Edita Gruberova

Scofield: You are a coloratura soprano, Ms. Gruberová, and coloratura Sopranos have to sing high notes, don’t they?

Gruberova: Yes, of course! It’s a type of voice, and I’m born with this voice. But you need a good school, learn a good technique… It’s a special technique. I will tell you how: sing the right roles, don’t sing too much. I learned this from Alfredo Kraus. He was also asked how, because he also sang at a high age. I was very curious what he would say, because the question was the same as how is it possible to sing like a young singer at old age? And he said these three things: good preparation on the technique, do not sing too much, do not sing roles not right for you because they are dangerous for the voice, and take good rest and holidays.

Scofield: Many coloraturas will improvise some of the ornamentation and make up their own notes, particularly in some roles. Did you ever do that as well?

Gruberova: Yes I do. There is an album of this collected coloratura arias from singers of all time, so you can choose what is good for your voice, or for the character of this role. Then, of course, I also try to do my own. I’m not a composer, but I feel like a little bit so like one. You try on the notes, it could be high, and even higher, but you always stay in the character.

Scofield: Well, you mentioned you listen to recordings of great singers of the past when you were young. Who were some of the singers that influenced you the most back then?

Gruberova: In Slovakia, we didn’t have many opportunities to buy records. So when I went to Vienna, I went to a shop and I bought everything from Maria Callas.

Scofield: She was amazing, Callas.

Gruberova: Yes, she was. At the time we didn’t hear CDs often. We didn’t know it exactly, therefore I went wild to buy everything to hear. But later, I discovered Montserrat Caballé, and I think she had a really beautiful, right voice for bel canto. And I learned how to work with bel canto, then I bought recordings of her. She was also in many bel canto operas. There were always these live performances in New York, in Carnegie Hall, there were live recordings with Madame Caballé.

Scofield: And you are still singing bel canto today! That is amazing, despite the complexity and the difficulty, and how demanding it is, whereas others at the stage of career where you are might have given it up, you’re still doing it and sounding great. It’s a treat to be able to experience that.

Gruberova: Yes, because I love it very much. This is my life. When I sing this music, it gives me so much joy, and I can give something to public in this music. They are so enthusiastic here in China. In our four concerts, it’s so inspiring. You give more high notes, even higher notes, I’m holding the tones, because it’s a joy for me. I like it very much. I love every role from Donizetti, including Lucia di Lammermoor, and Roberto Devereux, which is my favourite.

Scofield: And you recorded all three of the Queen’s Trilogy by Donizetti, and not only Roberto Devereux, but Maria Stuarda, and Anna Bolena as well.

Gruberova: Yes, because I love these characters. I love real people from history. The queens are very interesting and very tremendous.