Rise to the Occasion of Your Opera Career with Chandler Johnson, Director of the Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Program for Singers
04/23/25 • 40 min
We love an encore! And this one's got it all: audition trends, futurecasting, and pragmatic advice for young opera talent. Key Change co-hosts Anna Garcia and Olga Perez Flora also serve up plenty of musical memories, behind-the-scenes intel, and a little love for the Santa Fe Opera as a venue as they continue their visit with Chandler Johnson.
When we last met Chandler, he had introduced us to career paths less traveled. "There's more to this business than just singing,” he continues. Chandler knows this truth better than most. After discovering opera in his early teens, he pivoted from singing to arts administration. Chandler credits his years spent auditioning and performing for exposing him to career opportunities beyond the stage.
“Singing was my path to get to this place,” he confides, before launching into an impressive list of creative, collaborative opportunities within the opera ecosystem. "You can go into development, marketing and PR, media and AV. You can go into costuming and set design," he says, adding, "Having the experience of being a singer informs where you pivot in your life and in this art form."
As for the art form in question, Chandler is not one to tinker with what works. "I wouldn't change anything about opera. I truly love the glitz, the glamor, the opulence, the stories, the chaos. I love it all!" he muses before offering one final piece of advice. "We just have to keep doing good art––keep doing good opera!––and the people will come."
KEY CHANGE RECOMMENDED PLAYLIST
Taking Care of the Art with Chandler Johnson
What’s Opera to a Bunch of High School Students? Young Voices, “The New Crop”
Harmony in Process: The Young Voices of the Santa Fe Opera with Amy "Process" Owens
FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE
Chandler Johnson, Director, Apprentice Program For Singers | Santa Fe Opera
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
Apprentice Program For Singers | Santa Fe Opera
Preview Dinners | Santa Fe Opera
University Of New Mexico Opera Theatre | UNM Music Department
The Baltimore County Honor Choir
Messa di requiem | Giuseppe Verdi
The Defiant Requiem Foundation
***
Key Change is a production of The Santa Fe Opera, Department of Community Engagement & Education.
Share your favorite opera moments and questions with Community Engagement: [email protected]
Produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios
Hosted by Anna Garcia & Olga Perez Flora
Audio Engineering: Collin Ungerleider & Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe
Technical Director: Edwin R. Ruiz
Production Support from Alex Riegler
Show Notes by Lisa Widder
Theme music by Rene Orth with Corrie Stallings, mezzo-soprano, and Joe Becktell, cello
Cover art by Dylan Crouch
This podcast is made possible due to the generous support of the Hankins Foundation, Principal Education Sponsor of the Santa Fe Opera....
We love an encore! And this one's got it all: audition trends, futurecasting, and pragmatic advice for young opera talent. Key Change co-hosts Anna Garcia and Olga Perez Flora also serve up plenty of musical memories, behind-the-scenes intel, and a little love for the Santa Fe Opera as a venue as they continue their visit with Chandler Johnson.
When we last met Chandler, he had introduced us to career paths less traveled. "There's more to this business than just singing,” he continues. Chandler knows this truth better than most. After discovering opera in his early teens, he pivoted from singing to arts administration. Chandler credits his years spent auditioning and performing for exposing him to career opportunities beyond the stage.
“Singing was my path to get to this place,” he confides, before launching into an impressive list of creative, collaborative opportunities within the opera ecosystem. "You can go into development, marketing and PR, media and AV. You can go into costuming and set design," he says, adding, "Having the experience of being a singer informs where you pivot in your life and in this art form."
As for the art form in question, Chandler is not one to tinker with what works. "I wouldn't change anything about opera. I truly love the glitz, the glamor, the opulence, the stories, the chaos. I love it all!" he muses before offering one final piece of advice. "We just have to keep doing good art––keep doing good opera!––and the people will come."
KEY CHANGE RECOMMENDED PLAYLIST
Taking Care of the Art with Chandler Johnson
What’s Opera to a Bunch of High School Students? Young Voices, “The New Crop”
Harmony in Process: The Young Voices of the Santa Fe Opera with Amy "Process" Owens
FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE
Chandler Johnson, Director, Apprentice Program For Singers | Santa Fe Opera
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
Apprentice Program For Singers | Santa Fe Opera
Preview Dinners | Santa Fe Opera
University Of New Mexico Opera Theatre | UNM Music Department
The Baltimore County Honor Choir
Messa di requiem | Giuseppe Verdi
The Defiant Requiem Foundation
***
Key Change is a production of The Santa Fe Opera, Department of Community Engagement & Education.
Share your favorite opera moments and questions with Community Engagement: [email protected]
Produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios
Hosted by Anna Garcia & Olga Perez Flora
Audio Engineering: Collin Ungerleider & Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe
Technical Director: Edwin R. Ruiz
Production Support from Alex Riegler
Show Notes by Lisa Widder
Theme music by Rene Orth with Corrie Stallings, mezzo-soprano, and Joe Becktell, cello
Cover art by Dylan Crouch
This podcast is made possible due to the generous support of the Hankins Foundation, Principal Education Sponsor of the Santa Fe Opera....
Previous Episode
Taking Care of the Art with Chandler Johnson, Director of the Santa Fe Opera Apprentice Program for Singers
Pop quiz: Name an opera training initiative that creates space for self-discovery, serious fun, and a bit of Broadway adoration. Spoiler alert: there’s only one answer.
On this episode of Key Change, co-hosts Anna Garcia and Olga Perez Flora get to know Chandler Johnson, Director of Santa Fe Opera’s Apprentice Program for Singers, and uncover what early-career singers selected for this internationally acclaimed program can expect from their 13 weeks in the desert.
“It’s a pressure cooker!” exclaims Chandler of the four-month-long apprenticeship, initially developed by John Crosby, founder of the Santa Fe Opera. How prestigious is the program, you might ask? We did the math. Out of a thousand applicants, less than 5% have a chance of making it in. That’s 36-46 participants annually. And once those folks are accepted? They’re met with a 360o view of the industry including an intense rehearsal regime, mainstage experience, individual scene recitals, donor events, and off-campus performances.
Chandler’s circuitous route to Apprentice Program director includes five different administrative titles at Santa Fe Opera alone, proving that the stage isn’t the only avenue to an illustrious career (although he’s got some amazing performance credits to his name). “I still sing for fun,” he says. “My roots were church music, musical theater, R & B, that kind of stuff. And, I'm always singing along to my favorite pop girlies.”
Now, he’s happy to guide the next generation of talent, offering honest assessment and encouragement in equal measure. “I've had some singers come back and be, like, that one thing you said to me, that really changed the trajectory.”
KEY CHANGE RECOMMENDED PLAYLIST
FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE
Chandler Johnson, Director, Apprentice Program For Singers | Santa Fe Opera
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
Apprentice Program For Singers | Santa Fe Opera
Apprentice Program For Technicians | Santa Fe Opera
Young Artists Program | Chautauqua Opera
Lina González-Granados | LA Opera
***
Key Change is a production of The Santa Fe Opera, Department of Community Engagement & Education.
Share your favorite opera moments and questions with Community Engagement: [email protected]
Produced and edited by Andrea Klunder at The Creative Impostor Studios
Hosted by Anna Garcia & Olga Perez Flora
Audio Engineering: Collin Ungerleider & Kabby at Kabby Sound Studios in Santa Fe
Technical Director: Edwin R. Ruiz
Production Support from Alex Riegler
Show Notes by Lisa Widder
Theme music by Rene Orth with Corrie Stallings, mezzo-soprano, and Joe Becktell, cello
Cover art by Dylan Crouch
This podcast is made possible due to the generous support of the Hankins Foundation, Principal Education Sponsor of the Santa Fe Opera.
To learn more, visit SantaFeOpera.org/KeyChange.
Next Episode
Where Talent Meets Opportunity: Career Trajectories in Opera with Kristin Ditlow & Jamie Flora
We often say that the road to a successful opera career can be a winding one—and we’ve got the receipts to prove it! Join Key Change co-hosts Anna Garcia and Olga Perez Flora as they discuss career trajectories, academic journeys, and artistic life with two legendary performers and educators: Kristin Ditlow, Associate Professor of Vocal Coaching and Opera Conductor at the University Of New Mexico, and James Flora*, acclaimed American tenor and Lecturer in Voice and Opera, also at UNM. Our conversation sets the stage for an exciting collaboration between Santa Fe Opera and UNM.
“The position that I have (at UNM) has evolved with me,” says Kristin, who has worked around the world as a conductor and a pianist. “That’s a testament to a healthy place that’s willing to grow along with its faculty and allow them to grow in a position.” It’s also a verdant artistic environment where raw talent is refined, and practice leads to proficiency.
Jamie hopes that the next generation of opera professionals will bring the art form’s epic storytelling and staging to a broader audience. “I’d love for opera to step away a little bit from exclusivity,” he says, reflecting on how the perceived cliquishness couldn’t be farther from the true experience of a live opera. “A lot of people who grew up in small towns like I did didn't understand the opera was for them,” he says, adding, “Opera's for everyone!”
*That surname is no coincidence. Jamie also holds the title of spouse to our very own Olga.
KEY CHANGE RECOMMENDED PLAYLISTS
Catch up on the full story of Hometown To The World:
Season 1, Ep 6: Hometown to the World: Discovering Postville
Season 2, Ep 9: America Is Impossible Without Us
Season 3, Ep 3: Responding to the World
Season 3, Ep 8: Bridging Communities with Carmen Flórez-Mansi
Season 4, Ep 1: This Doesn’t Happen Without Audience; The Hometown to the World Premiere
Season 4, Ep 2: Influence and Inclusion: The Impact of Hometown to the World with Youth Chorus
Season 4, Ep 8: Hometown to the World Debuts on Broadway
Hear the evolution of This Little Light of Mine:
Season 2, Ep 7: Mother of a Movement: This Little Light of Mine
Season 3, Ep 4: Singing A Call to Action: Is This America?
Season 3, Ep 5: Making a Choice With Conviction: A conversation with Jeri Lynne Johnson
Season 3, Ep 6: Building a Better Society with Florida International University Music Students
Season 3, Ep 7: Lighting a Fire: The Legacy of Fannie Lou Hamer
Season 4, Ep 6: A Day in the Life Before a World Premiere
Season 4, Ep 7: Telling Hard Truths
FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE
MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE
IMSLP - Petrucci Music Library for scores in public domain
Apprentice Program for Singers | Santa Fe Opera
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