The Des Moines Metro Opera Years – Part One
I ended my last blog post with my winning the taped audition for the post of Principal Timpanist of the Des Moines Metro Opera Festival Orchestra, a post I was to hold for eighteen years – or nineteen seasons. To recap, as a result of our decision to move back to the United States (which my wife and I made at the beginning of 1997, it was necessary for me to resign from the Oslo Philharmonic and obtain employment in the United States. In that last post, I related how I learned of the opening through the International Musician and the steps I took to prepare for and record the audition tape. After being offered the contract, I made my preparations to leave Oslo in early June of 1998, the day after the last concert of the regular season. My wife and daughters had moved back to the USA in June of 1997; I went with them then to get them settled, then returned to Oslo to play my last season with the orchestra. I returned to Illinois to spend a few days with the family in a duplex that we rented in Mazon, Illinois before packing up and heading out to Indianola, Iowa, the home of Simpson College, which hosted the Des Moines Opera Summer Festival every summer since its inception in 1973.
The Des Moines Metro Opera Festival
I think that this is a good place to write about the Des Moines Metro Opera itself, and describe how if functions. Not too much has changed with the basic structure and how the summer opera festival operates. Although personnel changes have occurred with the passage of time, and the scope of the opera company’s productions have increased, and there have been significant changes in the infrastructure, the basics of the summer festival remain basically the same.
Founded in 1973 by co-founders Dr. Robert L. Larsen and Douglas Duncan, it began operations that summer on the campus of Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa. Performances took place at the Blank Performing Arts Center’s Pote Theater, and they have continued to do so to this day. As far as I understand it, performances of the operas were done in English for the most part was developed and the first season included performances of Puccini’s La Rondine, Menotti’s The Medium, Benjamin’s Prima Donna, and Britten’s Albert Herring. Since that first season, the productions became more sophisticated as soloists from all over the country were recruited. Originally, members of the Des Moines Symphony served as the company’s orchestra, but over time, orchestral musicians were also recruited from across the country and that is how the company built its own festival orchestra. An Apprentice Artist Program of extremely high caliber was developed over time, and from this source, the company drew its opera chorus. The Apprentice Artist Program is an extremely important aspect of the company, as it allows successful applicants to be trained in the art of developing their operatic skills from the ground up. In addition to performing minor roles in the mainstage productions, singing in the chorus as needed, they attend vocal coaching sessions and perform in weekly performances of scenes from selected operas, and have their own “Stars of Tomorrow’ concert to conclude their season. Douglas Duncan passed away in 1989, and Dr. Larsen served as the surviving Founder and Artistic Director until his retirement in 2010. The company saw enormous growth under his leadership, and he handed the reins, so to speak, to his successor Michael Egel, who became General and Artistic Director at that time. Up until 2009, Dr. Larsen functioned and conductor and music director, conducting and producing all of the company’s productions. When he retired, David Neely, who had been one of the co-directors of the Artist Apprentice Program was appointed Principal Conductor and later Music Director. Essentially, this is the team who is in charge of the company at this time, and more information can be found on the company’s website: https://desmoinesmetroopera.org/
Much has changed on the Simpson College Campus since the heady opening season. The theater has been renovated, with the pit being enlarged in 1988, and the front end of the facility receiving a facelift and added classroom (and rehearsal) space ca. 2011. The opera’s offices at the old library received a brand new addition. Unfortunately, I had retired from the scene by the time this was dedicated, but from what I can see from the brochure and pictures, it is beautiful. The productions were always of a very high order – Dr. Larsen held everyone involved to an extremely high standard, and the DMMO always had the reputation of being Iowa’s best kept musical secret. Operas are now given in their original language with super titles, and the new management has instituted a second stage series of operas, with one or two smaller operas given off-campus. This has been most successful, and the company goes from success to success.
My First Season
My first season with the Des Moines Metro Opera Festival was the summer of 1998. The summer season for the orchestra starts around mid June, with about two weeks of rehearsals and dress rehearsals, and three weeks of performances. When I started, there were three mainstage performances, and one Artist Apprentice Concert. The company was already off to a good start with a winter production of Puccini’s Tosca. This was done in January, before I was hired. The actual summer program for the 1998 Festival consisted, as I stated earlier of three operas, and one Artist’s Apprentice Concert. The operas were: Lehar: The Merry Widow; Beethoven: Fidelio; and Lee Hoiby: Summer and Smoke. (NB! Since the Lehar was sung in English, I have used the English title.)
At the time, the orchestra only had provision for one timpanist and one percussionist, and I was expected to help out with any percussion that I was able to manage. While the membership of the orchestra changed greatly over the course of my nineteen seasons, one of the few members who has remained over the years was percussionist Mark Dorr. When I joined the orchestra, he was Principal Percussionist. Since 2003, he has combined that role with that of Orchestra Manager. A highly dedicated percussionist and teacher, as well as being highly organized, we developed an excellent working relationship and became good friends, to boot! I assisted with percussion in both the Lehar and the Hoiby operas. As a matter of fact, in the Hoiby opera, Summer and Smoke, I was familiar with it as the Lake George Opera had done it during my time there, but the percussionist decided it was a one -person part, and I was sidelined at the time. Mark felt differently, and we divided up the parts. That became our modus operandi going forward for several seasons, until about 2002, when a second percussionist was added to the staff.
For equipment that season, the opera company was allowed the use of a set of four Ludwig Dresdens from the early 1970s. These were owned by Simpson College’s Music Department, and were equipped with Planet Percussion tuners. I am not particularly a fan of the Ludwig Dresden model timpani. These were manufactured between 1964 and 1980. While the bowls (parabolic in shape) were decent, the Dresden ratchet pedal mechanism was a poor fit. One had to constantly adjust the pitch by means of the master tuning handle, which was across from the player. These particular instruments had seen some wear and tear, but had a decent sound, but they were noisy when pedaling. Nonetheless, I was glad to have something to play on, and Mark provided his own percussion instruments. He was also kind enough to see that I had what I needed when doubling.
Ludwig Dresdens that I used for my first season – this photo was taken at a rehearsal in 2015 for a second-stage production
Living accommodations were provided for the company. One had the choice of staying in a dorm room, renting a room in one of the college-owned houses on or near the main campus, or, if bringing a family with you, renting one of those homes for the season. Since I was on my own, I chose to go the dormitory route. It was a lot cheaper, at $25 for the season ( a cost that was later absorbed into one of our later contract agreements – those agreements specified that the cost of dormitory room would be borne by the company).
For that first season, I stayed in a room in Barker Hall, one the second floor. I do not know the room number, but I do remember that there was no elevator, and there more than a few stairs to negotiate. The room was comfortable enough, and I brought enough clothes and material to get me through the five-week season. The campus was within walking distance of a local food store (which closed a couple of years later), and there was a Wal-Mart about a mile from the campus, so those two stores were where I shopped for food. There was also a Hy-Vee market near the Wal-Mart. Sometimes, I was lucky, and fellow musician would be shopping, and I would be able to hitch a ride to the market. On other occasions, I would have to “hoof it.” Try carrying twenty ponds of food for a mile….while doable, it could be a bit of a pain…especially when it rained. Nonetheless, I made do. Micro-fridges with microwave ovens were provided, so I was able to heat up food, and there was a kitchen in the basement in case some more elaborate preparation was required. Laundry facilities were also provided. It took a ,little getting used to, but I managed that summer. It was a little inconvenient not having a car at my disposal, but as I mentioned earlier, with the help of a few colleagues, I managed pretty well. This would be the only season that I would be without transportation, and also the only season that company members would be put up in Barker Hall. For the 1999 festival season until my retirement from the company, we were put up in Kresge Hall, a much nicer and more “user-friendly” dormitory with better facilities. (Due to renovations to Kresge Hall, we were put up in one of the fraternity dorms during the 2001 summer festival. From then on, it was Kresge Hall every summer, for which I was glad.)
Musically, that first season was a lot of fun, as well as being challenging. Lehar’s Merry Widow was fun to play, and since it was sung in English, we were able to follow the plot very easy. Doubling on percussion was also fun, although I improvised some timpani parts to sections of the show that didn’t call for them actually, but which fitted in quite nicely nonetheless. Dr. Larson’s staging and handling of the show was first rate. He had a way with musical comedies and relished making the most of them. Beethoven’s Fidelio was a musical challenge for all of us. Not an easy opera to stage, conduct, sing, or play, it required all of our concentration to give it the best series of performances that we could. Dr. Larson was a pianist as well as skilled choral conductor and vocal coach, and he admitted to me in later years that he saw the score in terms of the piano, instead of the orchestra. Nonetheless, he had a first -rate orchestra at his hands, and his beat was generally clear enough that we always “carried the day”, so to speak. We were supposed to have only four performances of Fidelio, but due to illnesses within the cast of Summer and Smoke, the company added another performance of Fidelio, so we wound up doing five performances, and only three of Summer and Smoke.
I remember all of the productions as being first rate – The Merry Widow being funny – Fidelio being serious and well sung – and Summer and Smoke being on point. Sets, costumes, and staging for all were first rate – Dr. Larsen wouldn’t put up with anything less than our best, and the results spoke for themselves. We all had great fun playing the operas and enjoyed our experiences during that first summer, Though the orchestra and company personnel changed gradually over time, here are some of the personnel from that first season: John Hancock was the first horn and also personnel manager; Ed Benyas, principal oboe; John Warren, principal clarinet; Laura Najarian, principal bassoon; the aforementioned Mark Dorr, principal percussionist; John Tuck, bass. There were several others whose names escape me at the moment, but I do know that Jeremy Baguyos, our principal bass was on sabbatical that season, and returned for the 1999 season. The first Artist-Apprentice Concert – eventually renamed”Stars of Tomorrow” was held on the campus of Drake University, and was quite successfully. Indeed, it was so successful, that except for the 2002 festival, it became a much anticipated event of the festival season during my tenure and beyond.
Here are samples from some of the operas that we performed during that season of 1998″
Merry Widow: Overture
Fidelio Prisoner’s Chorus
Summer and Smoke: Prologue
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