15 Questions to Maite Beaumont

Hi! How are you? Where are you?
I´m fine. I´m at home.

What’s on your schedule right now?
At the moment I prepare for the recording of Alcina, which I will make in September in Italy.

If you hadn’t chosen for music, what do you think you would do right now?
I studied music and sociology. If I hadn´t chosen for music, I would be a sociologist.

What or who was your biggest influence as an artist?
My family influenced me a lot and also my teacher Hanna Schwarz.

What’s the hardest part about being a musician and what’s the best?
The best part is to work with emotions and creativity. That is very satisfying for me. The hardest part is, that singers need to have enormous discipline.

What’s your view on the classical music scene at present? Is there a crisis?
I would say, times have changed. In my opinion the Stage Directors have too much power. There are a lot of experiments and the music is not so important, unfortunately. For me Opera is a perfect mixture of acting and music. This can be achieved in different ways. Sometimes it works - sometimes it doesn't.

Some feel there is no need to record classical music any more, that it’s all been done before. What do you tell them?
I agree. So much excellent music has been recorded! I would record only a new interpretation. At home I listen to "Tosca" with Karajan. Nowadays it would be difficult, I think, to achive this level.

What constitutes a good live performance in your opinion? What’s your approach to performing on stage?
For me it is a good perfomance if you tell something on a high musical level. The singers should play with joy in a team.

What does the word “interpretation” mean to you?
It takes my whole personality to think myself into the role I have to play. I take my imagination to interpretate the part I need to play in relation to the other actors´ roles.

How do you balance the need to to put your personal emotions into the music you play and the intentions of the composer?
That is a mistery: to give your own interpretation without being untrue to the composer´s intentions. It is a mixture of musicality, a good musical training, the pleausure to act and of course a certain technique of singning.

True or false: People need to be educated about classical music, before they can really appreciate it.
Both. Somebody, who didn't study music can be fascinated after a good perfomance. But the experts can appreciate it on a different level. It is very nice to be honoured by professionals.

You are given the position of artistic director of a concert hall. What would be on your program for this season?
I would cast Karajan, Price and Taddei for "Tosca": Recitals with Maria Callas and Pavarotti. "Carmen" with Plácido Domingo and Julia Migenes. They would be my highlights!

How would you describe the relationship with your instrument?
My voice: that is me. Everything that is good for my voice, is good for me and vice versa.

Have you ever tried playing a different instrument? If yes, how good were you at it?
Yes, I played the violin once.But it wasn´t good enough.

Discography:
Handel: La Maga Abbandonata (RCA) 2003
Handel: Radamisto (Virgin Classics) 2005
Vivaldi: Motezuma (Deutsche Grammophon) 2006

Homepage:
Maite Beaumont at KD Schmid PR