Oregon Music News

Photo credit: Peter Schaaf

Just a couple of years ago, Anne Manson conducted the Portland Opera production of Philip Glass’s “Orphée,” which led to the world premiere recording of that opera and also became the first-ever commercial recording for Portland Opera. Now Manson is back in town to conduct Puccini’s “Madame Butterfly,” starting on February 3rd. Then she will return again to direct the Portland Opera production of “Galileo Galilei.”

Manson has received acclaim for her ability on the podium to lead a very wide range of music from Baroque pieces to brand-new works like Peter Maxwell Davies’ ““Kommilitonen!” Her record speaks for itself. She was the first woman to conduct at the Salzburg Festival, where she led the Vienna Philharmonic and a cast that included Samuel Ramey and Philip Langridge in a production of “Boris Godunov.” Manson is one of only three women to have been appointed Music Director of a leading American symphony orchestra, having served as Music Director of the Kansas City Symphony from 1999 to 2003. She has guest conducted the Los Angeles Philharmonic, the London Philharmonic, and the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra. Since 2008, she has been the Music Director of the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra.

I recently met with Manson and threw a few questions at her. Here is our conversation.

What is the story about you and the Vienna Philharmonic?

Manson: I worked at the Vienna Staatsoper in 1989 as an assistant to Claudio Abbado. It was a great experience, and at one point, he became ill with the flu; so I had to conduct one of the Vienna Philharmonic rehearsals. That was when Eberhard Wächter was running the Staatsoper, and he was nervous about how the orchestra would react to a female on the podium. So right after he introduced me to the orchestra, he scooted out of there. I was pretty nervous too, but everything calmed down, because we rehearsed the Mussorgsky version of “Boris Godunov.” The orchestra knew the Rimsky-Korsakov version. So they played some wrong notes at the beginning of the rehearsal. I knew the Mussorgsky score very well. So the rehearsal went very well, and it was definitely a factor when the Salzburg Festival hired me to conduct the Vienna Philharmonic in a production of “Boris Godunov” in 1994.

You were an undergrad at Harvard. Did you start conducting there?

Manson: I was trained as a violist and studied pre-med and music at Harvard. I did a little bit of conducting at Harvard, and wanted to do more work in music. After I graduated, I applied to a number of graduate programs, and I jumped at the opportunity to study at the Royal College of Music in London. I was the only woman there who took conducting classes. We did a student production of Così fan tutte, and that’s when I became hooked. I knew I had to become a conductor. We did several other Mozart operas while I was studying there, and I just fell in love with Mozart’s music and conducting. It was a great experience.

How have things changed for women in the field of conducting over the years?

Manson: The atmosphere has changed a lot since I began conducting. I don’t think that most orchestra members cared one way or the other if a man or a woman was on the podium, but management seems to be much more receptive to female conductors. Nowadays, there are a number of music directors who are women.

In the world of opera, you are noted for your work with a lot of contemporary music like the Philip Glass work that you recorded with Portland Opera.

Manson: That was a lot of fun. I’m glad that the recording has been well-received and that through it, more people are getting to know this wonderful piece
of music theater. There is a chance that we may also record Glass’s “Galileo Galilei” when Portland Opera does it in a couple of months.

Now you are doing Madame Butterfly with all of Puccini’s lush, romantic music.

Manson: I feel fortunate to have a diverse repertoire. I find that it’s interesting how much of the music is influenced by the text. Whether you do “Dialogues des Carmelites” or “Kommilitonen” the language often informs the music. With Puccini’s music, so much of what happens comes from the orchestra. That is incredibly satisfying. “Butterfly” is very beautiful – even in the smallest moments, the smallest exchanges are incredible. This is the first time that I’ve conducted “Butterfly,” and I’m enjoying it immensely. We have such a wonderful cast.

Is there anything tricky about conducting this piece?

Manson:  The biggest issue is the pacing. The music has a lot of ebb and flow. Puccini left a lot of detailed directions in the score; so there’s a lot to consider.  Opera is such a powerful art form, and this is one of the great operas in the standard repertoire. I feel so fortunate to be involved in performing it here.