Nathaniel Peake (MM ’08): Opera Tenor on the Rise
Michigan State University College of Music alumnus Nathaniel Peake is on a roll.
In the first five months of 2010, he was named one of five winners of the 2010 Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions; the winner of the zarzuela division in Plácido Domingo’s World Opera Competition; the winner of a George London Award from the George London Foundation; and the winner of a Sara Tucker Study Grant from the Richard Tucker Foundation.
Peake, 28, a tenor from Humble, Texas, earned a Master of Music degree in vocal performance from MSU in 2008.
Nearly 1,500 singers between the ages of 20 and 30 years old took part in this year’s Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, which are held annually in 45 districts and 15 regions throughout the United States and Canada and are sponsored by the Metropolitan Opera National Council. Given the reach of the auditions, the number of applicants, and the long tradition associated with them, the National Council Auditions are considered the most prestigious in North America for singers seeking to begin an operatic career.
In its coverage of the auditions, the New York Times noted that “Mr. Peake has the tenor goods, and he brought a warm, ringing and expressive voice to arias from Verdi’s Macbeth and Meyerbeer’s Africaine.”
“Nathaniel’s triumph at the National Council Auditions comes as no surprise to those of us who watched him grow and develop as an artist during his time as a student in the College of Music,” says James Forger, dean of the college. “We’re very happy for him and pleased by his continuing success.”
The vocal arts area within the MSU College of Music features faculty members who are active performers and specialists in their particular performance medium, allowing every student to receive professional training across many fields, including art song, oratorio, opera, musical theater, new music, diction, vocal pedagogy, and teaching methods.
While at MSU, Peake studied with Richard Fracker, chairperson of the Vocal Arts area.
"At the core of Nathaniel’s singing is his utter vulnerability,” Fracker says. “Great singers reveal their innermost feelings openly and without judgment. Nathaniel does this as well as any student I’ve ever had. His sensitivity and commitment to the musical line, the text, and the character are extraordinary for someone so young. He has a great voice to be sure -- but it is his attention to detail and musicality that set him apart for the Met judges, I’m sure of it.”
As a student, Peake was an active member of the MSU Opera Theatre, directed by Melanie Helton, associate professor of music. He sang Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Arcadio in the university premiere of Daniel Catán’s Florencia en el Amazonas, and the title role in Leonard Bernstein’s Candide. He sang Pong in a concert version of Turandot and participated in the China Project, an innovative vocal arts collaboration between MSU, Shenyang Conservatory, and other Chinese music schools. He was a featured artist for alumni events in Florida and California, including a performance at Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles organized by MSU Development’s West Coast Regional Council in honor of the university’s sesquicentennial.
Peake is currently a member of the Houston Grand Opera Studio.
Q&A with Nathaniel Peake
Nathaniel recently answered four questions about his time at Michigan State and how it set him on the path to success in a highly competitive field.
Q: Why did you decide to attend MSU for your master’s program?
A: I came to MSU to work with Richard Fracker, Melanie Helton, and Marie France-Lefebvre. I passed on two other grad schools to which I received full-ride scholarships, because of the collegiality of the MSU faculty. Faculty at Michigan State communicate through the walls of their specific departments. That’s a characteristic I value, as this communication is a sure indicator of the student body’s communication on a whole.
Q: In what ways did you grow as a singer while you were here?
A: I came to MSU only having worked on “character-tenor” roles, which means comic tenor roles. I was able to explore more of the leading man side of my voice type’s repertoire, and between Richard Fracker and Melanie Helton, not only did I get introduced to this new repertoire, I became well versed in it and graduated with several leading man roles under my belt. The faculty at MSU is world class, and now that I’m working professionally, I’m constantly comparing my colleagues, directors, and conductors to those I worked with at MSU.
Q: Describe working with Rick and Melanie...what were the most important things you learned from them?
A: Richard Fracker focused immediately on my preparation for a big career. He stressed the importance of finding a balance in everything – vocally, professionally, personally, dramatically – and while it was new to me when I started at MSU, it is one of the main mantras I carry with me today. Melanie Helton knew me as a young tenor, before I arrived at MSU, feeling my way around a stage, and she was able to help me understand my body, create pictures onstage, and create substantial and subtle character depth. She also helped me develop a bag of dramatic tools that I still use. Both Richard Fracker and Melanie Helton were responsible for putting me on the path I walk today. I attribute my success today to their work with me yesterday.
Q: What’s your advice to current students aspiring to a career in opera performance?
A: Listen to your professors no matter how far removed from the professional world you think they might be, because chances are, they are still out there in the professional arena, even though they are teaching at a Big Ten school. I would say: save money, and if you are wanting to be a singer that makes a ton of money, then you are probably not in the right career. People make it big, but you are going to be broke for at least five to ten years. Professor Helton and Professor Fracker both stressed the importance of fiscal responsibility and I have stayed true to their wise words. Any performing career requires big decisions along the way. Any performing artist should begin now assembling their “board of directors,” those business- (opera-) savvy people you can trust and with whom you have formed a strong relationship. And remember: there is no one path – what worked for someone yesterday won’t work for you today. Rely on your board of directors to help carve your own path.
About the College of Music
The College of Music at Michigan State University is known nationally and internationally as a leading professional training ground for performers, composers, and music educators. Fully accredited by the National Association of Schools of Music since 1934, it offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs in music performance (brass, winds, percussion, piano, strings, and voice), music education, music theory, musicology, composition, conducting, piano pedagogy, and jazz studies. The reputation of the college attracts some of the world’s leading teachers and performers to its 80-member faculty and admission is extremely competitive. In 2010, the college has 648 students (373 undergraduate students and 275 graduate students); 56% of these are from Michigan, 27% are from elsewhere in the U.S., and 17% are from other countries. In all, 35 states and 24 nations are represented in the student body. Graduates of the MSU College of Music are found on the world’s concert stages, on the faculties of the nation’s best schools of music, in outstanding ensembles, and in the country’s most successful music education programs.
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