Milan: The talented Iranian tenor Ramtin Ghazavi found it difficult to study opera in his country because of his own religion. Nevertheless, by a lucky chance, he managed to move to Italy and get world recognition. He is a regular actor of one of the most famous opera houses in the world “La Scala” and for his career performed in many famous theatres in Europe, in particular at the Theater des Champs Elysees. He is engaged in charity, supports children. However, in Iran, his work has so far not received any response from official authorities. Before the next concert, Ramtin Ghazavi gave an exclusive interview for the Front News
Front News: At what age have you started to take interest in music? Who was your idol as a child?
Ramtin Ghazavi: I began to study the Persian traditional music when I was six, and then from 15 I began to study the piano and lyrical singing when I was 19! I had not access to many music scores or audio or video records, but by the chance I found three tenors audiocassette and I fell in love with these fantastic tenors, Pavarotti, Domingo and Carreras!
F.N.I.: How difficult it was to study opera singing in Iran? Why did you choose this type of music?
R.G.: Unfortunately, after the 1979 revolution in Iran the only opera house in Iran was closed and opera was forbidden! As I told before it was really hard to find music scores and recordings, and as you know it wasn’t still all this web commodity like YouTube, Spotify, etc… I had a friend that was studying classical guitar and when for the first time I saw an opera on VHS with him I thought that «this is what I want to do!!! Singing and acting! » I tried to find some teacher but there were no opera singing teachers so I began to study by myself just hearing and trying to imitate the great tenors. Then I began to sing some pieces for guitar and voice and I can say that my childhood friend was the first person who encouraged me to continue studying opera singing.
F.N.I.: Tell more, please, about your move to Italy. How did this happen? How did your family react to the move?
R.G.: I worked in the family store with my father and two brothers. One day an Italian tourist went there and I asked her to help me to pronounce the correct Italian accent of the piece that I was studying. She asked me to sing for here and when she heard my voice, she told me that about here opinion I have a good quality of tenor voice and she wants to help me to come to Italy for studying opera singing. As a part of Baha’i faith I as many others Baha’i youth was denied to the higher education and university so I accepted the help offer of that lady and I decided to come to Italy!
F.N.I.: How did you get to «Teatro alla Scala»? What impressions did you have when you were invited to it?
R.G.: When I came to Italy for the first step I passed the audition of entrance to the Milan Conservatory (Conservatorio G.Verdi di Milano) and I was accepted to the opera singing studies, as a complementary substance I had to sing in the choir. The choir conductor Maestro Bruno Casoni was the same choir conductor of the La Scala chorus, so when he heard my voice he suggested me to do an audition for the La Scala chorus. Before that, I worked all the nights at the IKEA store as a warehouseman; it was just a great opportunity for me to change again the direction of my life, maybe forever!
F.N.I.: What is your favourite opera? Which of the ones you singed was the most memorable for you?
R.G.: It’s really hard to choose a favourite one because there is so much beautiful music of many composers like Verdi, Donizetti, Puccini, Rossini, Gounod and….. , but Puccini’s “La bohème” and the role of Rodolfo as my first debut is so memorable and special for me.
F.N.I.: How do Iranians react on your singing in Italy? How popular are you in Iran? Did you get some mails from your Iranian fans?
R.G.: As a first Iranian tenor at La Scala I am known in the small part of the population that studying the classical music. In 2013 I was invited by the Italian embassy for a master class of opera singing for Iranian youth but unfortunately I didn’t still receive any invite from Iranian Philharmonic orchestra or other organizations to sing in my country and for my people!
F.N.I.: Today only lovers mostly listen classical music. Most of the people prefer electronic music, pop music, etc. What do you think the future of opera? Can the classical music resist the modern music?
R.G.: It’s all depends of the education system of each country, if the classical music as a classical art and lectures take the part of education system from childhood it’ll be continue to live forever, otherwise….I prefer to don’t think what will be happen!
F.N.I.: Have you ever thought about teaching? Would you like to open a music school in Iran or to invite young talents from Iran to Italy?
R.G.: Teaching was my first idea when I began to study in Italy because I as other Iranian youth had not the opportunity to study with a good teacher so I immediately thought that I would do something about this. I love teaching and I’m still in contact with my students from my last master class and also I receive many e-mails from Iranian young students that asked my how they could to do as me or what I think about their voice, I try to answer to everyone as soon as I can.
F.N.I.: In your opinion, what are the main differences between opera singing in Persian culture and European culture?
R.G.: it is not any difference to how you sing because there is only one way to sing the opera, that is use the diagram and the mask, but the difficulty to sing in the Persian language is the pronunciation of some consonants that a non-mother language has to study.
Interviewed by Alexey Yarmolenko
