Winter 2003

Impassioned Impresario

by Carla Waldemar

David Walsh, the wiry new director of the School of Music's University Opera Theatre, was preparing for a career in economics and political science before his addiction to opera got the better of him.

As a kid, Walsh preferred Puccini to the Beatles and even crossed the waters from his native Canada to serve as a super when the Metropolitan Opera came to Detroit.

"The turning point came when I was an extra in Turandot: strong vocalism and orchestra, sets and costumes, and the backstage action utterly fascinated me. I knew that night: ‘I have to do this! But I can't sing, so what can I do?'"

How about direct the singers? A degree from the University of Toronto's theatre science department led him to posts as stage manager for the Canadian Opera Company, Stratford Festival, and Scottish Opera before he claimed the director's chair. Since then, he has staged works for the English National Opera and Royal Opera House at Covent Garden. He produced Beethoven's Fidelio for the Paris Opera with Jon Vickers and Hildegard Behrens and took his Düsseldorf production of Flying Dutchman to Shanghai--the first production of a Wagner opera in the history of China.

Returning to Canada, Walsh launched the Opera Department at the Vancouver Academy of Music--"my first real work with students," he says. "I found I really enjoyed it and had an affinity for teaching. Top international directors have incredibly huge egos, but I'd found myself uncomfortable in that role. Teaching brings me the intellectual satisfaction of watching the progress of people, seeing students take material and develop it: a very powerful motivation for me. So I wanted a situation where I could both teach and direct."

The attraction was mutual. "After a three-day interview process, it was clear David Walsh was the person for us," jubilates Jeff Kimpton, director of the School of Music. "While he was here he taught, he gave lectures, he worked with students. We chose him because he's someone with international experience and expertise who also has a lifelong commitment to teaching.

"The way he interacts with students makes his considerable international reputation life-sized, to fit their world."

Walsh relishes the fit. "The second I stepped in the door here, I knew: ‘That's it!' The search committee made me feel incredibly welcome. I felt strong support to make this program more dynamic and progressive. Fundamentally, the attitude was ‘Let's get things done!'"

Since his arrival September 2002, that's been Walsh's mantra. His choice for his debut University Opera production was Richard Strauss' Ariadne auf Naxos. In tune with his personal credo, he explains, "I wanted something equally strong in music and dramatic value, a work that would enable me to achieve the largest number of students participating, so I could get to know the talent pool and where they were at."

With his students' interests in mind, he double-cast the roles. "The students are incredibly hungry for professional experience, and in a work they can someday do themselves, especially if they move to Europe. That's why we'll do it"--and virtually all productions to follow--"in the original language--a wonderful but incredibly difficult task. A lot is being asked of them, theatrically, musically, vocally. But I feel already that it's been worth it," he says. "The students have a sense of what's required of a professional." And, he concedes with a quick smile, "I'm not indulgent. It's a real-world experience."

Walsh refuses to be pegged to a signature production style. But he's clear about his directorial approach. No smoke, no mirrors. "I work absolutely through the music. Composers fundamentally have a musical dramaturgy, which is the map of the production," he insists. "I'm incapable (I think!) of implanting something on a production; I can justify what I do. I consider the text part of the music and use both equally as part of the score."

Quiz him on his favorite composers and again he's "all over the map," he admits freely, from Monteverdi to Britten, with stops for Verdi, Puccini, and "Mozart, of course! Because his works are great teaching vehicles, as is Ariadne--basically a chamber piece for young voices."

He's laid big plans for those voices. "I want to get students well trained, get them good jobs, get renown for the school," he says. "We want a Met [audition] winner. The next Renee Fleming perhaps ...."

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Reaching for the music

At CLA's annual scholarship dinner, Sarah Wigley captivated her dinner companions with stories of her first year as a vocal student in the School of Music. Her first words: "I love the U of M, I love the School of Music, and I love working with David Walsh!"

Here's more from Sarah:

"The first time I met David Walsh was at my audition for Opera Workshop. When I suddenly forgot which verse of ‘Vedrai Carino' I was on, he said, reassuringly and with a chuckle, ‘That's a Mozart trap. It happens to everyone!'

I remember listening to him speak to our German diction class about the Strauss opera Ariadne auf Naxos [Walsh's directorial debut at the U, at Ted Mann Concert Hall in Nov. 2002]. His love for every part of this art form captivated all of us. He immerses himself fully in a production, bringing to his teaching and directing a passion and a deep understanding of the vast physical and emotional possibilities in the music and libretto. One day, he put a quote on the board: ‘To search for security is to deny creativity.' That inspired me. He challenges us always to find the feeling and the music inside ourselves."

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