By Cris Franco
Dynamic tenor, Luis Fernando Ruiz, has been selected to join L.A.’s prestigious Verdi Chorus for their upcoming program, “Sound and Fury” on November 16th & 17th (Show info below). Presently working on his Master’s in Music at CSUN, we caught up with this busy 27-year-old to discuss opera, acting and who he is meant to be.
Cris Franco (CF): Like so many vocalists, I hear that you got your start singing in church?
Luis Fernando Ruiz (LFR): Yes. After graduating from high school, I didn’t know what I was going to do, but I did know that I loved singing. So, never thinking I’d actually get in, I auditioned for the music program at the University of Phoenix and just happened into classical music. I was overjoyed when I was accepted.
CF: Did you come from a musical family?
LFR: Not really. My grandfather sang, not professionally, but he always just sang or hummed or whistled. Plus he and I always watched those old Mexican rancheras on Spanish-language TV. Those musicals with Pedro Infante, Jorge Negrete, Javier Solis. And those guys really sang legit. I mean, they had amazing voices! They were really inspiring.
CF: What inspired you to audition for the Verdi Chorus’s Apprentice Singers scholarship program?
LFR: I’ve wanted to audition for years. After I got to know the director/conductor Anne Marie Ketchum, I was taken by her passion and kindness. So, I gave it my best shot and here I am! I’m very thankful for the opportunity because the chorus performs opera’s greatest choral works, so it’s more than just a chorus. The songs exist within a story. I so impressed by how Anne Marie brings out the performer in the choristers. They’re a wonderful group of people.
CF: What has been your journey to singing with the Verdi Chorus?
LFR: I started seriously studying voice at the late age of twenty. At first I didn’t know my voice type.
CF: From your speaking voice, I’d say you sound like a lyric baritone or a second tenor?
LFR: Both. My voice is placed in between (baritone and tenor) and it took a while for me to realize that I wanted to be a tenor. And it hasn’t been easy. Sometimes my upper range isn’t easily accessed. So, I really have to work on my top register. Though I’ve improved, I’ve been through a great deal of the self-doubt that I hear all tenors go through. Sometimes I worry that I’ll never be able to sing a high-C but I’m working a lot on my passaggio blending my head voice into my chest voice. Today, I realize that my limitations are due to my youth. I also realize that I have my own path and that I can’t compare myself to other singers. Mine’s been a process of accepting where I am right now, and what I have to offer right now is much more important than worrying about all the things that I can’t do.
CF: Wow. That’s profound. All young artists need to understand what you just said. A lifetime of creativity requires a lifetime of learning. What roles have you learned and sung so far?
LFR: A lot. I’ve had principal roles in the musicals Oklahoma! and Seussical, The Musical – and the operas Little Women, Die Fledermaus, The Merry Wives of Windsor, The Impresario and Serse.
CF: Your Italian accent is beautiful – you’ve got bright vowels. Were you exposed to Spanish at home?
LFR: Yes, it was my first language and then I learned English in school. I feel like I have a really good ear for accents because I grew up speaking two languages.
CF: Being bilingual is a blessing in this world. You’re just starting your career. What are your professional goals?
LFR: Following completing my Master’s and my recital at CSUN, I’ll start auditioning for local companies to get repertoire on my resume. I just want to audition as much as I can as soon as I can.
CF: What are your dream roles?
LFR: Nemorino from The Elixir of Love because he’s a romantic who sings “Una furtiva lagrima” – and I’m a true romantic.
CF: What singers, romantic or not, inspired you?
LFR: Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau for his unique interpretation, phrasing and articulation. With each song he wraps you up in the music. I also admire Joan Sutherland, la estupenda, for her sheer power. And Pavarotti for singing each note as freshly as if it’s his first note. He uses the perfect amount of rubato in his Pagliacci. He’s so perfect, he actually gets you rooting for the bad guy. Genius.
CF: What do you think about superstar Juan Diego Flores?
LRF: Oh, he’s incredible – and brings so much liveliness to the compositions, especially Mozart’s. Flores has so much lyrical agility and precision. And he’s a fantastic actor, too.
CF: Acting’s becoming increasingly important in opera.
LFR: Yes. The days of the park and bark singer are long gone. I find it distracting when someone can’t act. I don’t enjoy their voice as much because if there’s no intention behind their delivery and stage action, it takes me out of the moment. Actors have to have an objective, something that’s pushing them to enter the stage with purpose, not just step onto the stage with no history. Today’s singers have to be able to portray the drama or comedy because if you’re not convinced of your motives – the audience won’t be either.
CF: Sounds like you’re into acting.
LFR: Definitely. That’s what I find so satisfying about opera, it incorporates all the performing arts. And that’s what I like about working with the Verdi Chorus, they truly commit to the drama. Our upcoming program features thrilling sequences from Verdi’s Otello and Il trovatore, Puccini’s Turandot and Tosca, and Lehár’s The Merry Widow.
CF: Sounds like it’s going to be a highly theatrical and satisfying event. Even at this early stage in your career, what advice do you have for your fellow young artists?
LFR: I’d give them the advice I give to myself every day: Don’t compare yourself to others. It will only frustrate you. Accept and appreciate what you uniquely offer. If I’d realized this years ago, it would have saved me lots of heartache. Once I embraced where I was at, I felt freer and started to enjoy my journey to becoming the singer I want to be. The singer I was meant to be.
To see and hear the talented Luis Fernando Ruiz doing what he was meant to do alongside world renown guest soloists Alex Boyer, Shana Blake Hill and Malcolm MacKenzie on (Saturday) November 16th @ 7:30pm & (Sunday) November 17th @ 2pm at The First United Methodist Church in Santa Monica, 1008 11th Street, Santa Monica, CA 90403 – and for all show info — log onto: www.verdichorus.org
PHOTO CREDIT: Tim Bereth
