Peripatetic and multitalented performer Plácido Domingo is on a high as he extends the Domingo legend around the world as well as his already illustrious career. It is clear to anyone meeting the world-famous tenor that he is having an absolute ball at this point in his life.
While most sexagenarians potter around the garden, read a book and snooze, Domingo has pushed himself into high gear and is moving full steam ahead. He explains his unparalleled vigour simply: "If I rest, I rust." At 69 he is still performing non-stop, singing lead roles. This year has seen him in the title role of Giuseppe Verdi's Simon Boccanegra in five productions worldwide and there have been programmed performances of various operas and solo concerts virtually every month throughout this year. To top it all off, Domingo also has a busy conducting schedule and is the artistic director of the opera companies in Washington and Los Angeles.
His next project — one which the opera-loving world greeted ecstatically — was the world premiere of Daniel Catan's Il Postino, which had six performances at the Los Angeles Opera House in late September and early October and is based on the award winning 1994 film. Domingo brought the central role of the famed Chilean poet Pablo Neruda to life on stage.
"I've been following the development of this work since Daniel started writing it," says Domingo excitedly. "The role was written specifically for me, which is an added honour." As Domingo gets older his voice is getting a little deeper and he has recently been singing roles written for baritones instead of those for tenors. "Daniel has taken my new range into account and I feel very comfortable in this part," he explains with obvious enthusiasm.
Domingo describes Il Postino's music as "breathtakingly beautiful". "Daniel's lyrical and romantic style lends itself well to the human voice," he adds. Contemporary operas are often difficult for audiences to appreciate due to the variations in established tonality, but Domingo believes that Il Postino will be accessible to all.
"There are musical moments which recall Debussy and Strauss, and Daniel's use of native South American instruments in the orchestration gives the score a unique quality," he says. Interest in this new opera has spread like wildfire and there are performances with Domingo booked for Vienna in December and Paris in June next year.
Domingo never shies away from the challenge of learning something new. On average he adds at least one new operatic score to his already impressive repertoire each year. He has learned scores in Spanish, French, Italian, German and Russian. "Don't forget that I have sung over 3,700 performances to date," he says with a smile.
Audiences in the UAE will be able to enjoy the experience of a live concert with Domingo this month.
Accompanied by the Orchestra of Valencia, Spain, he will perform in the main auditorium of the Emirates Palace as part of the Abu Dhabi Classics programme. Domingo has selected for the concert a number of songs from Spain's most famous Zarzuelas, a very popular Spanish light opera style which has its roots in the 19th century. Domingo is a great fan of the Zarzuela and has released a number of CDs devoted to this romantic and lyrical genre.
High energy and an intense work schedule have always been trademarks of Domingo's lifestyle. "When I started singing in 1961, rumours abounded — ‘Plácido is working too much, he will burn himself out'," he recalls. In 1973, when he started conducting orchestras, everybody was waiting for him to fail, thinking he would never be able to have two irons in the fire but he earned the respect and applause of fellow musicians and audiences.
Fourteen years ago he added the artistic direction of the Washington Opera to his activities and he is still there. Then he accepted the position of artistic director of the Los Angeles Opera. "We all have a destiny in accordance with the breadth of our shoulders and my shoulders are broad," he proudly admits.
When asked if it is still possible for young singers to aspire to the greatness that has continually marked his life, he readily answers: "Of course! Young performers today are much better educated musically and have more chances to achieve success than in the past." Having been himself an aspiring young singer living in Mexico, Domingo understands all the difficulties of moving ahead in the opera world and this is why he set up the annual Operalia singing contest and prize. He handles everything — from raising the $175,000 in prize money to the choice of jury members.
Through this now internationally recognised contest, he aims to pave the way to greatness for young artists by helping them overcome obstacles through exposure to the finest music professionals. "There are beautiful and interesting voices to be found all over the world but young singers frequently lack proper vocal, dramatic direction and effective career guidance," Domingo muses.
While the jetsetting tenor spends most of his time moving around the world, his family roots remain in Madrid, Spain, where his parents lived and worked as singers before moving to Mexico when he was a youngster. Domingo has chosen the Spanish capital, and in particular the stage at the Teatro Real, to celebrate his 70th birthday on January 21, 2011. Helping blow out the candles and mark the occasion through song will be an impressive list of internationally famous opera singers who have appeared with him in dozens of operas over the decades and now form part of his cherished circle of friends.
We all realise that sometime in the future the greatest tenor ever to grace the stage will have to stop singing. "When the day comes that I cannot perform anymore, I will be very sad, but I will also fall on my knees and give thanks for the years of work and pleasure I have had and given others. Don't you think it astonishing that, at 69, I am still working at improving my career?"
A lifelong engagement
Born in Madrid to parents who were Zarzuela performers, Plácido Domingo moved to Mexico at the age of 8. He went to Mexico City's Conservatory of Music to study piano and conducting but eventually was sidetracked into vocal training after his voice was discovered. He made his operatic debut at Monterrey as Alfredo in ‘La Traviata' and then spent two and a half years with the Israel National Opera in Tel Aviv, singing 280 performances in 12 different roles. In 1966, he created the title role in the United States premiere of Ginastera's ‘Don Rodrigo' at the New York City Opera while appearing there in standard repertory as well. His Metropolitan Opera debut came in 1968, as Maurizio in ‘Adriana Lecouvreur'. He has subsequently appeared there in more than 600 performances in 42 different roles and is now in his 39th consecutive season with the company (2007-08). He appears regularly at all the big opera houses of the world, including Milan's La Scala, the Vienna State Opera, London's Covent Garden, Paris's Bastille Opera, the San Francisco Opera, Chicago's Lyric Opera, the Washington National Opera, the Los Angeles Opera, the Teatro del Liceu in Barcelona, Teatro Colon in Buenos Aires, the Real in Madrid and at the Bayreuth and Salzburg Festivals.
Domingo's interest in helping young singers has led to the yearly competition ‘Operalia', which so far has taken place in Paris (three times), Mexico City, Madrid (twice), Bordeaux, Tokyo, Hamburg, Puerto Rico, Los Angeles (twice), Washington, Valencia and a combination of Switzerland (St Gallen), Austria (Bregenz), and Germany (Friedrichshafen, Isle of Mainau). It remains the biggest on the international scene with annual prizes amounting close to $200,000. It has launched many singers to international recognition, not only through its prizes but because of Domingo's continued interest in furthering their careers. The past five years also saw the inauguration of the Domingo-Cafritz Young Artist Programme of the Washington National Opera and the Domingo-Thornton Young Artists Programme of the Los Angeles Opera — other examples of his efforts to pave the way for opera's future stars — a topic which formed the nucleus of a recent ‘60 Minutes' segment on him.
The love of food
In his second Mexican restaurant venture with business partner and chef Richard Sandoval, he recently opened Pampano on Pearl Island in Doha, Qatar.
‘Although I'm Spanish, I grew up in Mexico,' he says. ‘I love Mexican cuisine with its spices, contrasts of hot and cold temperatures and amazing textures. Getting involved with these restaurant ventures is as close as I come to having a hobby.'
Domingo first showed an interest in restaurants back in 2003 when he opened the original Pampano in New York but, whereas the midtown Big Apple restaurant offers more classic cuisine, the newly opened restaurant in Doha specialises in innovative Mexican seafood dishes.
