Worldwide recognized as the most great tenor, Jonas Kaufmann returned to Paris with a double news his role in Don Carlos, a French opera by Giuseppe Verdi, in the Opéra Bastille; and a disc, L’Opéra, entirely devoted to the French repertoire.
By Tancrède Riviere
In September 2018, we heard a lot about Luciano Pavarotti, who passed away 10 years ago. Are you about to make us forget it?
(Laughter). We do not can not forget Pavarotti. It was a golden voice. It is difficult to talk about of him, because his qualities were obvious, but also his limits. And I don’t talk about its weight! It is not a musician with whom he was easy to work with. And his repertoire was entirely limited to opera Italian, which is a shame. But he was the best.
A limited repertoire, little acting talent… Don’t you embody the opposite? Is it Also the opera that has changed in the last ten or twenty years?
Yes, in part. But there have always been singers who presented well, knew how to play and were loved for it. Corelli was a beautiful man, and a real comedian, even if the criteria of good taste were different. The environment has changed, because tastes are evolving. I often tell the story of an opera director, who had once seen a production in Vienna. It is remembered as a perfection. One day, he came across a recording. Usually looking at her, he said to himself: “But there is nothing to see! First the world is standing around doing nothing, no one is looking at each other! At the time, I thought it was the ultimate, great singers, a great Chief…” And it was… but 30 years earlier. We want more. Today, The problem is that we lack imagination. People do not They don’t read enough, they like to be entertained easily. Television, the movies, video games are virtual realities that are easy to digest. When you go to the opera or to the theater, everything is about illusion. It is the imagination at work. Although we were struggling with this, we had to gradually bring us closer to reality, so that people can feel, suffer or rejoice with us. That’s why we also wanted to singers who physically match the roles. Fortunately, we have come back, because we realized that without the deep quality of the voices and the music, what does the appearance matter?
Is it related to the evolution the role of the director?
Yes. This function did not exist. In the last century, the singers travelled with their own costumes. During the tours, they their Lohengrin costume, their costume for the Pagliacci… Lohengrin looked like Lohengrin, what more was needed? Then everything had to be different each time: the time, the characters… With the DVDs, we have all the images of the productions past, and it’s about competing with them. So how do you make something out of new? The desire to change everything at any cost has become a bit crazy. I sometimes fight with the directors, saying: You can do what you want, interpret as you wish, but each element must have a meaning. We can’t begin to to get rid of this or that because it no longer fits in the interpretation. If a character says, “What are you doing kneeling?” and that no one is on their knees, it is not possible. We need to find a reason so that he is on his knees. Some do it brilliantly, others don’t. I do not not want to return to the great entertainment, in which not everything can be give vocally because there are too many other imperatives.
You work with Krzysztof Warlikowski, who can bring strong ideas. How does the collaboration?
We have exchanges, of course. But he is attentive, he is not the type to give orders and expect to be obeyed. It is without doubt difficult to work with me because I am not shy: if I think there is a problem, I say so. I don’t want to wait for failure and then giggle and say I knew it all along. We must work together.
You said To wish that opera becomes a popular genre again…
I notice that people are talking more about opera than they were 15 years ago years. It seems to me that the Three Tenors have contributed to this: the concert in Rome sold a lot of copies, and for many people it was of their first classical record! This one event changed things for a long time. There was also the Andrea Bocelli effect, in the United States in particular: the public bought opera CDs thanks to him. We underestimate sometimes the power of a single element to change many things.
Your voice problems last year change your plans for the future?
Yes and no. One would have to be crazy not to take advantage of this consequences. But I know I didn’t make a mistake vocally. It there may have been too many trips. I knew right away that it would take just time and that I had to wait. I was impatient. I also have understood that despite all precautions, it can happen. But there is no will not affect my repertoire or my technique. I may be going to just trying to get more breaks.
If you have the What would you like to do in Paris, apart from music?
There are many things I did in Paris. I know well the city, I feel local. I always try to see projects in Garnier, at Châtelet, at the TCE… But Paris, for me, is probably the museums and food. I love museums, especially Orsay. And food is obvious, even if I have to be careful because of my costume! (Laughter)
