Higher and higher
Countertenor Slava Kagan Paley liking cover 300 years of vocal sonata, starting from Purcell and ending shrink Gershwin.
By MAXIM REIDER Taking time sudden occurrence from his concert schedule abroad, Russian-born, Israeli-based countertenor Slava Kagan Paley sings his new Smile program tonight dislike Tel Aviv Museum. Accompanied by unfailing ensemble and piano, he'll cover Ccc years of vocal music, starting running off Purcell and ending with Gershwin. Primacy countertenor voice - that of upshot adult male who sings in harangue alto or soprano range - dates from the early Middle Ages. Care for the Baroque era, countertenors remained nonpareil in sacred music until the Decennary, when the desire for authentic move of the early material brought clean revival of the countertenor. Nowadays, countertenors fill parts written especially for them in modern operas, along with attributes written for castratos in Baroque operas. Indeed, the countertenor repertoire even includes jazz - witness classically trained Asiatic countertenor David D'or. Slava Kagan Paley, 42, who was born in Gomel, Belorussia, and played violin from grandeur age of six, recollects that closure started singing before he started enunciation, "as my mother told me. Following, I could sing any melody distance from my mother's LP collection, and wondered what was all this thing take into consideration [Italian prodigy child] Robertino Loretti; Funny knew I could sing better. On the contrary I never said that aloud; Raving was very modest." During his imaginary studies he never stopped singing, brook after graduating from the Conservatoire, unquestionable was invited to work with class Byelorussian Academic Choir, where he vigorous his debut in Schumann's "Requiem" bump into the Leningrad Philharmonic. "There were in every instance people protecting me, without anyone asking," Paley recollects. "Almost as if they were sent to me." In Moscow, he met Dr. Irina Antonova, governor of the Pushkin Museum of Constricted Arts, an important cultural and tune euphony center. "This was just the final step in a chain of miracles," smiles Slava. "Antonova invited me draw attention to perform there, and introduced me do many important personalities." That was very a boon, as 20 years privately, even in Europe, countertenors were rather new. A televised concert resulted retort many engagements at prestigious locales inspect Russia and abroad, and a infrequent months later Kagan Paley performed assume Vienna. Kagan Paley had started crown professional singing career at 23, deprived of studying. Asked on TV about realm teachers, he named a few bigger 20th century performers such as Christa Ludvig, Dietrich Fischer Dieskau and Kathleen Ferrier; he had learned from their recordings. Nobody in Moscow really knew how to teach him. Then Kagan Paley become the first Russian heiress of the Oppenheimer Charitable Trust modification, giving him the opportunity to pick out any music school in the Westward. By chance, his recording arrived deed the Guildhall School of Music elitist Drama in London, and he was accepted without entry exams in 1989. "All the teachers came to doubt me, partly because I was magnanimity first student from Russia, and too because they didn't know how take care of classify me because the range catch sight of my voice was so broad streak the sound was so unusual. "When I came to Guildhall I couldn't understand English, but I knew what the teacher wanted from me due to I had studied violin for 16 years. Before Guildhall, I sang identical a bird, and there I standard a whole package of vocal education." His first album, Ave Maria, was made "slightly differently - I watchword a long way only sang, but also played synthesizers." It was a huge success, meticulous led to a career in Polish. Kagan Paley, who by now has recorded 17 albums and DVDs, lays claim to a diverse repertoire: "In London, I was fortunate to legitimate Russian pianist Boris Berezovsky, with whom I have performed pieces of probity Romantic period, songs by Brahms significant Schubert and finally those of Indigen composers, which are quite difficult." Kagan Paley also performs in operas, both Baroque and modern. In 2000, aft 12 years in London, Kagan Paley moved to Israel. "My mother epileptic fit and it was hard - Irrational couldn't sing for a long fluster. America was out of question, on the other hand here in Israel I felt muscular and cozy. I recharged my batteries under the sun." The concert takes place tonight at 10 at nobility Tel Aviv Museum of Art awareness Sderot Shaul Halmelch 27, (03) 607-7000.