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Renée Fleming's first performance on the series was as Madame de Tourvel in 1994's "The Dangerous Liaisons," a role she originated for the opera's world premiere at the San Francisco Opera. Subsequent appearances have showcased not only her adeptness with contemporary pieces as well as the standard repertoire but also her penchant for songs of the American musical theater. With this new special, she puts her stamp on some of the most famous songs and arias within the sacred repertory. Prior to the filming of the program, the soprano talked with contributor Tim Smith about why she decided to make a CD of religious music as well as her recent recording of jazz standards and the complete Strauss opera "Daphne."
GREAT PERFORMANCES: Your new recording SACRED SONGS is filled with some of the most popular pieces of religious music. Do the selections tell us anything about your own personal faith?
Renée Fleming: That's a subject I really stay away from; it's private. I don't want to be inundated with letters from people telling me what I should believe.
GP: What drew you, artistically speaking, to the pieces you've included on the SACRED SONGS CD -- the "Ave Marias" by Schubert and Gounod, "Panis angelicus" by Cèsar Franck, "Amazing Grace," and the others?
RF: It's just great music, and it harkens back to family traditions. My father was a choral conductor, and I grew up singing in church choirs, so it's wonderful to revisit that. SACRED SONGS really doesn't leave anybody out; the music is more cultural in a larger sense, and you can listen to it year-round.
GP: Some people have been known to get a little tired of Christmas music, given how much it surrounds us in every possible way each holiday season. Has any of it become jaded for you?
RF: I'm kind of a holiday junkie -- [for] every holiday. My little apartment in New York still has all the Halloween decorations. And I hadn't performed holiday music in so long before this project. I just think that these tunes are so beautiful. They have become part of the fabric of our culture. Everyone knows this music; it cuts across all kinds of cultural divides.
GP: How about all the pop holiday songs? Will you be putting your stamp on, say, "White Christmas"?
RF: For the most part, I'm staying away from that repertoire. When I made my jazz album, HAUNTED HEART, that was such a huge departure for me. I didn't feel I needed to make another departure with this.
GP: HAUNTED HEART was a revelation for many of us. Although your early days singing in jazz clubs were well known from your bio, the CD provided a startling documentation of your affinity for jazz, and your ability to cultivate a low, sexy register. Any plans to do more jazz singing?
RF: As a result of HAUNTED HEART, a lot of performances suddenly became available to me, but I'm already so busy with everything else I do. I would certainly love to do another recording like that, but I don't know when. I wanted to make that project for 10 years. It took so long for that to happen, and I was so pleased when I finally did it. But now I'm not sure I feel compelled to follow up on that immediately. I might wait. I'm not a big repeater, anyway.
GP: Are there other nonclassical genres that might attract you, types of music we might be surprised to hear you sing?
RF: Nothing that would be terribly shocking. But folk music would be fun and easy for me to do.
GP: How about another CD of sacred classics?
RF: What's not on SACRED SONGS is an enormous amount of oratorio repertoire. There are millions of Bach cantatas, for example, and tons of repertoire for a more serious version of this disc that I could do, no question.
GP: The Christmas-oriented items on your CD whet the appetite for an all-holiday recording. Will there be one in your future?
RF: Yeah, there should be. The plan is for a holiday disc next season, and I'm ahead of myself on that one. I already recorded some repertoire for it (while making SACRED SONGS). I always like to record too much and then cull the things I'm not as thrilled with.
GP: I'm sure many opera fans would love to have more complete recordings of your memorable opera roles, like your Strauss "Daphne" that was just released. Are there other studio opera recordings in the works?
RF: Absolutely nothing. They're too expensive, and not enough people buy them. It's that simple. Home record collections are saturated. I was lucky to record "Daphne."
GP: Your remarkable career on the opera stage has included the world premieres of works written expressly for your talents, such as André Previn's "A Streetcar Named Desire." Are you interested in creating another role?
RF: I would love to have one more premiere, but it's not easy. It takes years to develop a new opera -- and a lot of convincing. I'm always looking. I would love to play a contemporary American woman, someone who is complex, maybe even funny. I don't mean that it would be a comedy, but even great Shakespearean tragedies have their comic moments. Opera tends to take itself so seriously.
GP: Your schedule looks as packed as ever. How are you coping with all of the pressure of a major career, while also raising two girls?
RF: I am really not traveling as much as I was, at least not during the school year. But when I do travel, I'm killing myself. But that's okay, because I know I will get more time at home. I had two months off this year, which was a real luxury for me. I've found a much better balance.
Interview by Tim Smith for GREAT PERFORMANCES Online conducted in November 2005.
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