Solti Peretti Repetiteurs’ Masterclass
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La Posta Vecchia, Ladispoli, Lazio 8-17 April 2011 |
| Participants | |
REPETITEURS | |
| Irene Alfageme | Spain |
| Paul Wingfield | UK |
| Matteo Pirola | Italy |
| Inju Oh | South Korea |
| Jean-Yves Cornet | France |
| Christopher Hopkins | UK |
SINGERS | |
| Matilda Paulsson | Sweden |
| Iurii Samoilov | Ukraine |
| Jung Soo Yun | South Korea |
| Andri Björn Róbertsson | Iceland |
| Runette Botha | South Africa |
| Sonja Grané | Portugal |
TEACHING STAFF | |
| Maestro Richard Bonynge | |
| Jonathan Papp | Artistic Director of the Solti Te Kanawa Accademia di Bel Canto |
| Harriet Lawson | Teatro Massimo Palermo/Teatro Verdi Trieste |
| Pamela Bullock | Chicago Lyric Opera |
| Audrey Hyland | Royal Academy of Music |
| Roberta Biondi | Italian Language Coach |
The skill of a fine repetiteur can never be underestimated, nor can their importance in a singer's life and development. The name 'repetiteur' belies the full nature of their work; they are the ultimate multi-taskers of the music world. Their eyes and ears must be constantly alert to what they're hearing, whilst comparing and assessing it with the score in front of them. This is why so many go on to be some of the finest conductors in the world - Solti, Pappano, Gergiev and Muti, to name but a few.
Their skills must range from having a full knowledge of the score and being able to make it come alive at the piano, through to giving the singer the best possible advice and guidance on learning a role accurately, ultimately giving them the means to perform the role with confidence.
They need to be able to fire up the singer to encourage both their musical and dramatic thinking, whilst having an empathy with them and the inherent difficulties of being a singer . Without crossing the line into teaching singing , a repetiteur must understand some basic principles of singing, so that they can recognise physically or aurally any problem that may be getting in the way of the singer's ability, point it out, and even advise them on how to fix it. Knowledge of languages is essential, and particularly "how" to sing them.
The repetiteur is fundamental to any performance of an opera, even beyond the rehearsal period. Their skills often have to extend to conducting the occasional rehearsal, conducting offstage moments -- chorus, trumpets up in the balcony, playing keyboard in the pit - as well as continuo for the secco recitative that is so often required. A repetiteur is the singer's key ally in achieving their performance.
The Solti Peretti Repetiteurs' masterclasses are the first of their kind, offering an intense period of study with some of the finest Repetiteurs of our day.