What does it mean for a nomadic soloist to be constantly performing in new venues?

It means becoming accustomed to a strange bed, and looking for food which is still a little familiar and healthy. It means adapting, being flexible, and meeting new colleagues. It means long journeys, huge costs, and efficient packing. But also: an ever-changing audience, and a growing circle of international acquaintances and very good friends.

Next to whom would you most like to sit in an airplane?

I think that frequent flyers prefer the seat directly beside them empty (especially on long journeys). But, in the next seat along, I’d like to see someone who is jovial, but who doesn’t require my constant attention.

And after returning home to Amsterdam… silence? …loneliness?

Yes and no. The peace and quiet is usually great. Being alone is sometimes a breath of fresh air. And I have never felt loneliness. Let’s hope it will stay like that…

Do you ever travel for other purposes than performing?

Not often. During my extensive professional journeys, I see enough of the world. Whenever possible, I try to tack on some free days to those trips. For me, a real vacation can occur close to home.

How and when does someone decide to become a solo singer?

It’s not a decision; it grows, it happens. First you sing as a child. People like it, people encourage you, people send you to a choir. You start to gain pleasure from it, you take lessons. (Everyone needs a hobby, right?)

You go to concerts, you listen to other singers, you find a few role-models and you vaguely dream of having a similar life. Because you have to earn a living anyway, you do auditions and you enter competitions.

And suddenly you’re there: you have to give up your job because your singing career demands everything of you. From that moment on, you’re no longer in charge… the work is the boss.

Do you, or did you, have idols?

Of course! In my profession, they were Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Janet Baker, Nicolai Gedda, and Elly Ameling.

Why?

Fischer-Dieskau because of his versatility and admirable life’s oeuvre. Baker because of her expressiveness and virtuosity. Gedda as a result of his naturally clear way of singing, and his feeling for languages. In Ameling, I admire, among other things, her devotion to perfection, her taste and self-awareness (both in repertoire and career planning).