I Was Always A Very Good Student.

My Mother Was The Worst Kind Of Stage Mother. She Would Make Me And My Younger Sister And Brother Little Duckling Costumes And Put Us In Kiddie Shows.

I Was Constantly Being Pushed Toward A European Ideal Of What It Means To Be A Classical Or Opera Singer, Let's Say In The Renata Tebaldi Mode. I Reject That.

Well, Any Time Im Preparing For A Performance Or Even A Rehearsal, Its As If In A Way, Like Any Other Athletes, These Are Muscles That Support The Vocal Cords Which Are Just I Believe Cartilage. It Demands A Kind Of Constant Warming Up And A Constant Feeling Of Where Is The Voice Today.

My Parents Discussed Singing Every Night Over The Dinner Table; I Had A Tremendous Music Education.

For My Own Singing, I Used To Be Attracted By The Baroque, The Flashier The Better, But Now I Prefer A Simpler, Purer Style.