April 25-May 1, 2002

opera

Christofer Macatsoris

T he Academy of Vocal Arts celebrates the 25th anniversary of its Opera Theatre on Saturday night, when its production of Il barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville) closes the season. The AVA is also ending an era. Starting next fall, most of the school’s productions will be in the Perelman Theater at the Kimmel Center. Only its smaller productions will be staged in the ornate mansion at 1920 Spruce St. that has doubled as school and performance space for 25 years. The AVA Opera Theatre has been led from the start by conductor Cristofer Macatsoris.

Macatsoris coaches international stars such as Pavarotti and Domingo, and he trained AVA students James Morris, Ruth Ann Swenson and many more. Singers rave about how inspiring he is, how much time he takes with them and how he understands the soul of Verdi and Puccini.

City Paper: What are the differences between the students at AVA in 1977 and today?

Christofer Macatsoris: There was a trend toward a cool and cerebral style of singing. Today, I'm glad to say that young singers are becoming emotional and juicy, with a big, expansive approach that's more like the golden age that I grew up with.

CP: Where did your career start?

CM: Here in Philadelphia, where I was born. I studied music at Temple and Penn, then moved to Italy, attended the Milan Conservatory and learned from De Sabata and Serafin, the great conductors at La Scala. When I came back home, I played piano for local opera companies, did private coaching, then became assistant conductor of the Philadelphia Lyric Opera.

CP: That was the company that brought big stars such as Sutherland, Tebaldi, di Stefano, Corelli and Vickers to Philadelphia in the 1960s.

CM: That's right. And I had the opportunity to coach them in their roles. I worked with soprano Ingrid Bjoner, who brought me to Munich to work there when Wolfgang Sawallisch was starting his operatic career in that city. Bjoner also introduced me to her friend Max Rudolph, the great symphonic and operatic conductor who came to Curtis, and he and I became close friends. He was a valuable mentor and got me my job at Curtis.

CP: Critics say that your conducting has the drive and momentum that made Toscanini famous, but you are more yielding to the needs of the singers.

CM: Toscanini is my god. Thank you for the comparison. I know the weaknesses of our artists, and I work with them.

CP: You also have a love for cabaret music and Broadway, don't you?

CM: Yes indeed. In my senior year of college I got a summer job at Jules Podell's Copacabana in Manhattan. I was the lounge pianist, and sometimes the headliners in the big room, such as Peggy Lee or Judy Garland, would come upstairs and sing a few songs with me. I conducted a cabaret program at AVA a few years ago, and I'd love to do that again.

CP: You have a great reputation worldwide as an opera conductor. How come you've stayed at AVA?

CM: I was on staff at the San Francisco Opera and was offered conducting jobs in New York, but rehearsal time was limited, and so many compromises had to be made. I prefer to work here, where I can get into more detail and receive more artistic satisfaction.

CP: How much prep time to do you have for an opera at AVA?

CM: The artists spend at least four hours a day with me for eight weeks, plus time with a stage director. They also work with a vocal coach two hours a day, plus an hour a week with a voice instructor and three hours a week with language instructors.

CP: Any unfulfilled ambitions?

CM: To do some larger productions. Next year we'll be doing Lucia di Lammermoor and Faust for the first time, at the Kimmel.

Il barbiere di Siviglia, April 27 and 30, May 2, 1920 Spruce St.; May 7-8, Centennial Hall, Haverford; for tickets call 215-735-1685.