Opera Singer / Classical Singer

Job Duties

Above anything else, an opera or classical singer must keep their voice in good condition. This means daily practice of exercises and vocal calisthenics to condition and co-ordinate the vocal mechanism. It also means regularly working with a good teacher, who can guide your voice, and guide you in the right roles for your voice.

After this comes the study of music. Whether you are preparing your arias for auditions, which you will do for most of your career, or preparing an opera role, much of an opera singer’s day is spent with a score open, learning and memorizing the music. This might be learning the foreign words you have to sing, memorizing what they mean, and practicing them until they feel natural in your mouth. It might be looking at the orchestration underneath your line to understand what is going on in the scene around you, or what your character is feeling. A lot of it will be counting rhythms, learning pitches, and memorizing all of these. A singer can only sing for a few hours a day before getting tired, so a lot of this practice will be done in silence.

When you have most of the learning done on your own, you will then take this work to an opera coach, or a repetiteur. They will be an expert in this music, who plays the orchestral reduction (or accompaniment) on the piano, and often sings in other character’s lines. This is the only way you can really understand what is going on in the music. A coach will also help you to pronounce the language correctly, and with the correct nuances, as well as helping you to understand important aspects of musical phrasing and style for this work. You may go to several different coaches for one piece, as each will offer you something different.

You must also be able to market yourself. This means contacting people to apply for or arrange auditions. Depending on where you are in your career, you might have some auditions arranged for you by your agent, but you will still be responsible for searching for other opportunities yourself. The singer who sits by the phone waiting for it to ring will never be heard by anyone.

Like an actor, a lot of your early career will be spent auditioning. Each audition is an opportunity to show your skills and your talent to more people, and should be embraced as a job on its own. An audition is rarely a direct means to an end, but each time you perform well in front of someone they will notice, and this could lead to other things. There are very few people in the career who are successful enough to be engaged in roles without an audition.

Not every classical singer goes on to become a principal singer in opera. Some classical singers may choose to specialise in concert work, in which case they may focus on preparing recitals or learning oratorio works. They also might belong to a professional choir or choral society. Other singers may choose to work in an opera chorus, as it offers better hours and benefits. Often, singers will do a bit of everything, so as to not limit their options.

When you have a performing contract, you will be expected to arrive on day one with all of the music learned and memorised. Your rehearsal period will involve purely music rehearsals with coaches and conductors, staging rehearsals with the director in a rehearsal room, technical rehearsals on stage, orchestral rehearsals, and then stage and orchestra rehearsals before the dress rehearsals. Rehearsal days are often long and tiring, and a singer must keep their voice in top condition ready for the performances at the end of it.

You might also have cover contracts, and many singers start out covering for a few years before they perform the roles. A cover contract can vary, but often they are expected to be at all the same rehearsals as their counterpart. They will sit and watch the rehearsal, marking up their score of any staging. It is their job to be able to step into the role of little-to-no rehearsal. Being a cover can be a lot of work, as you will have to find time to keep the role in your voice outside of rehearsals.

Finally, after all of these years of work you reach opening night. Your job is to go out on the stage, and tell your character’s story with your voice and your body as authentically as you can. All of the work you have done leads to the next three hours. Three hours later, the performance is over and you won the audience’s applause. Now, you’re back in your Airbnb alone, highlighting your score for the next role, and it starts all over again. At any stage of your career, you will take singing lessons. Language lessons are also advised, as well as working with a coach. Singers do not start studying opera until their voices are mature enough, which may not be until they are adults. Many singers developed their love of singing in their school choir, and knew they loved being on stage after performing in high school plays.

Although it is not a requirement of the field, often singers will hold Bachelor's degrees with a major in Music, or Vocal Performance. They might then also study a Master’s degree in Vocal Performance, or Opera Performance. If you are following a program of study at a University, try to join acting and drama classes as well, dance would be good, as well as piano, and of course, languages.

Many graduates join Young Artist Programs with opera houses. This might be in the United States, or in Europe. Germany has the biggest selection of Young Artist Programs. They are usually one or two years of training programs within an opera house. Some are connected to a University and are part of a Master’s degree program. Others are chorus-based contracts, where you sing in the chorus and study with the staff. In most of them you would take on the supporting roles in operas, and cover the lead roles.

Many singers do not go into opera following this path. Often, singers will come to the industry a bit later. Some work in professional choirs or choruses for some time before stepping into opera. Many develop their skills alongside another profession, continuing to work part-time, as accountants or solicitors, whilst taking on singing contracts.

For more information about the different routes into opera, check out the blog: I want to sing opera! Where do I start?