Living With A Genius Interviews

Positivity guru, Shola Richards, is my guest this week! This guy's the real deal- we talk about very personal memories and events in our lives, and the catalysts for change. Shola's hot button is bullying, especially in the workplace )something adults don't talk about) and he's on a mission to educate, enlighten and sow the seeds of positivity, kindness, and empathy- this is a guy I can get behind, because these are the most important qualities within all of us, and sometimes, we need a little help remembering to get out of our own little worlds. AMIRIGHT? Pick up his book, "Making Work Work" on Amazon and get to know him- Hardcover for $8.44... WHAAAT?(there's a link on the LWAG website). He's definitely a fellow worth knowing! Enjoy, and thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Hey y'all! It's our, "Three Tenors of the LAO Chorus" episode! Yup- Todd Strange and Arnold Geis are my guests this week, and I couldn't be happier. It was a VERY last minute proposition, but this episode is certainly in keeping with my need to mix things up. Totally improvised, off the cuff, and EXACTLY the conversation you'd get if you were a fly on the wall in the dressing room. Enjoy, and thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Marty Schaefer is my guest this week. Marty and I have known each other for twenty years now. I thought I needed a little break this week, so this chat is just a convo between buddies- nothing more. We're not experts in any of the topics we discuss and we don't talk about music. At all. Bathroom accidents, aliens, healthcare, Trump, and religion are all on the table, with this one- you get the idea. Maybe next time, we'll go in with more of an agenda, who knows. Enjoy, and thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Bass-baritone, Phil Cokorinos is my guest this week. Phil has sung with us at least a half-dozen times in my twelve years with LAO. Always the consummate professional and great colleague, Phil manages to turn in great performances, night after night. This is a particularly interesting chat for all of you aspiring opera singers out there, and for those of you who want to get a glimpse into the dedication that goes into it. Enjoy, and thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Superstar tenor, Vittorio Grigolo is my guest this week. I was thrilled to finally have the opportunity to sit and chat with this powerhouse of a performer. He's frank, candid, and very sure of his place in this crazy business. We talk about passion, life on and off stage, the pressures of performing and the challenges of balancing the personal with the professional. I hope you enjoy our chat, and thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Rising star, Nicholas Brownlee is my guest this week. He's a bass-baritone currently working in the Domingo-Colburn Young Artist Program at LAO. I've watched and heard him grow over the past few seasons, and man, you all better watch out for him! There are a lot of great insights for young singers, and a great come-up story for those of you who are interested in how a singer makes the rise. Nick is a genuine, friendly guy, a great colleague and one hell of a singer. Enjoy, and thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Producer, arranger, performer, Ted Perlman is my guest on this episode, and man is it a great one! Ted has worked with many of the greatest performers of all time, spanning four-plus decades. We talk about religion, forgiveness, fatherhood, and the meaning of life- and Burt Bacharach, Harry Belafonte, Bob Dylan, and you know, other superstars, too. It was great getting to know Ted over the course of our conversation, and I know you'll find him just as fascinating as I did. Enjoy, and thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Film and TV composer, Sharon Farber, is my guest this week. I've known Sharon for a number of years, and I'm always excited to bump into her around town. She's a brilliant composer of concert music (as well as the Hollywood stuff), and through her music, she is also an admirable advocate for issues near and dear to her, particularly gender equality in music and Holocaust remembrance, both of which we talk at great lengths about in this interview. Sharon has always fought the good fight, and I was really happy to spend some time catching up with her. Thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Film and TV composer, Haim Mazar is my guest this week. I met Haim a few years ago on a crazy gun-for-hire musical theater project. Taking a variety of work is one of the topics we discuss, along with the process of composing, orchestrating and the pitfalls and challenges of the film and TV business. I think Haim is a great guy, and I know you'll think so, too. Thanks for Listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

This week, I got to sit and chat with another one of my dear friends, the indomitable Tali Tadmor. An extraordinary pianist and collaborator, Tali makes the rounds around town with the best singers and organizations- and when I say around town, I mean from LA Opera to Carnegie Hall. She's good. I hope you enjoy our conversation- thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

CEO of LA Opera, Christopher Koelsch, is my guest this week. He's eloquent, steady and has a clear, unwavering artistic vision for the company. In our world, the man who directs traffic at the intersection of art and commerce is always in the hot-seat, and Christopher must have "Never let them see you sweat" printed on his wallpaper because he's the coolest of the cool customers. We dig into some pretty interesting stuff- everything from the value of art itself to the artistic and financial challenges of some of our most controversial productions. Enjoy a behind-the-scenes look into the life one of America's top art administrators and as always, thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Multidisciplinarian, Julia Aks, is my guest this week. She's a mezzo-soprano, friend, and colleague from LA Opera, but that's not all she does. She's an aerialist, actor, intermittent dancer, and probably also does a bunch of other stuff that we didn't cover. She very well may be the next big thing in this here town, so keep a lookout. Happy Monday, everybody, and I hope you like our little chat! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Tenor, Brenton Ryan is my guest this week. He's a swell guy, as all-American as you can get and is one heck of a good artist. He's recently made his Met debut singing the role of Pedrillo in Mozart's Abduction from the Seraglio- the same show we're performing right now at LAO. Brent is a well-spoken gentleman, and I'm very glad we got the chance to sit around and chat. Thanks for listening and I hope you enjoy the conversation! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Comedian Jonathan Mangum is my guest this week. He co-hosts Let's Make a Deal with Wayne Brady, and is a regular guest on Who's Line is it, Anyway? He's funny, witty and very pleasant as we discuss his professional background, improv training and the role of the artist in this heightened political climate. Have a great week, and I hope you enjoy the chat! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Here's my complete chat with my Genius friend, Eric Whitacre. 1:35, straight through, with no stops. Enjoy, and don't forget to make your donations to the ACLU! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Morris Robinson, bass, is my guest on this episode. We talk about family, preparation, perseverance, and the importance of being a good colleague. Lots of lessons here, and not a word about politics, which is pretty weird for me. I hope you enjoy the interview and remember to give your donation to the ACLU. Thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Here's part two of my chat with Eric Whitacre. This is how we talk a good part of the time, so I hope you enjoy this meandering conversation between friends. We cover a lot of ground, and I tend to talk less on this one, so that's a plus. Thanks for listening, and have a great week! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Part one of a two-parter with Eric Whitacre. Eric and I have been friends for the better part of two decades, and that's what you get with this chat. We ramble, laugh, joke, and get into some pretty serious issues- You know, all the stuff that friends talk about. It's just us, behind the scenes, having a conversation, no more, no less. Enjoy, and thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Eric, Eric, Eric. I thought I'd keep on with the theme. Last week you heard some of my past guests answer Eric Whitacre's infamous question, asking, "What do you know now, that you didn't know at this time, last year?" This week, we're looping back to my (second) first guest, Eric Whitacre. Next Week, we'll be picking up with... you guessed it... Eric Whitacre. It looks like January is Eric Whitacre month. I've successfully used the name, "Eric Whitacre" at least four times, here. Mission accomplished- Thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Well, here we are, a year older and a year wiser, hopefully. 2016 was wonderful, challenging, tragic and beautiful for me, and this year, I started it off with the question posed to me every year by my friend, Eric Whitacre: "What do you know now, that you didn't know at this time, last year?" In this episode, I answer this very question, along with sixteen of my past guests from 2016. I hope you all have the best year yet and, as always, thanks for listening! See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.