James Levine Quotes

I've always gravitated towards opera, and the Royal Opera House is quite possibly the greatest opera house on earth.

My parents were opera singers and voice teachers, so growing up, I admired musicians and dancers.

I decided I was going to be an opera star. I was about 12.

My idol has been Franco Corelli. But every singer can teach you something.

Lots of opera singers are just boring.

A lot of people hated every moment of my 'Ring.' And a lot of people who had never been to an opera bought subscriptions to the next season.

People have this idea that opera singers are overweight and sit at home eating bonbons. But I consider myself an athlete.

I am under no illusion that I will ever be the greatest opera composer in the world, with Wagner and Verdi and Strauss before me. I think my work could fit very nicely into musicals, though.

And then you have the classical ballerinas, they're like sopranos. Applied to the dance.

An opera begins long before the curtain goes up and ends long after it has come down. It starts in my imagination, it becomes my life, and it stays part of my life long after I've left the opera house.

I knew I always wanted to sing.

I had this exceptional classical music voice. If I'd followed a true path for my talent, I would have ended up being an opera singer.

My worry is that opera will become an historic art form as opposed to a living, breathing thing.

I became a set designer for opera. I'm a great opera buff, I love classical music, and I needed a time-out.

When you are up close to an opera singer, hearing this incredible volume of noise coming from a human being - it's beyond belief.

It seems to me opera is just as relevant as an expressive art as anything else.

I think the composer and production staff of an opera have a real responsibility to use visual elements of all kinds to make clear to the American audience, at any rate, exactly what is going on.

I'm by no means an opera buff.

I don't find much influence in opera. It was such a different part of me.

I don't rehearse films as much as opera or theatre. When I began directing films I thought a long rehearsal was a good idea. Experience showed me that the best performance was often left in a rehearsal room.

'Macbeth' is one of the best operas ever, and doing it was a great experience. I added some things to the opera based from my experience on the movie - such as some of the special effects and bits of film - to make it new and interesting. It was a very good work and a very good experience.

I had classical training but I don't consider myself an opera singer though.

I started performing opera when I was 10 years old. I didn't perform as Zola Jesus until I was probably 18.

My degree was in opera.

I'd love to do 'Werther.' It's a great opera, and the music's so beautiful.