Picturing an opera singer delivering an aria and you probably see a pianist accompanying them. For classical guitar, the most common setting is a solo performance. But every year, SFCM’s Guitar and Voice Departments join forces to put on an evening specializing in the relatively uncommon pairing (in a conservatory setting, at least) of voice paired with guitar. 

“It’s easy to feel like you don’t see people outside of the voice department, because the classes are so specialized—unless someone’s taking a language or diction class for fun,” soprano Akshaya Lakshmi, one-half of one of the duos on the program, says. “We work with piano so often that it's a really refreshing thing to work with other instruments. I learn a lot from the guitar and it’s interesting to see these pieces come together; it’s a different relationship than singing with a piano.”

Nikhil Goswami, Lakshmi’s duo partner, agrees. “Guitarists are more used to playing solo music, and I think [Guitar Department Chair] David Tanenbaum is very aware of the need for us to branch out into ensemble playing, so it’s great to have this opportunity to really practice accompanying and playing together. You have to listen more closely and be more accountable for what your interpretive decisions are because you have to talk about them with your collaborator.”

Nikhil Goswami and Akshaya Lakshmi.

Lakshmi, who grew up in Canada and first began singing in the South Indian Carnatic tradition, was familiar with portions of the work their performance draws from, Mauro Giuliani’s Selections from Sei Ariette, Poems by Metastasio, Op. 95. The performers for the concert begin by filling out forms indicating composers or pieces they’re working on or have interest in, and both Lakshmi and Goswami gravitated toward their selection.

“Giuliani’s music is a very core part of the guitar repertoire, and I have always enjoyed his music.” Goswami said. “These songs have a very strong Italian bel canto style that captures the spirit of the time, very much evoking the style of Rossini, whom Giuliani idolized.” Lakshmi says the pieces are “a good challenge for me because they address things I’m currently working on such as strengthening my middle and low registers—plus it's really beautiful!”

As far as prepping the piece, Lakshmi sent Goswami a recording of the music, and the pair dove in straightaway to work on the tempo and dynamics of the piece. But coaching sessions with guitar faculty members Marc Teicholz and Richard Savino (who has recorded the piece before) helped the pair bring the piece to another level. 

“The sessions brought the piece alive,” Lakshmi recalls. “It allowed us to make freer decisions, I think. We were scared of doing that before, especially because it’s a newer piece of repertoire for us and you’re working with someone you don't fully know at that point yet. It helped us get out of our heads and listen to each other more.” 

Eventually, Lakshmi would like to learn the entire Giuliani cycle, and Goswami is excited because of the breadth of music the entire evening promises. “The recital explores a lot of really fascinating repertoire for guitar and voice that spans many eras and countries,” he says, “from the Renaissance to 19th-century Italian music to Swedish folk songs. We're very fortunate to have this collaboration between the two departments that help us develop these skills and explore all this music.”

Learn more about studying Voice and Opera Studies or Guitar at SFCM.