I am very partial to Thomas Quasthoff and all his endeavours.
He is not only a wonderful singer but also a pleasant, kind and
inspirational human being. This DVD, filmed live in Verbier, captures
a singing masterclass that Quasthoff gave for the Verbier Festival
Academy. Should one still be in any doubt, it proves exactly what
I said about him, both as a musician and as a person.
The masterclass
features five young aspiring opera singers, all very good
and with potentially big careers in front of them, particularly
mezzo-soprano Pauline Sabatier and tenor Seil Kim who possess
voices of great beauty, and soprano Courtney Mills who displays
a very powerful, far-reaching voice in its highest register.
Each of the students sings a different piece but in most cases,
as is usual in a masterclass, not to the end, presenting an
extract, which varies in length.
Quasthoff listens
intently and attentively to all of the young singers, displaying
throughout a good sense of humour and a genuine, intense desire
to help them improve. He effectively demonstrates that he
takes music and singing very seriously but never loses sight
that it should also be fun and that the students should enjoy
themselves when they sing. He is demanding but fair in his
comments and criticisms of the young singers, taking care
always to be constructive and make them understand that he
is not being negative but simply pointing out the aspects
of their interpretation where there is still room for improvement.
He is direct and candid in everything he says, equally addressing
what he sees as slight imperfections and what is truly excellent,
as he honestly compliments them on what he thinks they are
doing very well. He comes across as considerate and caring,
keeping a moving sense of wonder in the way he feels the music
and in the admiration he expresses when confronted with the
great voices among the students. He is the master but also
the pupil and this view comes across clearly. Quasthoff is
an excellent communicator and this fact is evident from beginning
to end of the film, showing how he manages to put both audience
and students at ease, effectively encouraging feedback and
effortlessly making all those present actively participate
in the discussion and share their views. I particularly enjoyed
the moments when he turns to the audience with an expression
of innocent admiration and genuine appreciation of the talent
displayed by some of the students. His face opens up in a
smile of wonder and he silently articulates the exclamation
“Wow!” referring to their voices.
One of Quasthoff’s
greatest qualities as a singer and possibly what makes the
difference between a good opera singer and an outstanding
one, is his pronunciation of the words and clear diction.
Therefore, he places great emphasis on the students’ use of
the language and the way in which they articulate the vowels,
closing or opening them, as required. He stresses the importance
of the sound of the words, highlighting that singing is not
merely playing an instrument (the voice) to the accompanying
music but it is the correct intonation of the words and the
opening up of certain sounds, letting the vowels loose, as
he puts it, which will make the distinction between an effective
delivery of a piece and an unforgettable performance. Thus
he encourages the students to strive for perfection, make
an additional effort and go the extra mile. It was wonderful
to see how his ideas were successfully put into practice by
the students and watch them make progress, most noticeably
in Pauline Sabatier’s, interpretation of Mozart’s Laudamus
Te from the Mass in C major. It is visible throughout
her performance that she loves what she is doing and that
she takes it seriously. She listens eagerly to everything
Mr Quasthoff tells her and applies it immediately. It is obvious
that she has great respect and admiration for him and takes
his comments to heart, looking back at him hopefully to see
if he acknowledges her effort. He does and it is lovely to
see how, towards the end, she lets her vowels loose and the
piece begins to sound glorious.
Quasthoff proves
that he is as good a teacher as he is a singer. It is a joy
to watch him and his interaction with the students and audience,
from beginning to end. He exudes warmth and kindness, is always
inspiring, encouraging and motivating and does not shy away
from expressing strong opinions on matters that are often
ignored by other musicians, for fear of upsetting some people’s
sensibilities. He makes this very clear during the performance
of Courtney Mills who sings the aria Dich Teure Halle from
Wagner’s Tannhäuser. Noticing a murmur in the audience
when Wagner’s name is mentioned, Thomas Quasthoff immediately
expresses the opinion that music and politics do not mix well
and that nobody should forget that Wagner’s music was used
by the Nazis for their own purposes and propaganda but that
the music itself is beautiful, worthy and some of the greatest
ever written.
Accompanists are
often forgotten and not always acknowledged by the ones they
accompany, as if their work is simply taken for granted. It
is therefore commendable to see the way in which Quasthoff
effusively thanks Simon Lepper, the accompanist at the piano
to all the students, for his work. He acknowledges Mr Lepper’s
dedication and wonderful contribution by saying that “if
every musician were as supportive, passionate and friendly,
always there for the students, like Simon … the musical world
would be much more fun”.
This Singing Masterclass
DVD is one of the best, most interesting and entertaining
films I have seen from the Masterclass Media Foundation and
this is mostly due to Quasthoff’s lively personality, his
down-to-earth approach and his simple, pleasant, open manner,
proving that great opera singers are not always “divas” or
“prima donnas” in the negative sense of the words.
I thoroughly enjoyed
this DVD and would recommend it to singing teachers, musicians
or any member of the public who likes good singing and admires
Thomas Quasthoff. As with any of these masterclasses, I cannot
help but feel slightly disappointed at the end, as we never
get to watch and hear the master perform even one piece in
full. Had this happened it would have made this DVD very nearly
perfect. It is, nevertheless, an excellent and entertaining
document of Thomas Quasthoff’s artistic ideas, musicality
and lively, warm personality. It therefore fully accomplishes
what it sets out to achieve and fulfils the objectives that
MMF describe as their aim for this series of masterclass films.
Margarida
Mota-Bull
Thomas Quasthoff
(baritone); Simon Lepper (piano); with students Pauline Sabatier
(mezzo), Seil Kim (tenor), Yana Eminova (soprano), Sarah Szlakmann
(soprano), Courtney Mills (soprano) 
[110.00]
