BEIJING, April 5 -- Dubbed as a mistress of an exemplary Mozartian style,
American soprano Renee Fleming will present the first performance of her Asian
tour in Chinese mainland at Shanghai Grand Theater on Wednesday night.
Shanghai-based News Times reported that one day
before her debut, the soprano visited the Shanghai Conservatory of Music to give
some advice to four opera performance students.
Fleming said a beautiful voice is not the ultimate
goal on stage. The highest level of singing rests on performances, not voice.
Though frequently touted as the most beautiful voice of the United States, the
opera diva did not attach much importance to singing skills like pronunciation,
voice and breath. She mandated the students express the story of the opera piece
while singing.
Fleming told News Times that young singers nowadays
put too much attention to singing itself without comprehending the original
writer's intent. She stressed that singers should express the internal sensation
of the opera.
For her first Asian tour, Fleming has not taken the
one-program-fits-all approach like other pop opera artists. Instead, she has
different programs for each city.
She performed an all-Strauss program in Hong Kong on
April 2, including the German composer's haunting post-World War II work "Four
Last Songs," and other lieder.
In Taipei, the first city on the tour in which she
performed with a full orchestra, it was Strauss, Rossini, Bizet and the
crowd-pleasing "O Mio Babbino Caro" by Puccini.
Fleming will have her next performance in Beijing at
Forbidden City Concert Hall on Saturday, collaborating with the China
Philharmonic Orchestra.
(Source: CRIENGLISH.com)
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