During the fall of 2003, I listened to some 30 young singers at the Metropolitan Opera National Council District Auditions for Arizona. Most of them sang the same simple arias and obviously needed to keep working on their voices. A few were advanced enough to go on to the Regional Auditions in California. The surprise of the afternoon was a beautiful redhead named Amber Wagner who sang “Dich, teure Halle” from Wagner’s Tannhäuser. At that time, she was still very young, but everyone who heard her that day couldn’t forget her large voice with its unique sound.
Eight years later, I caught up with this rising star after her appearance as the leading soprano role in Lohengrin on the stage of the Lyric Opera of Chicago.
Do you come from a musical family?
I played clarinet for a few years while in elementary school. I didn’t take voice lessons until college, though. I come from a musical family. My mom plays the flute and my dad plays four different instruments. Mom taught privately for years. Dad taught music theory and directed three different bands for about 10 years. Both of them sang in the choir at church. My brother excels at piano and trumpet. When she was younger, my sister played flute and sang contemporary music as well as jazz.
What led up to your taking part in the 2003 Met auditions?
I grew up in Aloha and Hillsboro, Oregon. When I was 17, we relocated to California for my father’s job. I went to Pensacola Christian College for three semesters before transferring to Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona, in the fall of 2001. I needed scholarship money to pay for school, so I auditioned for the music department even though I wanted to study sociology. Voice teacher, Sheila Corley, was at that audition and she heard something special in my voice. She asked me to become a music major with an emphasis on voice.
The following year, I was accepted into the Presidentʼs Singers. We travelled up and down the West Coast and throughout the southwestern states recruiting students for the university. It was a rather special group, and we were given full scholarships for the work we did. While I was there, I studied voice with Dr. Corley and I still check in with her on a regular basis. She is a surrogate mother to me, and I always learn new things from her!
How did you get to Chicago?
After graduation, I auditioned for the Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center in Chicago. Less than a week later, I got a letter saying that I had been invited to come back and sing for the finals. They flew me out there in October, and I sang on the main stage for company executives who wanted to hear what the finalists would sound like in the house. Then we waited while the judges deliberated for what seemed like ages, until they finally announced the names of the program members for the following year. I was lucky enough to be selected for the 2007-2008 ensemble. They offer the best in training and help you refine your abilities. I stayed in the program for three seasons, finishing in 2010.
What contests have you participated in?
I won the Liederkranz Foundation Competition, the Richard Tucker Award, and the George London Foundationʼs Kirsten Flagstad Award as well as a Sullivan Foundation Career Grant. Also, I took first place in the Gerda Lissner, Palm Beach Opera, and Palm Springs Opera Guild Competitions.
After being accepted into the Chicago program, I came home and sang for the Metropolitan Opera National Council District and Regional Auditions. In March of 2007, two weeks before I was to start my contract with the Chicago program, I went to New York for the Grand Finals of the Met Auditions and I won!
Probably one of the best things about the contest at the Met that year was the documentary Susan Froemke made about the competition and the audition process. The Audition, which opened to audiences nationwide in 2009, gave a detailed look into the art of competing and the emotions that singers experience at such a high-profile competition. That was a very special time, and I have the wonderful documentary that was made at those auditions as a memento of winning.
I did not know anything about the classical music business or about working at an opera house. It is really something special for me to be able to look back on. I was very green and had no professional experience when I went to Lyric, but the company took very good care of me and schooled me in all things opera.
Having Lyric Opera of Chicago behind me, having that company’s endorsement, so to speak, is a big help. Other houses now think I’m a possibility. I’ve also been really fortunate to be represented by an excellent manager, Matthew Horner from IMG Artists.
How difficult is it to become a professional opera singer?
I’ll be 31 years old in June and I’m seeing a new generation of singers coming up behind me. They seem to expect instant gratification, and that is not going to occur. As a singer, you can put in thousands of hours as well as thousands of dollars and not have any of it return to you. You might or might not make a career. You have to be willing to work very, very hard. You have to work harder than the person coming up behind you who wants to have a singing career just as much as you do. If someone had told me that this path would be really hard and asked if I could handle it, I probably would have said, “Yes.” However, the truth is that I really did not know how much hard work I’d have to do and what sacrifices I would have to make.
I see my husband only every three or four weeks. He and I met at Grand Canyon University where we were both in the President’s Singers. We dated for a little over five years before we got married. For the last two and a half years of our relationship we were dating via long distance. He got his master’s degree in Tennessee, and I was in the Young Artist Program in Chicago. We were married in December of 2008. Having now celebrated our second anniversary, we know what long distance means for us and, despite it, we know how to make our relationship work.
You really do have to know what sacrifices you will be asked to make and you have to ask yourself if the career is worth it to you. On top of that, you have to see if you can amass the thousands of dollars you will need in order to study singing. You have to be realistic about the possibilities for your talent. If you really want a singing career, you have to decide whether or not you have the goods to make it happen. You have to make an honest appraisal of your instrument. If you have faith in your ability, you then have to find people who will nurture you and point you in the right direction.
Luckily, all of that has fallen into place for me. I believe that I have something special to offer this industry and I’ve had a great deal of support from the people who back me up. Everyone’s story is different, but if you have talent and you want to be a singer badly enough, you can make it happen. No one is going to roll out the red carpet for you just because you studied voice. You’re not going to just wake up one morning and find that you are Renée Fleming. It’s a long journey, a difficult process—and if you really want it, you will have to work for it. No one is going to hand it to you, especially in this economy!
What kind of training does a young singer get at the Young Artist Program in Chicago?
The Lyric Opera Program usually has 13 or 14 young artists in training at one time. Most of the instruction is one-on-one. One special thing about the Chicago program is that it is in session all year round. Most programs do not go through the summer. From April to the end of August, Lyric gives the trainee two or three private coachings every single day, five days a week. It’s a tremendous amount of saturated instruction with some of the best coaches in the world. I worked very closely with two of them: Eric Weimer and Alan Darling. They played a huge role in my development and continue to do so! Obviously, I am biased and I think the Lyric Opera Program is the best. The goal is to put you on stage, and that’s what they do.
During the season, Lyric Opera’s young artists sing all sorts of comprimario roles and cover many of the larger roles. Covering those parts is a fantastic opportunity and you get the absolute best in instruction. As a cover, I’ve learned Elvira in Verdiʼs Ernani, Santuzza in Mascagniʼs Cavalleria Rusticana, and Brangäne in Wagnerʼs Tristan und Isolde. The latter has such wonderful music and it lies so well for the voice. Last year I made my European debut singing that role at the Prague State Opera. Eric Weimer prepared me for it from start to finish, and it was a very fulfilling experience.
How much emphasis is put on acting?
Quite a bit. During my first year in the program, they brought in Kevin Goodall, an actor in the Chicago area. He actually directed our summer show. We always do a black box production during the summer. For my first summer, I sang Berta in Rossiniʼs Il barbiere di Siviglia. Goodall was magnificent, especially in our round table discussions about acting and characterization. Lyric really does get people to work with you on acting as well as singing, and that helps you a great deal in building your stage skills. They teach you how to be comfortable on stage and move gracefully.
As a young singer, you have to be conscious of a thousand different things while you are performing. You have to think about your technique and your language and the placement of your voice as well as your characterization. And then you have to act! It’s a big task and it can be overwhelming. The Young Artist Program made sure we had all the tools that we would need later on. We had Italian and German classes. Roger Pines taught us about singers from the past. We had group discussions on résumé building, grooming for auditions, and the business aspects of our careers with our artistic administrator, Andreas Melinat. They wanted to be sure that we were thoroughly prepared before we went on stage. They really want their trainees to succeed. Another good thing about the program is that because they invest so much in their young artists, they love to bring them back to sing major roles after they have graduated. I just finished the program last April and I’m now back to sing Elsa in Wagnerʼs Lohengrin.
Have you had masterclasses with important singers at Lyric Opera?
Yes, my first masterclass there was with Renata Scotto. We also had classes with Deborah Voigt and Sondra Radvanovsky. Those are the ones in which I participated. There were also classes with David Daniels, Nathan Gunn, Thomas Hampson and, just for sopranos, there was one with Renée Fleming. The latter is one of the top three highlights of my life!
They also encourage “Buddy Coachings.” They pair you with a successful singer in your repertory. I worked with Frank Lopardo and benefited greatly from his input. Next season I will be covering Deborah Voigt in “Ariadne.” She is a wonderful colleague and she has opened up a line of communication with me so that I can really ask her questions about singing her roles. I sing a lot of the repertoire she sings and I know her advice is invaluable to me. My voice teacher at Lyric was Gianna Rolandi. She was instrumental in helping me with many voice issues, specifically the top of my voice. I credit her with giving me an extension! She taught me to focus my sound and not be afraid of an “e” vowel.
What leading roles have you performed so far?
Outside of the Brangäne in Prague and the Elsa this year in Chicago, I have only covered leading roles. I’m just now starting to get out on my own and perform those parts. Studying the larger roles and covering other singers before singing the roles myself has been a big help to me. Now I’m beginning to come into my own and get I’m getting hired for leads. In the fall, I will make my Met debut singing Anna in Verdi’s early opera Nabucco.
What roles would you like to sing that you have not yet attempted?
Right now I’m basically trampling all over the repertory that I love. I would, however, love to sing Samuel Barber’s opera Vanessa somewhere. I feel that it is not done nearly as often as it should be. It would not even have to be in a big house. I would just love to do it in a good production because I want to sing that music. I’m just feasting on the repertory, most of it in Chicago. I’m looking forward to covering Ariadne and then singing the First Lady in Die Zauberflöte. I will also cover Aida, so I’m singing many different types of roles.
What do you do when you have some time off from work?
In the summer I get three weeks’ vacation. My husband, Gabe, and I try to spend the time together—hopefully without me having to open any scores. That peaceful time helps me regain my perspective before I go back to work. I also like to cook, but I’m alone so much that I seldom do that. As for pets, I have two adorable girl cats, Bella and Scout.
What kinds of recordings do you have available?
Here are some links of my singing that you can see on YouTube.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGaY05d0xwk and www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Q5vdeyq9cA
