For Germán Gholami music was a family affair. “My parents were basically my influence… My mother is actually a soprano and she’s won some competitions in Spain. My father is a music therapist but basically, he can play all instruments, and he is a conductor, he can sing… my father has done everything.” Germán quickly followed in their footsteps, starting his musical education by playing violin and then flute. It wasn’t until he was a teenager in drama class that singing was proposed. “They told me that I had a voice for singing. I was of course surprised; I didn’t have enough knowledge of how to think about it.” He decided to try singing and began studying with his mother and later with his father. Soon he joined this parents’ music ensemble, Grupo Canzona, which focused on medieval Spanish music. “It’s good to perform because it’s something that unites all the family and then my brother also joins us playing the drums.”
Germán’s love for performance grew and his education continued in Estonia where he sang in the choir and as a featured soloist. He also had the opportunity to participate in many different masterclasses. “This was the beginning of my career, how everything started. So basically, I grew up in Estonia, and I still live in Estonia. I’m from Spain, but basically all my knowledge about singing and everything started in Estonia.” His horizons continued to expand through travel with respected teachers like Berle Sanford Rosenberg and Jenni Anvelt-Scarafoni.
The training helped Germán to find his true range. At first, he remembers being told he was a baritone because of the strong low range but he now understands the high range had simply not been trained. Despite this Germán recounts how in choir he would begin the warm-ups with the other baritones but then continue on as the rest dropped off. “It was really funny because I was the only say baritone singing the same or higher than the tenors in the choir. Everyone was always asking ‘Why Germán? Germán is competing against the sopranos.’ But not even my teacher noticed this but then when I found another teacher she said, ‘You’re just a tenor with underdeveloped high notes.’ It took me many years of understanding; I think most of it was lots of mental work so lots of psychological work to understand the adjusting registers to feel free.” He likens the tenor voice to a “wild horse” and “one of the hardest voices to train” but notes that, “Once you can control it, you only feel really good satisfaction. If you can keep it free after a concert you feel so amazed of what you have done. Every concert and every performance is a challenge, but the reward you get is amazing. I cannot compare it with any other job in the world. To be a singer, I think is something unique.”
Germán started to perform in operas such as “La Traviata”, “Rigoletto” and “Tosca”. He also appeared on stage in musical theatre productions like “Phantom of the Opera” and “Les Miserables” and was part of a crossover music trio known as Musicalis Tenors.
“This has been basically demanded for by many people. People nowadays like opera but they also like a fusion of it, so they would like to listen to some songs that are more related to pop techniques.” Some have noted a similarity between Germán and Carlos Marín from Il Divo. Carlos, also from Spain, tragically passed away due to COVID19 in 2021. Germán was recently offered the opportunity to be part of a tribute concert to Il Divo. “We’re planning to do some concerts together, of course we did not meet physically yet; we have done everything virtually.”
For Germán switching between opera, Broadway and crossover can be challenging due to the different vocal colors required. “I always try to keep the same color but I know when you sing in musicals, you have to talk and sometimes you need to scream. You need to be really careful when you’re an opera singer. I always try to do a musical when I am in my safe zone because if not, I know that it’s not so safe for opera singers. I think you need to be really smart how you do it, and always talk with your diaphragm, always support yourself.” He enjoys performing in musicals but admits that his heart is still in opera and often with Puccini. “I like Puccini a lot… Puccini again, tries to keep basically your same pitch and color. If you keep it all the way with freedom, then you can go for the next phrase. It’s really challenging, but it’s really unifying for your voice. Puccini is good if you understand legato.”
Puccini’s operas were part of a new movement in the 1880s-1990s to explore real themes and they are filled with dramatic stories to draw the audience in. “I like verismo and the expression. Maybe with Verdi and other composers you are more internal, holding the feelings inside but with verismo you need to use your feelings more externally. You need to unify them with singing, that’s one of the main points that I really love that you can put it all together in one opera.”
While many of the composers most known in classical music are from Western countries, Spain has its own unique musical offering. “We have Zarzuela which is like our operas. I would like more Zarzuela to be played around the world. There are many interesting works for instance La Revoltosa and La Tabernera del Puerto.”
Germán crossed paths with Gino DiCapra creator of Ascend Classical while at a festival. “It was really funny, because I was doing a performance there and he was just analyzing the performance giving some tips, but he was always on the computer organizing stuff. I told him ‘you should be a manager, you should not only look, you have the power, I see.’” Germán saw the potential but admits he didn’t think Gino he would follow his advice, but he did.
Gino first wrote him about Vincero Opera over messenger. “He said that, ‘Look, I have one idea and are you free on the dates… I was surprised that he came with this idea.”
The first show will take place in Hollywood. “We’re going to do basically the best known hits of Italian opera.” Gino asked for a personal favorite, “E lucevan le stelle” from Tosca they will also perform La Traviata, Madame Butterfly and more. “We’re going to do also some songs from Napoli with influence of south Italia,” and of course “Time to Say Goodbye” as well.
“Gino’s objective is to transmit all the best-known Italian opera in one performance. He wants to bring all the most known emotions in one set… it’s basically for people to get to know more about this and to not be afraid of opera. Our public is going to enjoy the most known arias that they have heard in their lives. It’s something really interesting because for me Italian repertoire has always been one of my first repertoires. I have always loved Italian, more than other repertoires even more than Spanish… For me, Italian opera is the most passionate and I really enjoy to sing it maybe because their characters are more like me as a person.”
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