Teaching one to sing is about giving back—passing on the knowledge of the voice from one generation to the next. That’s Daniel Ferro’s philosophy and a significant part of what makes the renowned bass-baritone’s program a unique offering among summer abroad opportunities for aspiring singers.
“When I was a young singer, I had a study abroad opportunity,” Ferro says. “It was a life-changing experience for me. I got so much out of it and was taken such good care of that when I began teaching, I wanted to be able to pass that on, to offer other young singers that same kind of opportunity.”
The Daniel Ferro Vocal Program has been providing such experiences to singers since 1995. It takes place each summer in Greve in Chianti, Italy, and includes private voice lessons and coachings, as well as public concerts, masterclasses, and language study.
But more than just a summer abroad training program, its mission has come full circle, regularly welcoming back returning students as well as those who return as voice teachers with a new generation of students in tow.
Joy Ferro, Daniel’s wife and managing director of the program, described it as a kind of community—a place where budding singers not only come to hone their craft, but frequently return to continue developing their talents and sharpening their skills. It’s also been noted for contributing to the culture and the community of Greve.
This year, the program celebrates its 20th anniversary.
“In the last 19 years, we’ve reached approximately 470 singers from 29 countries,” Joy says. “It really has become like a family. We’re a very selective program. We limit the number of students so that we can offer more personalized attention to each participant. We offer a creative environment for them to be able to apply the vocal technique to the literature.”
Joy says the program varies on how many singers it selects each year. But on average, it takes in between 15 and 20.
When the program first began, it accepted approximately 34 students—many who came from Daniel Ferro’s Juilliard voice studio and whom he didn’t want to turn away. Proving taxing on the program faculty and not wanting to risk quality for quantity, the program scaled back and became more selective—a move the Ferros believe strengthened their mission and set them apart from similar offerings.
“What’s perhaps different about what we offer from other programs is that we don’t stage scenes or operas,” Ferro says. “Young students are always anxious to perform a role, but we don’t do that. Ours is more of a workshop, where we focus on developing the skills it takes to perform successfully. We want to make sure that the technique is solid, that the language is solid, that the acting is solid, and that the interpretation is solid. We want to instill the desire for students to go beyond their sound and their artistry—to open and broaden their horizons and to make sure they are studying the right repertoire and getting the benefits of language study.
“All programs have their own niche and their own mission to benefit students,” he added, in reference to programs where singers do have an opportunity to add roles to their repertoire. “We choose to focus on applying technique to literature. When you’re working in a space where you have access to costuming and scenery—which we are not—that’s different, too.”
The program has had to make its fair share of sacrifices in its two decades of operation, Joy admits. To keep costs reasonable for students—fees run between $4,100 and $4,500 for those auditing the program and for those actively participating in it—yet, still maintaining quality, it has absorbed a number of costs. It opts to provide pianos for participants versus keyboards. It also provides breakfast and lunch for participants. And the program has worked to provide scholarships for deserving students with financial difficultly—something Joy says they wish they could offer more frequently.
“I would love to see this become a program by invitation only, free for students or able to offer more in scholarships,” she says. “But with the financial situation and how much it takes to run this program at this level, it’s just not possible.”
Despite this, the program’s emphasis on detail and a tight-knit community has appealed to a variety of singers by word of mouth and through referrals, strongly emphasizing the importance of passing the torch from one generation to the next.
“First and foremost, the opportunity to work with Daniel Ferro is wonderful for students,” says baritone Peter Castaldi, of the Mannes School of Music, who participated in the program as a student in 1996–1998 and who today returns with his own students, as well as assists with music and scheduling for the program. “His masterclasses are three-hour jewels, where singers get the experience of being taught by someone who has been teaching since the late 1950s; yet, his ears have not diminished. Daniel is a teacher who is willing to focus on the details of the technique as it applies to repertoire.
“What’s especially rare about this program is that an equal amount of emphasis is placed on the masterclasses as the performance opportunities, while maintaining healthy singing and proper technique,” Castaldi adds. “We set a high standard, but it’s realistic. No one can ever say that Daniel Ferro ruined their voice.”
Ferro’s students include a growing list of prominent opera singers and respected teachers, past and present, including Evelyn Lear, Thomas Stewart, Kathleen Battle, Alan Titus, Rosalind Elias, Patricia Brooks, Ruth Welting, Robert Dean Smith, Ying Huang, and Richard Stilwell as well as upcoming young artists such as Alexander Hajek and Dusica Bijelic. Others have gone on to promising careers in both performance and music education, including Martin Bruns and Lucille Beer.
But Ferro, who still maintains an active teaching schedule at the impressive age of 92, also enjoyed a career on the concert stage as well as in opera and musical theatre in his own right. In 1948, he graduated from the Juilliard School of Music and from Columbia University. He then further pursued his education as a Fulbright scholar studying at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Italy and the Salzburg Mozarteum.
He remained in Europe through the first part of the 1950s where he was a member of the Graz Opera Company in Austria and toured with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. He returned to the U.S. in 1956 and began teaching, first as the chairman of the voice department at Butler University in Indiana and later at Hunter College in New York and the Manhattan School of Music, where he also served as chairman of the voice department. He also performed in both opera and musical theatre, with leading roles in several summer stock theater productions and concert performances at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center.
Ferro joined the faculty of the Juilliard School in 1972 and remained there until he became vocal faculty emeritus in 2006. He continues to offer masterclasses at the prestigious school, as well as teaching through his private voice studio in New York City and leading masterclasses at other conservatories. They include the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto, the Shanghai Conservatory of Music in China, the Royal College of Music in Stockholm, and the Accademia Musicale Chigiana, where he also had once been a student.
Described by countless students as a “magic teacher,” Ferro’s ability to instruct singers has been described as a rare gift by those who have been fortunate enough to work with him. It’s also helped create inspired teachers out of singers.
“Daniel keeps the tradition going,” Castaldi says. “Transitioning from a singer to a teacher is another thing. Just because you can sing doesn’t necessarily mean that you can teach. For me, I think I actually get even more out of the program now as a teacher, understanding all of the little elements that I’m now observing as a teacher.”
Bass-baritone and associate professor of voice at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign Ricardo Herrera is another teacher with close ties to the program.
“I have attended the Daniel Ferro Vocal Program in Greve, Italy, twice as a student and thrice as a teacher,” Herrera says. “It is with great pride that I am now able to bring my own voice students to the program and provide them with the invaluable opportunity to study with Maestro Ferro. This new generation of singers is very fortunate to learn from an icon in classical voice and technique who has taught for over a half a century and has had a productive performing career in Europe and the U.S. The reward is equally enriching to the newer generations of teachers who learn from the Maestro by watching him teach individually and in masterclass settings throughout the short weeks of the program.”
Herrera echoed that Ferro’s training technique is a synonym of both beautiful and healthy singing.
“These are the two fundamental vocal pillars I learned from him when I did my master of music in vocal performance degree at the Juilliard School,” Herrera says. “Now as an international professional singer and voice teacher, I strive to carry on this legacy.”
Singer Jessica Doolan attended the program in 2009 and said one word sums up her experience: “life-changing.”
“The program allowed me the opportunity to work with world-renowned faculty who helped me with solid vocal technique, artistic interpretation, and language,” she says. “But the wonderful thing about this particular program was that we were allowed to take that rigorous training and then apply it in performances for the Italian locals. The coaches and teachers come from all over the globe and have such a deep love and dedication for what they do, bringing the joy of song to their students. It’s clear to anyone who works with the faculty that they are passionate about inspiring young singers in order to help them fulfill their best potential.
“The program is a small one that focuses on intensive training to best benefit the individual,” Doolan adds. “We each received private coachings, voice lessons, Italian lessons, group bodywork classes, and daily masterclasses. Each week was punctuated by a concert hosted everywhere from a castle in the hills of the Tuscan countryside to the church steps in the heart of a lovely village’s piazza. It was a fully immersive program where the singers had the opportunity to dine, travel, and interact with the locals outside of the classroom while diving into the nuances and beauties of opera. After the unforgettable summer I spent in Greve with the program, I was able to return to my studies with a renewed love for and deeper understanding of both singing and true Bel Canto opera.”
Another singer, Natasha Nelson, attended the program four times. She continues to study with Ferro in New York and works at the Kurt Weill Foundation of Music.
“Words cannot express well enough my gratitude for how greatly the Daniel Ferro Vocal Program has enriched my life,” Nelson says. “The detailed study of both song and operatic literature, down to the subtlest nuances of a phrase, under the guidance of such knowledgeable teachers and coaches has influenced me profoundly. Studying with and observing fellow students work with Maestro Ferro—one of the most important teachers of the last 50 years, not only in New York but worldwide, whose teaching is imbued with such elegance—is a truly special opportunity. Maestro Ferro’s wisdom and his passion for the very essence of the music inspire the highest caliber of artistry from students. The chance to get to be a part of this program and study with these extraordinary artists has been an opportunity for which I am immensely grateful.”
For more information, visit www.ferrovocalprogram.org.
