When
The Flying Dutchman set sail this season, it was with Johannes Debus leading the COC Orchestra through Wagner’s epic score and, for Johannes, the opera holds a particular special significance: it was the first opera he conducted as COC Music Director after officially joining the Canadian Opera Company in 2010.
“I was originally supposed to conduct this in 2020, marking my tenth anniversary with the COC,” he recalls. “Of course, because of the pandemic, we’re celebrating a full two years later! But it’s remarkable to think of the journey we’ve all been through and exciting to bring this opera about a famously epic journey back to our audiences.”
We asked Johannes what he loves best about this opera—and how his relationship with opera and Wagner has evolved since his first turn at the COC podium.
COC: Do you have a favourite part of the score?Johannes Debus: The opera starts with an exhilarating piece of music, the overture to
The Flying Dutchman, about 10 minutes long. Right away, we are thrown into the opera, into the forces of nature. And we're thrown into the inner worlds of what we later see the characters dealing with. So basically, everything that happens in the opera, we have in a nutshell, in this overture. And I tell you, it's an exciting piece of music to play for any orchestra. And it's an exciting piece of music to conduct.
COC: Are there any other key musical moments audiences should listen for?Debus: Well there is, of course, the famous Dutchman monologue; it’s the first time we encounter the Dutchman and he tells us about his story and his tragic fate. There’s also the famous Act Two ballad sung by Senta, in the form of a kind of monologue. It’s here that we hear about her yearning and about this inexplicable relationship she seems to feel with the painting of the Dutchman.
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But
The Flying Dutchman also hones in on this closed community of sorts and so the chorus features quite heavily. The score includes a number of famous operatic choruses - singing is what people here seem to do when they're not working, and also as a way of getting through their daily tasks. So in Act One, we hear the sailors singing whilst working. In Act Two, we hear the female chorus, while they sit at their spinning wheels. And in Act Three, we find the community dancing and drinking and having a great time after work—it feels almost like polka music!
COC: How does conducting this opera feel different to you this time?Debus: It’s for me, personally, one of the greatest gifts to be able to revisit
The Flying Dutchman, here at the COC. It’s like revisiting an old friend! I think there’s perhaps two predominant feelings that arise—the first is quite nostalgic, as the wonderful memories of that first time bubble up and I get to just bathe in the lovely memories. But, since then, there’s also a new sense of pride; I’ve achieved a lot, together with the COC Orchestra and time has also enabled me to discover so many new aspects of the piece that I hadn’t seen in 2010. I think it will be very interesting to compare the two experiences on the other side of this run!
COC: What do you think audiences are going to love most about this opera? Debus: With Wagner it's “Go big or go home!” And it’s the same with
The Flying Dutchman. It’s overwhelming and unforgettable—especially in this iconic COC production.
Experience Wagner's early masterpiece,
The Flying Dutchman, on now until October 23, 2022!
Get tickets today!
Header Photo: Gaetz Photography
Production Photo: Gary Beechey
