Ruth Robles: The Stage is a Space of Truth.
Skene Staff
Ruth Robles is a Mexican singer and vocal director whose work moves between performance and creation, and always toward emotional truth.
Ruth Robles is a Mexican singer and vocal director whose work moves between performance and creation, and always toward emotional truth.
Josué Cerón is a Mexican opera singer whose career spans the stages of Mexico and Italy, rooted in discipline, preparation, and artistic generosity.
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Josué Cerón was twenty-two years old when he made his debut at Palacio Nacional de Bellas Artes, Mexico’s most important opera house, in a principal role. He had just placed second in the National Singing Competition. The directors were watching. The door opened, and he walked through it.
That is the kind of story that sounds like luck until you understand what came before it: years of preparation so rigorous that when the moment arrived, there was no question of readiness. Josué does not believe in waiting for opportunities. He believes in being ready for them when they come, because, as he will tell you plainly, they do not always come back.
His path from Mexico City to the stages of Italy is one of discipline meeting daring. When he auditioned at the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa alongside nine hundred singers and emerged as one of twenty-five selected, the only Mexican in the roster, what he felt was not surprise. It was confirmation. Confirmation that the training had been right, that the commitment had been worth it, and that there was more ahead.
Today he carries those lessons into the studio and the classroom, giving back what was given to him.
Josué Cerón’s voice travels from the deepest part of the human being outward, in this edition of PROFILES.
Debuté muy joven en la Ópera de Bellas Artes, el teatro más importante de mi país, a los 22 años en un papel principal. Fue a raíz de que un par de meses antes había ganado el segundo lugar en el Concurso Nacional de Canto y obtuve , así, la atención de los directivos quienes creyeron que estaba yo listo para empezar mi carrera profesional y así fue.
I made my debut very young at the Opera of Bellas Artes, the most important theatre in my country, at twenty-two years old in a principal role. This came after placing second in the National Singing Competition a couple of months earlier, which caught the attention of the theatre’s directors. They believed I was ready to begin my professional career, and so it began.
Cuando hice mi debut en el Teatro Carlo Felice, uno de los teatros de más tradición en Italia, siendo dirigido en la regia por uno de los barítonos más famosos de la historia de la ópera, cuyo nombre era Rolando Panerai. Ya que él era un representante auténtico de la verdadera escuela italiana del canto y la tradición operística.
Fue un sueño hecho realidad que, después de tantas audiciones, pudiera yo por fin poner un pie en un teatro internacional cantando repertorio tradicional. Fue la punta de lanza de muchas más cosas positivas que vinieron después.
My debut at the Teatro Carlo Felice, one of the most storied opera houses in Italy, stands out above all. I was directed by one of the most celebrated baritones in the history of opera: Rolando Panerai, a true representative of the authentic Italian school of singing and operatic tradition.
After so many auditions, it felt like a dream come true to finally set foot on an international stage singing traditional repertoire. It was the tip of the spear for many more good things that followed.
Casi siempre trato de seguir un proceso muy estandard pero práctico. Primero leo el libreto de la ópera que cantaré, después hago una lectura musical (lo que llamamos lectura a primera vista) para descubrir los pasajes de mayor desafío. Después me voy enfocando sobre esos pasajes para descifrarlos y adaptarlos a mi voz. A la par voy haciendo trabajo de mesa sobre la construcción dramática del personaje. Una vez que tengo todo muy claro, voy cantándolo todos los días para poder tenerlo en mi voz, mientras voy memorizando también. Así puedo llegar a los ensayos totalmente listo y preparado.
I almost always follow a very standard but practical process. First I read the libretto of the opera I will be singing, then I do a musical reading, what we call a sight-reading, to discover the most challenging passages. From there I focus on those passages, working to decipher them and adapt them to my voice. At the same time I do table work on the dramatic construction of the character. Once I have everything clear, I sing through it every day to settle it into my voice while also memorizing it. That way I can arrive at rehearsals completely prepared and ready.
Uno de los desafíos más grandes fue cuando debuté en Italia. Llegué a hacer audición al teatro junto con 900 aspirantes más y el haber sido uno de los 25 seleccionados, además de el único mexicano en el roster, me enseñó que la preparación que había recibido era la correcta para estar en donde estaba. Me enseñó a ser más profesional, más comprometido, más humilde y con ánimo de querer ir por más.
One of the greatest challenges was my debut in Italy. I arrived to audition at the theatre alongside nine hundred other candidates, and being one of the twenty-five selected, as well as the only Mexican in the roster, taught me that the training I had received was exactly right for where I was. It taught me to be more professional, more committed, more humble, and more hungry to keep going further.
En la actualidad me siento inspirado por ayudar a los demás en su viaje por esta carrera que, muchas veces, puede ser compleja en muchos sentidos pero que , al estar en ella, nos trae un sinfín de satisfacciones personales, artísticas y espirituales. Es por eso que el enseñar, el dar clases y transmitir las enseñanzas que he recibido de otros que creyeron en mi me hace seguir encontrando un camino de amor a esta carrera.
Today I find my inspiration in helping others along their journey through this career, which can be complex in many ways but which, once you are in it, brings an endless stream of personal, artistic, and spiritual fulfillment. Teaching, giving classes, and passing on what I have learned from those who believed in me keeps me finding a path of love toward this work.
Creo que las recientes declaraciones de cierto actor famoso (T. Chalamet) respecto a que el ballet y la ópera estaban pasados de moda crearon el efecto contrario, precisamente. Le dieron un avivamiento a las artes escénicas en el ámbito comercial y mediatico. La ópera ya lo poseía , sin embargo una atención de este tamaño le ha dado aún mayor foco y estoy seguro que está creando más públicos, acercando a las generaciones más jóvenes a enterarse de qué va este mundo fascinante.
I believe the recent comments made by a certain well-known actor — Timothée Chalamet — suggesting that ballet and opera were out of fashion actually produced the opposite effect. They gave the performing arts a renewed energy in the commercial and media landscape. Opera already had that energy, but attention of that scale has brought it even greater focus, and I am certain it is creating new audiences and drawing younger generations toward this fascinating world.
Les diría que no pierdan tiempo, que el tiempo es oro, que inviertan en él estudiando, cultivándose, preparándose con miras en la excelencia. Que las oportunidades llegan y hay que estar listos para tomarlas, o no volverán a aparecer.
I would tell them not to waste time. Time is gold. Invest it in studying, in cultivating yourself, in preparing with excellence as your goal. Opportunities arrive, and you have to be ready to take them, because they do not always come back.
Espero que mi trabajo pueda inspirar a otros a ser mejores seres humanos, a aliviar algún malestar emocional, a disfrutar de la vida en todas sus acepciones. A lograr una fortaleza espiritual que nos permita compartir la bondad y amor al prójimo con las virtudes que la música ofrece. Ya que el canto proviene de lo más profundo del ser humano y ahí reflejamos nuestro verdadero ser.
I hope my work can inspire others to become better human beings, to ease some emotional pain, to enjoy life in all its dimensions. To find a spiritual strength that allows us to share kindness and love for one another through the virtues that music offers. Singing comes from the deepest part of the human being, and it is there that we reflect our truest selves.
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