A rising star on the international stage, baritone Phillip Addis’ upcoming season features a return to the Opéra Comique as Pelléas, performances at the Ravinia Festival, the COC, Los Angeles and Cincinnati and recitals in Toronto and Paris.
1. What are we interrupting (i.e. what music-related activity are we taking you away from to write this)?
At the moment I am in rehearsals for a production of Britten's Curlew River with the Teatro dell' Opera di Roma. It is one of a number of performances that I have with maestro James Conlon this season as we celebrate the Britten centenary. This performance will take place within the marbled walls of the Basilica of Santa Maria in Ara Coeli, right next to the Campidoglio. I really can't complain about the vista we're afforded on our breaks, and the music making is pretty fine too!
2. What, if anything, are you most looking forward to as an audience member (not work-related) between now and September 7?
I hope to get to see some of the great programming at the Stratford Festival as well as Stratford Summer Music. I'd like to catch some jazz in Toronto too, such as Aurochs at the Tranzac on July 9th. I'm also looking forward to a rare performance of Massenet's jewel, Le Portrait de Manon, at the Muskoka Opera Festival on August 12.
3. How about work-related events/activities?
My next project is again with maestro James Conlon, as we perform Britten's The Burning Fiery Furnace at the Ravinia Festival in August.
4. What are you already preparing for musically beyond the summer? And (how) do your summer plans tie in with these longer term plans?
I am preparing for my debut at the COC this fall, where I'm going to have fun playing the roles of Schaunard and Marcello (not simultaneously!) in their fall production of La Bohème. I have performed both roles before, so I'll be reviewing them as I incorporate them into my current technique. There will be more Britten with maestro Conlon in Los Angeles: the War Requiem and the Cantata Misericordium. For my trip to LA I'll also dust off my Magic Flute score, after a decade's hiatus, for an engagement with the LA Opera.
What is occupying more of my time this summer is the preparation of recital repertoire that I will be performing in December, with Emily Hamper at the piano, as part of the Music Toronto series and again in January at the Opéra National de Paris. It's an ambitious program with works by Britten, Poulenc, Wolf and Purcell, as well as a new work by Toronto-based composer Erik Ross. The thrill of the recital, where the opportunities for exposed risk and deep intimacy with an audience can be so much greater than in any other form of performance, is driving me to be as prepared as possible, with as many options at the ready as possible, for showtime.
