Singer Spotlight: Evan Bravos
Tell us a little about yourself! Where are you from? What is your educational and musical background?
I grew up in St. Charles, IL, a suburb of Chicago; started piano when I was 7, choir in 6th grade and voice lessons as a sophomore in high school. I completed my undergraduate studies at Lawrence Conservatory of Music, where I received the B.M. double major in Music Education and Vocal Performance. I continued my studies and completed the M.M. in Voice and Opera at Northwestern University's Bienen School of Music. In the Young Artist Circuit, I have sung as an Apprentice Artist with Central City Opera, Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Virginia Opera, Opera Santa Barbara and as a Studio Artist with Sarasota Opera. I have also sung as a Fellow with Hawaii Performing Arts Festival, The Ravinia Steans Music Institute, and most recently, Music Academy of the West.
What is one thing you wish you had known as a young singer and why?
That the industry is totally and completely unfair. Slowly, over the years you start to see friends fade from the business. The top reasons for quitting tend to be audition fatigue (burnout), the desire fore a more stable income (generally one not derived from 'gig life'), or loss of the drive or inner need to create and express one's art as a singer. What keeps me going now is remembering the single most important reason we went into the business of singing in the first place: to create beauty and lift the hearts and spirits of others.
I wish that somebody would've told me how difficult it would be to dig and find and create that space for myself both physically and emotionally every single day of my life as an artist. Vocation is one thing, but living and creating as a professional singer is completely a lifestyle unto itself that takes much more than raw talent: it takes patience, and most importantly, grit.
Tell us about an obstacle you have faced during your career and how you overcame it.
Oh—where to start? Time management: I will say there hasn't been a day in my life over the past 10+ years that I haven't worked toward my career in some capacity. Be it score study, applications, travel for auditions, teaching privately, church gigging, website maintenance, networking; being a singer is a full-time job because you are essentially running a small business on your own.
Financially speaking, the "hustle" of it all--especially through these early stages of the career--is a very real thing.
What is one role or piece you could perform over and over and never get tired of?
Mozart: Don Giovanni. I have worked on three different productions of this show in the past two years (once as the Don and twice as Masetto) and it never grows old. Some say it's the perfect opera: and I'd have to agree that it really is.
In terms of a solo piece: Soliloquy, from Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel is also an all-time favorite piece of mine to sing. It is an old friend and I'd be absolutely thrilled at the prospect of singing the role of Billy Bigelow again sometime soon. Really any R+H, contemporary American Opera, and Mozart. That's my jam.
If you could only give one piece of advice to a young singer, what would it be?
-Connections, connections, connections.
-Do not waste any time with a teacher with whom you do not 'click'. What school you go to has little, if ANY bearing on the singer you will be 3-5 years from now.
-Daily discipline is the most important thing: practice (practice, practice)…but practice smart—don't sing for hours on end. Listen (YouTube), memorize, learn and explore roles (don't necessarily sing through them completely, but look through them) NOW that you think you'll be doing ten years from now.
-Look out for yourself—no one else will if you don't.
-Be smart about what roles you accept when.
...Ok—this was way more than one piece of advice but…there's just so much that needs to be said!
Is there anything you spent too much time stressing over that didn't end up being a big deal?
Student loans: Though I've been paying them off steadily since graduation, and they will continue to haunt me for a little while longer, I know and trust that my education and experiences are mine and will be mine forever. I also know that they will get paid off eventually. Meanwhile, life does not stop; making art does not stop. Doing the work is what's important and trusting your work is so much more useful than worrying about things beyond your control.
That being said, buckle in for that hustle!
Where can we catch you performing next?
Inman, COLD MOUNTAIN (Jennifer Higdon) Music Academy of the West, August 2, 4, Granada Theater, Santa Barbara, CA
