If it’s not one thing, it’s your mother!” The first time I uttered this phrase in exasperation, my mother loved it. She cracked up, and we have laughed about it ever since. Although it is true that, unlike our friends, we can’t choose our families, many of us seemed to have lucked out anyway. I am blessed with a great family, supportive and filled with mutual respect and admiration (Hi, Mom!) and this is also happily true of many of the people featured in this issue.
Our cover story is a Mother’s Day dream come true. When I met with Austrian dramatic soprano Renate Behle to talk about her then-upcoming Metropolitan Opera debut as Leonora in Fidelio, I found her to be even more excited about the budding singing career of her son, Daniel. She went on to describe a perfectly symbiotic mother/son relationship in which he provides the inspiration, the youthful drive and enthusiasm, and she tempers it all with her wisdom, experience and talent—to say nothing of that vital ingredient we celebrate this month: a mother’s unconditional love. We believe you will find it an interesting, even inspiring read. And if you are tempted to think that Renate Behle’s assessment of her boy’s talent suffers from familial bias, you are invited to log on to our website and hear for yourself the progress of this budding 25-year-old tenor who only two years ago decided to take singing seriously. You can also hear his mother singing Isolde’s Liebestod.
Shawn Milnes, a young writer who makes his CS debut with an article about the Jade, a young, independent opera company, could be the “poster boy” for all-in-the-family togetherness. His mother is soprano/pedagogue Nancy Stokes-Milnes, his stepmother our own interviewing ace, soprano Maria Zouves, and his dad a rather well known American baritone by the name of Sherrill Milnes. Talk about “The Family Business!”
Come to think of it, Classical Singer itself fits in very nicely with our theme, being very much a Mom and Pop operation. Sometimes, our publisher’s wife even makes home made brownies for us, which nicely fosters a feeling that we at CS are very much part of a large family. This family extends to you as well. We are all members of the singers’ community, which ideally functions as an all-embracing, supportive family. At least, that’s what we are working towards atCS. And don’t forget to give your mother a call on Sunday, May 13th.
