Talmage Fauntleroy (Director of OPERA at USC) joined the faculty of the University of South Carolina in 1992 following a ten year residence in Italy. In1982, he was appointed Artistic Director of Studio Lirico, an opera apprentice program located in Cortona, Italy, and since that time he has led it to become one of Europe's major summer opera training centers. In 1993 Studio Lirico became an official program of OPERA at USC. From 1987 to 1991, Mr. Fauntleroy was Director of Opera Studies at the music conservatory, Istituto Musicale "Pietro Mascagni" in Livorno, Italy. Also in 1987, Mr. Fauntleroy became a member of the guest artist faculty of the Kulturama Opera School in Stockholm, Sweden where he directed an annual three week "characterization" seminar as part of the winter mini-term (this position he maintained until 1996). Talmage Fauntleroy maintains an active career as a stage director and opera administrator both in the United States and Europe. He has been a member of the directing staff of the Metropolitan Opera and he has produced operas for such theaters in Europe and in America as the Virginia Opera Theater, Opera Carolina Theater, Central City Opera, Shreveport Opera, Whitewater Opera, Teatro Comunale di Firenze, Piccolo Teatro di Scandicci, the Vlaamse Kammeropera (Belgium), the Kursall Teatro (Belgium), L'Opera de Nice and Festival Estate Fiesolana (Italy) among others. His directing repertory includes popular operatic standards such as Bizet's "Carmen", Donizetti's "Don Pasquale", Humperdink's "Hansel and Gretel", the three Mozart/da Ponte operas, Rossini's "Il barbiere di Siviglia", Verdi's "Rigoletto" and "Un ballo in maschera", as well as masterpieces by such composers as Cimarosa, Gazzaniga, Gluck, Handel, Orlandini, Pergolesi, Salieri and Sacchini.
Talmage Fauntleroy
School of Music
University of South Carolina
Columbia, SC 29208
TFauntleroy@mozart.sc.edu
803.777.2458
Every time I pass through the halls of the University of South Carolina School of Music, I am amazedat the number of pianists I hear working on solo literature in the practice rooms. When asked to do some accompanying, most shrug and respond that they prefer performing as soloists. This vast number of pianists is not restricted to University of South Carolina, for I have encountered this attitude in many music schools and conservatories in the United States and in different countries around the world. Does every one of these pianists hope to be the next Kissin, Goode, Schiff, Ax, Ohlsson, or Watts? Are they all hoping for that very rare career as a solo concert artist? In too many cases, the answer is yes. Do most college-level pianists even know the odds against them for reaching this goal? Was the career objective to become a solo artist chosen after carefully investigating the career possibilities for a pianist, or was this decision the result of a narrow vision of what career possibilities exist for good keyboard artists? For example, how many undergraduate pianist are aware of what wonderful career opportunities there are in the world of opera?
Except for the students who chose to study in an urban environment where there are professional operatic productions, many piano students enter college knowing nothing about opera and without any idea as to what careers may be available in this field. Many have never seen an opera nor have any idea as to how opera could possibly relate to their chosen field of study.
The field of professional opera offers a variety of career opportunities for pianists. Assistant conductors, vocal coaches, rehearsal accompanists, stage assistants (people who give musical cues to cast and production personnel), and prompters (people who give word cues to soloists and chorus) are some of the positions which offer excellent career possibilities for people with a background in piano. Preparation for these positions includes the development of good piano technique along with excellent sight-reading skills, knowledge of foreign languages, knowledge of musical styles, and (for assistant conductors) the ability to play an orchestral score at the keyboard.
So once interested, where does one start? How does a piano student begin to prepare for a career in opera? Starting from the obvious, the student must first develop his or her technique and sight-reading skills and develop musicality through knowledge of a broad repertory. To this study, the college-conservatory level pianist should enroll in accompanying courses, and for practical experience, seek opportunities to accompany singers in operatic repertory. Most colleges, for example, have an opera workshop which provides excellent "hands-on" experience for pianists to work with standard operatic literature (arias, duets, ensembles), and university and conservatory opera programs usually include full productions for which pianists are needed as rehearsal accompanists and as assistant coaches and assistant conductors. Study of languages is encouraged (courses in both diction and in grammar) and training should also include listening to recordings. Hearing a variety of operatic recordings by a variety of conductors and singers will give the pianist insight and ideas on style and also introduce him or her to a broad spectrum of interpretive options. Listening can be enhanced by studying a full orchestra score of the opera. The study of the full operatic score gives the pianist better insight when playing a piano reduction, since it helps to know what instruments are to be simulated on the keyboard. All of this intense academic preparation adds to the pianist's skill and eventually to his or her marketablilty.
After graduation, the pianist desiring a career in opera may continue to refine his skills by studying in specialized opera programs. Many U.S. opera companies offer Apprentice or Young Artist Programs, which provide "hands-on" training and experience for young vocal coaches, rehearsal accompanists, and stage assistants. OPERA America, the international opera service organization located in Washington, D.C., maintains an up-to-date list of companies in the United States and Canada that have apprentice opportunities for young artists aspiring to careers in opera. OPERA America also offers fellowship awards to young artists to work as apprentices artists in an OPERA America approved company. For more information on OPERA America and its program offerings, write to Jamie Driver, Education Director, OPERA America, 1156 15th Street, NW, Suite 810, Washington, DC 20005-1704; E-mail: Jamie@operaam.org.
Another way to sharpen skills in preparation for a career in opera is to work under the guidance of a "master" or mentor. This involves locating an accomplished professional in the field who will accept the pianist as an apprentice. Learning the craft from the bottom up, the apprentice artist should expect to spend most of his or her early years observing. An assistant will be expected to run errands, take notes for the conductor, stage manager, or stage director, make musical adjustments to the instrumental parts (cuts, dynamic markings, etc...) and as he or she advances, serve as a substitute for the mentor in music or staging rehearsals. A simple way to identify potential artists/mentors is to read the major opera magazines to keep track of who is working in the field. Magazines such as Opera News, Opera Canada, and Opera (published in London) keep monthly listings and calendars of schedules of professional opera companies and the professionals who work in these companies. The New York Opera Newsletter also publishes up-to-date lists of training opportunities and job openings.
Even while they practice to master solo literature, I hope that university-level pianists will also explore the career options available to them in the world of opera.
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