Philippe Jaroussky on Thé ou café, 5.4.15 (Engl. transl.) Part I.

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Philippe Jaroussky Interview for The ou café on 05.04.2015 with Catherine Ceylac. Translation by Artemis, many thanks! http://philippe-jaroussky.forumy.eu/t609-philippe-jaroussky-on-france-2-and-canal#8942 CC: Who is it facing the screen this morning? Please introduce yourself. First of all, what is your profession? PJ: I’m an opera singer. CC: Your family situation? PJ: I’m in a civil partnership (Pacte civil de solidarité, aka Pacs). CC: Your obsession in life? PJ: Alarm clocks! CC: Do you have a (personal) motto? PJ: Never do today what you can put off until tomorrow. CC: Your name and surname? PJ: Philippe Jaroussky CC: Come and join me. A spectacular career, always leap-frogging ahead, 4 Victoires de la Musique Classique, 3 Golden Discs … I’ve wanted to meet you for a long time because you’re an absolute wonder. Isn’t it true – you’re like a pop star, you make appearances (on stage), you sell a lot of albums and CDs, but you do things that are completely out of the ordinary, you’re very eclectic, multi-faceted. PJ. Yes, I know. CC: – But that’s what you enjoy, isn’t it? And to surprise (people)? PJ: Yes, I like to surprise (people) – although with a countertenor voice, surprising people is already a given. I’ve always enjoyed surprising people with my voice. CC: Let’s explain a bit. The countertenor is a special kind of voice … PJ: Yes, I said “Opera singer” but it’s true that in the family of operatic voices, the countertenor voice is (just) beginning to find its place. It’s no longer considered freakish. The countertenor voice is the highest male voice. CC: It’s a woman’s voice, in fact. PJ: You could categorize the countertenor voice as an alto, mezzo or soprano, just like the equivalent female voices. It’s true that (in general) it’s specific to the repertoire of the castrati. CC: Your name is of Russian origin. Have you retained anything of your Russian roots? PJ: Not much. My great-grandparents fled the Russian Revolution but they didn’t even teach their children (my grandparents) the Russian language. CC. That’s a shame. PJ: It’s a real pity – but what I have inherited is a predilection for Russian romantic music. CC: With a surname that really isn’t easy, that you probably have to constantly spell out, people must get it wrong … PJ: Ah, Jaroussky – I always maintain that it isn’t easy enough to spell correctly but it’s not difficult enough for people to pay sufficient attention to write it correctly – but I like my name, I like the (Russian) sound of it. CC: Did it never occur to you to take a stage name? PJ: No, never! In the classical milieu such a thing is not done very often. CC: I’ve a vital question to ask you. Do you prefer hens or bells? PJ: Oh, I see why you’re asking. I’m more inclined to bells – it’s more musical! CC: Did you hunt for eggs in the garden when you were little? PJ: My family had a country house in Burgundy and I remember that we did, indeed, hunt for eggs in the garden. CC: What did your parents do (as a profession)? PJ: My parents belonged to the suburban middle class. CC: In Sartrouville? PJ: Yes – my father was a sales executive and my mother worked in a physics laboratory but she stopped working when I was born. Indeed, I had a suburban childhood in Sartrouville. CC: Did music play an important part (in this childhood)? PJ: No, not really. My parents weren’t great music lovers but they used to listen to more or less everything – from Johnny Halliday to Callas. They used to listen to classical music a little, but they had no (formal) background in classical music. CC: Is it true that you used to imitate Maria Callas? PJ: Some of my first memories are of singing along to “Casta Diva” – instinctively, little realizing that this would later be my profession. CC: At the age of 2, is it true or is it part of the folklore, that you used to sing along to the publicity jingles (on the television)? PJ: You’re very well informed. Yes, it’s true. My mother very quickly noticed that as soon as I heard a sound, I would try to reproduce it. CC: What on earth did it sound like? PJ: I don’t know – “baby jingles”, I expect – but even as a very small child, I could hold tunes. More to come...