Better Know a Bach Soloist: Nicholas Phan

Tenor Nicholas Phan, who sang in our May 2012 performances of Carmina burana,rejoins the Phil this week to sing in our Bach and Mendelssohn program, which opens our month-long festival, The Bach Variations.

Nicholas has been busy with another composer this year as he celebrates Benjamin Britten’s centennial. Check him out on his newest album devoted to the composer, 2012’s Still Falls the Rain, which also features guest artists Alan Cumming, Jennifer Montone, and Myra Huang. And join us on Twitter today at 12:30pm EST for an informal Bach symposium with Nicholas. Hashtag your questions with #bachtalk.

(Source: Spotify)

Kick-Start

Tenor Nicholas Phan — who performed in the New York Philharmonic’s Carmina burana in May and returns next season during The Bach Variations — is taking his Fortuna into his own hands by using the buzzed-about start-up Kickstarter to raise funds for his new album, The Heart of the Matter, part of his quest to record the music of Benjamin Britten. Nick has until July 11 to meet his goal. The Phil has invested in Phan, and now you can too; check out the project here. 

Got My White Tie, Got My Hopes High 

Nick Phan ‏@grecchinois

“It turns out I left my white tie at home tonight!!! Argh!! Thank you to the @nyphil for saving the day with a spare.”

Thanks to you, Nicholas Phan, for  as our guest Tweeter last evening, for your Philharmonic debut in Orff’s Carmina burana. You’re up again tonight and tomorrow…don’t forget the tie.

“The reason it’s so high is, you’re a roasting swan. You’re dying. It’s not supposed to sound comfortable.”

— Nicolas Phan talks Carmina Burana.

In an interview with the tenor, who makes his NewYork Philharmonic debut in the work May 31-June 2, The Superconductor blog notes, “There’s more to Carmina than that famous antiphonal chorus that begins and ends the song cycle. The work has a dizzying variety of arias and choral songs, depicting the rich tapestry of medieval life in portraits of humans like the Abbot of Cockaigne and the dying swan.”

While many singers who tackle the role do so in falsetto or in the middle of the voice, Phan sings it “full out,” putting force behind the notes to convey the swan’s suffering. “To me, that’s the point,” the tenor says.

“For this aria – about a roasting swan about to be eaten – I have to sing three high Ds!

I’m never scared of it, thank goodness. I have fun with it, and when people hear me they invite me to do it again.”

Tenor Nicholas Phan talks about his somewhat enigmatic role in Carmina burana. He will make his New York Philharmonic debut when Raphael Frühbeck de Burgos conducts Orff’s popular work May 31–June 2.

Read the full Q&A from Playbill Arts here.