Anna Alàs i Jové: "Supporting local talent isn't provincialism, it's the proper use of tax dollars."

BarcelonaMezzo-soprano Anna Alàs i Jové (Terrassa, 1980) is experiencing one of the finest moments of a career developed primarily in Germany. On July 6th, she will make her debut in the title role of the opera Carmen from Bizet to Heidelberg, with stage direction by Anja Kühnhold. In addition to a notable operatic career, Anna Alàs i Jové is a magnificent liederist, a facet in which she leads proposals such as Catalan lyrics, with pianist Laura de Arenzana, and Ladies of Egara, a project with pianist Maxim Shamo that includes gems like poems by Marta Pessarrodona set to music by Elisenda Fàbregas. "They're four very beautiful songs, and during the studio I had to stop because I was bawling my eyes out," she explains in an interview with ARA in the cafeteria of the Palau de la Música.

Are you happy about your debut as Carmen?

— A lot. It was always a dream come true, I think it is for the vast majority of mezzo-sopranos, but I wanted it to come when I felt ready on every level, because it's a role that demands a lot from you: acting nuances, being able to sustain the journey, both vocally and emotionally, flexibility, colors, nuances... So, yes, I'm happy because I think it's coming to me at a very good time.

What decision do you think has marked your artistic career?

— Moving to Vienna. I left the Orfeó Català to train in Vienna, and that undoubtedly shaped my future. On the one hand, because it was my first regular contact with the Central European way of making music. It allowed me to see wonderful voices at the Vienna Opera for a couple of years at bargain prices, with standing room only, for two euros or so. It improved my German a lot, to the point where I could move fluently in the German-speaking world, and it gave me a glimpse into the level of competition outside of Catalonia. I even began to see some clues as to where the opera market was headed, that there has been a substantial change in how Victoria dels Àngels made her career and how it is being done today. When I returned to study at Esmuc, I was already very clear that I would return to Central Europe.

The next step is Germany. Karlsruhe?

— I did Erasmus in Karlsruhe. I was very clear that I was going to do Erasmus abroad, and this time my preference was Germany, not Austria.

Can you describe the change you perceived in the opera market?

— The craft is one thing, and the market is another. And it's very important for artists to keep them separate for our mental health. The craft, music, remains the same, or we try to keep it the same: communicating through music is enjoying it; enjoying rehearsals and performances; enjoying the score and the artistic journey you take. The agency system has become very strongly established in the market, to the point that today it's very rare to have a sustainable career over time and on prominent stages, with a quality presence and salary, if you don't have some kind of representation within the agency system. The new generation is very clear about this, because very young people must be very aware of this situation. On the other hand, there's the aesthetic pressure of Hollywood, which reached classical music—I couldn't tell you exactly when, because we can't say that Maria Callas's generation was free of it, although it was different. This aesthetic pressure is much easier to manage and exploit when you're very young because it's much easier for you to have sex appeal, that all your clothes fit you perfectly, that they can take lots of photos of you, and that you can sell lots of products. This has led to an aesthetic, appearance-based ageism that the voice doesn't accept.

And you need to be prepared to handle the pressure.

— Yes. It takes artistic maturity to handle the pressure of a profession where someone will tell you what you're good at or what you're not. This requires having a level head to stay calm and as happy as possible. This demand can cause fantastic young talent to be lost along the way, but it can also be replaced very quickly. Therefore, we can become a disposable commodity. Furthermore, we miss out on seeing the evolution of very interesting voices from artists who reach their peak at 40. And it doesn't just happen with deep voices; light lyrics can also become spectacular lyrics at 40. Ageism greatly limits this, and the tyranny of aesthetic pressure affects both men and women: height, having hair or not, being muscular or not, whether you can go on stage shirtless or not, whether you're thin enough, whether you have breasts.

The stage direction also plays with these elements more and more.

— I don't agree with blaming stage management alone. I think responsibility lies in different areas these days.

Including the press.

— Exactly, you said it. Marketing is very powerful because one thing that has marked the market shift is that twenty years ago we were in capitalism and today we are in neoliberalism; this cannot be ignored.

You work in Central Europe, a cultural sphere that gives prestige to established companies and repertoire singers, which is something we don't have in such a structural way in Catalonia.

— I really like the combination of a ensemble of stable voices by inviting exceptional voices from thestar systemThe combination of these two elements keeps the audience motivated. And also theensemble, because these voices reach him and inspire him. Tending to support local talent isn't provincialism, but sustainability and the appropriate use of taxes. That's why I really like this combination, and it's what we see in the great theaters we admire in Zurich, Munich, Vienna, Berlin... they all operate this way. You have singers with a fixed salary each month who sing the vast majority of the performances. This also makes the audience grow fond of these voices and follow them. We talk a lot about Barça and we're incredibly proud of how the La Masia youth academy works, and we don't want to apply it to other areas, such as fostering a pool of Catalan voices.

In Catalonia, more has been done with instrumental ensembles and solo voices than with solo voices.

— Absolutely: the core groups, although there aren't enough professional core groups in Catalonia, and the orchestras. They're the ones with stable formations, and everyone sees it as perfectly normal; I think it's wonderful. That's how you build a sound; Maestro Pons comes, works on the orchestra, and saps it of all its juice. And the same goes for the Liceu's core group. We lack a national core group linked to L'Auditori, but we do have an OBC (Board of Cultural Organizations) and, fortunately, a Vallès Symphony Orchestra. Yes, this is normalized.

Precisely at the presentation of the season at the Palau de la Música, the composer Josep Ollé He said that Barça's La Masía and the Orfeó Català choral school were key figures in moving the country forward.

— It's a fantastic and much-needed school, but where do the voices of the Orfeó go? Many must leave. It's important to understand that we don't sacrifice our free time or certain youthful foibles to train as singers for five minutes on stage. Five minutes on stage is Barça's youth academy, and no one expects La Masia to invest money in talent and bring in talent from all over the world to leave them playing youth academy. We've lost our risk-taking spirit. Those who don't take risks don't step in, as we say in Catalan. You have to leave your comfort zone and explore the limits to grow as an artist. If they don't give us this space, we artists have to seek it out.

Regarding your interpretation in Giuseppe recognized at the Palau de la Música, The critic Jaume Radigales wrote in the ARA"The mezzo-soprano Anna Alàs, always luxurious, is incomprehensibly absent from the Liceu seasons." How is this?

— I really appreciate it when family and friends travel outside of Catalonia to see me sing opera. Or to meet the Friends of the Liceu after singing Wagner at the Leipzig Opera. But yes, like other colleagues, I would very much like the theater to find a proposal that fits with my professional stage.

You've explored your limits quite a bit, ranging from Cavalli, Monteverdi, Terradellas, and Handel to Rossini, Bizet, Elisenda Fàbregas, and Raquel García-Tomás. You haven't been afraid to expand your range chronologically and stylistically.

— Yes, I've been afraid, yes. I'd be crazy not to be. What happened is that I learned that artistic growth involves overcoming that fear, overcoming challenges.

I also tell you this because sometimes there's a risk of being pigeonholed, like when a singer is called "a magnificent voice for the Baroque repertoire," and no one thinks she can do other things.

— I love artists who are pigeonholed into the Baroque, there's nothing wrong with that. I'm interested in many different things, both within and outside of music. It's been the career that brought me here; it wasn't a premeditated plan, but I found myself, and of course, I had to pay the rent. Art is very beautiful, but I have to pay the landlord money; I can't just show up and sing for him. It's very important for an artist to understand that they must be able to make a living from this because if not, they'll have to give it up, and we don't want to give it up. It's the career that has brought me here, and I've been well received creating new works alongside new composers, creating new roles; also researching historical praxis with colleagues who have inspired me greatly and helped me grow in that field. I've also been well received in the bel canto And in classical. The secret is to do things with great love and humility, and then there's the genetics of the instrument, which isn't my fault.

What do you mean?

— My merit lies in the juice I've extracted from that instrument, my voice, but the instrument is genetic. It allows me to create very delicate colors as well as greater volume; it has a great harmonic richness. And humility leads you to want to be brave and explore what else you can learn, and from whom. This is one of the greatest beauties of my profession: learning, developing, growing.

There's no musical background in your family, right?

— Professionals, no. Now, as for singing for pleasure, there are plenty. Grandpa was in Clavé's hearts and sang caramelles. Grandma always said she fell in love with him after hearing him sing. My mother has a very beautiful voice, my uncle did too. And from my paternal band, my paternal grandfather, who had a privileged brain, had a great talent for music, for making anything you put in front of him sound. I taught him to play the piano when he was older, and how to write music. I come from a legacy of people who have loved music very much. My own father, his profession is a sound technician. All of this meant that, when I said I wanted to dedicate myself to music, the family didn't make a fuss; on the contrary, they gave me their full support.

What is your best memory related to music?

— I feel bad saying this because we shouldn't be judged by awards, but winning second prize at the Hugo Wolf Akademie Stuttgart Song Contest in 2010, with pianist Alexander Fleischer, was a very, very sweet moment, because it's a genre I'm passionate about and because I'd invested many years in training.

And a memory you would like to forget?

— I learn a lot from unpleasant moments, and music always makes them less unpleasant. I've experienced very difficult and painful moments that have helped me progress a lot, and I don't want to forget them. I'm going to use a cliché: the pandemic, what we had to go through as performers during the pandemic, how it affected the interpretation of music, rehearsal time, and everything. And I was privileged because at the time I was working in Austria, and Austria was the best country to be an opera singer during the pandemic, because of the measures they implemented.

You live in Germany now, right?

— Yes, now near Düsseldorf.

What is your daily life like?

— At home, when I'm not in a production, my daily routine is flexible. I give myself a certain amount of freedom and flexibility because when I'm in production, the discipline and schedules are what they are, and everything is much more rigid and tiring, because I don't know if the audience knows that we usually rehearse from morning to noon and from afternoon to night. So, whether you like it or not, you never fully disconnect from work. So, when I'm at home, I give myself a certain amount of flexibility, but also combined with discipline. My daily routine must include physical training, practicing my instrument, studying my repertoire, working at the office, and resting. Rest includes my personal life, the friendships that give me life.

How long have you been living near Düsseldorf?

— It's been two years. I'm very happy that I haven't moved in two years, and I haven't been able to say that for years. I love the apartment, especially because I was looking for one where I could sing with complete freedom. There are very few of us neighbors, and we all really love art. I feel like I've found a home and I'd like to stay as long as possible, but I can't say for sure because for now, I'm prioritizing continuing to enjoy the opportunities my studies offer. I'm still in a period of artistic growth and have entered a very interesting vocal phase, and it opens up some roles I want to explore. Therefore, I don't want to limit the development of my career, but I would like to not lose this little home I've set up, which gives me great serenity.