Daniel Helfgot: Nobody wants to talk about age, and I certainly will not ask you about it. Yet, because you don’t look a day beyond youthfulness, I want to put the issue behind us: You have been singing longer than most soubrettes and still no wobble, no signs of aging. What’s the secret?
Erie Mills: There is NO secret. Good vocal technique should allow a singer of any voice category to sing forever. Choosing the correct repertoire is a must for every voice type. Because I knew that I was a light lyric coloratura, I basically made my career with those roles. And I waited to perform certain (heavier) roles. I sang Lucia after age 30, Queen of the Night at around 40, and only three seasons ago did I sing Manon. I built my career in roles by Mozart, Richard Strauss, Donizetti, and Handel. That’s where I vocally belong, and that’s where I stayed. Singers need to understand that just because they are asked to sing a role doesn’t mean they should. The score dictates a certain size and weight for each role, and that should be the determining factor—not whether we as singers want to sing the role.
According to Elena Nikolaidi, a truly great singer and my teacher for the last 25 years, the vocal prime is between the ages of 40 and 50. If that’s true, my best singing has been in the last 10 years. HA! There’s the answer to your age question, even though you didn’t ask!
Is there a diet you follow? Health habits? Fitness programs?
I have no specific diet. In fact, my problem is I eat everything! When I’m performing I usually don’t drink alcohol for about a week before the premiere, and then not during the run of the engagement.
Singers ARE athletes, and need to keep their bodies in good shape—whatever shape they are. I do love to exercise, and when I’m rehearsing I try to join a gym, so I can work out. This has proven to be difficult since I started teaching full time.
So, if there is no fountain of youth, is this a miracle, or are there secrets that you can share with the uninitiated? I once heard someone say that if you wanted to learn to sing, you should ask a coloratura soprano with a long career who still sings well. Would you elaborate?
For sounding young, see above. For looking young, be positive (your cup should always be half full, not half empty), drink lots of water, and take care of your teeth and skin. Plus, a wonderful relationship always helps! If we’re still singing at 50, I guess we’ve done something right. Again, I would attribute it to good vocal technique and choosing the right repertoire. It’s also important to mention that coloratura sopranos haven’t cornered the market on longevity. There are other artists in different fachs that have sung well for a long time.
You teach voice now. Has teaching taught you about voice beyond what you already knew?
Everything I know about the voice, I’ve learned since I’ve been teaching. I really think teaching has made me a better singer, except for the fact that I don’t have as much time to practice now. When something isn’t going right for me vocally, I always think “What would I say to my student?” That always seems to work.
Also, I’ve learned so much more repertoire, because not all of my students are lyric coloraturas. I’ve learned much more about French melodie, American song, and music by women composers. I love it, and I hope my enthusiasm extends to my students.
Not only am I a fanatic about having my students sing well (with whatever voice they’ve been blessed), but also I think I’ve become a major advocate for the composer. What’s on the page is very important, and singers need to pay attention.
The ranks of singers count a large contingent who are over 40 and are sick of hearing about these “sweet young thangs” who are overnight success stories. They want to know: is there hope for them and their voices?
We live in a youth-oriented era. Americans want young, fast, and I’m sorry to say, disposable. I don’t really think there is such a thing as an overnight success, because most singers who have careers have been singing for some time; however, if a singer hasn’t been “out there doing it” by 35, I doubt that they will have a career. Many times we think a singer is an overnight success, because they haven’t sung in the United States or we haven’t heard them on CDs. The truth is they have probably been honing their craft in Europe. Perhaps another problem, especially for the coloratura sopranos, is that they get typecast early in their careers, and they may not get the opportunity to be seen in a different light as they mature.
This past year I judged several competitions, and the subject of age always surfaced. I remember one judge saying about a 29-year-old tenor, “He’s 29 and he has some technical problems. If they are not fixed now, when are they going to get fixed?” To some this may seem harsh, but there is merit in the statement.
Any roles you stay away from? Why?
I stayed away from the heavier bel canto roles, because I just didn’t think I could do them justice. In the late 80s, one general director asked me to sing Manon. I said no, because I knew the role got heavier as the evening went on (most French repertoire does). At that time I could sing Act I and the Gavotte, but the Saint Sulpice scene would have killed me. I knew that, but the general director didn’t. He took personal offense that I declined, and I never sang in that opera house again. I’m sad about that, but I did the right thing, and I did get to sing Manon eventually.
Any roles you love to go back to?
I’d love to sing Konstanze, Norina, Lucia, and Manon again, because I never sang them enough, and they are such great roles.
Any roles you still want to learn?
While I think I’ve sung most of the standard repertoire roles that I would like to sing, there are several Handel and Rossini “big lady” roles that appeal to me, like Alcina and Semiramide. And I’m very interested in doing new operas. Perhaps because there is no preconceived idea about the role. Also, it’s wonderful to work with the composer.
Any highlights or landmarks that defined the direction of your career?
Starting with the most recent, Miss Havisham’s Fire by Argento, produced by Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, was one of the great highlights of my career. It was one of those rare productions where everyone involved believed in the opera and worked together to create something quite magical. The opera is a wonderful piece of musical theater, and it was a thrill to work with Dominck on an opera that he had invested so much time in. The cast was divine, the director (James Robinson), conductor (Beatrice Affron), and designers (Allen Moyer, Bruno Schwengl and Christopher Akerlind) were marvelous and caring, Tim Steele played beautifully during rehearsals, and Kathryn LaBouff was a wonderful help with the English diction. Add to that being able to perform Aurelia Havisham, one of the great female literary characters of the 19th century, and VOILA! Definitely a highlight! The fact that it was a critical success was icing on the proverbial cake.
Of course my debut at NYC Opera as Cunegonde in Candide, my Met debut as Blondchen in Die Entfuehrung Aus Dem Serail, my Vienna Staatsoper debut as Zerbinetta, and my La Scala debut as Giunia in Mozart’s Lucio Silla were all very special because of the houses and because of the timing in my career.
Non-debuts would include Xerxes in Santa Fe, directed by Stephen Wadsworth and conducted by Kenneth Montgomery and Ariadne Auf Naxos in both Milwaukee and Columbus, staged by Jay Lessenger and conducted by my brother-in-law Joseph Rescigno. Both were wonderful productions with excellent casts, and we really explored the essence of the operas. Great fun, too! And certainly my two years in the Houston Opera Studio would have to be counted as a pivotal time in my career. I was one of the first eight singers chosen for that project, and I grew as an artist because they allowed me to. I will always be grateful to David Gockley and Carlisle Floyd for creating the Studio, to Elena Nikolaidi for teaching me, and to all the wonderful people of the Houston Grand Opera for believing in me. It is a wonderful family to be a part of!
Actually, when looking back on my career, I feel it’s as if every job was an important one and all the opera companies, directors, conductors and colleagues were molding me into the artist I am.
Anybody’s words of wisdom that guided your path?
The words of wisdom that I think about are from my teachers: Dale Moore, Karl Trump, Grace Wilson, John Wustman, David Lloyd, and Elena Nikolaidi. Now when I’m teaching, at times I hear myself saying exactly what they said. I have been extremely well blessed with wonderful teachers and now I really enjoy passing on that information.
Career-wise, the best words probably came from my mom, who knew nothing about opera. She said, “always be the best you can be and settle for nothing less.” This would have been her advice had I not sung a note.
How would you describe the way opera has been defined in the USA vis-à-vis your European experiences?
When I first started 25 years ago, I would have said that in Europe opera is much more a way of life. I really do think that’s changing here in the USA, because companies have been around for years now, and it is a way of life here in so many communities. Of course, singers here still have to travel so much to make a living, because our country is so big. The good news is there’s opera everywhere here now.
What do young singers lack the most today in preparation for a life of singing?
Self-evaluation and stamina.
What should schools and conservatories offer that they don’t?
More foreign languages taught so the students actually speak, not just read and conjugate. More art history, theater, and dance. And probably some business courses. These shouldn’t be taught in place of all the music classes. It’s extremely important that singers improve their musical skills like sight-singing, piano, score-reading. These are invaluable and shouldn’t be neglected.
Where should singers find the information that our institutions don’t offer?
There’s so much information out there these days. Arias are translated on the Internet and in different books. Magazines such as this one offer information about health and auditions. Organizations like Opera America offer invaluable information. I think in that respect it’s much easier now, just because of all the available information.
How do you see voice training being integrated into the total performance requirements of the profession?
I think many times today we forget about the voice altogether. I believe opera is a vocal art form, and the voice should come first. If I want to see actors, I’ll go to a play. Having said that, I know that acting is important. What I don’t hear happening today is coloration in the voice. The character goes through different moods, and the singer must express those moods through the voice. That’s acting with the voice! I always mention Maria Callas’ Lucia mad scene, where from the first note, while listening, I can tell that her Lucia is crazy.
At a certain point the singer must become the character. It’s not about the artist, it’s about the character. Of course this takes great preparation and confidence in what you are trying to do.
Let’s get technical for a moment: people talk of support, of pushing out or pulling up, of keeping the stomach area soft and letting the breath do all the work, of keeping the ribs pulling out, of keeping the chest high but let the ribs come in as the phrase continues, of breathing as if through a straw or through a large pipe. Any words of wisdom an all this?
I really don’t think too much about all of this. I say: breathe naturally, fill the lungs with air, use the bigger muscle groups to support the phrase. How long is the phrase? Take in as much air as you need to sing that phrase. I think most singers over-breathe and over-support to the point of pressing, and then the tone isn’t free. I believe in singing a phrase as you would say it. Forward vowels, loose jaw, don’t over-articulate. The space is created on the inside, not at the mouth.
One more question on this subject: Do you consciously lower the larynx at inhalation or any time?
No!
Any hints on high notes?
High notes are in a narrower place than middle and middle-high notes. Most singers want to take the weight up, but it doesn’t work. I visualize going to the top of a pyramid- it’s narrower up there! Also the mouth doesn’t have to be so open on high notes. Look how the “greats” sing them. I tell my students it’s like biting an apple—the upper teeth show in a bit of a smile and again the space is on the
inside.
Any hints on avoiding wobbles as voices mature?
A wobble at any stage is due to a lack of support.
What about putting extra weight on the voice?
Don’t do it!
What do you think about the importance of first attack of a phrase? How
do you go about starting a phrase?
It’s not an attack as much as it is a joining. The phrase has already
begun by the time we sing. It’s like surfing—we join the wave.
What is the most common mistake you hear young voices or older voices make?
Over-singing and only one color!
Any thoughts about the choice of family versus career?
It shouldn’t be family versus career. That sounds like a war or a sporting event. I wish for everyone, whether they sing or not, a wonderful family life. If singers choose to have children, then they should have children. There certainly is precedence for this. It’s been happening for centuries. It will take an adjustment, but it’s my understanding that whether one sings or not, having children is an adjustment.
Any words on handling life on the road?
It’s a fact of life. Get used to it.
What about obtaining management as a young singer? Would you hire a publicist?
Get all the available information- ask colleagues, attend seminars, check out websites. A manager should believe in you and act like they do, but you (the singer) are the CEO of your corporation. I don’t think one needs a publicist until there is something very special to publicize. For me it was my Met debut, but I’d already been singing for 10 years.
