention it? (laughs) JC: Well, it’s a little hard but yes, it’s far, it’s very far, a lot has happened you know, and 16 years today, with the rhythm of life that we have, it’s like 50 years [in a career] less than half a century ago. Everything goes by very fast and a lot of things have happened, a good deal of very beautiful things and also bad ones, and it’s normal, that’s life. But yes, in that period, this performance was very risky, very dangerous, but it is a challenge that worked well. J-MD: What would be these beautiful things then? JC: Well, the beautiful things are…well, I have three wonderful children, I still have the same wife…which says much in a career like this one! My eldest son just got married and the youngest, who was born here in the 17th district… J-MD: In Paris, yes? JC: Yes, he is now attending a great French school…And so that’s how time is passing and it’s passing well. J-MD: Family success seems to be the most important thing to you, beyond your career. Is that’s why you are mentioning first? JC: But if it’s the way you are in your head…that is the way life is! When people tell me “Music is your life!” I say no, for me, music is my job. I love it and I am lucky to do a job that I enjoy—that’s already enormous nowadays, it’s even enormous to have a job period with all those problems around. And then, if you have a job that you love, it’s twice enormous! But still it is not work [that’s most important]…I mean the real things in life are not in your work because otherwise, if you lose your job or if you stop working, that’s when you really start suffering. J-MD: But this is surely more than a job. Beyond the fact that you love music it is also a permanent investment that’s a continually renewed work? JC: But every form of art is an investment that never ends. I always say that it takes long careers, not to demonstrate something to people, but it takes long careers to transform a talent into an artist and it does not happen in a couple of days. It’s why I say that, when it is told about a 40 or 50-year-old artist, or one who had a long career, “Ah, he has a lot of talent!” this is an insult! Talent is only the beginning of a career, but after this, when you are 50, 60 or 70 years old…Recently, I heard a journalist say, “Ah, Mr. Domingo has a tremendous talent!” And I responded that he is 75 years old, we are not talking about talent here, we’re at least talking about a legend…after that much time it’s is not just talent anymore. It’s remeaning! J-MD: The Otello aria recording we listened to with the Philharmonia Orchestra that you conducted shows well the eclecticism of your work because you are a conductor, and before becoming a singer you had another musical life experience, you started playing guitar and then you were a choir master. You studied conducting before you began singing? JC: Yes. J-MD: Is that diversity important to you? You came to opera by accident. How did it happen? JC: So for me, yes. Today I don’t say anymore that it is the only way to do things. A few years ago, I used to say that. But we also learn with age there are many ways to do things. This way is mine. I can’t conceive artistic life otherwise than as a holistic life. Conducting an orchestra, directing on stage and even designing the sets, the lighting, the photography, all that is a part of the same package. And I just cannot understand this whole thing differently and so I tell to myself that it is not possible. I even admire those people who manage to do only one thing throughout their life because this makes life a lot less stressful. But for me, it is very very hard to work like that. I am unbending, I have to change, to search, to invest myself, to take risks and in the end, I have to put it all together to get some unique result out of it. J-MD: Isn’t there a risk to dissipate your efforts this way, touching many disciplines at the same time? JC: There is a risk, there is a risk that can only be compensated by hard work and triple involvement rather than one…and it works! J-MD: And do you remember the first time you conducted? There was a notably instance in 2003 when you conducted Cavalleria and then stepped on stage to play Canio. Were there other experiences? JC: Is the question about the first time I conducted in Europe or the first time I conducted anywhere? J-MD: Anywhere, just anywhere? JC: Well, in this case…I was 15, and yes, I will always remember especially because this year I returned to Argentine for the production of an Otello in the month of July. This was my production, my stage direction and settings. And so, I visited the places of my childhood and I saw the small amphitheatre where I conducted my first concert in 1978, 35 years ago… J-MD: That was several years ago. JC: Yes, a few… J-MD: So what did you discover? JC: So this gave me the shivers because you see the picture of those days in your head and [in reality] everything has changed, like anything else, it’s changed a lot. There in that place we could find young people who were playing guitar and singing…and today, I found young people doing drugs. So things are really different and they changed very badly, too. But it’s not only there. It happens in Europe and everywhere in the world. J-MD: We will now listen to José Cura in Calaf’s aria in the first act of Turandot, Non Piangere Liu… J-MD: José Cura, Turandot and the Orchestra Philharmonia conducted by Placido Domingo. I will not ask you if Domingo is among those who were your teachers because the last time you were asked this question you answered, “No, I am a rebel of the classical music.” So, what does it mean to be a rebel of the classical music? JC: No, it’s dangerous to say this, just as it is dangerous to say this one or that one was my teacher. Rebel means that I try to find my own pattern which has obviously led many people to become impatient, nervous, or hysterical…while a lot of others were very pleased. There is a sentence that was written about me and it is the perfect example of what I mean. There is this guy who said, really not long ago, he said, “This damned habit that Mister Cura has to always do what he wants instead of doing what is wanted from him… “ (laughs) J-MD: Well there, that is quite a sentence …!? (laughs) JC: When I read this for the first time, I said, “Say, is this a compliment or an insult?” In the context of the article, it was a bad review…but for me, it is a compliment for I believe that it’s an obligation for the artist to surprise and not to do what is expected from him but the opposite, to do what he feels like at that moment. That’s how things are shaken off, moved forward or backward…depending on the point of view. Otherwise we would still be doing Gregorian chant, which was very beautiful too, but there is some history that came afterward and shook things off. Well that’s how I see things! J-MD: That is also a beautiful proof of freedom finally? JC: Yes, we live in a world where freedom is a euphemism, so at least in the art we should have some freedom. The problem is that there is a huge difference between the art and the art business. These are two completely different things. Art is art and will always remain art. I don’t want to tell people what art is because I am not here to do etymology, but the art business is really something else. J-MD: But it is also essential, because without business we could not get to know or spread art? JC: Yes and no. Without business, we could not get globalised art, which again is another danger. We could have a local art which spreads, yes, but more slowly. Business is business, but when business starts ruling art and not the opposite, then art is suffering. When we hear a sentence like the one which was written about me, it is because we don’t want to take any risk. They say, “Mister Cura will perform this and that and that, come and buy the tickets, watch this and that’s it!” And then if you go on stage to offer that program, yes, but with a different approach, a psychological side, color or staging, etc, etc…then it’s different, people in the business are afraid that the audience won’t follow and that it will make them lose their business. That’s where the freedom of art is sacrificed to a business that doesn’t take risks. Is that a good thing? I don’t think so. Not for the art. Yes for the business but not for the art! J-MD: Art is also expressed through staging and there is a recently released DVD about which you are apparently rather proud, it is Samson et Dalila? JC: Yes…I am not apparently proud of it. I am very proud of it! J-MD: Very proud, there, that is much better! JC: No, it’s like having a baby, giving birth to a DVD and then you look at your child and you tell him. “I am not proud of you…or I am apparently proud of you.” Well, then, that is odd! I am very proud because this is my first production as a director and stage designer that can be found on DVD and is distributed by Arthaus. Well, it is a production that, when you watch it…you put it in your machine (DVD player) and then you see it and say, “Oh gosh, it is not what I expected…but it’s good!” It’s a different approach of Saint-Saëns although respecting the message of the text, but there are no temple pillars, no desert and all that, the approach is different yet it worked very very well. In the beginning, when this was released, I expected to be bashed by the critics…I will be told just about anything… but, surprise, it received quite good reviews. And so I said, well, there is still hope! J-MD: Yes there is hope! You give Master Classes, notably pretty regularly in Nancy. Why this fidelity to Nancy? JC: No, we don’t talk about fidelity as much as a relationship that lasted 5 years and began in 2007. I was invited to collaborate to the creation of a Master Class system, the event being located at the opera house of Nancy with the support of the Opera of Nancy, but behind all this, there is a society, a group of opera lovers called NancyOperaPassion, very special people, very refined, very dedicated to art and who tremendously love classical singing. And so I was contacted in 2007 to give a Master Class and this lasted 5 years. I believe that I collaborated much to the creation of what is today an almost unavoidable rendezvous at the end of the summer in Nancy. And after 5 years, for the first time, somebody else gave this Master Class, and when I say somebody else, I say it loud because we are talking about Ruggero Raimondi, who is a fellow, a friend, a colleague and a legendary artist. I am very satisfied of being able to leave a working table, a working land where somebody like Raimondi can feel comfortable. I am very proud. J-MD: And it’s important for you to transmit your art? JC: I think it is not only important, it is a duty. It is an obligation. And the question is, “Do you think you have the right to transmit it?” It’s a question I would ask if I were on your side of the table… J-MD: Then, what would you answer? (laughs) JC: I answer that there is no right when I give a Master Class. I don’t say that things must be done in a certain way or not. I say, from my point of view, using my personal experience, that my suffering has gone through that and for me, that worked. Try this too! Also, for me, the Master Class is called that way because it is not a Beginners Class, we must always have already well-trained singers and after that, the idea is to make them conscious about their own capacities and to awake their curiosity to see what they can do with these capacities. Once again the rebel spirit that we talked about is to avoid becoming a clone. We have plenty of clones today. That is terrible. If you listen to pop music, needless to say it, everybody looks alike, that is still that globalization we mentioned. Everything looks the same way, people eat all the same things, dress the same way, listen to the same music, they all sing the same way, move the same way…that is pretty crappy… We are…we talk about a world of developed communications, etc. but all at once we are reducing the world in an awful way. J-MD: Thank you José Cura and tonight you will be in recital at the Pleyel Concert Room. JC: Good Day!
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Chronicle of a Comeback in Beauty The Italian genius - Paris (Pleyel) Forum Opera Christophe Rizoud 8 October 2013 [Computer-Assisted Translation // Excerpt] "After 12 years, it's great to be back!" exclaims José Cura, his Salle Pleyel concert barely underway. It's true that the tenor had disappeared from the Parisian radar for some time, he who was once the darling of the Galls, the equivalent, in his time and to a certain extent, of Jonas Kaufmann, if only for the advantageous physique and dark color of his voice. Tonight, however, it's Placido Domingo he's reminiscent of, as he attacks Tonio's aria in the wake of Pagliacci ’s prologue. Has our tenor, following in his illustrious elder's footsteps, become a baritone? No, just a wink; José Cura is in a bantering mood. "I'm just rounding off the fee," he explains, after putting away in a corner of the stage the music stand that the technical team had forgotten to remove during the intermission. What did the Don José and Samson of his generation do for twelve years? He sang to the left and right, but not in France, where, with the exception of Nancy, he hasn't been invited since 2001. He has devoted a great deal of time to conducting, his guilty pleasure, to directing, which he now wants to focus on, and to passing on his art. And he was right. Like a fine wine, his singing has improved. And twelve years on, he's back with renewed energy. Perhaps wrongly remembered as a singer lacking in subtlety, he presents himself in a different light. The silhouette has thickened, the vibrato broadened, but the timbre has retained its black velvet. Above all, the voice has been liberated. The high notes, which once betrayed effort, remains his Achilles' heel but they now project more naturally. In front of an enthusiastic audience, immediately expressing their pleasure at seeing him again, the tenor favored nuance. Good for him! José Cura is never more captivating than when he lightens the tone and dares to use half-tones. The performer has enriched his palette of expression. Technique, both in its accomplishment and in its flaws, is skillfully used to reinforce the message. Pagliacci, Dick Johnson and even more Otello, even without theatrical artifice, stand out in their unmistakably theatrical truths. Finally, the artist is generous. In a recital format that all too often sees symphonic numbers take precedence over singing, the program for once gives pride of place to the voices. And as if that weren't enough, two dazzlingly vibrant encore pieces were added to extensive excerpts from Otello: Nessun dorma preceded by O Soave fanciulla in duet with Camilla Nylund. Although less successful, the soprano was more than a foil. We loved her as Salomé on stage at La Bastille in 2009, while her Elisabetta in Amsterdam two years later exposed the limits of her lower register. It's only a short step from there to deducing that her affinities are more Germanic than Italian, a step that an awkward Nedda, taken coldly, seems to allow us to take. In La Fanciulla del West, however, Nylund managed to soften her delivery and pull her best trump card out of her sleeve: a gripping, spear-like high note. She used this weapon, as well as others, as Desdemona after the interval. Breath control, in particular, allows for some effective high notes and, like her partner, a wide range of nuances contributes to the composition. From such a duo, only sparks can fly. Unfortunately, the Orchestre National d'Île-de-France found it hard to bring out the "Italian genius" that gives the evening its title, and Mario De Rose's direction, sometimes overwhelmed by the ardor of his performers, only sporadically sets things alight.
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José Cura Concert OBD Opera 9 October 2013
Last night José Cura made his return to Paris after a twelve year absence (he underlined as often as possible that he would like to be invited more often—Hello, opera managers!) with Camilla Nylund in a program that is particularly unusual today in the consistency and energy projected by the interpreters. The National Orchestra of Ile de France was conducted by Mario de Rose and in total synergy with the singers. I must say at times it felt José Cura was titillated by the desire to steal the baton and conduct. The homage he paid several times to the musicians testified to a true respect and a synergy as well with the orchestra and its conductor as with his partner. Of course, we could fault José Cura for a voice that now has the patina of age and sometimes has difficulties negotiating the higher notes. But what a commitment in a concert performance in which he was really successively Tonio, Otello, Canio and Dick Johnson! The state of tension in which he completed Act IV of Otello commands respect and was literally stunning. Admittedly, Camilla Nylund struggled to rise to such a level of performance. On the other hand, her voice was more comfortable in Verdi (his Willow Song) when the voice opened up than what came before to remind us that this artist, not often seen in Paris, is a great soprano. At the end of the concert, Cura said humorously that normally when the evening offers Otello he is exhausted and that tonight he also had Pagliacci and Fanciulla…before starting Nessun Dorma! The tears he paid to the standing Parisian audience and its ovation made this concert one of those that you mark and remember for a long time. These two artists need to be celebrated ….. |
Budapest -- December 2013
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José Cura promises great experience for Tuesday evening in MÜPA
MTI (Hungarian News Agency) 3 December 2013
[Computer-assisted Translation]
Salva Vita Foundation has organized a charity concert with the appearance of José Cura on Tuesday in the Palace of Arts (MÜPA).
For 20 years the Salva Vita Foundation has supported people with intellectual disabilities in finding their place on the open labor market and in society as a whole. Five years ago, José Cura made his initial offer to help popularize the work of the foundation , it was revealed in the press conference held on Monday.
Katalin Vég, the Executive Director of Salva Vita Foundation, explained that they considered it extremely important that José Cura accepted the invitation, because they believed the added publicity would help employers and disabled people waiting for employment find each other successfully. “In addition to the concert, much work has to be done for employers to be open to accommodate disabled people who received special training,” she added.
Csaba Káel, the General Manager of Palace of Arts (MÜPA), emphasised that they provided the concert venue as a way to support the Foundation. José Cura, who is performing for the first time in the Palace of Arts, would be welcomed with great pleasure at Müpa for other occasion as well, for an opera recital or for a traditional, semi-staged opera performance, he added.
"I welcome the audience with the authentic music of my native Argentina. We will play classical music with the Los Calchakis orchestra, on authentic instruments such as the Indian flute, the quena, the charango, a small guitar-like instrument, or the Indian pan flute," the singer explained.
The first part of the concert features Argentinean songs, including one composed by José Cura, who sings a piece from a cycle of seven poems composed to poems by Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. "We play classical art music with a folkloristic touch. Our musical training is as European as it was in Hungary, and still is. But Bartók and Kodály also used authentic folk music. I've always been enthusiastic about what they do," José Cura reveals.
The second part of the concert will feature Ariel Ramírez's best-known works, the Misa Criolla and the Christmas-themed Navidad Nuestra. "It's church music, but in the Argentinian style, with sacred melodies based on dance music rhythms that you can't help but move to, and believe me, you're in for a treat," promised the world-famous tenor.
As for the charity work, he stressed that what captivated him about the foundation is that they are not immersed in pity. On the contrary, they teach people with disabilities to do their best for their own well-being. "As a result of their work and their encouragement, people with disabilities believe that they can work, and they prove it."
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"The world does not need José Cura’s composition” - interview with the Argentine opera singer
Inforadio András Oláh 3 December 2013
[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]
Argentine opera singer and conductor José Cura will perform songs and music by composers from his country in a charity concert at the Palace of Arts on Tuesday evening.
José Cura will perform for the first time in the Palace of Arts with the Paris-based Argentinean ensemble Los Calchakis, the Budapest Monteverdi Choir and Dóra Bizják pianist. In the first half of the evening, the world-famous tenor, who celebrates his 51st birthday this week, will perform songs by Argentine composers. At a press conference on Monday, José Cura said that Argentine composers are very similar to Hungarian composers, who follow the European school.
"Carlos Guastavino and López Buchardo have the same thing in common as Kodály and Bartók. They too wrote classical music spiced with the folk music traditions of their countries."
Among the songs is one of José Cura's own compositions, a setting to music of a cycle of poems by Chilean poet Pablo Neruda. In the second half of the concert, Ariel Ramírez's Christmas-themed Navidad nuestra and Creole Mass will be performed, featuring classical instruments, Andean folk melodies, charango guitar, Indian flute and quena Indian flute, and musicians in ponchos.
“This Church Music is very special since it is based on dances. When we sing “Kyrie eleison,” we literally dance, which makes religion more fun and exciting."
The concert was made possible thanks
to the Salva Vita Foundation, whose
work José Cura has been supporting
for five years. For 20 years, the
Foundation has helped people with
disabilities to find jobs in the
open labour market and in society. How do you divide your time between opera singing and conducting?
When I started to conduct again in the late 90s I was living the fulfilment of my singing career and I undertook – if any - one opportunity a year to conduct. However as time passed these proportion were gradually shifted, since at my age I need more rest between two singing performances.
When do you have opportunity to compose and what inspires you as a composer?
I didn't write this song cycle yesterday, but many years ago. I recorded two of them for Warner Classics in 1998. It was probably the last composition I wrote until today, because I don't have time to compose. I'm waiting for when I retire as a singer to have the opportunity to write more, but believe me, I don't think the world needs José Cura's compositions. If I do write, I will do it for my own pleasure and if others like it what I produce, that's another matter. But I'm not a professional composer, even if I could be one based on my training.
What interests you most now about in your professional work?
I think that if there is a future for our art, it can only be not to see opera as a museum piece but rather as a living art form that is constantly evolving. I'm also sure that if composers like Verdi or Puccini were alive today... or let's talk about Bach - that guy was always ahead of everybody - he would certainly love electronic music today and he would certainly be a great expert in computer gadgets. We should keep that in mind and not think that these are outdated old men smelling of mothballs (naphthalene).
You are currently presenting the music of your country in the Palace of Arts but there is another thing with which Argentina is often identified—football. Do you follow football and do you have a favourite team?
Let's just say Messi was born in my hometown and played for the same team I'm an honorary member of.
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Charity concert - José Cura Metropol Sonja Krezinger 3 December 2013 [Computer-assisted translation // Excerpt] World-renowned tenor and conductor José Cura will perform tonight at the Salva Vita Foundation's charity concert in the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall at the Palace of Arts. The foundation has been in operation for 20 years and has always aimed to improve the employment situation of people with disabilities. Five years ago, they contacted José Cura and asked him to support them - he immediately said yes, and will now be performing at the foundation's third charity concert. The singer-conductor had never performed at the Palace of Arts before, but he spoke rapturously about the building. “This place is incredible. Do you realize what you have here? I’ve only seen architecture like this in Japan. When I visited Hungary ten years ago, the then Minister of Culture told me that they were planning to construct this building. He said he would like if I would become the part of the inauguration season. And here I am, although it is not the first season. It’s been a few years, but I came," José Cura told a press conference yesterday. He also revealed that he is now bringing Argentinian music with him, which makes this evening even more exciting for him. “In the first part we play songs and in the second part we play church music, but Argentine church music. This will be based on dances, similar to Kodály's music - we will dance during the kyrie eleison so religion will be more fun. You will also see Indian instruments, we will wear ponchos. This is a new experience for the Hungarian audience. This concert is going to be a great experience for me too," he said about the program. José Cura has performed in Budapest before: when asked by journalists, he said that it is always a great experience for him, as several important figures of music were born in our country. I always give myself at times, and I know from the successful to the next day's critics accuse me, that did not look like anyone else - said Cura who submits a song you can get the first part of the concert. “For me, coming here is almost like coming to the Vatican. When you are here you are always confronted with such a huge tradition that you always get lost. The only chance I have is to offer something original and not try to reproduce anything which probably has been done before here very well, and much better. So every time I come here I bring myself with honesty…" said Cura, who will also perform a song he wrote himself in the first part of the concert. It's part of a cycle of seven songs about Chilean poet Pablo Neruda, written as part of a dramatic piece. Cura had originally intended to play this piece in the first half of the concert, but decided to go for a more colorful program, but he did not give up the idea of performing it at a later date.
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José Cura Argentine Songs MNO Eszter Veronika Kiss 4 December 2013
[Computer-assisted translation // Excerpt] On Tuesday evening, José Cura, the world-famous tenor, once again supported the Salva Vita Foundation, which has been working for 20 years to promote equal opportunities for people with disabilities, their social integration and independent living, and with whom he has been working for five years. While the concert was for a noble cause, it was also a curiosity: the opera singer-conductor not only took to the stage in these two familiar roles in a program of Argentine musical delights, but also made his debut as a composer. In this context, our newspaper spoke to him before the concert. Q: As part of the Argentine program, you have included some of your works as part of the framework. How much time do you spend composing? JC: Unfortunately, very little. Q: Do you see a chance to increase this ratio a little? Or do you plan to? JC: Maybe someday when I am old and have no voice and can no longer lift the conductor’s baton, I’ll have more time to compose music. But I am afraid that by then I will also come to the serious realization that nobody wants to hear my music and therefore I will have no need to compose. Q: - It's an interesting journey that takes an artist from singing or playing a particular instrument to conducting to composing. Many have gone before you, such as the Hungarian Zoltán Kocsis, who first came to the world's attention as a pianist.. JC: There is nothing new under the sun. We didn't invent this Renaissance attitude; it worked perfectly well over 600 years ago. Today, unfortunately, the opposite is happening: people today are trying to eradicate this attitude. People like Zoltán Kocsis or me have been criticized because we are trying to do more than one thing at the same time instead of doing the opposite. Q: And you would think this would be the way forward, because if someone conducts and sings and plays at the same time, you get a much deep interpretation of the piece. JC: The road on which humanity travels now is very dangerous. They are killing the Renaissance spirit which for centuries defined intellectual progress. Today, the expectation is that we know only a very narrow area of the world. And that is not only true in the arts. To do otherwise is to be severely criticized
Q: Five years ago and again now you said yes immediately when Salva Vita approached you. Do you say yes whenever a charity is involved or in this case did you find Salva Vita's objectives absolutely worthy of your support? JC: When I am approached for help, I always say yes. Of course, before I do, I check the charity carefully to see whether it is a serious organization or just trying to make a profit from my name. I have to be careful: there are too many foundations in the world today whose administrators live in palaces, drive Mercedes and travel first class. When such foundations ask for my help, I always say no. Q: Will you continue this collaboration? JC: I’m not ruling it out but I do not even know for sure whether I’ll be alive tomorrow. Only God knows. Q: When you entered for the press conference, your first word about the Palace of Arts was "unbelievable." Is it really such a curiosity in Europe? JC: With very few exceptions, the theaters and concert halls in Europe were built hundreds of years ago. This means that even though many of them are very beautiful works of architecture and have excellent acoustics, most are too small. The type of building like the Palace of Arts is more typical in Japan. Therefore it is a superb and incomprehensible asset for Hungary and I can honestly say that measured by European standards, it is an extraordinary rarity for such an enormous concert hall like this to be created, together with the entire infrastructure, including the rehearsal rooms and restaurant. Q: it is said that there are parallels between Hungarian and Argentine classical music. JC: Yes, both countries are extremely rich in tradition and folklore and also in expressing this through classical music. I am thinking, for example, of Kodály and Bartók. Q: Our use of folk music as a source of inspiration is, unfortunately, less typical today. What about Argentine contemporary musical composition? JC: A good question, but I can only give a very bad answer: I have no idea. Unfortunately, I am not at all familiar with the works that have been written in my home country in recent years. However, I assume since the Argentine folklore is so rich that it is certainly widely used by composers of today. I just cannot answer how they do it.
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José Cura in Budapest
MTI 3 December 2013.
[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]
“You start a new activity because you feel you have the ability and you have something to say," said José Cura, who is increasingly staging operas on the world's most prestigious stages.
The world-famous Argentine tenor, composer and conductor will present authentic Argentine music from his native country on Tuesday evening in the Palace of Arts.
In José Cura's calendar are more and more engagements that show, after singing, conducting and composing, he is also interested in the full range of musical theatre activities including directing and set design. He has already staged one of his favourite operas, Otello, at the Teatro Colón, Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci in Liege and La rondine in Nancy.
A few years ago, he played the title role in Samson at Dalila in Berlin, and has made no secret of his falling out with the director. Shortly afterwards, in 2010, he directed Saint-Saëns’ opera in Karlsruhe. But, as he told MTI, it was not out of anger that he started directing.
"Conflicts are not and should not be the starting point. Indignation is not a reason, if you start any new activity. You do it because you feel you have the ability. Above all, you do it because you believe you have something to say. If you cannot come up with something interesting or authentic, you have no chance to correct what you receive as mistake made by others."
Usually he accepts stage direction for invitation, the season plans are programmed well in advance by the theatres and there is no way for new ideas. “But still we have time to discuss and develop together which play we would take on the stage” he added.
"I have many plans: in Stockholm I'm preparing a production of La bohème at the Royal Opera, in Liege I'm doing Turandot and in Bonn I'm doing a production of Peter Grimes, so I think I have a varied program," the singer revealed.
The theatres draw up their season plans well in advance so there is no room for brainstorming. “But still we have time to discuss and develop together which work should be staged," he added.
Cura does not like being asked how to attract young people to opera performances. In his opinion, this is an "old", albeit sensitive, subject. In 2007, for example, he created what he calls a metashow for a festival, La commedia e finita, in which music, dance and prose are interwoven.
"This production was a very special take on the theme of Pagliacci, with five dolls beginning the play. The dolls become real when they learn the feeling of hatred. It was a fairy tale with a moral message," recalled José Cura.
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Argentine Songs from José Cura
Magyar Nemzet (mno) Eszter Veronika Kiss 4 December 2013.
[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]
José Cura, also praised as the fourth tenor, gave a charity concert in Budapest. It was a night to remember.
José Cura will celebrate his 51st birthday tomorrow, 5 December. This is a minor point, of course, but not negligible, as he travelled to Hungary despite the holiday to support the Salva Vita Foundation and raise awareness of the problems of employment and self-sufficiency of people with disabilities on World Disability Day. What's more, he did not come to the Palace of Arts yesterday, 3 December, with a conventional operatic gala, but with a quiet, intimate and charming chamber music performance featuring Argentinean songs. He also performed an excerpt from one of his compositions, and although he himself said that in his old age he might come to realize that no one wants to hear his works, he was certainly wrong.
Perhaps I should start with this song, a setting of a poem by Pablo Neruda, because it was an unusually powerful piece, a melancholy, bittersweet song at the end of the evening, based on Argentine folklore and composed to inspired, poetic lyrics about passing. Pensé morir is a cycle of seven songs, and this song cycle is part of a drama in which the Chilean poet, who died forty years ago, and his wife Matilde have a conversation. The story takes place in Matilde's memories, and Neruda answers her questions with poems. It would be interesting to know the whole cycle, since the highly dramatic, operatic solutions clearly had a great impact on the whole audience.
José Cura could be a great composer if he could devote more time to composing. Of course, he has the advantage of being a singer, conductor and composer at the same time. He doesn’t discriminate: for him a folk song is as important as a major aria. It was also interesting to see, when he conducted the Missa Criolla, how he combined the conductor and the soloist in one person.
Returning to the first half of the programme, which featured Argentinean songs with piano accompaniment: this was a face of chamber musician that I had not previously known José Cura to be. It may seem easier to sing a little song like this, with no great technical obstacles, than to take the stage in, say, the title role in a serious and long opera, but it is not at all easy—and much more difficult—to get the message across in a few minutes of song without stage props and a long development. José Cura, however, manages this so easily that we can understand the words almost without an interpreter, although I must add that the reading of the poems in Hungarian really helped to make the songs understandable.
The world that emerged from the Argentine poems was so mystical that one was tempted to explore it more deeply. It should be added that pianist Dóra Bizják proved to be a great chamber music partner, and the choice of programme is a testimony to the extraordinary erudition and awareness of José Cura.
The second part included the Missa Criolla and Navidad Nuestra. Both were composed by Ariel Ramírez, who died a few years ago, and both are unique in that they are accompanied by original Argentine folk music bands for solo and choir. The members of Los Calchakis have been playing together for 45 years; their oldest member is 83 years old. Their bodies live and move in the music. They come with special instruments: the charango is a small guitar whose body is [traditionally] made from a turtle-like animal [an armadillo, though wood is also used]; the kena is an Andean flute; the siku is the well-known panpipe; and the bombo leguero is a drum.
José Cura stood out in poncho and worked hard to get the Monteverdi Choir of Budapest to dance, but they did not quite take on this Latin flair, which unfortunately held back the second part of the concert. Nevertheless, Navidad Nuestra was a beautiful and fitting finale to the first part, which also created the right Christmas atmosphere for the Advent period. |
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José Cura’s Argentine evening in the Hungarian capital Infovilág (Infoworld) Ágnes Peterdi 3 December 2013.
Translated by Zsuzsanna
Tickets were sold out within moments when the word got out that José Cura will perform in Budapest. The world star has supported the Salva Vita Foundation for many years and now he was offering a special Argentine evening in the Palace of Arts (MÜPA) for the benefit of the Foundation, which helps people with intellectual disabilities.
In José Cura’s voice the world's softest and most virile male voice is heard. It is robust, gentle and caring. He led Dóra Bizják, his piano accompanist, and Zsófia Varga, the Hungarian performer of the poems of Argentine songs on the stage, just as you treat beloved partners and friends.
On the stage there was one piano, three people and the beautiful songs written for poems of a remote land. These are poems from such poet as Pablo Neruda. There are liras, pain in them. They are heard with the magic of soft sounds.
But before we got to this point of events, the audience became acquainted with the nature of Salva Vita Foundation: they support the independent way of life of people with intellectual disabilities for two decades. These people are called as clients by them. Two clients were also on stage talking about their life and when the word of one of them faltered, someone in the audience gave her a handkerchief. These are unusual gestures nowadays.
In the second part of the concert we listened to two sacred music pieces from Ariel Ramirez: Misa Criolla and Navidad Nusetra with the Budapest Monteverdi Choir and the Argentine group Los Calchakis and José Cura. These were Indian and Latin melodies with the sounds of flying Andean birds performed with devotion, passion and increasing happiness. José Cura sang and also conducted the choir and musicians standing with his back to them. His fingers were speaking.
His signals were precisely understood by the choir and the Argentine band whose members wore ponchos as José Cura did. Respectable, grey-haired men were playing; Cura introduced them to us with their first name especially their leader, who just became 83 years old. Thus, by the end of the concert everything was filled by happiness. Just what was needed the best.
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Vienna -- December 2013
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Kurier23 September 2013[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]The tenor discusses the opera business and the crisis and the dangers of the Internetcried in pain. But if you sing Otello, you cannot easily cancel. Especially not two hours before the performance.“ With an acute back injury, tenor Jose Cura took the stage of the Vienna State Opera.He survived the performance with a painkiller. "Vienna is great in this respect. I've been singing here for 20 years and the audience knows that I’m giving my best. We are human, not machines."But Cura confirmed that the opera business makes demands that are often dangerous, especially for young singers. “It is easier today than ever before to be famous, if the record company is doing its job. I experienced this: I was young and handsome and on the front pages—and part of the business.” Now, at age 50, he is glad he “survived those hectic years and can now be an artist, which means it is no longer just about business. It wasn’t easy [to get here].” Roots One needs to have strong roots to survive. “Otherwise, this business destroys your head and then your health.” Many young singers cannot mentally cope with the stress. “You start to suffer in the head, then the body follows after—imperceptibly at first. Then you have to announce constantly you are ill or cancel completely.” He says as an afterthought, “It is not the same to be famous and important.” It is a “great feeling” to be established enough to be able to devote yourself to your own artistic interests, Cura emphasizes. His particular interests at the moment are Argentinean songs, which he will perform on 9 December at the Vienna Kozerthaus. These include original compositions: they are ‘classical songs with a folk touch,” based on texts by Pablo Neruda, says the trained composer. “But no tango and no pop!” Crisis Cura is not only a singer, composer and conductor, but also a director. He will soon stage La Bohème in Stockholm. It is a parallel to now: “We are living in a time of crisis,” says Cura. “We say it is economic but actually it is a moral crisis—at all levels, spiritual and artistic. This superficiality today!” Cura does not see a general opera crisis. “Above all, the operas houses that are tied to a tourist infrastructure will survive. There will always be tourists.” Cura fears, however, that the younger generation is slowly losing touch with the “great cultural experiences.” That does not have to be opera, he stresses. All hope lies in the young, but “it makes me crazy to see how they are indoctrinated on the internet. The internet is a great tool. It’s the library of Alexandria for our time. But ninety percent of the people (who use it) don’t know how to deal with it. And for them, the internet is very dangerous.” Mother’s Day This Verdi singer is please about the year of Verdi: “It is better that it takes place than not. But of course, it is purely commercial! It is like Mother’s Day. I kiss my mother every day, there is no one who needs to remind me. So also to pay tribute to Verdi I don’t need a Verdi-year.”
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Star tenor Jose Cura in MoMag Interview On 9 December he will appear at the Vienna Konzerthaus MoMag Petra Ortner 14 November 2013
[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt]
Q: Jose, is it true you started making music when you were 12? JC: Yes, I started when I was eleven or twelve years old. Correct. Q: Okay. When did you know you wanted to be an opera singer? JC: Oh, my God, that’s a long story but the fact is that in the 1980s in Argentina when I was in the university, just as we have in the world today. So many crises, such as unemployment, poverty, and things like that. Democracy was also emerging after the military regime. It was not easy to find work as a conductor and composer. These were the two things I studied at the university; they were to be my career. That’s when I started to sing. At first, it was a question of money, because by singing I could survive. And then singing took me from one place to the next in such a way that it became the profession. Q. Did you have role models at the time? Who were they? JC: I think they were the singers all young people admired at the time. The great singers like del Monaco, Corelli, and of course the young Domingo. These singers definitely rank among my role models. Q: You’re not only a professional singer and conductor but also a director. When did you first work as a director? JC: About seven years ago I was invited to work as a director for a show in Croatia. The show was a great success so I was invited to do another show in Cologne and in such a way one show came after the other. People liked the way I presented the productions. Now I various productions more or less once a year. Q: In December you’re at the Vienna Kozerthaus singing Argentine songs. How did you decide on the songs you have chosen to sing? JC: If you put together a program with songs that are new to people, then I think the program is really exciting. Three or four of the songs I’ve choses are fairly popular internationally but possibly still new to the Austrian audience. When I selected the songs I wanted to find a compromise between the beauty of the lyrics, the poetry, and the opportunity to introduce the best compositions of my country to the audience. Q: Which is your favorite song on the program? JC: I cannot say which song I like most. I love them all. They are like my children (laughs). Every song is really beautify and special. Q: How many times have you sung in Vienna? JC: Oh, my God, very often. I think I sang in Vienna for the first time about 18 years ago. I can’t even tell you how many appearances I’ve had here, certainly between 50 and 100 performances. Maybe even a little more. In any case, in the 18 years there have definitely been quite a lot of appearances. Q: How often and how long do you actually have to rehearse as a professional singer? JC: That always depends on the theater or the opera. In Vienna, a certain repertoire is performed, as it is a different piece every night. As a result, the time for rehearsals is really very short compared to the systems of other houses, where a particular piece is performed for a longer time. That means the house puts a particular piece on the program for this month and a different one next month. Then you have more time to rehearse. Both approaches have some good and some bad to them. The best about a repertory system is that you have many opportunities to rework the production because the pieces are played again and again within many years. The bad of course is that you do not have much time for rehearsals. The good about the piece system, in which a single opera runs for an extended period of time, is that you have more time to rehearse but have no way to modify it because the piece is performed once and never again. Q: What is the most difficult opera you sing? JC: If you look at the vocal demands, it may be Otello. But not only because of the great vocal demands, but also because of the exhaustive psychology of the character of Otello, The piece is truly one of the most demanding roles for a singer. Q: You work all over the world. Is there a place, a very special house, where you always love to work? JC: I usually go only to those where I really enjoy working. If I do not particularly like a house, I try not to go there. So far, I feel very comfortable everywhere I work as long as the place is professional, if the work is taken seriously by all. From that perspective I don’t have a favorite place. I could enumerate the places where I am not happy, but I will not, so no one is offended. (laughs) Q: What do you particularly like about traveling around the world and what not so much? JC: When you’re young, you don’t think much about it. You travel all the time, stay in a lot of hotels, go to many restaurants. But after a while, when it no longer feels like a holiday but feels like a hard routine, you really start to miss your home. Your house, your bed, your shower, your dog, your wife (laughs), your children. Life is short. As you get older and you've traveled a lot throughout your life and maybe haven't always enjoyed the really important things in life to the fullest, you start to miss some things. I think it's good to find balance in life. Q: How do you find that balance in life? JC: I find it because I have a great family. They provide my balance, because if I’m not balanced, they will hit me on the head (laughs). In this job, it is very important to have a solid background, someplace you can go and where you can relax. Where you are allowed to laugh and cry when you need to and people understand you if something does not run quite as smoothly as you would like. If there is any advice I would give to young professionals, it would be not to give up time with your family completely for the job. Because one day it could be that you have neither job nor family. Q: How popular do you think opera is today? JC: That’s a very tricky question. I have no idea. I think art in general is popular, in the sense that people today need art more than ever. You need beauty to be able to distract you from the hard life of everyday. But it is also true that time is precious these days and people do not have as much time to go to the theater or the opera or even the cinema. It’s a difficult time. But we are beginning to recognize the problems that make it difficult to survive and what effects these problems have on all of us, so I hope that the arts remain popular for a long time and survive until the crisis is over. Society needs this ‘way out’ offered by culture. It is not about snobbish culture but culture as a ‘resort,’ as a food for the soul and the spirit. Q: You’re a big star in the world of opera. Do you see yourself as a star? JC: I hate the word star. I find the word so stupid because a star, a star is so far away from Earth and I think the best way to be an artist is to have both feet firmly on the ground. If you feel like a star, if you are ‘out there’ then you’re not a real artist but only a show business product. Nobody really needs a show business product, except the show business industry. When I go on stage, there is just me, the music, and the love for the people who enjoy what I’m trying to give them. The word ‘star’ is a very strange way to describe a good artist. We have no such word in Spanish that describes an artist like that. We say artists, or main characters or something like that, but we do not call anybody a star. Q: You work so much. Do you ever have a fear of burning out? JC: I don't work as much anymore, at least not as much as some of my colleagues. Believe me. I worked a lot until I was 48, 49, but then I told my family that when I turn 50, as I am now, I would do less. Now I work only on nice projects, nice ideas and productions and spend more time at home with my family, my children. My older son just got married and I enjoy seeing him as a young husband. It is a great adventure in life. If you spend all your time working, you miss all the beautiful things.
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Be Yourself. Because Everybody Else is Already Taken December 17, 2013 Interview by Renate Publig for the Neue Merker (English version)
The dark velvety voice of José Cura is his trademark as well as his intensity in portraying roles. But the tenor is not only dedicated to opera: Fifteen years ago his CD “Anhelo” was released, with songs of his native country Argentina, some of those tunes will also be performed at his first recital in Vienna. - Mr. Cura, in your first recital at the Viennese Konzerthaus you will present songs from native country, songs which seem to be by of a rather wistful, melancholic character. Is this reflective tone typical for Argentinean songs? Regarding the composers of this repertoire, we are talking about a generation of people who were descendants of immigrants, or even immigrants themselves. Today, the personality of the modern Argentinean has changed, a lot of time has passed, but people of that former generation was very much affected by nostalgia, having to leave behind their lands, their beloved ones, in order to find their fortune in a foreign country. That “longing” is reflected in the music. But in the second half of the concert you will also hear joyful songs, not all tunes are sad! - What does it mean to you to bring these songs to other countries? I do this recital a lot, I’ve just given one in Budapest, in the new auditorium called MUPA, with 2000 seats. It was completely sold out, so we had to add 100 seats on the stage itself. A wonderful atmosphere: myself and the pianist in the center and the public all around! Such a direct contact with the audience! This program, for the Viennese audience, is likely to be a different recital than expected by the Liederabend tradition. For such evenings a singer often chooses a repertoire based on his land, the country he comes from, therefore German-speaking people usually base their program on Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, etc. Generally talking, it’s not common to have a recital of Argentinean classic music. I think the public in Vienna, which is eager for music, will find interesting to get to know songs and poetry so far away from the usual repertoire! - How do you choose songs, what is more important, the lyrics or the beauty of the melody? Both, but speaking about Lieder, I think the lyrics are very, very important. A great Liederabend is based on great poetry; it’s that combination which makes a Liederabend so special. The music sometimes may even sound a little naïve, “naïve” in the real sense of the word, which is “innocent” and not “stupid”. Contemporary music, when badly written, is sometimes uselessly complex and dissonant, even on words that don’t need such artificial treatment. Some poetry requires simple, innocent music. It takes enormous courage to compose naïve music! - There is a huge difference between singing an opera, with orchestra, colleagues, costumes, or a recital with a piano accompaniment. What do you like about recitals? When you are performing in an opera, it is not you on stage, it’s your character. You have to behave in ways you would never do as a private person. With Otello’s psychology, for example, which I have performed recently here in Vienna, I have nothing in common. Of course it’s my obligation as singer/actor to leave my personality in the hotel and bring on stage the character of Otello even if that goes against my moral. On the other side, a recital enables you to show a bit of your own persona, through the concept of the chosen program. It is you on stage, not anybody else, not a character. You have the chance to communicate with the audience directly, and this close up is very enriching. I have been having an artistic relationship with Vienna for about twenty years and, because after a recital you know much more about an artist, and the artist also learns more about his audience, I would have loved to do a recital here much earlier… Technically, it is much more difficult to sing a Liederabend than an opera. Nothing protects you: it is just you, your soul and the music. Also a song’s recital allows you to sing in a softer voice; you can add much more colors to the words and the music. You don’t have the athletic high notes of the opera to deal with, so all is more in time. This said, you must know that sometimes people are disappointed because you didn’t sing an opera aria in a Liederabend, not even Nessun dorma as an encore… - You also will present some of your compositions – is there a way to describe your style? There’s one thing that composers in the present must have in mind: After Johann Sebastian Bach, everything else is a comment. That phrase is not from me, but from Mozart. It points out that no matter what you do, there’s nothing really fully new under the sun in terms of music: the geniuses have already done it all, or almost. On top of that, I think nobody needs new music from José Cura in the world, so it’s not with that intention that I wrote these songs. The songs were composed in a very special periods of my life, the first two were written in 1995, the last two in 2006. The number six, the last but one song in the cycle, is also the last song I wrote and it was written in Vienna, when I was here for Don Carlo. Harmonically the music is very rich, with interesting melodies, but the main purpose of the songs is the extreme respect to Neruda. When you write music on the words of such an incredible genius, your music has to step under the word, every melody and harmony being the representation in music of the meaning of the poetry. In that sense the songs may surprise for not being hysterically contemporary, on the contrary, they are romantic, some of them dramatic, and they are never overwhelming the great poetry of Neruda - You grew up in Argentina at times when democracy started to form after the military regime and when the country fought with unemployment and poverty. With a requiem and a Stabat mater, you set music to very profound texts. Are you a pensive person? I am a very pensive person. Some people think singers to be like the character they portrays on stage. That happens to many persons whose career, whose work, is based on representing somebody else. A lot of people said about me many years ago that I was arrogant, which I’m not, it’s the characters I portray, like Canio or Radames or Otello, etc, who’s personalities are conflictive, not me… I am a very pensive and peaceful person. Today I’m turning 51. When you approach a certain age at which you are not old, but not young anymore, to be pensive, to have wisdom is one of the most beautiful things to achieve. - Have your compositions of that time ever been performed? No. The war was in 1982, I wrote the requiem in 1984 as an immediate reaction to the war. I never reopened the score since then, I cannot even tell what’s in the music, I can’t remember. Should it be performed one day, the big decision would be if to show it as it was, or if I completely re-edit it with the 30 years of life and musical experience I have gained since. I don’t know. Perhaps two versions? - You began your musical development as a composer and as a conductor. Does this knowledge of the structures of a score influence your interpretation of a character? A lot. And not only the composing and the conducting, but also my constant curiosity in analyzing the text and acting in consequence. The interpretation of a role is an incessant process of research. So I am not angry when someone points out a mistake I might have made in such research. Getting to the bone inside a character is my characteristic as an artist and, I know, that with age an experience, I am becoming much more radical in my interpretations. I wouldn’t be me if I wouldn’t do it in order to be sure people will not be disappointed. I always have to ponder if I should or should not integrate my perceptions into the interpretations even at the risk of being criticized for it. I don’t know it yet, but maybe sooner or later I will be making a nice compromise: being radical but balanced… - Are you seeking for characters with multiple layers of personality in order to have the possibility of different approaches to the roles? I think there are two ways of performing: One way is to be “just” a professional performer, relying on interpretations which have proved to be efficient in the past, not taking too many changes. (This is maybe a prudent thing to do. I admire in a way who can work like that. That does not only count for singers, but also for painters, sculptors, any artistic manifestation. It is important to remember that what we consider “Classic” or “Traditional” today, was once perceived as insurgent and disturbing). The other way is to go for research, experimentation, to try to do some fresh and new, to follow your ideals as an artist, as a human being, dreaming to take things to where you feel they could be going. Not in order to scandalize, not out of the cheap spirit of being controversial, but based on healthy and honest exploration. This is the only way to keep things moving. - Singers sometimes complain about more and more directors hardly being able to read music. Does it happen to you that directors tell you what to do on stage while the music clearly demands something different? That’s a big issue. First of all, nowadays unfortunately there are less and less new productions. I consider myself to have been very lucky because I did so many new productions in my career, and I learnt a lot in them. Many young talented singers of the new generation do not get the same chance, they have to perform again and again in “repertoire performances”, without the possibility of creating something new. This is in the long term very harmful. I have no problem working with anybody if they are well prepared. I used to make a comparison: When you dance with somebody who knows how to dance, you are very happy to relax and to be guided by that person, because that’s the magic of dancing. But when you dance with someone who is again and again standing on your toes, you have to take a decision: Either you stop dancing, many does, and leave, or you take the guide yourself. I love to work with persons who are knowledgeable, prepared, professional. Then you can honestly say, “You take the lead, I am your instrument as a singer” (In the same way the orchestra is the instrument of the conductor). The problem is that today we find less and less of such “dancers”, maybe because of the so-called “Wikipedia-generation”: people who think that having read an article in the Internet makes them experts. The profession of the director is a dangerous one since a director can cheat very easily! As a singer you either sing or you go home, you cannot feign. That also applies to a conductor: If you are not good enough, the orchestra uncovers your deficiencies and you are in very big troubles. But as a director you can bluff easily. Many of these “geniuses of stage direction” have good assistants who do the job for them. Not to mention how fashionable is today to hide your lack of great ideas with a supposed to be contemporary approach to a piece. The so called Regie-theater is great when it’s based on talent: Lots of new views were discovered thanks to it. But it is very bad when it becomes the excuse to cover the non-existence of good ideas. - Conducting an opera gives you much more opportunity to “create” the piece than singing one part of it. On the other hand, a singer has other possibilities to “dive” into the emotion and to deliver it to the audience. Which side do you prefer and in which way? Those really are two completely different approaches: The conductor has to put all his compassion, all his hot heart into the preparation of the piece. The rehearsals are the moment in which to take risks, where you may discover things. If you are too careful or conservative during rehearsals, you might miss out things, which would be a shame. But when the moment of performance arrives and the conductor is in charge, he has to be very vigilant, prudent and careful, because he is the main link, sometimes the only one, between the stage and the pit. In Vienna the orchestra is very high in level, so singers and orchestra can hear each other very well. But normally the orchestra pit is much lower, so singers and orchestra players do not hear each other very much, and of course they don’t see each other at all. IN these cases, the only connection is the conductor. A singer, when he/she is a try artist, also makes researches during rehearsals and, of course, he/she also has then to be careful and professional during performances, as the conductor is: cold in his head and hot in his heart. But the added luck of the singer –I can tell because I live the best of both worlds– is to be in direct contact with the “flesh” of the drama. If you compare the performance with an act of love, singing is the moment you are actually making love: You are sweating, you are crying, bleeding, you are afraid, you have joy, to sing, portraying a character, it’s a very physical experience. - You often hold master classes for aspiring singers, so working with young singers is important to you? I think working with young people is the only way we can ensure a stable future. As a father of three I can tell you I have my own experience at home! We live in very delicate times, both social and economical. This interview is not the moment to elaborate on that subject, otherwise it would be a very long one. The only way to pave the way for a better future is to help preparing now the generation that is going to be in charge, and to accomplish that, you have to give the best of you when you still can do it. I don’t think is wise to keep your experiences just to yourself, to prevent others from stealing your originality. That’s a very silly and very egoistic attitude. I try to pass on to young people insights that I have obtained, which work for me. I reveal to them my way of doing art, of singing, of conducting, of making music. But I ask them not to use my insights to imitate me, but as a tool to go for their own discoveries. One of my credos, which I always say to young people when I direct or conduct, is a great phrase from Oscar Wilde, who said: “Be yourself. Because everybody else is already taken.” Nobody needs a clone! There is no reason to perform the same music, the same opera again and again, if not for the purpose of experiencing it through the filter of the personality of a different artist. It is wonderful to discover the new approaches that a piece, “passing” through a different human being (with other social or personal background, living in another time), can give. That is the great thing about art. - Some pessimists say that opera and classical music in general is dying. I don’t believe it. Classical art will never die unless we kill it. If you put classical art under a crystal bell in order to prevent it from contamination, the air inside the bell will sooner or later be used up, suffocating that same Art you are trying to protect. The surviving of art depends on ALL of us, the artists, the audience, the journalists. After all, we are united by a wonderful thing, by music, so by facing each other with politeness and with respect we may keep art alive. When a journalist doesn’t like my interpretation and points out what he dislikes in an educated way, I accept his/her professional point of view. Anybody with intelligence appreciates a respectful opinion. But when a journalist says, “I don’t like this singer because he barks”, then it is an ordinary and impolite opinion; completely unnecessary and worthless. The same opinion can be expressed with elegance and education. Respect is an important thing. It is as old as the world that most people mistake the expression “I don’t like it” with the expression “It is not good”. These two are not synonyms. It happens to every artist. Poor Van Gogh didn’t sell a single picture in his live; he was considered to have no technique, no art, no this, no that, etc… Just think about what Van Gogh means to modern painting and take your conclusions! - Missing financial resources are quite frequently held responsible for the decay of culture. Do you agree? The question about the present economy killing culture is a very delicate one. To begging with, the theory that “less money leads to the destruction of individual culture” is not true. Anyone, even with little money, who wishes to get “culturized” can go to museums, to libraries, to performances where the ticket price is cheap, sometimes even free. The financial situation it is often used as an excuse. Take Vienna as an example: There is an incredible wide range of cultural propositions, museums, etc. Even at the Staatsoper, you can get very reasonable tickets if you want. Holding the economical crisis responsible for the “destruction of culture” cannot be accepted so easily: the crisis does not destroy the culture itself, but the business of culture. Money is needed to realize “certain” cultural projects; without financial means some projects cannot be implemented: this is the business in art. But has nothing to do with the fact that the poor economical situation is condemning a whole generation to a “lack of culture”. it is maybe condemning a certain group of people to a “lack of business”. But that’s a whole other story. If you intend to make just money with art, opera for example, the same ten most popular operas have to be always performed and with the most popular singers of the moment, so tickets are sold well at the box office. This is not bad and not good. Peace. But it has not to do, directly, with culture. It is just business. It is essential to distinguish between “just” Culture (with capital C) and Cultural Business. - Mr. Cura, thank you so much for this highly interesting interview, and good luck with your recital at the Konzerthaus! I hope to see many of my Viennese friends at the concert; it will be a very special evening for me. I don’t know if Argentinean music will be to the taste of Viennese public, but I hope yes.
December 5, 2013 Renate Publig (Note: Mr. Cura has kindly agreed to give this interview on his birthday, and for that I owe my sincere gratitude) |
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Argentine Star Tenor Sings Solo Show OE24 E. Hirschmann-Altzinger 8 December 2013
[Computer-Assisted Translation // Excerpt] The Argentine star tenor José Cura sings songs from his homeland on Monday At the age of 15 he made his debut as a choir conductor and at the same time studied composition, piano and singing. For 20 years, the Argentine star tenor José Cura, who most recently triumphed as Verdi's Otello at the State Opera, has been one of the most important opera singers in the world. On Monday, he will perform a recital at the Wiener Konzerthaus, accompanied by Kristin Okerlund at the piano, with works by Argentinian composers such as Carlos Guastavino, Carlos López Buchardo, Alberto Ginastera and Maria Elena Walsh that are little known in this country. An original composition entitled Sonetos, based on a poem by Pablo Neruda, will also be performed.
Schubert Schlager These songs have nothing in common with the Tango Argentino, the most famous dance music of his homeland: "The 'Tango Argentino' is great pop music, but you can't compare it with the songs I sing. There are different styles of music in Argentina, just like in Austria or Germany. When you talk about German music, you don't usually just mean German Schlager." "I don't sing nearly as loud during these songs" The difference between opera and recital, says Cura, is considerable: “Although I sing in both cases, I don't sing nearly as loudly in lieder because I'm not accompanied by an orchestra but by the piano. And I’m not telling a story, I’m reciting a poem.” |
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An Evening with José Cura Argentine songs Online Merkur Renate Wagner 9 December 2013
[Computer-assisted Translation // Excerpt] Some people may have imagined “Argentinian songs” to be something different than what José Cura offered in two and a quarter hours in the Great Hall of the Vienna Konzerthaus. Argentina, after all, is the land of tango, olé!, and the fact that they might have something there like the Italians have their “Sole mio” and the Spaniards their “Granada” was to be expected. But no, it was a completely different kind of evening that the Argentine-born tenor offered - and it was obviously very important to him to show a different side of himself in every respect than just sweeping around the stage dramatically. Even the arrangement was unusual: at the piano was a blonde lady, Kristin Okerlund, who works as a solo accompanist at the Vienna State Opera and is often on the road as a song accompanist. A Spanish and German-speaking lady was placed slightly to the right in the background; she introduced parts of the songs textually, so that the audience had an idea of what the tenor was singing that evening: José Cura, sitting on a kind of bar stool in the middle of the stage, unabashedly wearing his glasses on his nose, and reeling off a program with an almost strange calm that showed nothing of South American temperament, but certainly an excess of melancholy (almost in the price range: The grave is my joy). Cura sang the works with restraint, lots of pianos, giving little voice, very rarely going for a top note, probably a splendid shaper of the texts in the parlando. It was just that no one understand them. When it came to the cycle of Sonetos by Pablo Neruda, Cura was too reticent to name the composer of these songs: his name is José Cura (for the man is a musical all-rounder) and the latter obviously made an effort to translate the high literary standards of the texts into music. Soulful, emotionally intense, mournful are probably the epithets to be used here. In the second half, Cura promised “now we are going to have a little bit more fun” with the Flores argentinas by Carlos Guastavino. The songs, centered on flowers which served to cater to various types of folklore, were somewhat livelier but the evening was still not really ‘mixed.’ But it was only when Cura told how, for the opening of the Teatro Colon in 1908, Héctor Panizza's opera Aurora created the country's national anthem, Canción a la bandera, did momentum rise. It was only for this hymn he sang every day as a young boy at school that Cura (standing for the first time), sang out with full force, volume and high notes (“Patria mia”). In short, he gave everything his patient fans hoped for from him. Then, with a lot of applause and warmth, there were three more encores. It may not have been the most entertaining evening, but it wasn't meant to be. In any case, José Cura fulfilled his intention of showing a completely different, more tender, more soulful side.
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Last Updated: Sunday, November 12, 2023 © Copyright: Kira
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The
man has survived. The extremely likable Argentine star tenor Jose
Cura will present Argentine songs when he guests for the first time
at the Vienna Konzerthaus. MoMag asked the versatile artist
to talk about his exciting career:
