The Secret of the Golden Queen: A Children's Opera for All Ages

[00:00:00] Arnold: How many of you out there play chess? Chess is a great game to play. What happens when those chess pieces become alive? We're going to find out about the kingdoms of the gold and silver chess players and their chess kingdoms and the outcome when there's some powerful conflict between them. That takes place in what we're going to learn today on St. Louis in tune.

Greetings listeners, welcome to St. Louis in tune. And thank you for joining us for fresh perspectives on issues and events with experts, community leaders, and everyday people who are driving change and making an impact that shapes our society and world. You are looking effervescent over there with that blue shirt, 

[00:00:50] Mark L: Mark.

I know. I don't usually wear, I, my whole wardrobe is gray. I've got gray shirts. That's about all I have. Gray shirts. Blue pants and gray shirts. I don't know. So it's nice to have something. This is a blue shirt. Colorize the wardrobe. It's about time. I know. I know. We need some blue skies, so maybe that's 

[00:01:08] Arnold: going to substitute today.

[00:01:10] Mark L: They can't see me because I'm not on camera. That's right. I got a good face for radio, right? You and I both. 

[00:01:15] Arnold: Okay. You and I both. Okay. And here's what we can do in our return to civility. Learn from the failures of others. Now, there's one word that is used here that I really don't like to use, and I will probably say it, and then I'll use a substitution.

Alright. It says, it instantly turns their failure into a success and reduces your need to judge them as a loser. I would say, or judge them as someone who's still striving to learn. Oh, wow. Okay. Learn from the failures of others. It instantly turns their failure into a success. into a success and reduces your need to judge them as someone who is continuing to learn.

Wow. You're the spinmeister. Yes. Cause it was this, the kids would do this business with the loser and it's yeah, don't do that. That's not nice. That's not being civil. It doesn't help. 

[00:02:05] Multiple: It just doesn't help. 

[00:02:06] Arnold: I learned as much from sitting, I'm a clarinet player and a, Band director, and I learned sitting in a band what to do.

and what not to do in a rehearsal. Because you're like, that didn't work very well. Oh that worked really well. And you can learn that from leadership too. As people run an organization, wow that went very well. This is what they did to make that work. Wow, this person, that didn't work so hot. I'm going to remember not to do that.

So there are lessons both ways in there. 

[00:02:36] Mark L: There are. I like the sports analogies too. Like you don't make every putt. You don't hit a home run every time you get up the bat. It's not like it's the worst thing. You're not a good baseball player because you didn't hit a home run. 

[00:02:49] Arnold: And in baseball you can probably hit two out of ten and still make ten million dollars a year.

[00:02:54] Mark L: I wish I could. Would I be here? No. I wouldn't either. I'd be helping the poor. 

[00:03:00] Arnold: We have two great guests in studio today and they're here to talk about a An opera for children, which deals with living chess pieces and chess kingdoms. And I want to introduce Nika Leone. She's a composer and award winning classical singer who has international performance credits.

Her compositions have been performed in New York, Boston, Kansas city, St. Louis, LA. amongst other places. In 2022, she co founded a non profit organization, In Her Sound, Inc., whose mission is to represent and promote women in music. And in 2015, she co founded Make Music St. Louis. Her diverse cultural and musical background and her versatility as a creative composer is in multiple musical genres, vocal music, opera chamber, and orchestral, as well as scoring for theater, dance, and film.

And then we have New York City native Mark It's Fryman. It's my German. I'm very proud of Mark Freiman. He's impressed audiences with his rich. He's a lyric bass, Mark. All right. And his engaging stage presence, and he's also a stage director. He has performed as a director at the Sarasota Opera, Union Opera, Avenue opera here in St.

Louis and Broadway world raved. He's quote the ubiquitous. Mr Fryman is a godsend to st Louis opera unquote Wow, he also has credits for the magic flute the Italian and Algiers amongst many others He's as a singer. He's been a recipient of the prestigious was Richard F Gold career grant from the Shoshanna Opera Foundation.

He's done several U. S. tours with the Barber of Seville, with the New York City Opera National Company. I can go on and on with this, but he performed at the largest and oldest outdoor musical theater, which is right here in St. Louis, the Muny. And one of my favorite things coming up here that I'm going to say, he was a bass soloist in Kurt Weill's The Flight of Lindbergh for the St.

Louis Symphonies. opening concert led by David Robertson, but he was a child soloist for three seasons with the Metropolitan Opera in New York and sang the very first live from the Met Telecast with none other than Luciano Pavarotti. He's a graduate of Washington University. Welcome both of you. My gosh, I just ought to sit back and just, let you guys talk.

They're in awe. Just some craziness stuff. So the opera that we've Nika it's a world And it's called The Secret of the Golden Queen. What is the opera about? 

[00:05:31] Nika: So the opera is actually about it's based on this fairytale in which chess pieces come alive, and something is going on there, and, but the main idea is basically they want to Teach us a lesson that kindness and dignity and honesty and respect is the true winning power in any sport or in anything in life.

And and those are things to live by. And in the opera, Mark is performing the role of Silver King. That's, I would say, the only villain in the story. Appropriately cast.

[00:06:15] Mark L: He wears it on his sleeve. Now I call the authorities. 

[00:06:18] Nika: So the choice of gold and silver chess pieces was on purpose because we figured, how silver tarnishes in time. And so we figured that a silver King who used to be kind and noble tarnished with time and became angry and, evil and disrespectful.

And so he causes all kinds of trouble in the chess kingdom. And then there is also a little twist in the story because there is a mystery, a secret possessed by the gold queen. And gets misinterpreted by the Silver Pawn as being something else. And and so Silver King just makes very wrong decisions based on finding out that secret and that gets him in trouble.

And then in the end, of course, the gold queen comes out and reveals that the secret is not what he thought it was. And she teaches everyone the lesson that only kindness, respect, and dignity and compassion can bring you the winning power, can bring you success and harmony and peace in, in your life.

[00:07:26] Arnold: Now you're sure this is a children's opera. It sounds like something that adults could listen to and learn from also. 

[00:07:34] Nika: I am absolutely convinced of that. And so in our invitations, we are inviting everyone kids of all ages, including grownups. And I'm sure it will be enjoyable for all ages. And the remarkable thing that, how I came to the idea of using chess.

As a subject or as inspirational framework for the opera is that when my kids were little they started going to the chess after school club and they loved it so much We started taking them to chess tournaments And in those tournaments It's kids and parents get separated and parents are in the waiting room, area waiting for the kids to go through the rounds and it lasts for hours, sometimes all day.

And from time to time, I would pick in the room to see how my kids are doing. And I would see a room full of these kids. Everyone is very quiet, respectful and disciplined. And I was so profoundly impressed by the discipline and all these qualities that I just mentioned teaches them. And I thought this was remarkable and so important to teach kids at the young age the good sportsmanship, honesty and respect for each other.

And so that's how the idea came about. 

[00:08:50] Arnold: I think it's in activities like that after school, whether it be chess or sports or some other kind of club where you do learn those kinds of civil kinds of attitudes and behaviors and how you're supposed to act. A lot of times some families, they're on the edge with some of those things and kids don't really get the full understanding and benefit of that.

[00:09:11] Nika: And also when you become too competitive, some parents become too competitive too. Probably 

[00:09:15] Arnold: more than the kids. 

[00:09:16] Nika: Yes. And so I think chess is the sport that actually teaches you to restrain yourself and not to get angry if it doesn't work out, if you lose or if you make a first of all, you need to be really patient and take time to think about your moves.

But second of all, if you blunder and make mistakes, don't get angry and respect your opponent and learn from your mistakes, as you mentioned earlier, or learn from other people's mistakes and just work on getting better. 

[00:09:46] Arnold: All right So Mark, are you going to be dressed up or when you first come on are you going to be all silver and then later on as you go through the operas do you tarnish 

[00:09:57] Mark F: as you go or?

I think I'm tarnished from the beginning and this is a workshop performance I guess is the best we're we'll have some basic minimal costumes but this is really it's a new opera Nika Just finished it a few weeks ago. So we're learning it pretty quickly. And so it's not a full production but it's great that we can put this out there for people to see and it gives Nika a chance to get feedback and And tweak things or see what, what works.

And no, I will have minimal costume. Yeah. No special effects when I untarnish at the end. Yeah. But it does make me wonder why, Mika, do I tarnish, but the other silver pieces are not tarnished. Including my lovely queen, Benedetta Orsi, who is here. She's actually 

[00:10:50] Nika: a little tarnished too, and it's reflected in the music.

And by the way, the process of untarnishing also is reflected in the music. 

[00:10:58] Sound: And, 

[00:10:58] Nika: For the future I am envisioning, for a costumed and staged production, I'm envisioning some sort of an element of a costume that could fall off, the tarnish that in the moment when you, Get redemption and you the realizations of realization the tarnish comes off.

Yeah, that'd be cool Yeah, 

[00:11:18] Mark F: and I plan to be expressive in that moment because it's beautiful music at that 

[00:11:21] Arnold: and you guys have collaborated before several times How did you? Get the connection on being the silver king in this one 

[00:11:29] Mark F: I think through our friend Benedetta we sang at the cathedral, a Christmas concert at the old cathedral down by the arch a couple of years ago.

And then Nika and Benedetta were nice enough to offer me a chance to sing at a song auction, which got a, which is a kickoff for Her Sound, the In Her Sound which is the new organization that is promoting women composers and women singers. So I got to sing at that.

Yeah. Yeah. I want to talk 

[00:11:58] Arnold: about that a little later on. And folks just so you know, the opera is going to be Sunday, June the 9th from 1 o'clock to 2 30. And it's at the high low on Washington Avenue, 3301 Washington Avenue. If you want more information, you can go to goldqueenopera. com goldqueenopera.

com, and it's you can also go to stlfringe. org and get some event details there. And you collaborated with Kath Kathleen, Katherine several times on, she's the lyricist here, so she wrote the words, and she went and got The fairy tale or you know figured it out what she wanted to do and then you Wrote the music.

[00:12:35] Nika: So yeah, Kathy and I have we've been friends for years and we've actually been working on another Opera for several years, which is an adult opera a Larger scale work and it's still a work in progress but Last year I applied for Regional Arts Commission grant Just out on the limb and I got it for this opera and I decided to reach out to Kathy and say hey do you want to finish it with me?

by that time there were a couple of numbers already written like the ones that you were playing And the Parts of arias have been already written by me and the story was, the fairy tale was ready. So Kathy jumped in and embraced the story and realized, the lyrics for these characters and she and I developed together some concepts and characters for this story.

She gave a number of brilliant ideas on how the characters could develop and what they might be feeling. And she's a brilliant, very talented lyricists, and we work really well together. Her words are powerful and beautiful and they inspire me to write music to them. Of course, sometimes something, some things don't work and that that's when we get together and work it out and brainstorm.

And she tries to adjust her wording to my musical ideas and vice versa. She's been amazing for this project. 

[00:14:06] Arnold: That's a great collaboration when you have that back and forth. To be able to, yeah, I'll change that, or yeah, I'll change that, and you work together like that, rather than it's no, this is the way it's going to be.

[00:14:16] Nika: Yes but, and that's the only way I will work with a lyricist. That's 

[00:14:19] Mark F: great. That's great. And working with And both of them are singers, which I think adds a whole better understanding of the process, like what does a singer need? Yeah, 

[00:14:30] Arnold: that's a great point. You have a better understanding of, I'm not going to hit that triple high C there write that down and then, want somebody to hit that, I'm not going to work that way.

On 

[00:14:38] Nika: an E vowel. 

[00:14:40] Multiple: Yeah. 

[00:14:41] Arnold: So Mark you started out very young. And that must have been, I want to go back to Pavarotti, that must have been just, were you aware of his stature and 

[00:14:53] Mark F: in the opera world? I think to a little, I had started in opera earlier. I started with a tiny little company in New York called the Amato Opera, which was a training ground for singers.

61 seasons. This man, Tony Amato immigrated from Italy as a child, married an Italian American soprano, Sally. And it was just this mom and pop little opera company, 107 seats, including a balcony and many stars started in the late forties. Many great American singers got their start there. And now we have regional companies all over the country But at that time there, they did not exist.

An American singer had to go to Europe to get experience and come back. So this is goes back again to what you were saying at the top of the show about learning from other people's failures. The cast was different every night. So we'd perform every weekend. 10 12 performances a month every month another opera And so I was in the children's chorus and got to see, you know A different madame butterfly every night or a different carmen every night and you can see who does things that work who does things that especially in comedy?

I learned so much about comedy and comic timing by watching different performers So I soak all these things up that I use now as a director and as a performer but I had no aspirations to be a singer at all. It was just something fun to do as a kid. And then, totally unrelated, the Metropolitan Opera, when I was 11, was doing a total overhaul of their children's chorus, and they sent out notices to all the New York City public schools.

I showed up and got in, and my first season, I, Got to do a few solos. I got to do some small parts and one of them was in Labawem and then my father showed me a newspaper that said that they had just decided that would be a first live telecast and It was very exciting. But this was all before, just before the vcr it was shown live.

It was one repeat. I saw it on the repeat And that was the only time I saw it for 30 years until it came out on DVD and now you can stream all these early telecasts that I was in. Really. That's great. It's very weird that I didn't get to see it except one time for 30 

[00:17:05] Arnold: years . You have it now memorialized for you, right?

Yes. What was the bridge from? Singing. And you still sing? Yes. Obviously to directing. And what was that? impetus to 

[00:17:19] Mark F: do that? It's funny, over the years, a number of people had told me I should direct, and I said I don't want to direct, I like being on stage and so I just never really gave it another thought.

And then when I moved here to St. Louis, I was singing with Winter Opera St. Louis, and the director there asked me if I would, was interested in doing it. And I said no. And then she asked me a second time, and then the third time she was doing La Wham. And I said I know how Labo should go.

Me and Pavarotti, go . I, but LA I'd sung a children's chorus, I'd sung adult chorus, I'd sung all the four different roles in the show. I knew. I just thought I can't really mess this one up. And I've been in a number of productions with terrible directors for La Boheme.

So at least I, I could do, I, it was a low bar that I was, but I found that I really enjoyed it. I really enjoyed being able to express my artistic vision and and as a singer I, Have a different understanding than a lot of directors because i'm seeing it from a singer's perspective I know what they're capable of.

I am more sensitive to what maybe can't be done I like to collaborate with singers and get their input a lot because I was always i've always been the kind of singer that Was trying to convince a director to let me do something So I encourage that from singers that I work with And so I found that I really enjoyed it and I've been directing now the last eight years at Sarasota Opera, which is a big company Similar to Opera Theatre of St.

Louis for operas that are running simultaneously. I always direct one of the operas and young artists in School or just out of school make up the chorus. So a lot of it This is a great learning experience for them. And I really enjoy working with the young singers. That's a lot of fun for me 

[00:19:16] Arnold: That's great information.

Mr. Arnold stricker with mark lengston of st. Louis in tune. We're talking to nika leone She's a composer and soprano mark freiman who's a lyric bass and stage director. I would say this is, Nika is the composer for the opera, children's opera, The Secret of the Golden Queen, and Mark is going to be starring as the tarnished Silver King, who I guess regains his shine at the end.

[00:19:39] Mark L: I'm a little fascinated at, on how you, you write an opera. That's a great question. It's I know folks from Nashville that go in and, and they sit down in the studio and they have a lot of input from a lot of musicians and things like that, but I just have never. Thought about writing an opera, that inspiration, I can't imagine where that comes from.

I have so many questions like that, but is this a, this has to be a gift of yours that did, is this an acquired? 

[00:20:07] Nika: In many ways it is an acquired skill too. And I've written pieces for voice for years now. And I enjoy that, but my base and inspiration comes, definitely comes from the words and from the story and from the drama underneath.

And that drives my imagination on how the music should go. And from that point on, it's all about technique. You know how to put your thoughts onto the paper and how to how to how to emphasize certain dramatic moments and how to give the voice to singers and the instruments. And there is a combination of both the inspiration, imagination, the vision, and the written work.

Skill and technique. 

[00:20:55] Mark L: So how long would it take to make a good opera? So 

[00:20:58] Nika: I always thought it would take me a long time until recently because I was on a deadline Obviously I spent a little less time than I would have wanted but mark mentioned this is A workshop performance and it's just our first run Of with the purpose of getting feedback and also producing a very good promo recording that I can market later.

But obviously this gives me a chance to review my work and continue working on it and modify certain things that I've done. I would notice that don't work. And we've been already making some modifications in rehearsal. As singers would point out, this is a little bit too low for me, or could I please take a breath here?

Or could I please take this note longer? And of course, I always accommodate singers because being a singer, I understand the challenges. And the singers have given me. fabulous ideas on in certain places, how to, what to modify. And it gave me an insight that, Oh yes, this actually works better dramatically or musically.

But of course it needs more time and I will take all the time in the world after this performance to first orchestrate it fully and second correct any in. Perfections or make any modifications. 

[00:22:17] Mark L: It's a living breathing. It is. Yeah, it is. So it's constantly evolving. That's a fascinating, just fascinating.

[00:22:24] Arnold: Yeah, we're gonna listen to some when we come back after the break, we're gonna listen to some Clips from the opera and but actually our extra song here going into break is one of the songs from that. So this is St. Louis in Tune with Arnold Stricker and Mark Langston, we'll be right back.

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[00:25:54] Arnold: You are listening to The Secret of the Gold Queen. This is a new opera for children by Nika Leone and Katherine Thompson Favazza. Just getting a little flavor of what's going on. And isn't that it's it's amazing. 

[00:26:27] Mark L: It's amazing. It's great. You've got vocals. You've got you've got to compose it all.

You've got to find a storyline. It does. It's and you have to do it in a short order. You can't just throw it together. 

[00:26:41] Arnold: And I really hear the. Fairytale it makes me think this is a whimsical kind of light oh We're gonna now we're gonna really learn something here. What a tremendous 

[00:26:52] Mark L: Yeah Where is high low that's where the performance is gonna be what 

[00:26:58] Nika: Kranzberg Complex, Kranzberg Arts Center in Grand Center.

[00:27:04] Mark L: Oh, Grand Center. Okay, thank you. 

[00:27:06] Arnold: It's just east of Grand. 

[00:27:07] Mark L: East of Grand. Okay. I just wasn't quite sure. 

[00:27:10] Arnold: Yeah, not a couple blocks. I'm 

[00:27:12] Mark L: heading that way. 

[00:27:13] Arnold: Okay. 3301 Washington Avenue. Sunday, June the 9th, 1 o'clock to 2. 30 p. m. and go to thegoldenqueenopera. com to get more information about tickets or stlfringe.

org. Now you learned to play piano, albeit your parents didn't know that. that you were practicing to get into a musical academy, and then you taught yourself guitar. How did they not know? I played the piano. And then get this Mark she's like a late teenager before she accidentally discovers she's got this beautiful soprano voice.

How does this happen? You accidentally discover that? 

[00:27:52] Nika: I always sang to myself and to my friends with, guitar. I learned a few chords on the guitar. And that I couldn't live without singing and I went to enlist myself in a choir and the choir director when he auditioned me, he actually mentioned, you've got a good voice.

It's a small voice, you can grow it and you can work on it. So he offered me a few lessons and that's how I fell in love with the entire process. And of course, the technique and the voice grew over the years and then it led me to the conservatory. I went to the San Francisco conservatory of music and worked with amazing teachers there.

And that's how it all started. And then I got my first gig out of the conservatory, even before I finished in Europe. And that's how I ended up in Europe. And I spent the first Following a couple of years there building my career and then return back. 

[00:28:47] Mark L: I don't consider opera performances as a gig.

Just doesn't fit. Yeah, I know it's a gig. 

[00:28:59] Multiple: Okay. 

[00:29:00] Arnold: Always been composing and then you shifted to the composing realm, maybe more than the singing realm. 

[00:29:06] Nika: Yes, I am wondering how you got this information. I dig these are things that not very many people know about me, especially my childhood.

Mark told us. Interesting. Yes, I always composed my first composition. I wrote on the piano when I was 12 and then I started writing my own songs when I learned to play a few chords on the guitar. And at the conservatory, in the conservatory, when I studied instruments I had to study some orchestration.

It fascinated me how a group of instruments can work together and produce something dramatic. And And musical and harmonious and interest. It's just content. It's just very interesting and colorful. And I, from then on, I had aspirations to learn to do that. And so when I lived in New York, I went to graduate school to major in composition, and that's when I started composing some more serious works.

So yeah. And the idea of writing an opera came to me at that time. I had a, I had my own production company, and I we produced concerts and small opera performances. And I was approached by an organization asking me to produce an opera for children. And for that, I, Work. I actually commissioned a composer to write that.

And I produced the show and I loved it so much. I love the feedback. And I love the reaction from families and kids. That I decided to produce some more. But for those works, I used existing music or I would commission a composer. And then when my composition technique as my composition technique grew one day I decided I really would like to, try my own hand and just write something by myself and a small opera.

And this is why I started writing a children's opera because it wasn't as scary as a large scale real opera and I thought this would be a good exercise for me. And so this exercise actually turned out into 

[00:31:07] Arnold: a project. So you mean you didn't start with the ring of the secret of the gold queen? Their success, ongoing kinds of, that's, it's good that.

Cause there's a, my opinion, there's a market for that. And it's, and I'm going to transition to Mark on this because it seems like, and the symphonies deal with this. We have generation that's I don't want to say fading away, but becoming more seasoned and the younger generations. Don't seem to be involved in symphonic music or opera music unless they've been exposed to it from an early age.

How do you go about bringing in those youngsters and engaging them not only to enjoy what opera offers, but really, I like this kind of this venue and I like this kind of music. 

[00:31:57] Mark F: I think that's A really great point. I think a lot of the issue is that the arts are the first thing that gets cut in school budgets, and I just experienced that as a child that, um, when I was in sixth grade New York City almost defaulted, and everything was cut from the schools, including the music and art programs, and so we have a lot of Kids that did not have music offered in their schools, did not learn instruments.

I went to a public school in New York where we, I learned violin in my public school. They had the instruments they had wind instruments, string instruments. And so it's become the burden has shifted to arts organizations that they have to now bring this teaching.

And so I've sung in a number of programs with the St. Louis Symphony where we, they bring in kids where I, I sing the Toreador song from Carmen and the kids join in the chorus. They've learned it. They learn Pieces to play on their recorders. So they're in powell hall and they play along with the symphony.

That's really great where they're Interacting i've done a lot of opera for kids either going to schools or Having schools come to a theater. We'll do like a condensed version Of operas and I think the main thing and what I really love about nika's piece the secret of the gold queen is that It's not talking down to children, and I think that you see that so many times.

This music is not cutesy it's light, it's playful, it's very serious, it's dramatic, it's emotional and you want all those contrasts in an opera. And I think it's really great to expose kids to that. When I did condensed version of Aida with English narration sung in Italian and you would be amazed at kids were on the edge of their seat following along and they understood.

You didn't have to explain everything. They understood just by watching and by listening to the music. When you, the music tells you what's happening. And when we would do comedies, you would be surprised. You would think, Oh, the kids will like the really silly stuff. Yeah. Did but more dramatic things madam butterfly boy, and that has a child in it and boy kids really focus on that really get drawn into that so I think that's it's really important that we expose kids.

Don't talk down to kids give them something challenging and something else I want to say about Anika's composition is that people think get scared when they hear contemporary music when they hear that it's contemporary, right? Nika's style is very melodic. It is. But, it also, a lot of my music as the Silver Queen, as Silver King, the villain is a lot of it is atonal, disjointed, kind of jerky, angry, and of course that changes as he grows at the end.

But, that's a great quality. Contrast. I took my son to symphony concerts since he was four to the St. Louis Symphony. He saw Peter Grimes, which is a Benjamin Britten opera, really heavy stuff written in the fifties, I think. And he was fascinated by it. This is like a three hour opera, just a concert version of an opera.

I think that if you don't tell kids, oh, this is opera, oh, this is boring, I think it's the. Parents, the teachers often come in with these preconceived notions, whereas I think kids are much more open to just experiencing a different kind of different kinds of sounds and Experiencing a live music too.

We don't sing with microphones when we've gone to schools kids are I was shocked or amazed that we project our voices. Opera singing, this whole technique is about projecting the voice because there were no microphones when opera originated and they're just used to hearing everything mic'd.

[00:35:50] Arnold: And Mark it's an interesting thought that Mark brings up is this emotion that you can see. When you're at an opera, you know because of the acting that's going it's just not singing It's not acting going on to it. It's just not okay. Yeah, they sang this aria. Okay, that's nice and when you combine what the composer has written in the score the lyricist is has put on the lyrics and the Interpretation from the performer and then the scene that's done a lot of these I'm going to call them murder scenes or the death scenes of people, they're very powerful in the music and then in the presentation.

And I agree with what you said as what you said was spot on. 

[00:36:32] Mark L: So many moving parts. Oh, yes. I think it's great you're doing outreach that you're actually going to schools and bringing this to the youth, cause I can't see, I never had it when I was growing up. I had no exposure to opera whatsoever.

If I wanted to go, it was something my parents did and it was at the Muni and that was about the exposure. And those were. Operas that, they've been around for a hundred years, but never anything that was just created, during our time. So I applaud you for going out and doing the outreach.

I think that's important going to the schools like that. And I think it must be really fun to bring them to you, to to the theater and have them actually sit there and see you on stage doing it. I think that would be spectacular too, for the youth. Yeah. So 

[00:37:21] Nika: and I think a good point also is that Opera in many places has become a form of art that is not affordable for many people.

You're right. And so the idea of bringing condensed versions to schools is one way of bringing it to kids. And I believe that children's opera especially has to be affordable. If it's not in schools, if it's at a theater, it has to be accessible and affordable. And speaking about that, we are actually giving away a few tickets to low income family families and underprivileged kids.

We're reaching out to schools if anyone, if any family who cannot otherwise afford to bring their child to performance, we're giving away tickets and they can actually, they can go to our website goldqueenopera. com and click on the contact us link. button and fill out information, we will reach out back to them and we will offer free admission.

That's great. 

[00:38:21] Arnold: Mark, let's listen to a little bit more of the opera. This is the aria from the Silver Queen, I believe.

Benedetta is, she's the silver queen? 

[00:39:38] Nika: Yes, this is not her voice. This is a pre recorded. Yes. Benedetta is going to perform the role of Silver Queen and Benedetta and I have been friends for some time now and I admire greatly her talent and her voice and that was a great inspiration for me, too, to write.

some pieces for her that are more lyrical and lamenting. She's, of course, she's a sad character. She endures the tarnishing. She herself is also a little bit tarnished. And so in the future costumes productions, we will also reflect that, but. She is an amazing character. She's always sad and she laments the past.

She remembers her husband her king, the way he was, how he was noble and kind. And she is, but at the same time, she's really very strong woman. And she has faith in his redemption. She is ready to do anything. possible to save him. She understands, she sees the situation and she understands what kind of danger he's in.

And that she also realizes that he himself created that situation, that danger. So she's trying to save him and the say, and also save the situation. She's a very powerful character. 

[00:40:56] Arnold: You've got, I think you've developed a lane that You know, there aren't a lot of, now this is from my limited background of children's operas, but of recent children's operas that are written.

That, that's a great lane to be in, because you can introduce a whole new generation to a wonderful library that's out there, that both you have, and Mark, have participated in as adults, and sung in operas like that. And I'm not telling you, you need to stay in the children's opera lane, but there's, sometimes there's that's like a freeway that I see, looking at what we've talked about today.

[00:41:35] Mark L: Are there many people doing children's operas? I don't, I've never really heard of it till I met you all. 

[00:41:42] Nika: It's not very common, yes. But there is a body of repertoire out there. Okay. It's not too rare. 

[00:41:51] Arnold: Okay. Now Mark, you have mentioned that some of your favorite arias Our favorite roles, I should say in Don Giovanni was Leporello.

[00:42:04] Mark F: Yes. Don 

[00:42:04] Arnold: Alfonso and Così von Tutti. And, this goes on a lot of them. I'm not going to ask you, what's your most favorite role? 

[00:42:12] Multiple: It's the Silver King, of course, in The Secret of the Gold Queen. There you go. That's a great answer. I love it. Great answer. That means it takes a place after the show here.

It's yes. 

[00:42:24] Arnold: Yes. Yes. I know that sometimes singers who are opera stage singers don't like to delve into the musical realm like the the Muny, but you've done both. And what is that, I'm going to call it a disconnect, or is it like, I'm stepping down to do the musical kind of thing the theater voice kind of thing versus the opera, which is, I can, that's the major leagues, I'm probably, I don't know if I'm stepping in it 

[00:42:54] Mark F: or not here. I think that attitude, that, that's an, Attitude from another time. I don't think that really exists anymore. I, it's funny I was just watching a South Pacific the movie I had not seen in a long time with my family last weekend and Ezio Pinza, great Italian operatic bass Star of the Metropolitan Opera.

He was the original Emile de Beck. He sang Some Enchanted Evening And so he was an opera singer singing in a musical written for him. And that was shocking at the time, and there was a lot of blowback about that. Whereas I think it's much more common now. Rene Fleming does musical theater. Kelly O'Hara, who was a big star on Broadway, is singing at the Metropolitan Opera right now.

And so I have a lot of friends who are opera singers who have sung at the Muni and yeah, especially some of the more classic, American songbook period, Rodgers and Hammerstein or so those are, a lot of those are more operatic, at least some of the roles, and Porgy and Bess was Oh, absolutely.

So is it a musical or is it an opera? That's a big 

[00:43:59] Arnold: debate. Yeah. Very good. If you have time, and you need to make time, Sunday, June 9th, 1 o'clock to 2. 30 p. m. A new opera for children. It's a world premiere, The Secret of the Gold Queen. And it's a work in progress. It's not the polished opera for children.

And we're going to polish versus tarnish. It's being tweaked, we should say. And are you going to invite comments from the audience, or? 

[00:44:25] Nika: Sure, that's a great idea. Of course. 

[00:44:28] Arnold: Yeah. I'm not putting you on the spot, but Yeah, you are. I remember going to a new restaurant of somebody who's a James Beard person in town.

And they just opened and it was like the, before they really opened. And passed out some paper and said, Write down what you like, what you don't like. And we went back a couple weeks later and some of the things had been tweaked. And you always want to make things better. And I think everybody wants that.

Whether it's a composer, a performer what we do, we try to, we listen to our own stuff. Like, why did I say that word? Or where did that come from? And I think it just makes us better in what we do and provides a better performance or better 

[00:45:07] Nika: idea. Yes. 

[00:45:10] Arnold: Closing words give me like a 90 second thought on youngsters who are interested in becoming a composer.

What should they be doing? What advice do you offer them? 

[00:45:23] Nika: I should say get rid of any limitations in your mind. Explore. Fantasize, exercise your imagination, learn work on your skills, get in touch with professionals who can give you the best. Advice and guidance and share their experience with you And the best of advice don't skip a day Work on it every single day, even if you're not and this is a challenge for many composers some of us wake up in the morning.

I'm not feeling well. I'm not inspired to do anything and reading the words of great composers I found You Many sayings that even if you're not inspired, if you, even if you're not feeling well, there's always work to be done. There's technical work, there's editing, there's, and then inspiration comes along.

I found myself many times when I wasn't even feeling like sitting down and doing stuff. Stuff and I would force myself to edit or make corrections. And then I found myself being inspired and having ideas. Oh, actually I could do better than this. And the main principle is never skip a day, work on it every single day, exercise, discipline, and don't ever stop imagining and realizing.

Exercising your imagination, musical imagination. 

[00:46:50] Arnold: There you go. Mark, you've been doing this since before you were three, so what would you suggest to aspiring vocalists? 

[00:47:00] Mark F: Wow, I just did not take the traditional route, so I'm probably the worst person here. To ask, I had practical experience.

I had been in hundreds of performances before my voice changed. I did not go to music school. I first came to St. Louis because I studied a graphic design at the school of art at Washington university and became a graphic designer in publishing. And that's how I was able to support my expensive singing habit by doing graphic design.

And I think the main thing is Go to see lots of theater, go to see lots of music, go to listen. Just expose yourself to all and all different styles. I love going to concerts in the theater and just soaking things up and I would say get practical experience because that's what I enjoyed the most.

Just, there are so many opportunities here in St. Louis. Yeah. to be, we have children's, I'm directing Carmen at Union Avenue Opera in a couple of weeks. We're starting rehearsals and there's a children's chorus in Carmen that I sang as a kid and I'm, can't wait to work with the kids in that.

There's Muny kids, there's Muny teens, there's so many great opportunities for kids here. St. Louis. So I would say get involved. 

[00:48:13] Mark L: Do 

[00:48:14] Mark F: your, 

[00:48:14] Mark L: do your craft. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. There's no books I don't think that could teach this to you. Yeah. It's, you've got to actually do it. Get on that stage and belt it out. 

[00:48:24] Arnold: If you would.

Nika Leone and Mark Freiman, thanks for coming into St. Louis in tune today. Thank you. And folks again, Sunday, June 9th. 1 o'clock to 2. 30 p. m. The Secret of the Gold Queen. The Secret of the Gold Queen. Go to goldqueenopera. com or stlfringe. org for more information and details.

[00:49:29] Music from Opera: Since then, he has changed, and his shine has been lost. He has pushed away those who love him most.

[00:49:57] Multiple: There we go. 

[00:49:59] Mark L: Got our audience there, studio audience there. Pistachio gallery. And we do, I know. You have any days of the day, Mark? Congress is always hard at work figuring out these national holidays. And today is national cheese day, which is good for you. You're cheesy. 

[00:50:17] Arnold: I know. Okay. 

[00:50:18] Mark L: You have a cat?

Do you still have a cat? Yes, we do. Yeah. Okay. His name's Vinnie. Vinnie? Vinnie. Wow, that's tough. A cat named Vinny. I don't think, I think I'd sleep with one eye open if I had a cat named Vinny. It's nasty. You don't want to put your foot off the bed. No, I wouldn't 

[00:50:36] Multiple: say that with Vinny 

[00:50:37] Mark L: around. How do you name a cat Vinny?

There has to be a 

[00:50:41] Arnold: he took care of all the rabbits in the backyard. Oh, Vinny, 

[00:50:44] Multiple: hey. Okay, you better check under the hood of your car before you start it. Okay. 

[00:50:53] Mark L: It's national hug your cat day or hug. Oh, I don't think so. Okay. You might come out with scratches. Okay. And not to be outdone, it's international Corey day.

Do you know anyone with a Corey dog? Yeah, Corgi, I'm sorry. I beg your pardon, 

[00:51:13] Arnold: the queen, she queen Elizabeth had one as a Corgi. I don't know what 

[00:51:16] Mark L: she did legs. Don't 

[00:51:17] Multiple: they have those little bitty legs? You see him run. It's funny. Aye aye. Okay. A Corgi doodle. Oh my gosh. Let's 

[00:51:28] Mark L: see. It's a national old maids day.

[00:51:33] Arnold: Remember that game, that card game, Old Maid? 

[00:51:35] Mark L: Oh yeah. My grandmother and I used to. 

[00:51:37] Arnold: You're not talking about Old Maid, somebody who didn't get married. 

[00:51:40] Mark L: That's what we're talking about. I'm afraid. I hate to say it, but that's what, and the Congress passed this unanimously. Oh God, it doesn't surprise me at all.

Okay. Hot air balloon day. Oh, a lot of hot air out of Congress. Have you ever gone up in a hot air balloon? I've not, I don't know that I want to. Oh, it's did you oh many times really a few times I was in a hare and hound race once where I was the hare So we went up first and then all the balloons came and tried to chase.

They have you sign a disclaimer. Oh, yeah And you got to watch out for power lines, yes, it's not You can't really steer Hit the gas. Come on go up. I know it's and then you bounce when you hit You know, but at the end you have champagne. So there's a chase crew that chases you. And when you land, they they celebrate.

It's okay, everybody lived. And you hit, they pop champagne and you have champagne. So it's a hot air or hot balloon. You said hot air, hot balloon day national gingerbread day. 

[00:52:44] Arnold: Okay. 

[00:52:45] Mark L: National Taylor's day. Have you ever had anything? Yes. Have you now? Okay. Yeah, you are from the other side of the tracks.

Okay. No, you don't go to a store where you don't buy it off the rack. 

[00:52:58] Arnold: You're like, I need a little adjustment in the sleeve here. Because sometimes you're not like the exact size that they have those things. My length and my waist or whatever, 

[00:53:06] Mark L: okay, I have an issue with this next one.

National Veggie Burger Day. How do you call it a burger? It's in the shape of one. So it should be national veggie in the shape of a burger day. I think that's better. I like and it's a national thank you day for crying out loud. See, it's a good time to say thank you. Please and thank you.

Please and thank you. Boy. I remember that. That's something long gone. Yes sir, yes ma'am. Isn't that long gone? Hopefully not. I'm afraid to see if you have anything. 

[00:53:35] Arnold: I got up at 5 a. m. this morning, I ran four miles, came back, made a vegetable smoothie for breakfast, did two loads of laundry, mopped and vacuumed floors, and that's all I remember about my dream.

[00:53:44] Sound: Laughter. 

[00:53:48] Arnold: If you die and get cremated, you can be put into an hourglass and still be included in Family Game Night.

I was taking I went to the gym, and I'm surprised at how winded I am by this exercise, and the trainer said this was just the tour of the gym.

I don't understand how a cemetery can raise its funeral prices and blame it on the cost of living.

So here's a pro tip. Mark, if you've had an accident, fender bender in the parking lot, save business cards of people you don't like. If you've ever hit a parked car accidentally, just write sorry on the back and leave it on the windshield.

I hope that's it I hope you've run out. That's all for this hour folks. Thanks for listening If you've enjoyed this episode, you can listen to additional shows at stlintune.com Consider leaving a review on Apple podcast, Podchaser or your preferred podcast platform Your feedback helps us reach more listeners and continue to grow.

We want to thank Bob Berthesel for our theme music co host Mark langston and we thank you for being a part of our community of curious minds St. Louis In Tune is a production of Motif Media Group and the U.S. Radio Network. Remember to keep seeking keep learning walk with For St. Louis in Tune, I'm Arnold Stricker.