Story Behind the Song: Julie Adams

0:00Hey y'all welcome back to Story Behind the Song on Radio Free Holesdale 101.7 FM. I'm your host, Lily Fay Kramer and today I am joined by Julie Adams, Julie is an opera singer and she's about to be a professor of voice at Holesdale College and I am so excited to have her on Story Behind the Song. Welcome Julie. Hi! Thanks so much for having me. Thanks so much, Vyn. Of course. Okay, to begin how did you get into music where you from and the whole shebang. Okay, I am originally from Burbank, California and I have been singing pretty much since as long as I can remember. I started voice lessons in second grade but I sang when I was a little girl. It was actually my grandfather who was a beautiful singer and also wanted to be a radio announcer but back in his time he didn't pursue that because that didn't make money.

1:03But that was his dream and he had a gorgeous voice and so he heard me sing one day and told my mom, hey she's got talent. My mom said, well I think you're just saying that because you're her grandfather and in second grade I went up to her randomly one day and I said I think I'm going to audition for the talent show and she goes, okay what's your talent? I said I'm going to sing and she goes, can you? And I said, yes I can sing. So at the time I was taking piano lessons from this lovely high school student and who also sang and she approached her and she said, hey can you please just listen to Julie Julie has this idea she wants to sing and I'm fully supportive if you think it's right but I also don't want to embarrass her. So just listen so she goes, okay. After my lesson she took me on and she led me a couple of scales and she went right to my mom and she said, oh you know Mrs. Adams I think I really think she has something I'd love for her to see my voice teacher. So I did and thus be in my singing life.

2:07I've literally been singing ever since and I've been studying ever since and it started out as you know I love all types of music. I was introduced first to musical theater and performing that way and I loved that and I did summer camps and performed all through high school and musicals and that's actually what I thought I wanted to do but I was not blessed with dancing abilities and so there are four. When I auditioned for college for the part of the musical theater programs you have to learn a routine and perfect it and like less than 10 minutes and then they put you up and like groups of three and you perform it and I can move well but I was like this was not my strong suit and every time I got to the voice portion of the audition all of them were like, um, why are you auditioning for musical theater? You should be auditioning for the voice department. So I then that made me think a little bit harder. Okay, what do I do and auditions for the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as a voice major which meant sort of classical and opera and at the time I struggled with it because

3:13if you would have asked me at 18 whether I want to be an opera singer I would have said absolutely not but it's funny how life works out. I had the you know I was destined for other plans. I got in and was fortunate enough to land some roles and lo and behold I'm currently an opera singer. Wow. So it's a funny story. So there you go. And then I'll show them. Yeah. What are some highlights of your career? Some ups and downs? Yeah. What do you look forward to? This career is a crazy one but I would say when you know one of the highlights for me is that it's enabled me to travel the world. I and I've met some incredible people that I don't think I would have otherwise met. Had I chosen other profession. So that's been really beautiful and getting to see and experience different cultures and I've lived in Switzerland because of this career. I've lived in Germany because of this career. I've visited Australia, China, Italy, like you so literally all over the world and that's

4:18been really amazing but it also is you know there's lots of travel and so that's wonderful but also can be lonely at some times. You know I think that's that can be hard for most. So you know I think that's been amazing and just the experience itself of just immersing myself in that culture trying to learn the languages and you know seeing how other people sing and act and putting shows together. It's really great. What's your favorite show that you've performed in and what did your preparation process look like? Yeah. I would say one of my favorite shows was Roussalca. Basically that is the operatic version of the Little Mermaid but except a little bit darker. The opera is in Czechoslovakia and it is by Devorsak and Roussalca essentially Ariel is the main character and same story except spoiler alert she kills the prince at the end.

5:19So it's not the most amazing ending but it was so cool. I got to it was my debut in Germany at this specific house in Brownschweig. One of the things in the opera world is that Europe is sort of notorious for doing very modern weird productions of classical operas like there's a lot of there's always nudity. There's always it's a little extreme and I was a little nervous because they were like it's a new production and I was like okay so how are we going to do this and it was during COVID. Germany had less restrictions than the states so technically this was 2020 and I was still allowed to perform but we were not allowed to touch and we had to be distance apart. And so you know the production was wild. I had fins. I had and it was really cool and it but it also looked really ugly aesthetically because

6:19his the director's vision was sort of this where human destruction meets nature. So there was like an empty gross old washing machine on one side of the building or one side of the stage excuse me and then the other side had this giant sewer pipe and those were our entrances. And so my first entrance is me this mermaid by this washing machine wrapped in plastic like come up for air and then like find a half-drunk and Evian bottle and poured all over myself and try to start singing. So it just was wild. It was really crazy but it was so much fun and I think you know as crazy as it was I love I was nervous but this director was such a gem and he had an answer for everything and it was super creative and so it was it'll always hold a special place in my heart because it was my debut in Europe and and it was and how they operate and do things that are just so different from us Americans how we train and everything.

7:22So you know it pushed me it pushed me for many things I got out of my comfort zone forced me to really try it another language in German. I mean most of my rehearsals were held in German and I was expected to sort of understand and I was grateful because the director spoke English so he would you know if I really was lost he would you know speak to me in English but so there was so many things where I think it was it was just great to just try and especially during COVID when all of us were totaling our thumbs figuring out what to do I had this opportunity so I wanted to make the most of it so that was really fun show for me. That is so cool. Yeah you made the most out of it too. I hope so. So you said that a lot of European directors and opera like to take a contemporary approach that is so interesting how would you say would you say that a lot of American directors

8:22have a similar approach or is it just unique to them. I think it's unique to each director I could definitely tell you you know looking by certain names that we have American directors who kind of tend to do quirky, crazy or they're more like the outrageous stuff. There's definitely a few that have that reputation but it's generally more of a Europe thing. For them it's just it's you'll always see wacky productions like Lobo M which is a very famous opera. Essentially that's for any of you musical theater fans out there. It's pretty much the story of rent the musical. You know it's these bohemian guys living together and they meet that one of them Rudolfo the poet meets this beautiful Mimi and some of the most iconic music and it's gorgeous. It's one of my one of the roles that I performed most unfortunately I don't sing her anymore but miss Mimi but she it's my one of my favorite operas and and that in Germany I've they've

9:24set it on the moon so that they're in spacesuits and Amy you'll get you go into weird things and actually it's so it just depends I would say it varies by opera company to do sort of a new modern piece. I know also in Berlin there's a there's an opera company out there in Komi shopper which does they tend to do like very new almost pushing the norm of like and really trying to do creative productions. They're kind of notorious for that so yeah would you say the demand between the audiences is different because I feel like for Americans at least with the symphonies what I picked up on there doing more pops concerts with soundtracks and stuff yes or like yes I don't know when Nashville it's the country artists that are being accompanied by the orchestra. Yeah would you say the contemporary opera could kind of be absolutely okay I think definitely the operant industry is changing but I would say also music and and the perfect examples you just mentioned as changing as a whole you know we are going through this shift not to be a Debbie Downer

10:27but COVID really destroyed our industry financially and so to be honest with you we are not back from that okay so part of that is what are we going to do what what can we put on that audiences want to see right and that is you know a lot of you'll see a lot of opera companies what I'm noticing they're putting a musical in their in their season and they're hiring Broadway off Broadway singers to perform in them no granted it'll be a little bit more of a classical musical website story perfect example. Oh interesting. Lyric Opera of Chicago I think they did that last season or so another cool thing Lyric Opera of Chicago did is Billy Corgan of smashing pumpkins because he's from Chicago hired approached the opera and said I'd love to collaborate with you how can we do this so he scored his pieces for orchestra brought in some colleague friends of mine and they sang his work as with Billy Corgan. So I thought that was collaboration. Like so cool to introduce like

11:31you know this smashing pumpkins audience to you know also maybe the classical audience of Lyric Opera of Chicago so there's a lot of stuff that's that that is happening and and I think that's necessary and would make their season a lot stronger. But yes and don't try to but celly his partnership with like Chris Stapleton or who else did he do I want to say Alison Kraus or something as well. But that goes back in the day like how funny like back when like Luciano Pavarotti was still alive and the three tenors they were doing things all the time with like Aretha Franklin and then like my favorite is Freddie Mercury of Queen loved opera. Really? Yeah. There's something there's videos of him Montserrat Caballet. She was this beautiful Spanish soprano amazing opera singer and they they did stuff together. That's cool. So I just think that it is I mean we are having so I think a lot of opera companies are trying to reimagine their seasons and what that means.

12:33But yeah I think but it's also to be it's also there's something to be said about the culture is changing to a lot of those older donors unfortunately you're passing away so it's this new generation and in Europe think about it it's more accessible there. They they go to the opera they bring like like there's more in their culture it's more emphasize. Yeah like Germany and Berlin itself has three major opera houses. That's that's unheard of here in the States. So and it's normal like there they have performances on Christmas and it's normal for German kids to celebrate Christmas in the morning and then go to the show go to an opera. So for them like they're they're brought up with it we are not here. So it's interesting and I and I think the more that they've we find contemporary opera and and these young composers that want to produce stuff like that that's what's going to keep this art alive. So yeah I think it's a necessary I think it's really cool. I'm in this French film class right now and we just watched a movie called

13:38encore rise and it was directed for who was directed by but Hovesh Schecter he's this Israeli choreographer who I don't know if you've heard of him or not. Okay he's really big and London right now. Okay um but it's all about the story of this classical ballerina who gets injured and then in order to continue her dance career she has to switch to contemporary dance. Wow. But the opera they used at the beginning was by a dare by Mingus and I never heard of it before. Oh yeah me either. Oh you hadn't either. Okay. That's awesome. Okay. I can give another place that's one of my favorite places I performed in Tel Aviv. Oh really? Yeah. What was that like? Incredible and I worked with the most amazing Israeli director. He was so cool. This piece was L'Enfantreau-deague which technically wasn't an opera. It was so Debussy it was composed by Debussy and he like composed it at 17 years old. Okay. So it's like a little one act and he won the pre-derome with it and it's

14:40a story of the prodigal fun. So I played Leah and I used her Arya for competitions all through college and that actually that Arya won me many prizes which I'm very thankful for. So anyways they decided to stage it and this Israeli director was incredible. His name was Danny Erlich and he's still around today and he saw some we follow each other on Facebook and I love to see what he's doing. This was like back in 2012 but the coolest thing was is he he was so creative and so I played Leah the mother of course is grieving her son being gone and she opens this sort of one act with its azzail her son and why have you left me? She says that constantly and he create. He's like okay you we all dressed in white and it was sort of the stark house and he made us like make in my Arya he had me like make paper dolls that would like act as my son and it but it was it was insane doesn't sound like much but I just remember being enthralled by him.

15:45He was just so cool how to different view for everything so that was so fun. That is so cool. But it was that's really cool though I love about your friend. He was very niche it was so yash and the HoFesh shactor the same choreographer I was researching and more and he just choreographed a new version of Fiddler on the roof. That's got to be really interesting. I love that's really cool. But see that's so I think that's you know sometimes it's within reason and I know that's the beautiful thing about art is it subjective right? Yep so I think but that's so cool I think it is really cool to have sort of a modern approach to these classic pieces and I will admit I'm I really like traditions so sometimes yes sometimes I think it goes a little too far like lagoa with spade suits not a huge fan. Yeah but if it like my biggest thing is if you're like with directors does that listen I'm cool I'm I am down to get weird however have a reason for it.

16:51Yes there has to be sub symbols in the meaning behind it and if it's just for the sake of being weird and it's just like gratuitous for you. No that's where the itter. Yeah I really can't get behind that and so that's why like with this Rusalka if you saw it and if I were to have walked in not being a part of it and so just saw the set I'd be like I probably roll my eyes and go oh great here we go what are we gonna watch right but every question I asked him like my like how are you gonna do this why why are you why are you staging it like this. I feel Rusalka would do this he had an answer for that's good and it was so good and creative that then I was like okay I trust you and I'm gonna get behind you and I'm going to do my damnedest to sell this for you but it's the directors we've been with and I've been oh and there was another one I was in a vupertal Germany this is the new thing that they're doing they're giving a lot of operas to theater directors which is cool if you know your stuff but this man had never really directed an opera before

17:56yeah and his staging for me humbly say I still don't really know what it had to do with the opera was so strange and awkward that was rough so in cases like that where it's just gratuitous and he just clearly had his own vision what it had to do with the opera I still don't know but sometimes a job is a job so yeah I remember during covid I was going through a 60-minute phase and they interviewed Alma Doucher Doucher oh yeah and she wrote an opera Cinderella she actually that's so funny you mentioned that so back in California one of my so I was a artist in San Francisco I went to San Francisco Conservatory of Music and then I was fortunate after that to be a part of the Maryland Opera Program in San Francisco which is a feeder program into being a young artist at the Adler Program at San Francisco Opera so I lived in San Francisco for 12 years so Northern

18:58California is like second home to me and when I graduated the Adler Program I was so fortunate enough I've done two productions with San Jose Opera and San Jose hired Alma really I put on Cinderella she's like a year older than me by now but she must have been what six she was six 17 I think at the time she was gonna conduct it and but and so I had my friend I think that yeah Vanessa was singing Cinderella and she she was like I I remember seeing her and kind of asking her about the process and she was like oh she's great she's so cool I mean she they they were calling her like a little prodigy I mean she is I was still all I think I was watching her I know it's funny I was just thinking her for the like like not too long ago like what is she doing now I don't know I haven't really heard anything I know so Wall Street Journal would do a few editorials yeah like every few months I'll like update on her yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah like critics and whatnot but I don't see anything I know and but she she's amazing she was like a modern day of Mozart she's 16 she doesn't like to be called that because I know she's different she is what

20:01she is and then rightfully so but I think the closest comparison just you know we say because it's like that prodigy yeah you know back in the day these composers when you were listening you know I always loved in my music history classes when my professors would dropbacks like so what you're staring in front of you he wrote that at 19 yeah and you're humbled so fast and I'm like oh yeah you're like and this was like he wrote this on his way you know on the train ride to his you know pants or something and you're like what like it's not fair yeah so different time but so she's incredible she's remarkable I hope she's wherever you are I hope you're doing well yeah I know I just ran like that over yeah so totally yeah once your next concert I'm working with the a bioryshe schtatzoper and Munich and I will be singing one of the Valkyries in D. Valkyrie. Wow yeah so I'm excited that's really cool that'll rehearsals will start with that okay um and

21:02that's May and then I'll be there all of June and performances wrap up July 8th and then I'll be back July 9th wow yeah busy summer but I'm really excited it's gonna be a lot of fun it's such an epic this is the ba da ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba ba so yeah that'll be um my Valkyrie's Gare Hilda and she also be my fifth time singing it so I'm I'm excited wow you got a full season I do I do and in addition to teaching here which I'm so excited about so yeah good well I think that's all the time we have for today thank you so much for joining me julie yes the labor having me all right this has been story behind the song on radio free wholesale and I've been your host willie fecramer