Baltimore Opera Company

Study Guide

Who's Who at the Opera

THE CONDUCTOR — The Conductor is in charge of all musical aspects of the operatic production. He is present at all staging rehearsals to conduct the singers while they are being staged, and makes sure that uniformity and communication between the stage and the orchestra pit flow smoothly by performance time. He rehearses the orchestra prior to rehearsals in the theatre, making sure that all the orchestral musicians are aware of his tempi and interpretation.

The conductor typically has an instrumental background, with proficiency in a wide area of musical subjects. His knowledge of the voice gives him an understanding of the role of the singer, and his instrumental background is useful in giving instructions to the orchestra. His knowledge of music history and performance practice is invaluable in making decisions and interpretations of the many different works in the musical spectrum.

THE ORCHESTRA — For many years the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra was the orchestra for all Baltimore Opera performances. In 1987 the Baltimore Opera Orchestra was formed to provide the orchestral accompaniment to our productions.

The Baltimore Opera Orchestra is composed of professional musicians from all throughout the region. Entrance is by audition in person or through a recital or formal performance situation. Many of the musicians are leading players in the many professional orchestras and chamber groups in the region. Prior to the music being disseminated to the musicians it must be carefully edited. All bowings for the string parts must be hand printed in the scores, as well as all cuts, changes and emendations that the conductors has decided upon. The orchestra rehearses for two sessions before joining the singers. The first rehearsal with the singers is known as the "Sitzprobe." This is a German term (sitz = sitting; probe = rehearsal) and indicates a rehearsal, either on stage or in a rehearsal hall, in which the singers sing the music without staging. This is done to ensure the communication and synchronization of all musical concerns and cues prior to the additional difficulty incurred by stage placement. The next rehearsal with orchestra is known as the "Wandelprobe" (wandel = wander). This rehearsal is where all the logistical problems are solved. Even with the most careful planning and forethought problems arise (i.e.: not being able to see the conductor, staging in which the singer is not well placed to ensure that the voice will carry into the hall) that must be corrected. The final rehearsal with the orchestra is the Dress Rehearsal, in which hopefully all problems have been solved and the rehearsal may proceed without stopping, as in a performance. After the Dress Rehearsal the orchestra often stays for musical notes.

Orchestra members generally begin their musical studies at an early age, often through school orchestra and band programs. Formal studies at a university or conservatory often follow, and quite frequently they continue to study and coach all though their professional career.

THE STAGE DIRECTOR — The Stage Director is responsible for the stage placement of all soloists, chorus members, and supernumeraries. It is his duty to illuminate the plot through the effective staging of the characters, and to make sure that all characters are able to see the conductor at all times! He confers with the Lighting Designer and Costume Designer in order to have a cohesive artistic whole. Stage Directors have a variety of training and backgrounds, but primarily they are persons trained in Classical Theatre. Quite frequently when the Stage Director has artistic expertise they are responsible for the entire design concept of the production, including not only stage direction but set design, set lighting, and costume design.

THE VOICES — Voices are generally subdivided into six categories: soprano, mezzo-soprano, contralto, tenor, baritone and bass.

The soprano is the highest female voice type. Subdivisions in that vocal type are:
The coloratura soprano — a voice that can sing comfortably in the extremely high part of the vocal range. This voice can also sing the virtuosic bel canto parts that require extreme agility and floridness. Coloraturas generally sing youthful parts, ingénues, and often times personages of fantasy.
The dramatic soprano — a voice, of huge sound and projection, that can sing roles requiring great dramatic and heroic involvement. While the dramatic soprano sings mostly German repertoire (Brünnhilde, Elektra, Senta), she also can successfully sing Italian roles, such as Turandot, La Gioconda, and Ekaterina Ismailova (Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk).
The spinto soprano — a voice that combines the heroic qualities of the dramatic soprano with the expressive, gentler qualities of the lyric soprano. The spinto soprano can sing the major Puccini and Verdi heroines, including Leonora in Il Trovatore.
The lyric soprano — a voice that can expressively sing roles of youth and innocence, including Micaëla in Carmen.

The mezzo-soprano sings between the soprano and the contralto. Subdivisions are:
The dramatic mezzo — a voice that, due to its size and dark color, can sing roles of great dramatic involvement. This voice is generally assigned to characters of wickedness, revenge, hatred, and temptation, such as Azucena in Il Trovatore.
The lyric mezzo — a voice less dark and heroic than the dramatic mezzo. This voice frequently sings "trouser roles," or masculine roles sung by women. Often times this is done when the composer wants the character to have an adolescent quality, or often it is done to hearken back to the baroque and classical periods, when male roles were often sung by women (and vice versa!).

The contralto — the lowest female voice. Due to its dark, warm color the voice is often used to portray matronly characters. This voice is becoming increasingly rare in the music world as opera houses and orchestras grow larger in size. Since it is easier for a female singer to project her higher notes (as opposed to lower) into a hall, many singers find their voices moving upwards to the mezzo-soprano or dramatic soprano category. Consequently, the contralto often finds a more agreeable home in oratorio.

The tenor is the highest male voice. Subdivision in that category are:
The counter-tenor — a voice that sings primarily in the contralto range. This voice can sing roles written primarily for the castrati, but is increasingly finding favor amongst composers (primarily Britten) in modern times.
The tenor leggiero — a voice corresponding to the coloratura soprano. This voice sings youthful characters and sometimes incorporates large amounts of floridness in his singing.
The dramatic tenor — a voice corresponding to the Dramatic soprano. When a dramatic tenor sings primarily German roles he is called a Heldentenor.
The lyric tenor — a voice that can sing roles requiring heroism and lyricism. Although there is no formal break into two categories, lyric tenors are generally more comfortable singing roles that lean one way or the other.

The baritone sings between the tenor and bass. The two subdivisions are:
The dramatic baritone — a voice that can sing roles of great dramatic and heroic involvement. A voice of a dark quality, he often is the nemesis of a plot.
The lyric baritone — a voice that sings sympathetic and youthful characters.
The bass-baritone — a voice that combines the darkness of the bass voice with the resonance of the baritone voice. This voice is similar to the dramatic baritone voice but calls for the singer to sing more in the lower part of his range. The role of Baron Scarpia in Tosca will be sung by a bass- baritone.

The bass is the lowest male voice. The three subdivisions are:
The basso cantante — a lyric bass voice that sings fatherly, expressive roles.
The basso buffo — a voice that can sing the great comic roles with panache. The singer is often called upon to have tremendous ability to sing "patter" arias, in which a great number of words need to be spoken at high velocity.
The basso profundo — a voice of great darkness and drama, often singing sinister roles.

THE CHORUS — The Baltimore Opera Chorus is composed of professional singers from Maryland, Virginia, the District of Columbia, and Delaware. Many of them sing leading roles in other companies, and most of the smaller roles (comprimario) in our main stage productions are sung by the artists in the chorus. The chorus rehearses their music by-weekly three weeks prior to the staging rehearsal period, in which all of the soloists come together for staging and musical rehearsals. They usually have 12-18 hours of staging rehearsals prior to the run-throughs during Tech Week.

The Baltimore Opera Chorus is affiliated with AGMA, or the American Guild of Musical Artists, founded by the great baritone Lawrence Tibbett in 1936. Auditions for the chorus are held annually in the spring. It is a great honor to be chosen for the Baltimore Opera Chorus and several artists have been with the company for over 20 years.

Choristers frequently begin singing at an early age. Because of physiological differences boys may begin formal vocal training earlier than girls. School choruses and religious ensembles provide additional training to the young singer. Universities and conservatories offer vocal studies, with emphases not only on opera but also on the art song. Singers often continue vocal study and coaching of repertoire all throughout their professional career.

THE CHORUS MASTER — The Chorus Master rehearses the chorus prior to the arrival of the Conductor. He makes sure that diction is uniform, that the singers have an in-depth knowledge of the text and music, and that every chorus member has their part perfectly memorized. He confers with the conductor prior to rehearsals to ensure that the musical interpretation and execution are in harmony with the conductor's artistic plan. He attends all staging rehearsals in order to make musical changes and accommodations that should arise pertinent to the placement of chorus members on or off stage. He is present at all performances in a variety of capacities: to conduct and cue off-stage soloists, choristers, and/or instrumentalists; to play musical instruments that need to sound from backstage; occasionally to fill in for an ailing or missing soloist!

THE LIGHTING DESIGNER — The lighting designer is responsible for the intricate lighting effects during a performance. He, upon conferring with the Stage Director, designs a general light plot, achieving the mood required for the artistic sense of the opera. The Lighting Designer then attends staging rehearsals in order to light the singers according to where they will be placed on the stage. The entire lighting system is computerized so that with one flick of a button an entire system of up to 1,000 lights can be activated. The Lighting Designer has specific conservatory and theatre training in lighting techniques and has graphic design talent as well.

THE COSTUME DESIGNER — The Costume Designer is responsible for all costumes worn by all characters on the stage and closely confers with the Stage Director so that artistic unity may be achieved within in the production. He is highly trained in authentic costuming from all historic eras and has tremendous expertise in graphic and fashion design. He also supervises the costume fittings and alterations, making sure that all characters are wearing their attire correctly.

THE WIG AND MAKEUP DESIGNER — The Wig and Makeup Designer is responsible for the styling and application of all wigs, hair and makeup on every character on stage, from the prima donna to the spear-carrier. She closely confers with the Stage Director and the Costume Designer so that there is artistic harmony and consistency within every production. The Designer is trained in hairstyling, wig styling and maintenance, hygiene and makeup application as well as in the historic periods for which these are used. She supervises assistants and trains a volunteer crew in their responsibilities for each production and does the wig fitting for every character, provides haircuts when needed, applies the principal artists' makeup and wigs, and works on building hair décor.

SUPERNUMERARIES — The supernumeraries (or "supers") are the extras in the opera world. On the many occasions when we need townspeople, soldiers, spear-carriers, or just about any other type of personage, the supers are called to be an essential part of the drama. Although many of the supers can sing and enjoy doing so, their job in opera is only to act and often to provide essential help in moving stage props. Prior to rehearsing with the principals the supers rehearse with the chorus and often by themselves. Some operas require very little rehearsal for supers, but often times the "grand" operas require a great deal of rehearsal time. Supers come from every walk of life and the BOPS (Baltimore Opera Supers Guild) is one of the most active organizations in the Baltimore Opera Company, providing social, philanthropic and pro-active resources both to themselves and to the company.

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