At Boulder Opera, we are proud to announce that Jorge Salazar will be joining our team once again to conduct an ensemble orchestra in our production of Verdi’s Il Trovatore.
Jorge Salazar’s musical career started in Colombia (his native country), there he developed an intense work with choirs and orchestra which led him to direct several productions of symphonic-choral and opera music. Salazar personally really enjoys his activity as a conductor and professor of conducting at the Corpas University in Bogotá city, where they have made productions that encompass different styles and composers. To mention some of their best productions, Salazar would like to mention “Dido and Aeneas”, “The Abduction From the Seraglio”, “L'elisir d'amore”, “Carmina Burana”, Mozart's “Requiem”, “Madame Butterfly”, “La Divina”, “ Signor Delusso”, etc.
Conductor Jorge Salazar working with Michelle Diggs Thompson at rehearsals for Il Trovatore
Boulder Opera Company: Why opera? What got you involved with opera, and why do you enjoy conducting opera?
Jorge Salazar: Because the relationship between music and text is fully shown in opera, in it you enjoy the expression of music as a support for the drama and this makes the passion with which you express the sound more alive and intense. On the other hand, I have always enjoyed singing, I think that the voice is the instrument best connected with your inner being and this makes vocal music a perfectly fluid and natural line.
BOC: What is your favorite musical moment in Il Trovatore?
JS: The second act is undoubtedly the most special for me, the dramatic charge in which Azucena narrates her tragedy is expressed in a heartbreaking and intense unity of music, text, and performance. I think that the character of Azucena carries all the exoticism of this intricate drama. Azucena is love, but it is also revenge, in Azucena the current love story goes out of its normal course and darkens. Around her tragedy, the Troubadour's argument acquires its intricate exoticism.
BOC: What should people expect/be looking forward to in these performances?
JS: A show full of color, intense music, brilliant performances, overflowing virtuosity and a rich, varied, and exciting stage proposal.
BOC: Is there anything else you'd like to share about Il Trovatore?
JS: Above the love of Azucena, the feeling of revenge seems to prevail, it is more important for her to avenge her mother than even the death of Manrico (her adopted son). The ending, tragic at first glance, seems more like a happy ending in which the lovers seal their love with their death and Azucena's revenge is finally consummated by leaving “Count di Luna” alone and prisoner of guilt for his selfish love and for the murder of his own brother.
Grab your tickets for Il Trovatore, directed by Gene Roberts!
You do not want to miss this passionate and dramatic Opera!