With his new record Dreams & Songs just released, Sir Bryn Terfel chats with Jake Andrews about what inspired him and how an album of collaborations came to be.
There’s a lot of collaborations on the new album with some famous faces. Can you tell us what they were like to work with?
Since the album is a somewhat lighter repertoire for me, it’s without doubt this is the most fun I’ve had recording. As soon as Rob [Brydon] walks into the room he has everyone laughing. I was actually recording with Emma Thompson when it was announced that she was going to be made a Dame, so we should have been celebrating but we had some work to do. But she’s great fun to work with – we performed Sweeney Todd in London and New York together and working with her you see she’s so involved with everything she does and getting it absolutely right.
How did you find the process of choosing the songs on the album? Are there any songs on there that were certain inclusions from the start?
The recording process for this album was different in that we recorded the orchestra in Prague separately, which was completely new to me. It meant we just had concentrate on our singing and it meant we could record anywhere in the world, so we did bits in New York and San Francisco. But I wanted this album to be specifically about the British Isles which is why we had Sir Karl Jenkins compose an original piece telling the story of Welsh poet Hedd Wyn, who died on the first day of the Battle Of Passchendaele.
The rest of the songs have been encores for me throughout my career, songs that I have performed many times over many years; essentially my bread and butter. Fiddler On The Roof has been in my home every Christmas and is something that resonates with me. We made sure we did If I Were A Rich Man live because to get that right we needed to do that live.
How do you feel the role of a baritone has changed in recent years? Looking back over your own career do you feel that the industry has changed and what place does opera have in the modern day?
I think that I’ve been very lucky with the record company I work with to be allowed to be creative within the operatic genre. This has given me lots of colours on my palette by recording several different operas, an album in Welsh and a Christmas album. Even now, at the age of 52, I am still learning new repertoires and am able to look back at some glorious moments in my career. A standout for me was performing at the Rugby World Cup in 1999 with Shirley Bassey. I’ve also been lucky enough to work closely with the Ryder Cup in 2010 when that was in Newport, so I do believe that opera certainly does have a place in the modern day.
How would you describe the connection of Welsh culture on opera? Do you think that Wales has influenced or changed the face of opera in recent years?
The Welsh have a substantial number of singers in the industry that have paved the way internationally for my generation of performers; it’s certainly made my job easier when getting myself in the industry! I would say that the element of singing is highlighted in the traditions of Wales. Not just in the operatic world: there’s an abundance of Welsh pop groups, rock bands, actors and directors all of them creating iconic moments in our nation’s history.
Bryn Terfel’s new album Dreams & Songs is available now. Info: www.deutschegrammophon.com