I am composing my first opera
and realizing that I had no idea how cool opera actually is
Today, I want to talk about being new at something and share some sounds that are exciting me right now.
I have been invited to participate in Seattle Opera’s Creation Lab program. This annual program partners together emerging librettists and composers from across the Pacific Northwest and provides them with the mentorship and resources needed to create their first opera. The new works produced through this program will then be premiered next summer at Seattle Opera.
If you have been following me and my work in any way for the last few years this likely seems like a pretty radical departure for me. I spend most of my days composing video game soundtracks, producing my own electronic music, and teaching music production. The mental image conjured by that day-to-day description likely doesn’t evoke images of Puccini or Mozart. Why would it?
That being said my longtime ride-or-dies (hey, grandma) will know that this is something of a return to form for me as I first began my life with music as a choir kid. I walked away from that world while still a teenager when I was confronted head on with the classism and elitism that too often poisons classical music (a story for another time) which ultimately set me on the path that I am now. After 12 years, during which I’ve watched both myself and the field change, I’ve decided to try my hand at it again.
Opera is so much more than I thought it was
It would not be a lie if I said that before my participation in this program I had always thought that opera was art by dead rich people for soon-to-be-dead rich people. Not exactly a flattering view, but my understanding of opera wasn’t particularly flattering for me either. I would like to very clearly state that I was wrong in that assumption, though I don’t think my previously held view was entirely unwarranted. The over-dominance of centuries old canonical work has always left me personally feeling like opera was out of touch, overly Eurocentric, and unable to really speak to the world that I find myself living in. That isn’t to say that there isn’t any value in the canon, of course. So many people strongly connect with that work, I just don’t at this time. And that’s okay.
What I have learned so far is that, thanks to the composers and librettists working today, adventurous opera companies, and the changing taste of audiences (and programs like the Creation Lab), the landscape of American opera has shifted. Contemporary opera is ascendant and some of the most consequential opera companies today are prioritizing it. If you’ve ever heard any contemporary opera, you would understand why. American composers and librettists are writing moving works that speak directly to life in America today. I have been captivated for the last few days by the song Perfect Boy from “As One,” a chamber opera written by one of our mentors, Laura Kaminsky:
Listening to this and other examples from contemporary American opera has been eye opening for me. To see the world I live in, to see diverse and inclusive casts and characters, to experience stories filled with concerns of today addressed on the opera stage is captivating. This program has quickly expanded my previously ignorant understanding of the current opera landscape in America for the better. Now, I’m simply excited to explore what opera looks like for me as a composer.
Sounds and ideas that are exciting me heading into this process
I plan on documenting the entire process of composing this opera in this newsletter. By no means will my newsletter now become an opera newsletter, but you can expect periodic updates. I want to share the process of being new at something. I also personally want something to look back on when this is all done because nine months will go fast and to have an opera at the end of it is already hard for me to grasp.
Story Ideas
Right now, I am eagerly awaiting to be paired with a librettist so that we can begin to brainstorm what our opera will be about. I am not married to any specific story ideas at the moment but I do know the kind of stories I most prefer. I spent the weekend describing them to my potential collaborators as “slice of life in the context of greater tragedy.” As it stands, I’m not interested in telling the stories of larger than life characters but instead the stories of ordinary people who are living through extraordinary times. America is experiencing climate change, economic disparity, social inequality, and political instability and I want to write about those things. What does the mundane look like when the stakes are so high? I don’t know the answer. I also don’t want any opera I compose to give that answer. I want to explore the question.
Sounds
What I’m most obsessively thinking about right now is the ensemble for this opera. It will be a chamber work for six musicians total. We can have a maximum of four vocalists or four instrumentalists within the six. I am not thinking too heavily about voice types right now as that will be dependent upon characters and story. But the ensemble is a different story altogether. I’d love to share with you some of the sounds and instruments that I am most captivated by right now.
Fretless electric bass and e-bow
Listen to this! The colors and textures available in this combination are just magical to me. It sounds like a Moog, shakuhachi, or cello depending on how it’s used — and that’s before we even factor in any effect pedals. I feel like I could score an entire opera for this instrument alone. Maybe someday.
Gently prepared piano
I recently read a biography of John Cage and unsurprisingly have found myself thinking a lot about prepared piano. I’m fascinated by the possibilities that come with sticking random shit in and on top of a piano. I’m drawn to the playfulness but also there’s something deeply emotional to these altered sounds. Logistically, I don’t think it’s possible to do a full Cagean preparation as that takes hour of preparation alone sometimes but placing things on top of the strings to create mutes and rattles should be doable. I want to test laying wind chimes, tin foil, and a roll of paper towels across the strings and go from there.
Bowed percussion
I suppose the theme here so far is subverting traditional instrument roles and functions. There’s something so mournful and compelling when you rob a percussion instrument, like a vibraphone, of its attack. It’s so much more pensive with just a swelling drone. Another deeply compelling instrument.
Percussion and water
So I’ve got this idea to rig a cymbal up sideways on a hi-hat stand using a clamp so a percussionist can continually dip a cymbal in and out of water while exciting it using a mallet, bow, or brush. I’m hoping it’s possible to achieve. Wonderfully textural.
I still have a ton of thoughts swirling around in my head about this whole process. I feel like a broken record saying that I’m excited again but I am. I feel so grateful that this door has been opened for me and I want to take full advantage of this opportunity. It’s wonderful to be new at something and it’s wonderful to look deeper and change my mind. I hope to have many more experiences like this in my life.
Do you find any of the sounds I shared above particularly compelling? Or, better yet, is there instrumentation that you think I should be aware of? If so, please let me know.
Until next time.
Quick Hits
My new EP, Fever Dreams at Ruger Place, is out now. Stream or purchase it here.
Do you need help with your music production or composition skills? I offer private one on one lessons over Zoom. You can sign up for lessons here.
Are you attending GameSoundCon? Come say hi! My colleagues and I at Plant Based Audio will be giving a panel called “Starting your Game Audio Career: Turning Strife into Success” and I hope to see you there.
Congratulations man.
Opera is for the rich! Next thing, you'll be in suits!
Anyway I'm a music writer myself. Let's subscribe to each other's newsletters.