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CBS News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Chicago tenor Rodell Rosel says opera connects people through music, emotion
Rodell Rosel is an accomplished tenor who has been singing opera in Chicago and around the country for more than two decades. He sat down with CBS News Chicago to talk about his life and work. "We always say opera is the Olympics of singing," he said. "Our instruments are inside our bodies." Rosel has been in love with opera for most of his life. "I've been singing professionally for 20 years. I'm 21," he joked. His talent has taken Rosel across the U.S. and beyond, and he says opera is for everyone even if the language being sung is unfamiliar. "Even though you don't understand the words, the music envelops it. It's up to the artist to interpret," Rosel explained. "When someone is saying 'My heart is broken,' it will sound like this, it's my heart is broken, it stretches it so it doesn't leave you quickly. It stays with you enough to feel the drama." Rosel said success in opera and in life is all about being comfortable with who you are. He comfortably identifies as a gay man, but said there's more to it. "I want to be a full, rounded person. To be able to full, rounded, you have to be able to embrace everything about you, both masculine and feminine," he said. Rosel has been married to Steven Hunter for 11 years, and when talking about their marriage he keeps it simple. "I will talk about it as normal and as regular as everyone else," he said. "If I'm talking to someone, 'Oh great, my husband and I are talking about going on that trip,' instead of saying, 'oh just want to let you know, I have a husband.'" He also has many friends, some of whom he met through a group called "Asians and Friends." "It started in 1984 as an organization to give a safe space to LGBTQ+ Asians and their allies," said president John McInteer. "In recent years we're trying to get more active in the community as well." McINeer is Irish and one of the friends. He was introduced to the group through his partner at the time. AFC activities include fundraisers, pride parade floats and regular dim sum brunches. "It's about our common interest and being able to open up and compare how we experience our lives in Chicago," said Rosel. And for Rosel, life is good and opera is a never-ending education. "I would consider it continuous learning. Just like law or medicine, we have to keep working on our voice," he said. "We have to keep working on our artistry." Do you know someone a person or place that brings you joy? We want to share your story. Send us your "Eye on Chicago" ideas using the form below (or clicking here):
New York Times
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
An Operatic Tenor and an Episcopal Priest Hit the Right Notes
William Hume Ferguson, an operatic tenor, was not about to move back to his hometown Richmond, Va. And the Rev. William Smyth Stanley, happily serving as the vicar at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church there, was not about to leave. Yet, in April 2022, a mutual friend knew they would hit it off when he met Mr. Stanley for lunch in Richmond. ''You want me to meet an opera singer, 12 years older than me, named Will who lives in New York?' Mr. Stanley said, incredulously. Mr. Stanley, 35, graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor's degree in religion from the University of the South in Sewanee, Tenn. He also holds a Master of Divinity degree from Yale, along with a diploma in Anglican Studies and the Institute of Sacred Music certificate. 'It seemed really fantastical,' he said, but after some thought decided dinner might be nice. He reached out to Mr. Ferguson on Instagram. Mr. Ferguson, whose previous marriage ended in divorce, received the direct message while in Austria performing the role of Louis in Peter Eötvös's operatic adaptation of Tony Kushner's play 'Angels in America' at the Salzburg State Theater. He was halfway through a 10-week run. 'St. Stephen's is a block away from my childhood front yard,' said Mr. Ferguson, 48, who moved to New York in 1995 to study voice at Juilliard, from which he graduated with bachelor's and master's degrees in vocal performance. He visited family in Richmond often, and would be back in town for his nephew's confirmation in May. He then tried to break the ice with a bit of local irreverence. 'I understand you're the vicar at St. Convenience,' he messaged in a DM, referring to the church's nickname because it was known as a central meeting place for residents of West End Richmond. Mr. Stanley wasn't particularly charmed. But after several messages, texts and one phone call, they planned to meet for dinner at Common House Richmond, a private club where the vicar is a member. 'Is that a husband?' Mr. Stanley recalled thinking after Mr. Ferguson got out of an Uber. 'He looked like a preppy magazine.' That evening Mr. Stanley thought it a bit 'eccentric' when Mr. Ferguson asked for a bucket of ice to chill a bottle of red wine. (The vicar, however, has since come to appreciate the virtues of chilled red wine). After dinner, they took in the city view from the club's rooftop and had a first kiss. They saw each other three more times before Mr. Ferguson left. The following week, after Mr. Stanley had gathered in New York with a group of clergy friends, he and Mr. Ferguson caught a matinee of the Broadway musical, 'A Strange Loop,' and then walked over to Central Park where they drank some rosé wine — chilled, of course — on the grass. A month later, Mr. Ferguson learned his father had died unexpectedly. He returned to Richmond for the funeral, and leaned on Mr. Stanley's friendship for support. That summer, Mr. Stanley flew out to Colorado, where Mr. Ferguson was singing the role of Eisenstein in 'Die Fledermaus' at Central City Opera House in Central City. 'My heart is moving forward, but my brain is saying, 'How is this going to work?' Mr. Stanley said. He considered turning around and flying home. He stayed, and soon the relationship took off. [Click here to binge read this week's featured couples.] In September, Mr. Ferguson returned to Richmond to help his mother settle into an assisted living community. 'I came for my mother, but I stayed for Will,' he said. He found a sublet apartment in town. In November, Mr. Ferguson accompanied Mr. Stanley to his 10th college reunion, and while they were on the dance floor, they said 'I love you.' On Christmas morning 2023, they accompanied Mr. Ferguson's mother to St. Mary's Episcopal Church, in Goochland County. After brunch at Mr. Stanley's house, Mr. Ferguson took his mother home. ''Oh look, there's something in your stocking,'' he recalled Mr. Stanley saying when he returned. Mr. Ferguson found a five-page letter and read it aloud. It ended with 'Please turn the page …' and in the middle of that page it said 'and look down …' Mr. Stanley then got on one knee. On May 9, the Rt. Rev. J. Neil Alexander, the Ninth Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, retired, officiated at St. Stephen's before 800 guests — parish members, friends and family — some in an overflow room watching the livestream. 'We hope that our wedding will be a sign and symbol of a better way to walk forward: together in love and joy,' Mr. Stanley said. As it rained outside, guests gathered in the parish hall for a Southern feast that included shrimp and grits, Virginia ham, cornbread and fried chicken and waffles. The newlyweds said a few parishioners told them: ''I've never been to a royal wedding, but this comes close.''
New York Times
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Luigi Alva, Elegant Tenor With a Lighthearted Touch, Dies at 98
Luigi Alva, the Peruvian tenor who was a pre-eminent interpreter of Mozart and Rossini roles that highlighted his light-lyric voice, elegant phrasing and subtle acting during a three-decade career on the world's opera stages, died on Thursday at his home in Barlassina, Italy, north of Milan. He was 98. His death was confirmed by Ernesto Palacio, a Peruvian tenor, the intendant of the Rossini Opera Festival and a close friend. Mr. Alva did not have the booming, resonant voice needed for dramatic tenor performances in the biggest opera houses. But he triumphed in opera buffa roles — such as Count Almaviva in Rossini's 'The Barber of Seville' and the lovesick Ernesto in Donizetti's 'Don Pasquale' — which demanded fine comedic timing and an appreciation for absurd situations without resorting to slapstick or mugging. In more serious roles, such as Don Ottavio in Mozart's 'Don Giovanni,' Mr. Alva displayed a warm timbre and gracious line that gained him an enthusiastic following. Few tenors could match his ability to deliver long coloratura passages with a single breath, as Mr. Alva did time and again in 'Il mio tesoro,' the famous aria from 'Don Giovanni.' 'The real trick is not merely to sing the passage, but to make it sound easy,' the critic Alan Rich of The New York Times wrote on the occasion of Mr. Alva's New York recital debut at Judson Hall in 1961. 'And this was the way he sang throughout the evening — beautifully, and with an assurance that was literally breathtaking.' Luís Ernesto Alva y Talledo — known professionally as Luigi Alva — was born on April 10, 1927, in Paita, a Pacific Ocean port in northern Peru. His father, Augusto Alva, a railway company employee, and his mother, Virginia Talledo, moved to Lima, the capital, when Luís, their only child, was 6. The boy studied at a Catholic elementary school and an English-language private high school, where he was popular with teachers and fellow students for his vocal renditions of Argentine tango music. He enrolled in Peru's Naval Academy intending to become a ship's captain, but after singing in a musical production while he was a student, he was approached by Rosa Mercedes Ayarza de Morales, the leading Peruvian classical voice teacher, who had been in the audience. She told him that his destiny was on the opera stage, not on the high seas. Mr. Alva joined Peru's Conservatorio Nacional de Música as Ms. Ayarza's pupil. Following several performances in zarzuelas and operas onstage and on radio, and heeding the advice of Ms. Ayarza, he moved to Italy in 1953 for more voice lessons, in Milan, and to advance his career. Success came quickly. In 1954, he made his European debut as Alfredo in Verdi's 'La Traviata' at Milan's Teatro Nuovo. A year later, he won plaudits for his performance as Paolino in Cimarosa's 'Il Matrimonio Segreto' at Milan's La Piccola Scala. And, in 1956, he made his first appearance on a big stage, at La Scala, as Count Almaviva in 'The Barber of Seville,' starring alongside the soprano Maria Callas. Over the next eight years, Mr. Alva shuttled between La Piccola Scala and bigger houses in Europe and the United States. In the larger settings of La Scala or the Metropolitan Opera in New York, he embraced a limited repertoire of roles more suitable to his slender voice. But in the smaller Milan theater, he took on roles in 18 operas, including unexpected ones, including the title role in Handel's 'Xerxes' (with its famed aria 'Ombra mai fu') and Bacchus in Strauss's 'Ariadne auf Naxos.' 'Mr. Alva's career was enriched, and audiences had a chance to hear an intelligent and interesting artist in roles he could never have undertaken — or operas that could not have been mounted — in the parent house,' Will Crutchfield, a Times music critic, wrote in 1985. On retiring from the opera stage in 1989, Mr. Alva, who took up permanent residence in the Milan area, dedicated himself to promoting young singers, especially in his native Peru. They included another Peruvian tenor, Juan Diego Flórez, who achieved even greater renown than his predecessor. His survivors include his wife, Anita Zanetti, and their two sons, Juan and Pedro. Among Mr. Alva's most popular roles were Almaviva, Don Ottavio and Ernesto. To those, he added Fenton, the earnest suitor of the love interest Nannetta, in Verdi's 'Falstaff,' which he performed in March 1964 for his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in a production staged by Franco Zeffirelli and conducted by Leonard Bernstein. Mr. Alva had bittersweet memories of that performance. 'We were all very sad, because the closure of the 'old' Met was approaching,' he recalled in a 2017 interview with Opera Magazine, marking his 90th birthday. 'Its destruction was already decided when, it seems to me, it would have been possible to restore it.' (The cast included Gabriella Tucci as Alice and Rosalind Elias as Meg; Ms. Tucci died in July 2020 and Ms. Elias two months earlier.) Mr. Alva performed the role of Fenton a total of 33 times at the Met, most of them in the new house. 'His gentle voice is perfect for the innocent Fenton,' wrote David Salazar, editor in chief of OperaWire, in 2017. 'After hearing him and Anna Moffo together, you might find most other tenors too heavy for this most delicate of roles.' Besides performing Almaviva frequently onstage, including 21 appearances at the Met in that role, Mr. Alva made four recordings of 'The Barber of Seville.' The most famous featured Ms. Callas as Countess Rosina and Tito Gobbi as Figaro. 'He was perfect for the Rossini,' the mezzo soprano Shirley Love, who was often paired with Mr. Alva, told OperaWire in 2018. 'He had a wonderful sense of humor that always came out in his singing.'
