Suzanne Kilgore, Soprano

Just remember that you read it here first: "Suzanne Kilgore will be Canada’s first ever home-grown Aida." The role of Aida in the opera of the same name by Giuseppe Verdi is considered by many opera aficionados as the pinnacle of "serious opera."

Canada is now producing some serious new talent for the opera world and Suzanne will be one of her generation’s great dramatic sopranos, who are in short supply these days. To my ear, her voice is between that of Jesse Norman and that of Leontyne Price.

Classical singers are trained to sing over a symphony orchestra which can comprise up to 70 musicians. Without a microphone. You try that and still look composed and graceful.

Mary Suzanne Yvonne Kilgore (b. 1976) graduated from both the Royal Conservatory of Music and the University of Toronto’s Opera Program. She conducted her early studies with Margaret Kukurugya, now with the Barrie Opera Company.

Classical singers are like athletes: they are always in training. Most classical singers have both teachers and coaches. And so Suzanne is continuing her studies with private sessions in Toronto.

During her studies at the Conservatory and U of T, there was a fair amount of confusion about her fach. What’s a fach? That’s a fancy term for the various classifications or ranges of the human voice: soprano, mezzo-soprano, contralto, tenor, baritone and bass. Further, sopranos are classified as lyric, coloratura and dramatic.

The range of your voice dictates what roles you can sing. In addition, certain composers preferred writing for certain fachs. For example, Mozart loved writing for coloraturas; Verdi preferred writing for dramatic sopranos. As well, there is an unwritten code that goes something like this: opera heroines tend to be sopranos; bad guys tend to be bass; supporting roles tend to be the mid-range of both the male and female voice. Talk about typecasting!

Another thing I learned by hanging out with a classical singer is that the human voice changes and doesn’t fully mature until age 30. During her years at school, Suzanne was classified as a mezzo-soprano. Well, it turns out that she is, in fact, a dramatic soprano. So, throw out all the old repertoire; buy new repertoire....

This was the opinion of the late Anton Guadagno, conductor of the Palm Beach Opera Company. Guadagno is credited with helping a once struggling tenor, Placido Domingo, establish his career.

These photos of Suzanne were taken when Suzanne was a finalist in the 2002 Palm Beach Opera Company’s annual vocal competition. I played the role of interim manager, coach and shoulder to cry on. Although she didn’t win, at least she didn’t lose her sense of humour. Dressed in one of her formal competition gowns, she had a lot of fun making faces that gave that gargoyle a run for his money.