From the November 3, 2005 Lexington Minuteman
Mezzo-soprano Gale Fuller joins the Lexington Sinfonietta on Saturday, November 5th in a performance of Berio's "Folk Songs" at 8pm at the National Heritage Museum. Here Ms. Fuller tells us about the Berio, her work, travels and family.
Q: You appear as soloist with numerous groups in the Boston area, singing opera, oratorio and lieder, teach at Wellesley College, have a degree from New England Conservatory, but has Boston always been your home?
No, I was born and raised in Chicago, did my undergrad degree at Peabody Conservatory in Baltimore, and moved here to do my master's and settled down. Boston has been a great base and, being so close to New York, has allowed me to live in a wonderful place - I can easily go down to New York to perform or elsewhere. Much of my work has been outside of Boston and in the Far East.
Q: On Saturday, November 5th, you'll be performing "Folk Songs" by Luciano Berio with the Lexington Sinfonietta. Berio has been described as a composer who wrote "some of the most moving and beautiful music of the post-war era, combining music, theatre and language in a highly individual way" (BBC Artists' Profiles). Would you agree that these words apply to "Folk Songs"?
Absolutely. What makes the songs so incredibly beautiful is their simplicity, because they really are folk songs. There are 11 songs in at least 8 different languages. Many of these are pieces that people will recognize, but Berio provides a real twist on the songs--an enhanced twist. They are very accessible pieces and wonderful pieces to listen to. And it's interesting writing for the orchestra. The simplicity is so striking.
Q: Richard Dyer, music critic for the Boston Globe, describes you as a "Rossini virtuoso with a voice of great beauty, individuality, and interpretive range." This makes you the perfect mezzo for the Berio "Folk Songs," each of which has its own distinctive mood. Do you feel a personal connection with this piece?
When I was asked to sing them, I didn't have any experience with performing them at all. I hadn't heard them either, but Jonathan [McPhee, Sinfonietta conductor] and I have known each other for a while and he had said, "I want to find the right piece for you." And he was totally right about this - they have a wide dramatic and vocal range. They're pretty saucy pieces - I found that the most important thing I could represent was to make each song individual. The vocal color needs to change from piece to piece, and the vocal quality needs to be different. That has been the "funnest thing" about preparing these, and [the first] rehearsal is where I plan to pull out all the stops and wait to hear Jonathan tone me down a little. I've really enjoyed working on them.
Q: How different is your approach to opera from songs such as these?
Approaching art songs and putting together a recital of songs is different [from opera] from the get-go. It's a lot more intense. I focus first on the poetry. If I'm looking at a role, I look at the character first, even before I get to the music. These 11 songs are like 11 different characters, and certainly in an opera, you've only got one character to stick with all night long! This is more eclectic, and it's finding those subtleties in each of the 11 characters that is really important . It always starts with the poetry - it has to.
Q: Last year, you toured China and performed throughout the country. Could you describe that experience?
There were 6 American artists that went to China as part of a program that has been going on for years. We went from city to city, including Beijing. There is an incredible interest in Western music - I heard some wonderful singers and wonderful pianists. Wherever I travel, I am reminded of how people are so similar. Traveling as a musician rather than as a tourist, we had already established the common ground. There was already a connection - a huge connection.
Q: You were recently presented in recital at Carnegie Hall in New York by the International Center for Contemporary Opera, having won their competition. Tell us about that program.
That was a real treat. And I didn't really think that mid-career I'd be doing a contest, but I got to do this wonderful recital at Carnegie Hall--if anything, a gift. [Composers] Ned Rorem and Scott Wheeler were in the audience; I was singing works of both of these gentlemen, and they were kind enough to come. Mentors of mine were there, and conductors I had worked with. Recitals are really personal - it doesn't really matter where the venue is.
Q: Who has had the most influence over the years on your work as a singer?
There are really several people who come to mind that have helped to shape me. First, my voice teacher Nina Hinson (from LA) and my long-time coach (since grad school), James Busby. And thirdly, I would have to list [singer and founder of repertory company The Bostonians] Richard Conrad, because he opened my eyes to sing things I never thought I would sing, and he gave me license to be an actress.
Q: You have 2 children, and your husband is also a musician?
A: Yes, Erica, aged 21, is an oboe performance major at Temple University and, I must say, pretty fabulous. And my son, Joseph, has just turned 18, and is a senior at Natick High School. He is a very good trumpet player, but he is quick to say that music is not his passion. He wrote his college essay on what it's like living with a household of musicians!
Q: Does motherhood influence your musical or dramatic interpretations?
Oh, without a doubt! I'm a much better singer and musician because I'm a mother, and I'm a better mother because I'm a musician. The best thing we can do for our children is to let them see that we have a passion and a love for what we do. Now that my kids are older, I can see that it has paid off.
Also on Saturday's program are Stravinsky's colorful Suites 1 and 2 and Schumann's beloved "Spring" Symphony. Jonathan McPhee, Music Director, will give a pre-concert talk at 7pm. Tickets are $25/$20/students half-price. To order tickets, go to www.lexingtonsinfonietta.org, call (781) 863-9581 or visit Wales Copy Center in Lexington Center.
