"Most careers—particularly ones singing Wagner, whose scores are longer and whose roles are bigger and more demanding than any other—are built over decades. As veteran agent Boris Orlob puts it: You see Wagner singers coming from miles away, it's a gradual process. You take the stairs, not the elevator. But Schager didn't just take the elevator, he shot straight to the penthouse in 2013, when he swapped a handful of Wagner roles in small houses for the Berlin State Opera."
"With only minutes' notice, Schager found himself drafted in, dispatching the monumental demands of Act I—90 minutes of pure power-singing, perhaps the most intense single act in the entire operatic repertoire—with remarkable assurance. When Barenboim brought him out for a special curtain-call the notoriously demanding audience roared their approval."
Andreas Schager, a 54-year-old tenor, represents an anomaly in the opera world by achieving rapid success in Wagner roles, which typically require decades of gradual career development. In 2013, while rehearsing at Berlin State Opera, Schager was unexpectedly called to perform the demanding role of Siegfried in Act I of the Ring Cycle with minimal notice, replacing an absent tenor. His remarkable performance of this 90-minute act—considered one of opera's most intense vocal challenges—impressed conductor Daniel Barenboim and the notoriously demanding Berlin audience. This breakthrough moment launched Schager into international prominence, leading to his current engagement at London's Royal Opera House rehearsing for Covent Garden's new Ring Cycle staging.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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