Marilyn Horne.(2008 SPECIAL GUEST)(Interview)

Operatic superstar ... Mother and Grandmother ... Respected Teacher ... Mentor. Internationally renowned mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne is all these, and so much more. MTNA members in attendance at this year's 122nd annual conference in Denver will have the pleasure of hearing Horne speak about her life, her career and her deep interest in mentoring young artists. Her subsequent master class during Pedagogy Saturday should be a revelation to all.

When asked why MTNA members should make special plans to register for this year's Pedagogy Saturday, one young singer had this to say: "It is a rare opportunity to hear Ms. Home speak about her life and career. Watching her master classes helps me so much as a performer. I can learn how she handles herself under conditions of stress and hectic schedules." He went on to remark that Horne has a profound influence on everyone with whom she comes in contact, an observation derived from his work with her last summer at the Music Academy of the West.

As is so wonderfully described in her recent book, The Song Continues, written with Jane Scovell, Horne's was a music-filled childhood. Born in Bradford, Pennsylvania, to Berneice and Bentz Horne, Marilyn quickly was dubbed "Jackie" by her oldest sibling, Dick, who had desperately wanted a brother. The name stuck, and her friends and family have called her "Jackie" ever since.

Influenced by their father's deep involvement in music, Marilyn and her older sister, Gloria, began musical training at an early age. Their father, Bentz, was a semi-professional singer and their mother, Berneice, also sang in church choirs and played the piano by ear. As a consequence, music filled the house. The Horne sisters began singing together in public when they still were very young. Home remembers performing in school programs, at war bond rallies, for service clubs and with a local band.

Early on, Marilyn's father saw to it that she received proper vocal training. He started coaching the Home sisters as soon as they began to sing. Soon afterwards, when she was about five years old, Marilyn began her formal studies with a series of voice teachers. Her father eventually sent her to Edna Luce, who taught the basics of breath support that have sustained her remarkable voice throughout her career. (1)

It was Bentz who taught his daughter that hard work was the only road to success. Horne credits him with teaching her the principles that have remained with her throughout her long and stellar career. As she says, she "became an international opera star bound to the Protestant work ethic of her youth." (2)

Following her years at Los Angeles' Polytechnic High School, Home studied with William Vennard at the University of Southern California, where she also worked with Gwendolyn Koldofsky, the incomparable collaborative pianist who established the first accompanying degrees in the United States. Koldofsky became Ms. Home's accompanist in 1953. That professional association continued until 1967 when Koldofsky's wonderful student, Martin Katz, began a musical partnership with Home that was to last for more than three decades. It was also at USC that Home first sang in a master class for the renowned singer Lotte Lehmann. Soon after, she worked with Lehman at the Music Academy of the West, where 41 years later she returned to direct the vocal program so famously associated with the legendary German soprano.