Opera Fuoco: for the love of opera

In France, opera is not very accessible, not only to the general public, who is not accustomed to listening to this type of music (and is put off by the cost of tickets to “classical” fare), but also to young singers and instrumentalists, who struggle to launch their careers and to make ends meet. David Stern, a passionate conductor well aware of this doubly problematic issue, decided to fight against this misconception by creating his own orchestra, Opera Fuoco.

Reaching out to the public

Opera Fuoco, made up of 20-40 instrumentalists and 13-30 singers, is seen by its creator as “a workshop for operatic innovation”. Stern encourages and trains young musicians just starting their careers through a companion system. Most importantly, he sets out into the public through musical workshops that he produces and leads just about everywhere: in primary and secondary schools, hospitals, and certain socio-cultural and socio-educational establishments.
It was initially intended for communities near its head office in Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, but Opera Fuoco is now planning to broaden its reach to Paris and the Val-d'Oise department. Through a two-year sponsorship, the Veolia foundation will give impetus to an initiative to make this art more widely appreciated and understood.