Interview with Na’ama Zisser, Doctoral Composer-in-Residence

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My undergraduate studies at Guildhall were all about finding an original voice as a composer. The people around me were extremely talented and had a high level of technique, which was challenging for me, coming from a completely different culture. I had to step up my game. In the first year it was difficult. I wrote in weird styles because it was the first time I had to figure out who I was as a composer and what I actually wanted to write. I found the system very open-minded, and was encouraged to do whatever I wanted. I was never told, ‘You shouldn’t do this.’

‘It was inspiring to find creative mentors who gave me honest feedback and got involved in my work’

I discovered lots of music I’d never known about, which changed me. I studied with Matthew King, and it was inspiring to find creative mentors who gave me honest feedback and got involved in my work. I’m still in touch with all my teachers, and still ask them for advice.

Being a student is whatever you make of it. If you’re passive, time will fly and you will end up doing nothing. If you are more open and proactive, meeting people, performing pieces and putting yourself forward, there’s so much to get out of it. It’s important to be present to whatever is happening.

‘It’s important to find people to make music with – that’s how you learn the most’

The connections I made at Guildhall were so valuable. It’s important to find people to make music with – that’s how you learn the most. Over the years, I’ve tried to find people whose work I like – not just musicians and singers, but writers, film makers and choreographers. These relationships are vital, because they make it easier to create something that will work and to find a way of getting it off the ground. It’s better to make these connections right now, rather than just to apply for things and wait for commissions to come in.

I had no experience of writing opera when I got to Guildhall, but I was put forward for a project that included three short operas. It was a clever idea – the audience walked through three productions, one after the other. I wrote a 15-minute piece with Samantha Newton, which we later extended to 45 minutes.

‘I had such a good experience at Guildhall as an undergraduate, and I felt it would be like coming back to a familiar environment and a strong support system’

When I saw the ad for the Doctoral Composer-in-Residence, I knew it was an opportunity to create the cantorial opera that I had been thinking about. I had such a good experience at Guildhall as an undergraduate, and I felt it would be like coming back to a familiar environment and a strong support system.

I applied with the idea of a research topic that centred on the juxtaposition of cantorial music and operatic singing. Having worked with cantors, I always found the similarities and differences between these two artistries fascinating. It is a field that people know about but that hasn’t been explored, to my knowledge. I submitted a research proposal, had some interviews, and after the three stages was told I was ‘the one’.

In the first year I didn’t write any music – it was more about expanding my research as much as possible. I had complete freedom to explore. I travelled to archives, visited lots of Hasidic communities and met whomever I wanted to speak to. I had access to people I would never have been able to meet as a young composer starting out.

In the second year I started to zoom in and decide what the project actually was. I had the research topic, I knew what interested me, but how could I make it into a dramatic structure that would work? That was the most challenging year, because it was the point I had to turn an attractive idea into something real.

‘One of the fantastic aspects of the residency was that I could keep trying different things to see if they worked‘

From the end of the second year I had vocal workshops at Guildhall with different people. Writing an opera isn’t a straightforward process and one of the fantastic aspects of the residency was that I could keep trying different things to see if they worked. The workshops were a good opportunity to hear things and fix them. This would include vocal technique issues, trying different octaves and transpositions. The counter-tenor part was originally a tenor and in my ideal world the mezzo-soprano would have been a contralto. These were both bad decisions to begin with, but the Guildhall workshops made me realise that, and helped me find solutions. There were also bigger decisions about what works dramatically – taking out repetitions and sometimes even whole sections. At the end of each workshop we would do a run-through and I got feedback from everyone involved. I would never have been able to get something as focused without the workshops. 

I had supervisions with Julian Philips from the very first week. He was a mentor and a friend, someone who knew what I was going through and was able to give advice from his vast experience in opera. In the first two years I also had many meetings with John Fulljames, who was then Associate Director at the Royal Opera, and was very much involved in the creative process. He auditioned the cantor in New York, and brought the group together, seeing it from a distance, but also thinking about how it would work. It was a great support system. Every single workshop at the Royal Opera House was a big deal for me. I would make lots of changes to the score.

‘Every composer feels they don’t have enough time, especially with operas, because they’re so long’

It was important to work towards the deadline. I spent a lot of time getting the vocal score right and felt I didn’t have enough time when I was doing the orchestration. But every composer feels they don’t have enough time, especially with operas, because they’re so long. I wrote the last section of the opera first and created a structure so that I knew roughly what would happen musically in each scene. Then I started to go deeper into each scene and to sketch it. When I had the sketch I would make a schedule and see how much time I had for each scene. When the vocal score was finished, it was the same process with the orchestration. I tried not to let the pressure of time affect my decisions, though. I experimented with many things I would not normally dare, waiting to see how they would play out, letting myself be playful and take risks.

‘I discovered that when I interfere, I damage the quality of the work. When I let go, people do their best’

Another important thing I learnt was how to work with an organisation as big as the Royal Opera House. You have to be able to be in a room with many people working on your music, and to let things happen – to be open to criticism. Every time I met them, they would say things that would change me. I like getting feedback and I always seek it, but in the first days of rehearsals, I realised I needed to let go more and enjoy the process. I’m still learning to do that and not to be too involved the whole time. It’s important to give people the opportunity to make the work their own, especially with such a big group. I discovered that when I interfere, I damage the quality of the work. When I let go, people do their best.

Na’ama Zisser’s opera Mamzer Bastard played at Hackney Empire, 14–17 June 2018, directed by Jay Scheib and conducted by Jessica Cottis.

Applications are currently being accepted for the Doctoral Composer-in-Residence scheme in association with Royal Opera House. The application deadline is 27 March 2019.