You’ve been described as the “Fourth Tenor”. Is it difficult to always hit the high notes? Tenors are alluring. I think it’s because the tenor is the voice that sings on the edge of danger. It’s the least natural of all the voices and there is a risk. When you hit the high notes it’s like you are scoring a goal. And if you crack, you know you’ve missed.

How fit does an opera singer have to be? These days you can’t get away with being unfit on stage. When I was younger, I was a semi-professional body-builder and I also trained as a kung fu fighter. But when I was 24 I gave it all up as I had a vision of what I might become. I couldn’t even touch the back of my head because my arms were so massive. Now I just work out on machines at the gym in my home in Madrid and when I am travelling I try to stay in hotels with gyms.

Did you aspire to be the next Arnold Schwarzenegger? He was the hero for us all; him and Lou “Incredible Hulk” Ferrigno. Of course they look like babies compared with today’s bodybuilders.

You’re also a composer and a conductor. Do you ever worry about trying to do too much? When you have two or three talents, you have to decide whether to just use one and hide the others. The music world is fond of labelling people, but at the end of your life you will have to explain to that being who gave you your talents why you were so cowardly as to not use them all.

Ah, the famous ego. Some critics have had a bit of a field day at your expense. I used to care what the critics said. I used to suffer, especially when the criticism was suspiciously bad. But I would rather not talk about it except to say that people always criticise eclecticism.

As an opera singer do you have to stick to a strict regime? Because I was a semi-professional athelete for many years I learnt how to eat well. Before a show I have a big plate of pasta, for energy. What with make-up and singing, then all the after-show business, you can be working for five hours at a stretch.

Ever tuck into the steaks? I was a vegetarian for about five years in my twenties, then one day I woke up and thought it wasn’t too smart to lose my barbecue. But when I was a vegetarian I weighed 20kg (44lb) less.

Champagne or sparkling water? I don’t drink. Well, I have a finger of wine when I eat meat, but I can’t handle any more than that. If I do, I start talking nonsense.

I guess the smokes are out of the question? Actually I smoke a pipe when I’m at home. It’s not something I can’t do without, but it’s pleasant. I never smoke in London. The air is polluted enough already here.

You are quite physical on stage. Have you ever suffered for your art? No, but in the past I’ve had many injuries, particularly to my back and knees because of all my weight training. Yet thanks to all those years in the gym I have a miraculous cardiovascular system. My heartbeat is 52 to 54 at rest. When I go on stage it reaches only 80 beats, which is akin to resting for other people. It gives me a huge advantage — I am never out of breath.

Do you pop any pills? Now that I’m in my forties I take supplements including vitamin E for hair and nails and vitamin C in winter.

How do you cope with the nerves? When you cross the stage for the first time each night you need to be a little nervous. That’s normal and good and it helps to break the ice with the audience.

Naturally good looking or do you attack the make-up? I’m a Neanderthal man as far as my face is concerned, but all that heavy make-up that I have to wear when I am on stage does it no good. Every so often my wife insists that I go to a spa and have a facial.

Do you sleep well at night? Now I am 41 I have achieved mental peace. I don’t worry about what people think. I have found audiences are ready to take the love I give them on stage. And I try to live my life as intensely as I can, knowing that it’s the only one I have.

What spurs you on? The goal is always the same, to be a Renaissance man. If I were only a singer, I’d be more relaxed. I’d go to the movies on my days off. But I’ve decided to complicate my life with conducting and a recording company and composing. I’m also a keen photographer and I’m going to publish some of my photographs in a book.

Who is he?

The masked television character who rode a horse called Silver. His mission was to avenge wrongs throughout the Old West. This was the beginning of Westerns on television in the early 1950s (it ran from 1949 to 1957). The best-known Lone Ranger was Clayton Moore (1949-52 and 1954-57). He also played the role in two feature films made in the late 1950s. John Hart played The Lone Ranger for a few seasons (1952-54). The theme tune was Rossini's William Tell Overture. The Lone Ranger was created by George W Trendle and Fran Striker as a local radio show in 1933 before being brought to television in a series of half-hour episodes made in Hollywood.

What did he do?

He never killed anyone, but there was always lots of action. He rode with his faithful friend, Tonto, and fired a gun with silver bullets. He never accepted payment for his good deeds but lived off the income from a silver mine that he discovered. There he would stock up on silver bullets and with a hearty, "Hi, ho, Silver, away!", he would gallop off to set the record straight. The creed of the Lone Ranger, according to the original writer Fran Striker, was: "I believe that to have a friend, a man must be one. That all men are created equal and that everyone has within himself the power to make this a better world."

Why do I admire him?

I always admire those who work quietly behind the scenes, behind the mask. I came back to the Royal Opera House to sing in Samson et Dalila and as I walked through the corridors and saw all the make-up artists, the dressers, the stage managers, assistants and so on, I came to the conclusion of how little we know about these people behind the curtain. I felt these were my forgotten heroes because I can't be on stage without them. But how do I put this group of people in one person? The Lone Ranger is symbolic of all the people not in the limelight, doing a lot but whom you may never know.

 

José Cura – Interview

  Classic FM

He’s been thrilling audiences for years as a dramatic tenor, but now José Cura is determined to match his singing success with his passion for the podium.  He tells Carenza Hugh-Jones about his plans for the future - - both as singer and conductor

‘I’d been conducting for several years before I discovered I had a good singing voice.  I decided to take singing more seriously, as it’s easier for a singer to get inside the international picture than a conductor, and if you are a tenor, even better—and if you are a dramatic tenor, even better still.

‘I’ve worked hard over the years.  I recently turned 40 and I don’t recall a period when I haven’t studied very hard.  People have often commented that I look effortless when I sing, but it’s because I’ve practiced very hard.  It’s like watching a dancer do a major jump and you know it’s very tough and challenging, but when they are in the air, they smile and you think it must be easy.

‘Ever since I started singing, I’ve been filmed, so I have learned to adapt my physical gestures to the dryness of the camera.  I think my past as a sportsman has been very important for my breathing technique.  You must make it look as natural as possible.  I hope to do more and more conducting, but it’s just like starting at the beginning again.  There are many preconceptions going against me, as it’s hard to make everyone believe that a tenor can be a conductor.  There’s an idea that a singer is not a real musician, but I want to change that.

‘I didn’t want to start conducting in an opera house, so my first concert was a challenging programme of Respighi, Kodaly, and Rachmaninov.  One day I will sing less and conduct more, but I want to continue singing until my last breath.  I’d also like to work with young people.  I’m very excited to have my own label, which started by accident, really.  We recorded the Rachmaninov for fun, then realized we could do something with it.  We didn’t have the back-up support, though, so we made our own label!  I don’t know what we will do next, but whatever happens, it’s going to be a nice adventure.’