January 21, 2025 • 24 mins
Listen in as Bach Talk host Ron Klemm chats with tenor Gene Stenger about life on stage including his experiences with The Bach Society of Saint Louis. Gene shares stories from his musical upbringing, career highlights and a lighthearted anecdote about how his cat allergy almost disrupted a performance. Plus, enjoy featured samples of Gene’s performances throughout the episode! View the Bach Talk Show Notes here. Learn more about The Bach Society of Saint Louis at bachsociety.org. Bach Talk is a Registered trademark of The Bach Society of Saint Louis.
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Episode Transcript
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Ron Klemm (00:00):
This is Bach Talk.
Gene Stenger (00:04):
Being on stage, performing with an orchestra,
getting to express to an audience,there's just nothing like that.
Getting to sing and having an orchestrabehind you and blending the singing
and the orchestration together, it'sjust really magical, very special.
Ron Klemm (00:51):
The voice of tenor Gene Stenger.
You're hearing music from theMagnificat by Johann Sebastian Bach.
(01:38):
Deposuit Potentes.
He has put down the mightyand exalted the lowly.
Hello.
Welcome to Bach Talk.
I'm Ron Klem.
Today, we introduce you to one ofthe frequent guest soloists with
The Bach Society of Saint Louis.
Tenor Gene Stenger isa native of Pittsburgh.
He studied at Yale University Schoolof Music and the Institute of Sacred
(02:02):
Music at Colorado State and at BaldwinWallace University in Ohio, which
we'll hear more about in just a bit.
He has performed with The Bach Societysince 2017, singing tenor roles in
the Mozart Requiem, Bach Cantatas andthe Magnificat, the Bach Passions,
and of course, the B Minor mass.
(02:25):
His youthful virtuosity seems effortless.
And, as we discover often with alot of singers, Gene traces his
roots back to family and the church.
Gene Stenger (02:36):
My first introduction to singing was, my mom was a classically
trained soprano, and actually used to takeme to her voice lessons when I was much
younger, so I used to sit in on her voicelessons when I was three-four years old.
And I started singing at aroundage nine, was a, a boy soprano, and
(02:59):
I started singing in the church.
I would canter masses at myCatholic church and would
also sing in the church choir.
Ron Klemm (03:07):
At age nine?
Gene Stenger (03:09):
Age nine, yes.
Ron Klemm (03:10):
Hokey smokes.
Gene Stenger (03:13):
Yeah, I think, I think when I was in second grade, I was in
music class and My music teacher wasthe one that discovered that I had an
ability to sing and mentioned it to my,my second grade teacher and said, I think
that you need to showcase this talent.
(03:35):
And that's really where I came in.
It had started.
And, so continued singing in churchfor a long period of time, all
through middle school, and evencontinued in the high school.
And I would say in high school waswhere it actually really blossomed.
I was involved in all of thehigh school musical productions
(03:56):
and loved being a part of those.
And also participated in a lot ofthe Pennsylvania, district, regional
and all state choir festivals,met some incredible people, and
being a part of those festivals.
And I would actually say thatit was in high school was when I
(04:16):
really, wanted to pursue music.
I actually thought that I wanted to domusical theater because of my involvement
in the musicals in, in high school, butit was really my voice teacher at the
time and my high school choir directorthat really encouraged me to pursue more
of the classical musical music route.
(04:38):
They thought that that wouldbe a better fit for me.
Ron Klemm (04:41):
Do you sense that you made the decision on your own
with encouragement, or do youfeel like you were pushed into it?
Gene Stenger (04:48):
I would say that I made the decision on my own.
I mean, I was certainly open to theirsuggestions and was willing to see
where it would take me, but certainlymade the decision on my own too.
Ron Klemm (05:02):
And then after high school, you went to?
Gene Stenger (05:04):
Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Music.
Ron Klemm (05:06):
Which is not too far from home, a couple of hours maybe.
Gene Stenger (05:09):
No, not too far, about two and a half hour drive from Pittsburgh
and, did my, my bachelor's in voice there.
And I would say that was actuallymy introduction to singing Bach.
Baldwin Wallace hosts the oldestcollegiate Bach festival in the country.
(05:30):
And as an undergrad, I got to singin the chorus for all of the major
Bach works every year, and also hadopportunities to perform as a soloist
in a couple cantatas for a couple ofthe festivals, which was really special.
Ron Klemm (05:46):
I have a friend who who puts it this way.
He didn't go searching for Bach.
Bach found him.
Is that a similar experience for you?
Gene Stenger (05:58):
I would say yes.
Yeah, I would say.
It always has seemed like no matterwhere I've gone Bach has always followed.
Ron Klemm (06:09):
People talk about, certain singers being Bach specialists or certain
conductors being Bach specialists.
In other words, Oh, here's Gene Stenger.
We're going to put him in this pigeonhole.
Do you, do you resent that?
Do you love that?
Or somewhere in between, orthis whole concept of being a
(06:29):
specialist in one particular area.
How does that sit with you?
Gene Stenger (06:33):
I, I certainly love it.
I.
Have always felt like Baroque musicwas something that I excelled in.
that was always my particularniche for singing, but of course,
I'm open to doing opera as well.
(06:55):
I'm open to doing, Mozart andbel canto and, and Britten.
And I, I have done some of thatand that's my goal is to continue
to expand beyond that, but stillkeeping that Bach Baroque niche.
Ron Klemm (08:06):
I want to take a moment to tell you about an
upcoming episode of Bach Talk.
We're going to devote our timetogether to answering your questions.
Whether it's a question for me, forour music director and conductor
Dennis Sparger, or any of The BachSociety staff, we want to hear it
and answer it the best way we can.
And, I'll even raise the stakes.
(08:28):
We stay in contact with all our guests.
So, if you've listened to aprevious episode and thought, I
wish he would have asked aboutthis or that, tell me what it is.
I'll get in touch with thatguest and get the answer for you.
Now, we have an easyway for you to do that.
Just go to BachSociety.organd click on Bach Talk.
And on that page, there's a simple formthat you can use to ask your question.
(08:53):
Or if you'd rather,email me straight away.
BachTalk@BachSociety.Org.
Don't be shy.
There are no dumb questions.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Getting back to my conversation withtenor Gene Stenger, I asked him about the
issue of travel, something that all of ourguest soloists must deal with, of course.
(09:15):
How does he keep his voice healthy onplanes traveling from city to city?
Gene Stenger (09:19):
Well, I, I still mask when I travel.
and I will say that certainly sleep.
is top priority if I can tryto get as much sleep as I can,
that certainly helps hydration.
I, I always carry Airborne with me,you know, even if I'm not feeling
(09:43):
sick, I'll always try to take Airbornejust because I do always have to
stay healthy and in top shape,
Ron Klemm (09:51):
Earplugs, I hope, because sometimes there's noise in the hotel.
Gene Stenger (09:55):
Yes.
Yes.
Although
Ron Klemm (09:56):
I've got some extras if you need them.
Gene Stenger (09:59):
Typically I'm always asleep very fast and I'm,
I'm a pretty deep sleeper so.
Ron Klemm (10:05):
What are the pieces that resonate with you and I know you try
to do a variety of things and goodfor you, but at some point you have
to kind of focus in on oh, yeah, thisis this is my wheelhouse All right.
What what are those pieces that you reallyare getting more and more attached to?
Gene Stenger (10:25):
Handel's Messiah, I would certainly say both of
the Bach passions, both St.
Matthew, St.
John, the B minor, Christmas Oratorio.
Ron Klemm (10:36):
Yeah.
Gene Stenger (10:37):
I would certainly say that the major works of Bach.
Ron Klemm (10:41):
Obviously with some of these, major works and these, you know, difficult
arias, you put a lot of thought into it.
You put a lot of attention into it.
You focus on it and you come to therehearsal, the first rehearsal and
you meet the conductor and he or she,has decided to do something a little
(11:04):
different than what you were planning.
How do you deal with that and howdo you collaborate in that way?
Gene Stenger (11:12):
Well, I would certainly start by being open to their suggestions
or their ideas on their interpretationand seeing if it does work, because
sometimes they may present an idea to youthat you're a little hesitant about, and
(11:32):
then actually you find that it does work.
So I do think it's, it's open to it.
It's good to be open to those suggestionswhile still incorporating your ideas.
So it's really a matter offinding this, fine balance this,
this balance between the two.
(11:53):
and I would say that if you canexecute that well, then I think
that it will set you up for success.
Ron Klemm (12:01):
Talk to me about, Maestro Sparger and about The Bach Society.
You've sung with us a number of times.
How do you, how do you viewthat whole relationship?
Obviously, we would,we, view it very fondly.
Gene Stenger (12:16):
Oh, Dennis.
He's, he is wonderful to work with.
He performs the musicat such a high level.
What I really appreciateabout him is his attention to
detail and how specific he is.
But also, very easy to work with andhas made every experience an enjoyable,
(12:40):
musically enriching experience.
Ron Klemm (12:43):
Some of the things that we do are extremely
difficult for audiences, but alsofor performers in terms of the texts,
in terms of the subject matter.
How do you deal with some of the mostpoignant, meaningful passages that
you are now called upon to deliver?
Gene Stenger (13:05):
Well, I think that you still, you, you can't lose your connection
and the foundation to the technique.
you know, I think anytime that youare conveying any kind of emotion.
It's very easy to sing with aclosed throat, clamp up, and we
(13:28):
have to really think the opposite.
So it's having the, the, thetechnique as the, the foundation
while still conveying that emotionand following that, that emotion.
Ron Klemm (13:46):
Do you ever have a time when you say, I'm not going to think
about this text now, I'm going topretend that it's about watermelons
or something and just come just soyou can focus on your technique?
Gene Stenger (13:56):
Yes, there are certainly times where that is the case.
let's say if it's, a passage thatis a very high, high tessitura,
high range sometimes that is justsimply thinking about technique.
Ron Klemm (14:15):
So much of what we do, in, in with The Bach Society and, and with
the other, organizations that you singwith are done in a foreign language.
So now we're dealing with audienceswho understand English, but they may
not understand that foreign language.
All right.
How do you adjust what you're doingto communicate to that audience?
Gene Stenger (14:39):
Well I think a lot of that is making sure that I
thoroughly understand the text andknowing what emotion that I'm going
(15:22):
to
(15:50):
convey.
Ron Klemm (16:04):
The voice of tenor Gene Stenger, with a portion of Cantata
80, Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott.
A mighty fortress is our God.
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach.
More with Gene in a moment.
This is Bach Talk.
(16:24):
What's the weirdest thing that everhappened to you in a performance?
What, what is the performance that youremember for all the wrong reasons?
Gene Stenger (16:33):
Oh, actually,
Ron Klemm (16:35):
oh, oh, please don't tell me it was here in St.
Louis.
Gene Stenger (16:38):
No, no, no, no, no, it wasn't.
No, this, I typically don't do this,but, I think this was an off day for me.
this was a, a gig that I had athome in Cleveland, and I arrived
at the venue and completelyforgot to bring my concert attire.
(16:59):
I, I don't know what happened.
I don't know why I forgot it.
I think my mind was justin a million places.
And so I got to the venue and, wasfreaking out and didn't know what
to do and was mentioning this toother people, seeing if anyone else
had an extra tux that could fit me.
(17:20):
And fortunately, someone was able toget, another tux for me that did fit.
However, the person had a cat andI'm actually allergic to cats.
So, so there was some cat danderon, on the suit, on the tux and, was
(17:42):
hoping that I wouldn't have any kindof allergic reaction while I was
performing and miraculously I didn't.
But yeah, I, I would saythat that's probably the
one of the weirdestthings that's happened.
Ron Klemm (17:56):
Well, I would guess that that would, that would, it'd be very hard
to focus, when, when your turn came up.
Gene Stenger (18:03):
Yes.
Yeah.
Yeah.
But it took a lot of mental focusand concentration, but, yeah, that's,
that was definitely a one-time ordeal.
Ron Klemm (18:14):
Let's talk about the opposite.
What are those moments?
And it's not necessarily a fullperformance, but it's, there are moments.
Sometimes it's in rehearsal, isn't it?
And you go, Oh, wow.
That's, that I wish I could replicatethat and have that the rest of my life.
Where, when does that happen to you?
Gene Stenger (18:31):
Oh, wow.
I would say maybe not a specific moment,but I would say those, those periods
in rehearsals where everything gelstogether and you, maybe you get to
the end of a, of a piece and you justlet it settle and it resonates in the
room or in the hall, wherever you'rerehearsing and you take a moment to
(18:56):
experience that and, and take it in andthink, wow, this is, this is beautiful.
This is gorgeous.
Ron Klemm (19:05):
What does Gene Stenger want to accomplish or
are you living just for today?
What, what are you thinking aboutfor the rest of, you're a young
guy, for the rest of your career?
Gene Stenger (19:17):
Well, I think professionally I'd like to certainly continue in the
Baroque world, but I'm also working onexpanding beyond that into opera and
would love to explore more Mozart, morebel canto repertoire, Britten, would love
(19:39):
to continue to keep challenging myselfvocally and seeing what, what I can do.
I'm, I'm, I'm very thankful for this.
Baroque niche, but would loveto certainly expand beyond that.
Ron Klemm (19:54):
What is it about singing that has this, and some people call it magic,
but, but it's, there's some sort ofconnection that it almost It defies words.
What is it about singingthat makes that happen?
Gene Stenger (20:11):
I would say for me, it's being on stage performing
with an orchestra, gettingto express to an audience.
There's just nothing like that.
Getting to sing and having an orchestraperform behind you and blending
(20:32):
the singing and the orchestrationtogether, it's just really magical.
Very special.
Ron Klemm (20:39):
Well, we are thrilled to have you in St.
Louis, and I hope you'll come back oftenand, perform with the Bach Society.
Gene Stenger (20:48):
Absolutely.
Ron Klemm (20:49):
Thank you.
Gene Stenger (20:50):
Thank you so much, Ron.
Ron Klemm (20:51):
Gene Stenger.
I'm Ron Klem and this is Bach Talk.
(21:27):
You're hearing a poignantaria from the St.
John Passion by Johann Sebastian Bach.
The tenor is Gene Stenger froma performance in March 2024 by
The Bach Society of Saint Louis.
Dennis Sparger, MusicDirector and Conductor.
(22:42):
Remember now, we're planning anupcoming episode devoted to answering
your questions, for me, for MaestroSparger, for any of our past guests.
Take a moment right now tocontact us with your question.
Just go to bachsociety.org, clickon Bach Talk, and on that page,
there's a simple form that youcan use to ask your question.
(23:03):
Or if you prefer, send me an emaildirectly, bachtalk@bachsociety.org.
I look forward to hearing from you.
While you're at it, if you enjoywhat you're hearing on this or any
of our previous episodes, will youtake a moment to rate and review our
podcast on your favorite platform?
Wherever you listen, yourfeedback helps us immensely.
(23:43):
The associate producer ofBach Talk is Scott MacDonald.
The recording engineer for all ofour performances is Paul Henrich.
Technical and marketing assistanceprovided by Andie Murphy and
Charissa Marciniak of Right
(24:06):
Relations.
Bach Talk is a registered trademarkof The Bach Society of Saint Louis.
I'm Ron Klem.
This is Bach Talk.
Gene Stenger (00:04):
Being on stage, performing with an orchestra,
getting to express to an audience,there's just nothing like that.
Getting to sing and having an orchestrabehind you and blending the singing
and the orchestration together, it'sjust really magical, very special.
Ron Klemm (00:51):
The voice of tenor Gene Stenger.
You're hearing music from theMagnificat by Johann Sebastian Bach.
(01:38):
Deposuit Potentes.
He has put down the mightyand exalted the lowly.
Hello.
Welcome to Bach Talk.
I'm Ron Klem.
Today, we introduce you to one ofthe frequent guest soloists with
The Bach Society of Saint Louis.
Tenor Gene Stenger isa native of Pittsburgh.
He studied at Yale University Schoolof Music and the Institute of Sacred
(02:02):
Music at Colorado State and at BaldwinWallace University in Ohio, which
we'll hear more about in just a bit.
He has performed with The Bach Societysince 2017, singing tenor roles in
the Mozart Requiem, Bach Cantatas andthe Magnificat, the Bach Passions,
and of course, the B Minor mass.
(02:25):
His youthful virtuosity seems effortless.
And, as we discover often with alot of singers, Gene traces his
roots back to family and the church.
Gene Stenger (02:36):
My first introduction to singing was, my mom was a classically
trained soprano, and actually used to takeme to her voice lessons when I was much
younger, so I used to sit in on her voicelessons when I was three-four years old.
And I started singing at aroundage nine, was a, a boy soprano, and
(02:59):
I started singing in the church.
I would canter masses at myCatholic church and would
also sing in the church choir.
Ron Klemm (03:07):
At age nine?
Gene Stenger (03:09):
Age nine, yes.
Ron Klemm (03:10):
Hokey smokes.
Gene Stenger (03:13):
Yeah, I think, I think when I was in second grade, I was in
music class and My music teacher wasthe one that discovered that I had an
ability to sing and mentioned it to my,my second grade teacher and said, I think
that you need to showcase this talent.
(03:35):
And that's really where I came in.
It had started.
And, so continued singing in churchfor a long period of time, all
through middle school, and evencontinued in the high school.
And I would say in high school waswhere it actually really blossomed.
I was involved in all of thehigh school musical productions
(03:56):
and loved being a part of those.
And also participated in a lot ofthe Pennsylvania, district, regional
and all state choir festivals,met some incredible people, and
being a part of those festivals.
And I would actually say thatit was in high school was when I
(04:16):
really, wanted to pursue music.
I actually thought that I wanted to domusical theater because of my involvement
in the musicals in, in high school, butit was really my voice teacher at the
time and my high school choir directorthat really encouraged me to pursue more
of the classical musical music route.
(04:38):
They thought that that wouldbe a better fit for me.
Ron Klemm (04:41):
Do you sense that you made the decision on your own
with encouragement, or do youfeel like you were pushed into it?
Gene Stenger (04:48):
I would say that I made the decision on my own.
I mean, I was certainly open to theirsuggestions and was willing to see
where it would take me, but certainlymade the decision on my own too.
Ron Klemm (05:02):
And then after high school, you went to?
Gene Stenger (05:04):
Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Music.
Ron Klemm (05:06):
Which is not too far from home, a couple of hours maybe.
Gene Stenger (05:09):
No, not too far, about two and a half hour drive from Pittsburgh
and, did my, my bachelor's in voice there.
And I would say that was actuallymy introduction to singing Bach.
Baldwin Wallace hosts the oldestcollegiate Bach festival in the country.
(05:30):
And as an undergrad, I got to singin the chorus for all of the major
Bach works every year, and also hadopportunities to perform as a soloist
in a couple cantatas for a couple ofthe festivals, which was really special.
Ron Klemm (05:46):
I have a friend who who puts it this way.
He didn't go searching for Bach.
Bach found him.
Is that a similar experience for you?
Gene Stenger (05:58):
I would say yes.
Yeah, I would say.
It always has seemed like no matterwhere I've gone Bach has always followed.
Ron Klemm (06:09):
People talk about, certain singers being Bach specialists or certain
conductors being Bach specialists.
In other words, Oh, here's Gene Stenger.
We're going to put him in this pigeonhole.
Do you, do you resent that?
Do you love that?
Or somewhere in between, orthis whole concept of being a
(06:29):
specialist in one particular area.
How does that sit with you?
Gene Stenger (06:33):
I, I certainly love it.
I.
Have always felt like Baroque musicwas something that I excelled in.
that was always my particularniche for singing, but of course,
I'm open to doing opera as well.
(06:55):
I'm open to doing, Mozart andbel canto and, and Britten.
And I, I have done some of thatand that's my goal is to continue
to expand beyond that, but stillkeeping that Bach Baroque niche.
Ron Klemm (08:06):
I want to take a moment to tell you about an
upcoming episode of Bach Talk.
We're going to devote our timetogether to answering your questions.
Whether it's a question for me, forour music director and conductor
Dennis Sparger, or any of The BachSociety staff, we want to hear it
and answer it the best way we can.
And, I'll even raise the stakes.
(08:28):
We stay in contact with all our guests.
So, if you've listened to aprevious episode and thought, I
wish he would have asked aboutthis or that, tell me what it is.
I'll get in touch with thatguest and get the answer for you.
Now, we have an easyway for you to do that.
Just go to BachSociety.organd click on Bach Talk.
And on that page, there's a simple formthat you can use to ask your question.
(08:53):
Or if you'd rather,email me straight away.
BachTalk@BachSociety.Org.
Don't be shy.
There are no dumb questions.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Getting back to my conversation withtenor Gene Stenger, I asked him about the
issue of travel, something that all of ourguest soloists must deal with, of course.
(09:15):
How does he keep his voice healthy onplanes traveling from city to city?
Gene Stenger (09:19):
Well, I, I still mask when I travel.
and I will say that certainly sleep.
is top priority if I can tryto get as much sleep as I can,
that certainly helps hydration.
I, I always carry Airborne with me,you know, even if I'm not feeling
(09:43):
sick, I'll always try to take Airbornejust because I do always have to
stay healthy and in top shape,
Ron Klemm (09:51):
Earplugs, I hope, because sometimes there's noise in the hotel.
Gene Stenger (09:55):
Yes.
Yes.
Although
Ron Klemm (09:56):
I've got some extras if you need them.
Gene Stenger (09:59):
Typically I'm always asleep very fast and I'm,
I'm a pretty deep sleeper so.
Ron Klemm (10:05):
What are the pieces that resonate with you and I know you try
to do a variety of things and goodfor you, but at some point you have
to kind of focus in on oh, yeah, thisis this is my wheelhouse All right.
What what are those pieces that you reallyare getting more and more attached to?
Gene Stenger (10:25):
Handel's Messiah, I would certainly say both of
the Bach passions, both St.
Matthew, St.
John, the B minor, Christmas Oratorio.
Ron Klemm (10:36):
Yeah.
Gene Stenger (10:37):
I would certainly say that the major works of Bach.
Ron Klemm (10:41):
Obviously with some of these, major works and these, you know, difficult
arias, you put a lot of thought into it.
You put a lot of attention into it.
You focus on it and you come to therehearsal, the first rehearsal and
you meet the conductor and he or she,has decided to do something a little
(11:04):
different than what you were planning.
How do you deal with that and howdo you collaborate in that way?
Gene Stenger (11:12):
Well, I would certainly start by being open to their suggestions
or their ideas on their interpretationand seeing if it does work, because
sometimes they may present an idea to youthat you're a little hesitant about, and
(11:32):
then actually you find that it does work.
So I do think it's, it's open to it.
It's good to be open to those suggestionswhile still incorporating your ideas.
So it's really a matter offinding this, fine balance this,
this balance between the two.
(11:53):
and I would say that if you canexecute that well, then I think
that it will set you up for success.
Ron Klemm (12:01):
Talk to me about, Maestro Sparger and about The Bach Society.
You've sung with us a number of times.
How do you, how do you viewthat whole relationship?
Obviously, we would,we, view it very fondly.
Gene Stenger (12:16):
Oh, Dennis.
He's, he is wonderful to work with.
He performs the musicat such a high level.
What I really appreciateabout him is his attention to
detail and how specific he is.
But also, very easy to work with andhas made every experience an enjoyable,
(12:40):
musically enriching experience.
Ron Klemm (12:43):
Some of the things that we do are extremely
difficult for audiences, but alsofor performers in terms of the texts,
in terms of the subject matter.
How do you deal with some of the mostpoignant, meaningful passages that
you are now called upon to deliver?
Gene Stenger (13:05):
Well, I think that you still, you, you can't lose your connection
and the foundation to the technique.
you know, I think anytime that youare conveying any kind of emotion.
It's very easy to sing with aclosed throat, clamp up, and we
(13:28):
have to really think the opposite.
So it's having the, the, thetechnique as the, the foundation
while still conveying that emotionand following that, that emotion.
Ron Klemm (13:46):
Do you ever have a time when you say, I'm not going to think
about this text now, I'm going topretend that it's about watermelons
or something and just come just soyou can focus on your technique?
Gene Stenger (13:56):
Yes, there are certainly times where that is the case.
let's say if it's, a passage thatis a very high, high tessitura,
high range sometimes that is justsimply thinking about technique.
Ron Klemm (14:15):
So much of what we do, in, in with The Bach Society and, and with
the other, organizations that you singwith are done in a foreign language.
So now we're dealing with audienceswho understand English, but they may
not understand that foreign language.
All right.
How do you adjust what you're doingto communicate to that audience?
Gene Stenger (14:39):
Well I think a lot of that is making sure that I
thoroughly understand the text andknowing what emotion that I'm going
(15:22):
to
(15:50):
convey.
Ron Klemm (16:04):
The voice of tenor Gene Stenger, with a portion of Cantata
80, Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott.
A mighty fortress is our God.
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach.
More with Gene in a moment.
This is Bach Talk.
(16:24):
What's the weirdest thing that everhappened to you in a performance?
What, what is the performance that youremember for all the wrong reasons?
Gene Stenger (16:33):
Oh, actually,
Ron Klemm (16:35):
oh, oh, please don't tell me it was here in St.
Louis.
Gene Stenger (16:38):
No, no, no, no, no, it wasn't.
No, this, I typically don't do this,but, I think this was an off day for me.
this was a, a gig that I had athome in Cleveland, and I arrived
at the venue and completelyforgot to bring my concert attire.
(16:59):
I, I don't know what happened.
I don't know why I forgot it.
I think my mind was justin a million places.
And so I got to the venue and, wasfreaking out and didn't know what
to do and was mentioning this toother people, seeing if anyone else
had an extra tux that could fit me.
(17:20):
And fortunately, someone was able toget, another tux for me that did fit.
However, the person had a cat andI'm actually allergic to cats.
So, so there was some cat danderon, on the suit, on the tux and, was
(17:42):
hoping that I wouldn't have any kindof allergic reaction while I was
performing and miraculously I didn't.
But yeah, I, I would saythat that's probably the
one of the weirdestthings that's happened.
Ron Klemm (17:56):
Well, I would guess that that would, that would, it'd be very hard
to focus, when, when your turn came up.
Gene Stenger (18:03):
Yes.
Yeah.
Yeah.
But it took a lot of mental focusand concentration, but, yeah, that's,
that was definitely a one-time ordeal.
Ron Klemm (18:14):
Let's talk about the opposite.
What are those moments?
And it's not necessarily a fullperformance, but it's, there are moments.
Sometimes it's in rehearsal, isn't it?
And you go, Oh, wow.
That's, that I wish I could replicatethat and have that the rest of my life.
Where, when does that happen to you?
Gene Stenger (18:31):
Oh, wow.
I would say maybe not a specific moment,but I would say those, those periods
in rehearsals where everything gelstogether and you, maybe you get to
the end of a, of a piece and you justlet it settle and it resonates in the
room or in the hall, wherever you'rerehearsing and you take a moment to
(18:56):
experience that and, and take it in andthink, wow, this is, this is beautiful.
This is gorgeous.
Ron Klemm (19:05):
What does Gene Stenger want to accomplish or
are you living just for today?
What, what are you thinking aboutfor the rest of, you're a young
guy, for the rest of your career?
Gene Stenger (19:17):
Well, I think professionally I'd like to certainly continue in the
Baroque world, but I'm also working onexpanding beyond that into opera and
would love to explore more Mozart, morebel canto repertoire, Britten, would love
(19:39):
to continue to keep challenging myselfvocally and seeing what, what I can do.
I'm, I'm, I'm very thankful for this.
Baroque niche, but would loveto certainly expand beyond that.
Ron Klemm (19:54):
What is it about singing that has this, and some people call it magic,
but, but it's, there's some sort ofconnection that it almost It defies words.
What is it about singingthat makes that happen?
Gene Stenger (20:11):
I would say for me, it's being on stage performing
with an orchestra, gettingto express to an audience.
There's just nothing like that.
Getting to sing and having an orchestraperform behind you and blending
(20:32):
the singing and the orchestrationtogether, it's just really magical.
Very special.
Ron Klemm (20:39):
Well, we are thrilled to have you in St.
Louis, and I hope you'll come back oftenand, perform with the Bach Society.
Gene Stenger (20:48):
Absolutely.
Ron Klemm (20:49):
Thank you.
Gene Stenger (20:50):
Thank you so much, Ron.
Ron Klemm (20:51):
Gene Stenger.
I'm Ron Klem and this is Bach Talk.
(21:27):
You're hearing a poignantaria from the St.
John Passion by Johann Sebastian Bach.
The tenor is Gene Stenger froma performance in March 2024 by
The Bach Society of Saint Louis.
Dennis Sparger, MusicDirector and Conductor.
(22:42):
Remember now, we're planning anupcoming episode devoted to answering
your questions, for me, for MaestroSparger, for any of our past guests.
Take a moment right now tocontact us with your question.
Just go to bachsociety.org, clickon Bach Talk, and on that page,
there's a simple form that youcan use to ask your question.
(23:03):
Or if you prefer, send me an emaildirectly, bachtalk@bachsociety.org.
I look forward to hearing from you.
While you're at it, if you enjoywhat you're hearing on this or any
of our previous episodes, will youtake a moment to rate and review our
podcast on your favorite platform?
Wherever you listen, yourfeedback helps us immensely.
(23:43):
The associate producer ofBach Talk is Scott MacDonald.
The recording engineer for all ofour performances is Paul Henrich.
Technical and marketing assistanceprovided by Andie Murphy and
Charissa Marciniak of Right
(24:06):
Relations.
Bach Talk is a registered trademarkof The Bach Society of Saint Louis.
I'm Ron Klem.
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