After only two years, South African Rachelle Jonck has made a name for herself in New York’s opera world
Coenraad Visser
We meet at New York’s famous Carnegie Deli, appropriately across the street from the mecca of classical music. At the table next to us, an unsuspecting tourist ordered the house staple – pastrami on rye. Valiantly she tries to get her mouth around the mountain of food, leaving perfect scarlet lip prints on the bread. Rachelle Jonck laughs raucously. Just the kind of thing she may have done two years ago when she arrived in the city. Minus the scarlet, of course.
Now she lives and coaches opera singers in a studio on the upper West Side, a few blocks away from the home of the Metropolitan Opera and New York City Opera. Already, some of her students have sung in these houses. Marguerite Krull and new counter tenor sensation Bejun Mehta at City Opera; and Patrick Carfizzi at the Met. And then, of course, there are the even bigger stars she works with in the studio of Marlena Malas, the doyenne of singing teachers in the city. Recently, they included tenor Paul Groves and Susan Graham, part of the dream team assembled by the Met for Der Rosenkavalier.
Not bad for the first-year student who arrived at Stellenbosch little more than a decade ago to study music, if for no reason other than that it would allow her to enjoy student life. But working as an accompanist in the studios of probably two of the best singing teachers ever in South Africa – Nellie du Toit and Gerda Hartmann – pointed her towards a career as accompanist and opera coach, and now as conductor.
After university came a short stint as rptiteur at Capab Opera under the watchful and wise eye of Angelo Gobbato, and then a longer stay as chorus master and assistant conductor at Pact Opera.
It was in Pretoria that she worked closely with Grard Korsten, the conductor who had the greatest influence on her recent career moves. Not only did he encourage her to take up conducting, but at close hand she could learn from his “ability to work with his colleagues, his openness to suggestions, and his security in his own musicianship”. All attributes which others increasingly apply to her.
Other conductors who influenced her? Renato Palumbo, who showed her that in Puccini “you have to climb inside Italian skin”, and Will Crutchfield, an expert in the bel canto and Handel styles.
After receiving a special Vita Award and the last Nederburg Prize for Opera, it was time to leave Pretoria. Where else to go but New York, arguably the musical capital of the world? She loves the city, its energy and pace, its wide open spaces like Central Park where she walks every day, and its opportunities and competition.
She has grabbed whatever opportunity has come her way with both hands. Assistant conductor at the Caramoor Festival, vocal coach for the Handel project at the Manhattan School of Music, and opera coach for many voice students at the Curtis Institute of Music.
And now she moves from coaching to conducting. Why so few woman conductors? “Traditionally, conductors take either the orchestra-playing route or the vocal coaching route. For so long orchestras did not have woman players (especially in Europe), so that route was not viable. But for long many women have been excellent vocal or opera coaches, so that has been the more usual route for them to the podium. And that is why most woman conductors work mainly in opera.”
In 1998, she made her conducting debut with the Orchestra of St Luke’s, one of the world’s leading chamber ensembles, and the David Parsons Dance Company. In April this year, she will make her New York opera conducting debut with this orchestra, in Bizet’s Doctor Miracle. On February 13, she made her South African debut conducting Rossini’s Barber of Seville at Spier’s Summer Festival.
She is excited to work with inventive director Marthinus Basson. “I know that Marthinus will bring a new look to this audience favourite. He always thinks and challenges. It is going to be hysterical.”
Our chat over, she has to dash to a session with tenor Steven Tharp, recording Beethoven’s An die ferne Geliebte. As we leave, our neighbour sighs and abandons the struggle to finish her sandwich. Another burst of laughter, and Jonck disappears into the crowd.
The Barber of Seville is showing on February 19, 25 and 27 at Spier’s Summer Festival, Tel: (021) 423-3351