Genial Taskmaster

Today's New York Times includes an article on Donald Palumbo, who recently took the reins as chorus master at the Metropolitan Opera. Thinking about the topic of artistic leadership styles (addressed in my "screaming and throwing chairs" post last week), I was struck by the following passage, which quotes Mr. Palumbo as he gives notes to the chorus preparing for the Met's new production of Berlioz's Damnation of Faust:

"“No, your ‘hélas’ must not sound like whining,” Mr. Palumbo urged. “The color is too bright and high. ... Articulate with more pulse. ... Trust your instincts, and go with it when the harmonies weave together. ... Basses, on that ‘tra-la-ho-ho’ passage, give me more boom and a less churchlike ‘ho.’... Can that phrase bloom rather than just explode? ... Grab every note of this rising passage. Don’t just run up the scale. ... The chorus of celestial spirits must be completely passive, with no forward pressure on the voice at all. Soft but specific. Don’t ooze into the note.”

The specificity of this language is just bracing, and I think it's notable that in every case where he cites a "don't" Palumbo also gives a very directive "do." No screaming or throwing chairs. The article notes the marked improvement in the work of the Met chorus since this "genial taskmaster" assumed his post.

Taking My Bias to the Opera

I went to the opera last month to see Bizet's The Pearl Fishers performed by the Washington National Opera. The sets and costumes in this much-travelled production were by Zandra Rhodes, the trendy-but-individualistic British fashion designer.

Looking back, I'm aware that I walked into the theater with two particular biases.

Bias No. 1, regarding the participation of Ms. Rhodes: Fashion designers don't necessarily make good theatrical costume designers. The two disciplines are very different, in fact, and it always seems like a bit of an insult to costume designers who have toiled in the backstage trenches when opera managments see fit to headline a star fashion designer with an assignment like this. (Some fuss was being made over Rhodes' involvement, with an insert in the program alerting us to the fact that her scarves and other accessories were on sale at the Kennedy Center gift shop.)

Bias No. 2: The score of The Pearl Fishers (an early work by the composer of the much more famous Carmen) has some beautiful passages. It also has some stretches of much less inspired music. My very biased adjectives for said music include banal, vapid, polite. I'll admit that this isn't a very original opinion.

It's interesting to walk into an artistic situation conscious of your bias. You could look to the situation to reinforce your opinion, or you could decide that your opinion might be subject to change based on what you encounter. I guess in this situation I did a bit of both.

Regarding my bias against fashion designers on the opera stage, I actually went somewhere. For this work -- set in "ancient Celon" -- I thought Zandra Rhodes' costumes created some gorgeous stage pictures with their wide pallette of deep, jewel-like colors. They struck a note of kitschy over-the-top exoticism that was just right for a work that trades in spectacle and a sort of touristy delight in foreign cultures. They didn't do a whole lot to advance your understanding of characters or relationships, but it's not like The Pearl Fishers is Ibsen. Conclusion: a fashion designer's sensibilty can work on the opera stage when there's a good match between that sensibility, the work in question, and the overall production concept.

As to my bias about the music of The Pearl Fishers , I remained pretty rock-steady in my very conventional opinion. But looking back, I'm aware that I didn't do much to challenge myself. What if I'd walked into the opera house saying, "I'm going to listen harder. I going to pay attention to the structure of the music or the orchestration. I'm going to cock my ears for something I haven't heard before." But I didn't and it's no suprise that my opinion didn't change.

I remember a sign on someone's dorm room door when I was in college:

"If you haven't changed your opinon about something in the last six months, check your pulse. You may be dead."

It's always worthwhile testing an opinon, but it does take willingness and an effort of mind.