Meet lyric mezzo-soprano DEBORAH HARRISON.
She will be performing her new programme
Jazz Kaleidoscope in the panoramic amphitheatre
of the restaurant TwoTwentyTwo on Tuesday 28 August.
She tells Marie Benoît how her stay in Berlin led her to jazz
Deborah was born and studied music in the States. Her Masters degree is in Vocal Performance. She then went to study in Vienna for a Doctorate. Could she elaborate about her Viennese experience?
“I had done my Bachelor’s Degree in Vocal performance in Chicago and my Master’s degree in Cincinnati. I had always wanted to move to a German-speaking country because I love the language. Vienna was the obvious choice because I received a Rotary scholarship to study German Lied and Oratorio at the Franz Schubert Institute there. It was a fabulous city in which to study and to this day, it remains my favourite European city. On any given night there was such an incredible selection of musical events from which to choose. As a student, I could have not been in a better place to witness the standards required of the profession because I really got to hear first class performances from international stars on a daily basis. I was very spoiled after that!”
According to her biography Deborah sang quite a bit of classical music in the States. Does she have a favourite repertoire? She replies that her favourite repertoire was always the concert repertoire. “Lied, oratorio and the mezzo-sopranos solos in the symphonic literature are my favourite. J.S. Bach is closest to my heart – the St Matthew Passion, the St John Passion and all the delightful cantatas. I still love singing the solos in Handel’s Messiah or Mendelssohn’s Elijah and the solo for mezzo, Urlicht in Mahler’s Symphony No2 touches my very soul.”
In 1985 Deborah went to Berlin where her second love for piano, jazz and improvisation led her to success in the entertainment field. So Berlin changed the direction of her career. What was the turning point? “My career turned around in Berlin for one simple reason: I could not get a contract in an opera house – which had been my main goal when I moved there and I had to find a way to support myself. By establishing a name as an opera singer, I had then hoped to pursue my real love, which was the concert repertoire. During the two years I auditioned, there were very few vacancies in the opera houses and the competition was really stiff. Not only did you have all the talented Germans and Austrians auditioning but you had ten times as many singers who had come from the U.S. also looking for work! Looking back, I think those that really lived to sing opera were the ones who got the jobs. And for me, singing opera was a means to an end. I have learned over the years that when you do something with total conviction, heart and soul, you will succeed. However, if you are not convinced in what you are doing, how will you convince anyone else that you should have the job?” Did she have any particular opera roles that she preferred to sing? She replies: “Believe it or not, that is a tricky question. I think there are some great Mezzo roles in the operatic literature but I just wasn’t that enthused about the roles for ‘lyric mezzo-soprano’– which I am. In the States we say that the only roles mezzo-sopranos get to sing are witches, bitches and boys! And that is very true. Most lyric mezzo roles are secondary ones and not all that interesting from a dramatic point of view. I can think of a dozen roles where you don’t even have one aria in the whole opera! The roles that I would have really loved to do from a dramatic standpoint would have been Carmen or Delila or Azucena but they were simply too dramatic for my voice. So that was the dichotomy of that situation!” And the turnover to jazz? How did that happen?
Deborah had always played piano since she was young and had always been able to listen to a song on the radio and go to the piano and play it. “I would often come home from Classical rehearsals and just sit for hours playing and singing typical American ‘piano bar’ repertoire just to relax. I had no idea you could make any money doing it! But then I met a pianist at the Kempinski Hotel in Berlin who told me I could write my ticket around the world because I was: 1. able to sing and play, 2. I was female and 3. I was blonde! So I made my demo, had a glamour photo taken and before I knew it, I was off to Abu Dhabi which started a succession of very lucrative jobs around the world!”
In Berlin, she performed with a jazz trio and a classical trio. How did she find working back and forth with both vocal styles. Isn’t that difficult? In her own words: “I feel that one complements the other. I have always felt that my training as a classical singer has made me a better jazz singer. You need a solid technique either way you go. A good technique allows you the freedom to express yourself musically. Then it is a matter of how you want to colour your voice. Singing classical or jazz, you still have to be able to control your breath to sing the phrases and know how to use your muscles to support the high notes. When I have a jazz gig, I warm up like I am going to sing a classical concert. Having a classical technique certainly helped me with stamina, especially on those cruise ship gigs where I would often have to sing 6 hours a night! I never suffered from hoarseness which I attribute to having had a solid technique. Singing jazz has in turn helped me perform my classical repertoire in that I try to establish the same kind of intimacy with the classical audience that I have when singing to a jazz audience. I have found that the classical audience responds much more when you draw them into the magic of the music instead of keeping an emotional distance, which is often the case in classical recitals.”
Deborah has been living here with her German husband for a number of years. The inevitable question: Why Malta? “We came to Malta 7 years ago on a Christmas vacation and stayed at the Hilton. My husband was down at the marina everyday looking at the sailboats and before we left, he had bought one! So we started coming here for every vacation and sailed off in different directions but always enjoyed coming back here. We moved here to enjoy the fabulous year-round sailing and the natural beauty of these islands. We have lived in eight different countries so I was happy not to have to learn another language!”
What about the forthcoming concer on the 28 August with Paul Giordimaina at Two-TwentyTwo in Valletta? What is she going to perform? “I am very excited about doing this concert with Paul. I have been to BJ’s often the last few months and have really enjoyed our jam sessions. He plays chords that I always have in my head but can’t find on the piano! And when he plays, I feel that his soul just slides down his fingers onto the piano and I find that very inspiring. I also look forward to performing with Sam Murgo and Laurie Simpson. This particular programme is called Jazz Kaleidoscope for the simple reason that the audience is going to hear some different colours of familiar jazz tunes. We’re going to do some classical tunes funky and some funky tunes classical. There will be slow renditions of fast songs and fast renditions of slow songs, all adding a different colour to pre-conceived perceptions of the songs. In lieu of the fact that this concert is sponsored by the American Embassy, I will also be doing a set dedicated to my homeland…”
Why Restaurant 222 for this concert? “I looked all around Malta for the perfect place – where I myself would want to go for a special evening of music, artistic ambience, good food, drinks and sit outdoors! I found it at Restaurant 222. Desmond Vella has a wonderful and unique concept of combining all those lovely things and he was very open and supportive for what the embassy and I wanted to do. He is really offering musicians and artists a fabulous stage with a breathtaking view. I hope more artists take advantage of the cultural gem he has created here. I know I will!”
222 will create an ‘American Menu’ for the occasion with a number of typical American delicacies which patrons can choose from. Entrance to the cultural event is free. Drinks and culinary dishes will be available at regular prices. Reservations are recommended by calling the restaurant on Tel: 2733 3222 or Mob. 9935 2222.