Soloists of the Mariinsky Opera Company speaking about the production of Les Troyens

Yekaterina Semenchyuk (mezzo-soprano)

Do you find the role of Didon interesting from a vocal point of view?
Of course. The drama of the role, the abundance of shades and intonations… This work brings true pleasure.

What do you think of your character? In terms of subject matter, Didon undertakes contradictory actions. How do you explain to yourself her feelings for Énée and the cause of her death and do you need any such explanation?
If Didon strives towards death because of her unrequited love for Énée, then that is her decision, which today and from my own standpoint it is not very logical to explain. I am a character, a character’s vehicle, brought to life and personified by the poetic word and musical phrasing. Accordingly, on stage I live and think like Didon, following her destiny. She explains her choice with one word – love. That is enough for me. I don’t see any contradictions here – quite the reverse, she is a very rounded character.

How much of a contemporary feel does the opera Les Troyens have, from your point of view?
It is well known that Berlioz was a romantic artist. And, as a romantic, the framework of “pure”, absolute music was restricting to him; and so he turned to theatre, literature, poetry and religious symbolism. And that is what is most interesting in our own time. Most of Hector Berlioz’ operas have had a difficult harsh fate. During his lifetime, none of them enjoyed the popularity on the scale of the importance of this composer in the history of music. Les Troyens began to win lasting glory, at last, only in the latter half of the 20^th century. Isn’t this proof that now, today, this opera’s time has come? Today, even the very word “Trojan” has entered people’s everyday vocabulary and become quite common.

Sergei Semishkur (tenor)

How interesting do you find the role of Énée from a vocal point of view?
From a vocal point of view it’s not just the role of Énée but all of Berlioz’ opera music that is extremely complex. It is not simple to sing it and it is hard to listen to, you have to become accustomed to it. You know, many of Berlioz’ operas, which are so popular nowadays, were not always accepted straight away by the public. For a singer, certain difficulties develop because of the French language, which is not as comfortable to sing as Italian or Russian.

Do these difficulties inspire you or scare you off?
They tend to inspire, though to start with they were rather scary. The role of Énée has both complex intonations and rhythms, while the orchestral accompaniment is extremely powerful. I believe that Berlioz wrote this role not for a lyric tenor, but for a lyrical spinto tenor, or possibly even a dramatic tenor. But that doesn’t mean that the singer has to overwhelm everyone with the powerful sound of his voice. The expression is created not by the size of the sound, but in the proper pronunciation of the words. Even with a light, lyric voice you can sing the role so as to sound very dramatic.

And still, it’s a very complex task. How do you succeed in creating the dramatic line that lasts throughout the entire performance?
I think that that’s not just my task. It’s the task of every performer engaged for the opera. Of course, each singer can come up with his or her own concept while sitting at home, but when you come on stage you meet the other soloists and the stage director – and everything changes. It is the stage director who has to help us all find the right image from a psychological point of view.

Can you execute the desires of any stage director, even the most unusual ones? It’s not always easy to bend your vision to fit someone else’s mould.
It is much harder to smash a stage director’s idea. If he has a specific idea, then I try to act in the framework of that idea, naturally within reasonable bounds. Moreover, a great deal depends not just on the stage director but also on the conductor, too – it is he who has to consider the production’s musical concept.

Was it interesting to work with Gergiev?
The maestro is a man of great energy, he is very inspirational. With him one can really create music. I think that he is the very musician who can truly present this vast work.

Which of the soloists did you most enjoy rehearsing with?
It was a great pleasure to work with Yekaterina Popova, Alexander Gergalov and Alexei Markov. Basically I think the cast of artistes at the Mariinsky Theatre is second to none, and one can stage more complicated operas than Les Troyens with them, although there are few such works.

Alexei Markov (baritone)

What is the greatest memory you have of working on your role?
The role of Chorèbe is very beautiful, elegant and melodious, and so singing it is sheer pleasure. And, although it is a small role (it consists of a duet with Cassandre and a small ensemble), there is a great deal of interesting music in it which well done in terms of the vocals. I had absolutely no problems with learning the role, despite the fact that the French language is very difficult for a Russian singer. This is my first French opera. I know the role of Escamillo, I have sung romances, but have never truly come into close contact with French music...

In the future you will probably be singing many more French operas...
Yes, I will definitely be singing the role of Escamillo in Carmen, and already have an agreement with the Metropolitan Opera, where I have been offered the role of Valentin in Faust. These operas are better known, but I don’t want to start singing French opera with Les Troyens. When the music is unusual to the ear, there are as yet no performers’ stamps on it, and it is particularly interesting to perform it. It sounds somehow fresh, and you feel clearly all the shading and the details...

So the music caught your interest.
Yes, and not just the music. It is the story of the Trojan War, with which many legends are associated and which has been written about many times before... In my opinion, Berlioz succeeded in finding the right approach. He did not become immersed in the mythological peripeteia and he showed the characters of the protagonists, their emotions, their relationships.