‘This is madness, not life’ – Joseph Calleja
When Joseph Calleja contracted COVID-19 a few weeks ago, he attacked the same instrument that made him the internationally renowned opera singer that he is. “Covid literally went straight to my voice. It reached my pharynx and larynx and I lost my voice completely for four days. I couldn’t speak,” he says.
Although he has recovered well, he still feels that some minor symptoms remain. “You wouldn’t even know if you had them but since my voice is my instrument, I notice every little difference, and I can feel that it’s still not one hundred percent perfect.”
The tenor had to cancel some concerts, but other than that, he says he was not worried, even though the virus could have damaged his voice and threatened his career. “I took precautions, I didn’t go out, I didn’t smoke or drink. It was pointless worrying about something I didn’t bring on myself. I just focused on getting better as fast as possible.”
Calleja, a frequent traveller, says that Malta was one of the best countries he was in during the pandemic. The ministry of health and the superintendence of public health have done a great job, he says. But he remains convinced that the global response to the virus has been exaggerated and has caused devastating social and economic impacts that have only been made shockingly worse by the war in Ukraine.
“I never said that the virus does not exist and I am also vaccinated. I even believe that the lockdown was necessary at the beginning of the pandemic. But when the world realized that this was another virus that we had to live with, it didn’t make sense to try to bring the numbers to zero.
“Let me be clear. Every COVID death was and still is a tragedy. Each one, and we must do everything we can to avoid as many deaths as possible. But we have to accept that this has become endemic and people will die; like they die of cancer, flu, obesity, and so many more diseases.”
‘I saw the flight attendants crying’
Like everyone else, flight bans and travel restrictions have stopped the 44-year-old tenor, who takes around 100 flights a year to sing in theaters all over the world. But when he took to the skies again, he had to face the fact that he has a fear of flying.
An incident that occurred during a flight from Schiphol airport to Orlando in 2001, just six days before the terrorist attacks of September 11, is behind his nervousness. Calleja was on that plane, when mid-flight, the pilot told the passengers that they were experiencing engine failure, that the plane was at risk of exploding, and that the crew was trying to land the plane safely by gliding to the nearest. runway.
“The flight attendants were all men, and I remember at that moment they started to cry. I felt a great pain in my lower back and all I could think about was how I was going to die at such a young age. I was about 23 years old then.”
…all I could think about was how I was going to die at such a young age
Fortunately, the pilots managed to get the plane to a safe landing and shortly after it was on another plane. But the worry of that moment accompanied him for many years during each hike.
Airplane accidents are very rare, but if you take as many flights as Calleja, you’re bound to find yourself in some awkward situations. Another time, while landing in Beirut, the plane was struck by lightning. This happened very quickly and all he remembers is that he caught a huge flash outside the window and the other passengers screaming. “But snow storms are the worst, because at those speeds, the snow pellets act like anti-aircraft bullets,” he said.
Upside down canape
Now safe on land in Malta and preparing for the July 26 concert, Calleja would like to one day perform at the site formerly occupied by the Royal Opera House, but not as it is now.
He remains convinced that the parliament of Malta, designed by the renowned architect Renzo Piano, should never have been built in Bieb il Belt, and the Royal Opera House, now known as Royal Theater Squareit had to be rebuilt and turned into a larger and multi-purpose theater extending over the site where the parliament currently stands.
“Right now, the theater is like an upside down canape with teeth coming out of it. If someone thinks this is beautiful, I don’t know what is ugly,” he says. “If architecturally possible, the outside should look like, or at least very similar to, how it was originally. Our theater was designed by the same architect who designed the Covent Garden opera house in London. She is a jewel.”
Right now, the theater looks like an upside-down canape with teeth sticking out of it
Calleja insists that it should be modern and multi-purpose on the inside, to serve not only opera, but a wider range of cultural events, such as musicals, concerts and dance shows.
‘Pipe in the bath’
As one of Malta’s most famous sons, Calleja also has strong views on its international reputation. And contrary to the views of many, he does not believe that Malta is more corrupt than any other country.
“Believe me, I have been to many countries, and let me tell you, we have nothing less than any of them. And I absolutely do not see how we are more corrupt than any of them,” he says.
But since Malta is so small, mistakes have a greater impact on the entire nation, he argues. He cites construction as one example.
“We cannot afford many mistakes because we do not have much space. Here’s a strange analogy but it explains very well what I’m trying to say: if you pee in the sea, nothing will happen, really, because the sea is big. But if you pee in your bathtub, you contaminate all the water.
“Malta is a bathtub. It’s a beautiful bathtub, but a small one, and environmental mistakes, even the smallest ones, have a much greater impact on our island than in larger countries.”
The boring life of a star
Calleja loves opera and plans to keep doing it as long as people want to hear him, but he admits that his life is not as exciting as it might seem.
“It’s nice to meet Hollywood actors, the Queen and the Royal Family several times, or to smoke a cigar with Snoop Dog in the White House,” he says, clarifying that he only smoked a cigar but wasn’t will vouch for what else the American rapper could do. he smokes
“But glamor is the exception. The rule is that you spend countless days locked inside hotel rooms, unable to go out, drink or have fun. My only excursions are a short walk or a session at the gym, maybe. The rest of the time I need to rest my voice.
“Doing something at a world-class level requires a great degree of discipline and it comes at a price. So far, my voice has remained intact and is still developing and improving, but it only served me that way because I was very disciplined.”
For this reason, he does not want his two children, who are now 18 and 16 years old, to follow in his footsteps.
“One opera singer in the family is crazy enough. Because this is madness, not life. So far, they have shown no interest in pursuing a professional classical singing career. I support them if this is what makes them the happiest, but selfishly, I don’t want them to have this life,” he states.
“I was lucky to be born with this talent and I got it [the late tenor] Paul Asciak to guide me through it. I only took care of my voice and improved it, but I didn’t do anything to get my voice. That was a gift. So, to be honest, you don’t choose this career. He chooses you.”
‘There is an opera for everyone’
The Maltese tenor is also noticing a decrease in opera audiences all over the world, and believes that the lack of public interest in classical music results from people becoming increasingly reluctant to research and learn to appreciate the – art.
A study published last December by the Maltese Arts Council revealed that few people in Malta are interested in attending or paying for art and cultural events, with the pandemic exacerbating disinterest.
Only four percent said that they went to a concert in the previous months, four percent went to a literature activity, four percent to the cinema, four percent went to a museum, three percent went to the theatre, two percent to a contemporary dance performance and one percent went to a general dance performance. The majority did not spend any money on culture.
As a Maltese ambassador for culture, Calleja insists that people must give opera a chance. Like wine, it is best appreciated when it is patiently researched and taught. “I am absolutely convinced that there is an opera for everyone, and anyone who says they don’t like classical music simply hasn’t heard enough of it to find their opera or the piece they like,” he argues.
“We have become too consumed with the instant gratification of social media and are losing the ability to stop and give art enough time to blow us away with its fascination. Social media is the dumbification of the human race.”
Fully booked
Calleja’s 25th anniversary concert, which is scheduled for Tuesday at Fort Manoel with special guest Placido Domingo and the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra, is complete.
“Placido Domingo was my role model as a teenager and I’m looking forward and I feel very honored to be here for this concert,” he says.
“Concerts like this have become quite rare around the world. We are lucky to have been able to support her and so far she has exceeded all our expectations.”
Calleja is also the founder of the BOV Joseph Calleja Foundation which, since its inception eight years ago, has raised almost €1.5 million to help 90 Maltese scholars with extraordinary artistic talents to receive education and training in international schools.
Independent journalism costs money. Times of Malta support for price of a coffee.
Support us