«I’m trying to connect our current world to

op e ra»

What does your nomination as a Rising Star for the 2023/24 season represent to you? 

It’s an encouragement, a major recognition, especially in the art of the recital, which holds a very important place in my artistic identity. I’m honoured to be part of the Rising Stars family. 

You’re currently rehearsing the opera Justice by Hèctor Parra at the Grand Théâtre de Genève. How does preparing a recital differ for you? 

I think a recital is much harder than an opera because you’re alone on stage, no set, no partner other than the accompanist, either a pianist or another instrumentalist. You have to bring the audience an exceptional moment through your performance, share your reflections on the text and on the dialogue between the voice and the instrument. You move from one song to another – each only lasting a few minutes – and from one composer to another. It’s all about creating a common thread between these different universes put together while bearing in mind that each one is unique. So, planning, preparing, and performing a recital is a titanic task! 

Moreover, vocally, a recital requires much more endurance. In opera, you rarely sing for an hour and a half straight. In a recital, there’s almost no stopping, except during brief solo piano passages. Therefore, you need to manage your technique carefully to maintain a certain level of comfort and avoid being overcome by fatigue, which can undermine all the preparation work you did. It’s both a mental challenge, beforehand, and a physical one, in the moment. I love that kind of challenges, but the recital is probably the greatest one. It’s also one of the rare moments where I can reach an almost trance-like state: I feel a total connection between myself, my musical partner, the audience, my ideas, and my desire. That feeling of complete fulfilment and intense pleasure is truly exhilarating. 

How did you come to commission a piece from Greek composer Sofia Avramidou? 

We were put in touch by the Philharmonie de Paris, one of the institutions that nominated me and has collaborated with Sofia Avramidou for several seasons. I didn’t know this composer at all, but I immediately liked her work. From the beginning, I had a very clear idea of an a cappella piece that could explore in depth the voice, sound and noises, and work on silence management. I insisted that I wanted to work on the range of sounds a person can make, not just a voice. The result is that singing is only one element of her composition: I also do human percussion and sound effects. The instruction was to go as far as possible with a classically trained singer, and Sofia Avramidou really fulfilled all my wishes. Not to mention the fact that I have a lot of fun performing the piece. As she is also a traditional Greek singer, she brought her own cultural background with her, and our exchanges about our respective vocal techniques were fascinating. 

More generally, what role does contemporary music play in your career? 

Until last season, I had never really performed contemporary music. Then, I was invited to perform the opera Adriana Mater by Kaija Saariaho in San Francisco, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen and staged by Peter Sellars. It was my first contemporary opera. The experience was especially moving because Kaija Saariaho passed away during our production. It affected me in the right sense of the word, and changed my perspective on contemporary music: I realised I really like it, even when it’s not my part – because you always end up loving what you sing, otherwise, you can’t stand up for it. The working process is also completely different from what I was used to. I wondered if it was specific to Kaija Saariaho’s music, but it’s not. Now that I’m working on Justice by Hèctor Parra in Geneva, I see that I have a real affinity for contemporary repertoire. Creating from scratch is fascinating, especially when it’s a world premiere and there are no recordings: you make the work your own, you find your own marks, you put your own stamp on it…You also immerse yourself in the composer’s vision, which leads to rich exchanges with them. To answer your question: I really enjoy contemporary music and hope to champion it as much as I can throughout my career. 

How did you build your programme for the Philharmonie Luxembourg? 

I wanted a programme that highlights the influence of African American music – jazz, blues or gospel – on classical composers, a thing that always fascinated me. I quickly landed on the Cabaret Songs because cabaret stems from jazz. It was compelling to create a programme that connects these genres while blending different countries, nationalities, and influences. That’s why I chose Schönberg’s Brettl-Lieder and songs by Kurt Weill, as both composers fit perfectly with my theme. With the Cabaret Songs, I decided to delve into American repertoire and added Bolcom’s Cabaret Songs. Then, my next thought was to look for composers who may have composed under these same influences of cabaret, jazz, gospel, and that’s how Florence Price and Margaret Bonds were included in the programme. The negro spiritual «Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child» also felt essential. Lastly, Copland’s melodies fit in my concept as American classical music really stems from jazz and film music. The ones in the programme – all based on Emily Dickinson poems – are my three favourites. 

Tell us about your pianist Kunal Lahiry and the role you give your accompanist. 

A recital is truly a dialogue between two people. The pianist’s role is crucial, almost more important than the singer’s, because we can’t do a recital without pianists, while they can! It’s like a romantic relationship but in an artistic way: we constantly reflect together on every artistic and musical detail in long work sessions where we talk as much as we play. I’ve known Kunal Lahiry since 2019. We met at Carnegie Hall’s Song Studio, each with other partners at the time, but we said that we should work together one day. I later invited him when Deutsche Grammophon asked me to record in its Rising Stars series. We entered the French melodies singing competition in Toulouse, but our first real concerts together only started with this tour. 

You’re a soprano – but how would you describe your voice? 

I’m a soprano because I feel most comfortable in the high register.  My voice really comes into its own in this register, but I like to describe it as round, warm, expressive, colourful… and temperamental. Sometimes it leads me more than I lead it! 

You say you’re exploring what opera is today… 

Above all, I’m trying to connect today’s world with opera, because the purpose of art is to evolve along with the current times. In recitals, I always try to establish a true dialogue with the audience because the public is the core of everything I do: it is for, with, and thanks to them. But today, this art needs explanation, because the time when audiences had deep knowledge of opera is over. For me, that means engaging with people, especially young people, but not only them. We must learn to communicate with an audience that doesn’t have the same relationship with things anymore and lives in a fast-paced society, where everything needs results and sensations instantly. But opera is a bit more complex. We thus need to find ways to meet the current expectations without compromising what opera and recital are all about: moments of sharing and suspended time. The answer isn’t simple, but I’m searching for it. It’s a constant quest.