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Tenor Jerry Hadley's philosophy is simple: A performer's job is to provide moments of spontaneous connections, communication and entertainment that engages an audience. Tenor Hadley
says there is no
‘dumb’ audienceBy Tim Ryan
Star-BulletinAs for the art of it all, "That's entirely up to the audience to decide," said Hadley. who makes his Honolulu Symphony debut Sunday and Tuesday at the Blaisdell Concert Hall.
Considered the leading American tenor of his generation and one of the most sought-after singers of our time, Hadley is widely acclaimed for his interpretations of the lyrical tenor roles of the operatic repertory as well as "crossover" ventures into the less rarefied world of Broadway, operetta and popular music.
"Both types of music are equally valid forms of entertainment; the judgment as to whether they are art or not is not my, or any performer's decision," he said.
"A lot of places are finding that the public isn't as focused (on classical music) as it once was," Hadley said. "So some people complain that means the public is dumbing down. It's unfair to say the public is stupid because they want to hear things other than opera."
He's offended by some performers who believe it's their job "to enlighten the ignorant masses."
"Leonard Bernstein told me that a performer's intelligence will never abandon him," he said. "So the trick when you walk on stage is to forget about that and respond to the music in the moment.
"It's not a performer's responsibility to try to create art."
Hadley was raised on a corn and soybean farm in Illinois. His father was a fourth-generation Midwest English Protestant; his mom's family were Italian immigrants. Music was central in both homes.
"At my great-grandfather's home, these 78 (rpm) records of Caruso and other great Italian singers were always playing," Hadley said.
But the '50s were also the time of Elvis Presley and Frank Sinatra, and Hadley enjoyed singing these as well as Italian classics.
"I can't remember a time when I didn't sing," he said.
Hadley first sang in public when he was a first grader; in high school and college he participated in every musical program and class available.
His early years as a professional singer were spent in regional opera houses in the United States. He became a stalwart of the New York City Opera after a baptism-by-fire debut as Arturo in "Lucia di Lamermoor" in 1979.
"There wasn't time to rehearse with all the principle singers," he said. "The first time I saw the set was the night I walked on stage; I had a costume fitting but never put it on until my first night."
So what happened?
Hadley's costume caught on several pieces of furniture and his hat burst into flames when he stood too close to a bank of candles.
"And those are just the highlights," he said, laughing. "Those 20 minutes I'd waited for my whole life for a New York debut were suddenly over. I wanted a recount."
But he couldn't have had a more propitious international debut. In 1982, he made his first European appearance at the Vienna State Opera as Nemorino in Donizetti's "L'Elisir d'Amore." Debuts in the world's other great opera houses soon followed.
He's sung the popular tenor roles of the Bel Canto repertory -- "Il Barbiere di Siviglia," "L'Elisir d' Amore," "Anna Bolena," "La Boheme" and "Lucia di Lamermoor" -- as well as Mozart's "Cosi Fan Tutte," "Don Giovanni," "Die Zauberflote" and "La Clemenza di Tito," and the French Romantics' "Les Contes d'Hoffmann" and "Faust."
Hadley has worked with the world's great conductors, including Richard Bonynge with whom he's made several recordings of the Bel Canto genre, and the late Bernstein, who selected Hadley to sing the title role in the maestro's operetta "Candide."
"The greatest conductors are the ones who understand what collaboration is all about," he said. "Obviously, the man who holds the stick is the final arbiter of different opinions in a performance. But a good conductor has that unique sixth sense which allows him to be fed by the individuals with whom he's performing."
And Hadley's philosophy for success?
"Everyone charts their own path," he said. "People who ultimately are successful in realizing their dreams are those who don't take no for an answer. You have to believe in yourself, have that fire in the belly to get it done."
On stage
Who: Jerry Hadley performs "Opera Hits and Broadway Showstoppers" with the Honolulu Symphony; Sam Wong conducts
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