Pearls from Placido

As mentioned in the previous post, one of the general sessions at the Opera America Conference was "A Conversation with Placido Domingo." Maestro Domingo needs no introduction, so without further ado, here are some Twitter-scaled quotes from the session, moderated by Opera America CEO Marc Scorca:

On early influences:
"My mother [a zarzuela performer] was supposed to sing the day I was born." (Perhaps this explains why he is able to sing Wagner, at age 69, just months after surgery.)

On opera in general:
"Our love for music...our craziness for opera."
"There's no business like show business, but opera is not a business."

On the new generation of singers:
"Frankly, today we live in one of the most exciting times for opera."
"Today it is difficult to find a singer who is not also a musician."
"You have to take the risk and discover talent."

On American audiences:
"Ten minutes of ovation in LA is the equivalent of an hour in Vienna."

On Simon Boccanegra:
"I don't pretend to be a baritone, I just enjoy the role."

On the future:
"I still feel that I can sing, so I don't want to retire." (This received hearty applause from the audience.)

The secret to longevity:
"Always searching for new roles...it has been the itch to keep searching that has made my career very interesting."