Artist Q&A: Alexander Chance
Alexander Chance talks opera, influences and what motivates him to create.
As we continue our look at Welsh National Opera’s spring season, Alexander Chance answers the Artist’s Q&A and looks ahead to his role as Apollo in Death in Venice.
Where are you from and how does it influence your work?
I’m from London, but we moved from place to place as a family when I was growing up, mainly within the UK but also occasionally living abroad temporarily while my father was doing operas. I suppose this prepared me for a life of travel, a familiarity with different cultures, and a rudimentary grasp of a number of foreign languages (I’m ashamed to say I haven’t achieved fluency in any, but I’m trying!)
Where are you while you answer these questions, and what can you see when you look up from the page/screen?
I’m sitting at my kitchen table with my score of Death in Venice, the opera we’re about to start. I’ve just put on a beef stew to slow-cook for dinner.
What motivates you to create?
This is very hard to pin down. The work I do at home on my own is really all about practice and technique, and then any creativity comes in the rehearsal room and on stage, but with the solid basis of knowing very well what I want to do. I don’t think about creating so much as trying to bring entertainment and joy to people through music which someone else has created.
What are you currently working on?
Death in Venice, by Benjamin Britten, which is opening in March. It’s my first time singing this opera, and the role (of Apollo) is a small but telling one. I always love Britten’s music, and the story is one I’m returning to, having read the original Thomas Mann novella a few years ago. It’s all very relevant to the question you ask above!
When do you work?
I’m always trying to impose a regular routine on myself, but I’m very bad at it. It’s difficult as a freelancer because, while you always have a diary telling you what’s coming up, the work can crop up very randomly and unexpectedly, so you always have to be prepared. When I’m not on tour or on a project, I try to do an hour of singing a day, and one singing lesson a week.
How important is collaboration to you?
Crucial, and really what it’s all about. In my opinion, in music you’re only as good as your ability to listen to others.
Who has had the biggest impact on your work?
My family and my girlfriend. I only fully enjoy doing the work if I can come home and see them afterwards. And having friends in an audience always lifts me during a performance.
How would you describe your oeuvre?
Being a countertenor prescribes quite a specific oeuvre for me. The majority is baroque repertoire, but there’s so much good modern music being written for my voice type, and there are so many countertenors working now: we want more of it!
What was the first book you remember reading?
I remember devouring the first Lord of the Rings while ill off school aged about 8.
What was the last book you read?
I’ve nearly finished Demon Copperhead, the new novel by Barbara Kingsolver, but I get so distracted that I tend to have a couple of books on the go (this isn’t a brag; quite the opposite). The other one at the moment is A Perfect Spy by John le Carré.
Is there a painting/sculpture you struggle to turn away from?
I can’t honestly say that there is, not because I can’t appreciate the beauty and technique of visual art, but because music and film have always spoken more to me. Having said that, I was in Rome recently, and was in awe of Bernini’s Rape of Proserpina. He was 23 when he sculpted it.
Who is the musical artist you know you can always return to?
JS Bach. Or Caroline Polachek.
During the working process of your last work, in those quiet moments, who was closest to your thoughts?
My girlfriend.
Do you believe in the power of art to change society?
I believe that art requires generosity of spirit, wit, kindness and intelligence; all of these things have the power to change society.
Which artist working in your area, alive and working today, do you most admire and why?
Not exactly classical music, but I love Jonny Greenwood. I admire the sheer chutzpah of moving on from one of the most successful rock bands of the last few decades, to a career in writing film scores, and interesting, inventive ones at that.
What is your relationship with social media?
Sporadic. I struggle with posting regularly on Instagram but I can see the importance of letting people know what I’m up to, and sharing clips of performances or recordings so that they can easily get a sense of what I do and why they might like it. There’s a real skill to it and it’s not easy. I also try not to spend too much time idly scrolling when I’m on tour.
What has been/is your greatest challenge as an artist?
Being away from home regularly, and the inherent financial insecurity of a freelance career..
Do you have any words of advice for your younger self?
I’m not that old!
What does the future hold for you?
Hopefully lots more opera and concerts, and especially UK-based opera and concerts. There is so much artistic talent in this country, but the powers that be are in danger of squandering it.
Death in Venice opens this week as part of the WNO’s spring season, touring throughout the UK. Further information is available here.
Thank you for doing this interview – I've seen/heard Alexander performing a couple of times in concerts at hereford Cathedral, but had lost touch with what he's doing a bit. Great to know he's in this WNO cast – will try to get to one of the performances.