BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
The IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition is a drawcard for thousands of emerging opera stars from here to New Zealand. And, in its third decade, it’s also one of the biggest launchpads for a successful and international opera career.
A few weeks ago, we interviewed semi-finalist Georgia Melville, who took to the stage in a battle for The Mathy – or, as it is formally known, the Marianne Mathy Scholarship. It’s the centrepiece of this competition, which sits among a wealth of intriguing prizes from taped interviews to massages (read on).
Now, we meet another talented young singer – the only baritone who will compete in the finals this September 8 – Tristan Entwistle.
Hey, Tristan. Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I grew up in Ryde and attended North Sydney Boys High School. My mum introduced me to my first opera when I was about four years old – a VHS copy of an animated, children’s version of The Magic Flute. I spent the next few months demanding to be called Prince Tamino.
My first memory of really wanting to sing, though, was when the third Lord of the Rings film was released in 2003 and I had to learn the song that Pippin sang for Lord Denethor while Faramir rode to retake Osgiliath. If I could submit that for the concert, believe me, I would.
The main part of my musical education was really as a violinist. I started learning at four or five years old, and auditioned for the Sydney Conservatorium on violin. My singing was purely for fun, in choirs and school musicals (probably the only time I’ll ever be cast as Marius in Les Misérables due to the lack of 16-year-old tenors).
It was only about six months out from the conservatorium auditions that I asked my parents for some singing lessons, as I’d decided to audition as a singer as well, and I haven’t looked back since.
Congratulations on making it to the finals. How are you feeling – completely exhausted?
Thank you! I’m feeling surprisingly calm, actually! I feel like, in a lot of ways, the semi-finals were the most difficult part of the competition. It was such a strong group of singers, and any one of them could have gone on to win it all!
What did you learn from the semi-finals that you’ll bring into the battle for winning place?
I was very happy with 50 per cent of my semi-finals performance, and stressed out of my mind for the other half. It taught me just how important mental preparation is to a high-stakes competition like this, and how much your mental state can affect your voice. For me, a huge way to counteract the nerves that come hand in hand with competition singing is really getting in to the character of each piece.
You’re a baritone, and you’re up against four sopranos. How do you prepare to represent your voice in an isolating dynamic when there are no other baritones around?
It is an unusual experience, but I’m enjoying it! I think I’m highlighting it a little with my choice of repertoire, too – I’m going in with a couple of real baritone anthems!
It also takes a bit of a load off my mind, as – as much as I try not to compare myself to other singers – not having any other male voices, let alone baritones, around does make it easier to keep focused on my own performance.
How have you found the culture of the competition so far?
Absolutely supportive. It’s a lot of pressure, sure, but that’s just the nature of performing in competitions. The team behind the scenes, the panel, and the other singers are all very supportive. I’m lucky to have a few friends and familiar faces around, and the singers I hadn’t met before have all been very easy to get along with – we even had a game of Mario Kart going on backstage at the semi-finals for a little while!
Why is this competition a particularly important one for young singers – of course, restricted to 26 years old and under?
The simple fact is that there are more talented singers in Australia and New Zealand than there are jobs.
Australia has one of the highest regarded opera companies in the world, and a thriving community of smaller, amateur companies, but very little in between – to the point that many of the casts of these ‘amateur’ opera companies are filled with professional singers, taking the opportunity to perform another coveted role!
In short, there are several rungs missing in the ladder between ‘conservatorium graduate’ and ‘Opera Australia principal artist’, which forces a lot of young singers overseas to find their first jobs in opera and begin their careers. Competitions like the ASC provide the connections, the opportunities, and – indeed in many cases – the wherewithal to begin that journey.
There are some seriously cool-but-quirky prizes involved, from cash through to a taped interview, a portrait of the winner in concert dress, a massage voucher, and even a statuette. What would you most like to take home?
How often do you get a chance to have your portrait painted? That would be so much fun! As cool as that would be, though – and it would be very cool – I’m going to be boringly practical and say the cash prize. What that money is, though, is travel to Europe. It’s lessons with world renowned teachers. It’s language training. It’s the ability to spend time dedicating yourself to opera, and the opportunity to really make the best use of the voice we’ve all spent so long working on.
And, as a bonus, the winner of the big prize gets the portrait, too!
Any parting words?
A huge congratulations to the other finalists, to Zoe, Pasquale, Katherine and Cleo – anyone of them could deservedly win on the weekend, and I’m proud to have been chosen among them. I can’t wait to put on a wonderful concert with them on Saturday, and thank you to the team at MOST/IFAC ASC for helping all of us along the path to our careers!
Good luck to all finalists competing in the IFAC Handa Australian Singing Competition at Verbrugghen Hall, Sydney Conservatorium of Music, 7pm September 8.
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