Juno Award-winning and Grammy-nominated Canadian baritone Joshua Hopkins is heard regularly on the stages of The Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Canadian Opera Company, and Washington National Opera. Hopkins has developed a reputation for creating leading roles for world premieres both in North America and Europe. His performance singing Orpheus, a role he created for Sarah Ruhl and Matthew Aucoin‘s Eurydice at Los Angeles Opera in 2020, was not only reprised at The Met in 2021, but also simulcast worldwide as part of The Met’s Live in HD series (this earned him a 2023 ‘Best Opera Recording’ GRAMMY nomination).
A number of notable appearances have been announced for his 2022-23 season, including a return to The Met to reprise the role of Papageno in Mozart’s The Magic Flute running until Jan 6, and singing Belcore in Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’amore from April 13 to 29. In February 2023, he will give the orchestral world premiere and Ontario tour of Songs for Murdered Sisters, by composer Jake Heggie and author Margaret Atwood. The piece is his most personal work, conceived by Hopkins in remembrance of his sister Nathalie Warmerdam who was the victim of one of the worst cases of intimate partner violence in Canadian history. In his grief, Hopkins resolved to use his voice to raise awareness for the global epidemic of gender-based violence. The song cycle contains eight songs, previously released as both a JUNO-nominated album in 2021 and a film, now available to watch for free on YouTube.
Hopkins and the NAC Orchestra will perform this commission, bookended by a new concerto grosso by Odawa First Nation composer Barbara Assiginaak and Brahms’s Symphony No. 4. Performances are scheduled in Ottawa on February 9 and 10 at the National Arts Centre, in Toronto at Roy Thompson Hall on February 11, and in Kingston at the Isabel Bader Centre on February 14.
Don’t sweat the small stuff.
Favourite city that you’ve worked in?
Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Favourite place?
What I like to call my “Fortress of Solitude”— a spit of land that juts out into the Ottawa River just down the street from the house in which I grew up. Spending time there recharges my batteries and reconnects me to my Ottawa Valley roots.
Which opera role do you want to be singing right now?
Billy Budd.
Who is a singer you admired from the past?
Luciano Pavarotti
What’s the strangest/funniest thing that has happened to you on stage?
In 2009, I sang one of my favourite roles, Papageno, with Opera Lyra Ottawa at the National Arts Centre. I’ll never forget the dramatic incident that took place in the audience during one of the performances, at the end of Papageno’s third aria, in which he almost commits suicide. An audience member was so convinced I would take my life, in desperation they left their seat on the orchestra level and ran to the front row of the top balcony, several metres above the stage. They proceeded to climb over the front of the balcony in an attempt to rescue me, even though I was already in the midst of my love duet with Papagena by that time. From the stage, I heard a distracting commotion in the audience, but the show went on. After the show, I learned that thankfully someone in the lower balcony had grabbed hold of the dangling “rescuer’s” legs and pulled them to safety. I was very grateful the individual wasn’t hurt.
Which role do you wish you could sing, but is not in your voice type?
Madama Butterfly.
What was the first opera you ever saw?
The Magic Flute
Are there more musicians in your family? If yes, who and what do they play/sing?
Yes indeed! My Dad plays trombone and sings in a church choir; my Mom plays alto & tenor saxophone and percussion—she also sings jazz and musical theatre. And there are two classically trained mezzo-soprano cousins in my family as well!
What’s your favourite movie?
Ghostbusters
What’s a big investment for an opera artist, but totally worth it?
Consistent voice lessons. I work with my teacher, Dr. Stephen King, as often as I am able. Working with him steadily since the beginning of my career has been absolutely vital to my development and understanding of how I produce a free and honest sound with my instrument.
What’s the luckiest thing that has ever happened to you?
Meeting my soulmate Zoe at McGill University 25 years ago.
What’s the best meal you’ve ever had?
My wife and I had an unforgettable dining experience in a small fishing village while on vacation along the southern coast of Sicily. At the beginning of our dinner, the only question we were asked is whether or not we eat raw fish. We enthusiastically said yes, and they proceeded to deliver plate after plate of the freshest fish we’ve ever had, prepared very simply and so freaking delicious!
Which album did you listen to last?
The Moody Blues, Days of Future Passed.
What book are you reading at the moment?
The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood. I’m slowly making my way through her entire oeuvre (slowly because I’m a slow reader…)
Which TV show did you binge-watch last?
The Bear
Do you have a funny joke for us?
Why is the price of balloons so high right now? Inflation.
What is one thing that you cannot live without?
Hugs.
The music industry is tough, and filled with rejection. How do you cope? Does it get easier?
Whenever I’m faced with rejection, my mantra is, “head down, focus on the work.” Rejection doesn’t necessarily get easier, but one does become more accustomed to it—it’s an inescapable and consistent part of this career. My wife is a formidable source of love & support and can talk me down from anything. If my ‘nightwatchman’ mind takes me down a dark passage, I try as much as I can to pay attention to the present moment — the only moment us humans should really live in — and calm myself by deep breathing and mantra. Dwelling on the past or being anxious about the future is pollution from our minds, which takes us away from the events that are unfolding in front of us during each and every precious moment of life.
Are you a perfectionist?
Yes I am! I’m obsessed with details. I get overwhelmed when I first crack open a new opera score, because there is so much sensory input that happens at once: notes, words, key signatures, tempi, dynamics, stage direction, notation! However, once my ‘perfectionist mode’ of preparation on a role is complete, during the rehearsal process I try to let go of that and find the beauty of imperfection and learning from mistakes.
What’s your guilty pleasure?
No pleasures are guilty as far as I’m concerned. I do have a major sweet-tooth, so when I’m in NYC I very much enjoy a slice of banana cake with cream cheese frosting from Billy’s Bakery.
Drink of choice?
Corn ’n Oil
What was your childhood dream job?
I was obsessed with being a house-builder for about a year, until I realized my fear of heights would not be the best match for that job.
What’s your favourite mind-calming practice?
Guided meditation using Sam Harris’s app Waking Up and listening to Michael Singer podcasts.
LEARN MORE & CONNECT WITH JOSHUA
VISIT HIS WEBSITE
Joshua Hopkins Ⓒ Dario Acosta Photography
The Magic Flute – Holiday Presentation
The Metropolitan Opera
Dec 16 – Jan 6, 2023
JOÉLLE HARVEY / SYDNEY MANCASOLA / ALEKSANDRA OLCZYK / BEN BLISS / DAVID PORTILLO / JOSHUA HOPKINS / ALAN HELD
The Met’s abridged, family-friendly version of Mozart’s musical fairy tale returns for the holiday season, with special holiday pricing. Maestro Duncan Ward makes his company debut conducting Julie Taymor’s irresistible production. Tenors Ben Bliss and David Portillo share the role of Tamino, the noble prince on a quest to win the fair princess Pamina, sung by sopranos Joélle Harvey and Sydney Mancasola. The cast also features baritones Joshua Hopkins and Benjamin Taylor as the birdcatcher Papageno, soprano Aleksandra Olczyk as the Queen of the Night, and bass Soloman Howard as Sarastro.
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