Interview: now in Germany

Josep è ormai giunto in territorio tedesco dove si esibirà in più occasioni, a partire da stasera in cui offrirà al pubblico di Stoccarda il suo programma "Mediterranean Passion".

Vi invito a leggere attentamente questa intervista, (qui l'articolo originale) per cui come sempre ringrazio Ellie e Maria.

Star tenor José Carreras

"I HAVE REMAINED A ROMANTIC MAN"

Friday, 21 November 2008 02:50

Berliner Morgenpost Today classic music is used, first of all, for relaxation or background music. Does that bother you?

José Carreras It is true that you hear classical music in stores, it is true it is used in advertising, as the background music - and I am responsible for this, in some aspects: With our performances as "The Three Tenors" we have greatly expanded classical music. If someone criticizes this, I accept it. But do not believe that this harms the genre, as long as the quality is guaranteed!

Berliner Morgenpost Do you occasionally listen to classical music to relax?

Jose Carreras I love to hear classical music, at home.

Berliner Morgenpost Anne-Sophie Mutter says she is never totally satisfied with her own performances. Do you know this feeling?

José Carreras (laughs): On the day I would be one hundred percent satisfied with myself, I would withdraw from the stage. No, an artist can never be entirely satisfied with himself.

Berliner Morgenpost Such an inherent lac of satisfaction does not represent a threat?

José Carreras No, it is an entirely natural process. An artist always wants to do things better, to perform a song a little differently, to try a new genre - an artist's life must be open, he must be always ready to learn new things.

Berliner Morgenpost Unlike a violinist and his violin, the singer's instrument looses quality with age. How do you deal with this loss of quality?

José Carreras Excuse me, but that sounds to me too much black and white painted! Obviously, a singer looses certain qualities over the years but he also gains qualities in other aspects. I'm still very romantic, but in a different way from what I was with 20 years old - and that expresses itself naturally in my renditions. Over the years we look to certain situations with a much deeper understanding and with much deeper feelings.

Berliner Morgenpost With all due respect, age brings powerful losses for the voice. Why can't a great singer, at the peak of his career, simply retire?

José Carreras But what is wrong with continuing to perform? In all professions, there are older people - you simply must be intelligent enough to go on doing what you enjoy doing and sing what you can sing with dignity, style and a certain quality. For this reason I am no longer singing "La Bohème": Why should I do it when I know that I have previously performed it much better?

Berliner Morgenpost And what is it that you perform better today than before?

José Carreras I can now deliver songs differently, by fulfilling them with really different emotions and with a much deeper passion. But naturally I also know that the day is approaching when I will withdraw from this life, from concerts - I just hope that I have a few more years to sing before that happens.

Berliner Morgenpost What is it that attracts you to the stage and that makes you to come back to the scene?

José Carreras There is a feeling of familiarity and intimacy, a direct communication with the audience and this moment when I feel that the audience immediately responded to my interpretation. And by that I mean not just the applause.

Berliner Morgenpost Do you occasionally listen to your own recordings?

José Carreras Not too often, to be honest. I rather listen to the recordings of such great artists such as Giuseppe di Stefano or Herbert von Karajan.

Berliner Morgenpost And how do you evaluate your own old recordings?

José Carreras Sometimes I think to myself: Wow, since then you've really done a good job! (laughs) And sometimes I think: That, you could certainly have done better ...

Berliner Morgenpost When you listen to them do you feel something like melancholy?

José Carreras No, I do not feel melancholy. Why should I? I'm one of those real lucky human beings able to do, practically during my all life, and until the present - apart from the time when I was seriously ill - what I love most: to perform great music! And I did it in the most famous opera houses in the world, in the most important festivals and in major concert halls, with the greatest singers and conductors.

Berliner Morgenpost Which of all these high points of your career has a more special meaning for you?

José Carreras If among these many artistic activities I should mention one as a climax, so this would be the 12 years of joint collaboration with Herbert von Karajan. For him, I even sung Radames in Verdi's "Aida". And for him I would even sing Micaela, from Bizet's "Carmen", should he ask me to do it. (laughs).

Berliner Morgenpost Well, you sang Don José and you remained only with Don Jose. How do you respond when today a friend puts an old CD with your songs or arias?

José Carreras That is something I still can cope with. But when I visit a restaurant and the owner thinks he will make me happy by putting a CD of mine, that is a different matter. Then I ask him politely, but firmly, if he has something else to play ...

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Avete letto bene? Avete notato anche voi quella sottile, ma mica tanto sottile, intenzione comunicativa? Già.

Per fortuna dall'altra parte c'è una persona forte, determinata, e convinta di quello che fa. La consapevolezza di aver perso alcune caratteristiche si evince dall'aver scelto un determinato repertorio che ne risalti altre, che sono nitide. L'ha detto lui stesso, non può più cantare la Bohème perchè il confronto con il suo passato sarebbe troppo sfavorevole, ma il repertorio che propone nei suoi attuali concerti e recital valorizza ciò che un glorioso cantante può ancora dare al pubblico di tutto il mondo.