Diaz: A Singer in the Prime of His Versatility

When younger singers ask for advice, Justino Diaz says, “I tell them, do what I tell you, not what I did!”

The veteran bass, who sings Iago in the revival of Music Center Opera’s “Otello” (opening tonight), is the first to acknowledge that his operatic progress has been neither orthodox nor logical.

“I was lucky in so many ways,” he says, “not least in that I could have ruined myself and didn’t.”

By any reckoning, his has been an extraordinary career--to date.

Now 49, Diaz made his Metropolitan Opera debut at 23 (as Monterone in “Rigoletto”), two years after winning the company’s national auditions. At 26, he created one of the title roles in the world premiere of Samuel Barber’s “Antony and Cleopatra,” the opera that opened the then-new Met at Lincoln Center. In the following decade, he made important first appearances in major European houses.

What remains extraordinary in this international career is the fact that, at a time when he might be looking at newer, greener pastures, Diaz apparently is still expanding his musical horizons.

Iago, for example. Diaz, a native of Puerto Rico, took up this archetypal baritone role for the first time only four years ago, at the behest of Placido Domingo, his friend and colleague (who again sings Otello in this repeat of the 1986 Music Center Opera production).

“We were in Puerto Rico, singing ‘Tosca’ with Renata Scotto. By the way, John De Main (who conducts “Otello” here) was the conductor. That was when Placido recommended me to Zeffirelli for the film of ‘Otello.’ ”

The singers and orchestra recorded the music first, before going on location, so Diaz created his first Iago without ever having tried it on the stage. “I wasn’t unhappy about it,” he says, “but that’s not the way I sing it now.”

At this point Diaz says, without appearing to boast, that during his entire career he has moved back and forth easily--some might say promiscuously--between bass and baritone roles, and has no intention of settling in any one area.

“Labels and pigeonholes work for some people. But for me, they’ve never applied,” he says, without belligerence. “Even now, my voice continues to grow in both directions--I’m singing higher and lower at this time than ever before. Since it feels healthy, I don’t think I should worry.”

On the practical level, Diaz says, “choosing repertory is one of the most important things in this business. If you make mistakes in that area, the price can be very high.”

Still, he says, “I keep on looking for new challenges.”

“I don’t have two voices--baritone and bass--but for a long time I had two approaches. Now, I’ve more or less integrated them. I have sung lower transpositions a couple of times in my career--I did it the first time I sang Macbeth--but have always moved on to the original keys.”

Do his characterizations--say, of a part like Iago--change with every production?

“Well, this will be my fourth ‘Otello’ production, and I don’t feel the basic interpretation of the role changes much with me. The details may vary a lot, of course.

“I stay away from Iago as a villain--that can become a caricature. The key to the role, I feel, is that Iago looks one way, but is another. He has a double face.” Interaction between the principals also affects Diaz’s approach to characterization.

“Now, Placido gives me something very special, on stage. I guess I do the same for him. As actors, we are--we are compenetrados (in tune with each other).

“He really is one of the few colleagues who gets inside the character. As a singer, that’s more difficult than for a straight actor, because the singer has to deal with this ,” he says, touching his throat.

“But this is the paradox: The more penetration into the character the singer can accomplish, as an actor, the better the voice takes care of itself. When you’re concerned with pearly tones, that can’t happen.”