by Brandon Mayberry

The holidays have a tendency to bring to surface a mix of emotions. One commonly reflects on the passage of time, as well as one’s hopes for the future. In this spirit, we are paying homage to a foursome of Metropolitan Opera Chorus retirees: soprano Elaine Young, mezzo-soprano Theresa Yu-Ping Teng, tenor Greg Lorenz, and bass David Asch. We will look back at how they first came to Met, what impacted them most as artists during their tenure, and will update you on how they have adjusted to life after the Met.

Here's a quick overview to illustrate the breadth of unique experience they accumulated over their careers. Between the four of them, they have experienced:

1. A combined 129 Met seasons.

2. 4 different chorus masters.

3. Numerous Carnegie Hall performances under the baton of Maestro Levine.

4. Eight International tours including five tours of Japan (the last being in 2011), two tours to Frankfurt, Germany and one to Seville, Spain.*

5. 3 weeks of annual summer parks concerts in the New York City and New Jersey metro areas.

6. Various opera recordings by Sony Classical and Deutsche Grammophon during the 80s and 90s, also conducted by Maestro Levine.

(*Theresa also had the unique experience of being part of the Met’s domestic national tours which lasted between 2-6 weeks during the summer. The Met discontinued the domestic tour in 1986.)

Prelude: Humble Beginnings

Making it into the full-time chorus at the Met is often referred to as "winning the lottery" and the auditions to get into the chorus have become more competitive by the year as the visibility and talent level of the group continues to increase. Since Maestro Donald Palumbo joined the Met as Chorusmaster in the 2007-2008 season, the audition process has become more efficient due to auditionees being screened in advance. This system has replaced the need for the "cattle call" style auditions of the past, where anyone and everyone that wanted to audition could show up and sing. I remember hearing stories of auditionees waiting hours for their turn to sing while standing in a long line that snaked through a sometimes cold parking garage in the middle of winter. Now resumes/bios, reference letters, and a recording are used to make the whole process more efficient and humane for those invited to audition.

"In the spring of 1991”, Greg Lorenz recalls, “I was in a line for a day and a half next to my future colleague Garth Dawson for the AGMA chorus auditions. I sang ‘Dies Bildnis’ from Die Zauberflöte and Maestro [Raymond] Hughes let me sing the whole aria." Greg's first opera at the Met as part of the extra chorus was Der Fliegende Holländer in 1992. He described his first music rehearsal as being "literally hair raising" as the first sung lines of 'Yo-Ho-He' took his breath away. During an early stage rehearsal, former chorister Artie Mellow, noticing Greg's obvious excitement upon hearing the Met Orchestra play the overture while both were lashed to a giant ship onstage, leaned over and said "You're gonna love it here, kid". Greg acknowledged that Artie's warm welcome colored his entire career in the Met Chorus.

In the case of Elaine Young, she found out about the auditions through an open call posted in Backstage and sang ‘Chi il bel sogno’ from La Rondine. Elaine had only performed in five other full operas prior to getting hired to sing in the Met Chorus. Her first rehearsal with the chorus was for Turandot, and she remembers being “as nervous as a person could be, not knowing what was expected of me.” She wanted to be as prepared as possible, so she bought a score and a recording which she would study every evening after returning home from her temp job, with the goal of having it memorized before the first rehearsal. Ironically, she remembers having dated two former Princes of Persia, a minor role in Turandot, prior to becoming a chorister, further enriching her memories of the Puccini masterpiece!

Theresa Yu-Ping Teng was trained as a lieder singer during high school and at college, and received her Masters degree from the Manhattan School of Music in 1970. She performed in the world premiere of Gian Carlo Menotti's opera Tamu Tamu in Chicago and again the following year, as it made its European premiere in Spoleto, Italy. It was after that she decided to audition for the chorus and fulfill her dream to sing at the Met. Theresa sang the sultry Dalila's famous aria "Mon coeur s'ouvre à ta voix" for her audition, which marked the beginning of a 31-year career at the Met, starting with Tannhauser in 1978. "I was so shocked to see so many people in the audience, I almost forgot to sing," she reminisces.

David Asch was encouraged to audition for the Met Chorus thanks to his voice teacher Bonnie Hamilton, who had two former students, Meredith Derr and Julie McSorley, join the chorus only a few years earlier. He sang for former chorusmaster David Stivender, who asked after his audition whether he was interested in auditioning for solo work, to which he replied, “absolutely not interested”. His first opera, as part of the extra chorus, was Khovanschina, an extremely challenging and lengthy Russian tour-de-force.

Act I: The Chorus Experience

I asked the distinguished quartet what they remembered most fondly during their careers at the Met.

Elaine Young, Soprano: 2 years extra chorus, 22 years regular chorus (1991-2016)

Elaine recalls "standing in the wings watching and listening to Domingo and Pavarotti sing the duet from The Pearl Fishers before the Three Tenors was even thought of.” She also cherishes her memories of the Met’s Carnegie Hall concerts, as well as the Levine Gala and tours to Germany and Japan. “My first solo was as the First Ancelli in Turandot with (former chorister) Linda Mays. My favorite solo was as the Page in Rigoletto. I loved pants roles and getting a curtain call with the soloists was icing on the cake." She revels in the creative process that ensued spontaneously during the first run of the current production of Le nozze di Figaro, where she created a calendar from pictures of costumed choristers in “crazy” offstage scenarios. (Note: I still have the calendar Elaine made, which was a stroke of genius and shows how much fun we all have together.)

Theresa Yu-Ping Teng: Mezzo-Soprano, 31 years regular chorus (1978-2009)

Theresa fondly remembers her five tours to Japan, as well as tours to Frankfurt on two separate occasions and the Seville tour. She recalls crying during every performance of Dialogues des Carmelites. She admired Franco Zeffirelli, who masterfully created many great operatic productions at Met, for his ability to design not only the sets and costumes, but also act as director. She recalls that “he paid special attention to all the details, including checking everyone's costumes before the performance.”

Greg Lorenz: Tenor, 3 years extra chorus, 22 years regular chorus (1988-2016)

Greg said he met and worked with so many artistically gifted people that were simply great and beautiful people. "For sheer, innate, almost feral, musicality, no one can diminish those nights with Maestro Levine on the podium" Placido Domingo was Greg's most inspiring singer, who he said "was always true to his voice and displayed a musical curiosity from Mozart to Mariachi."

David Asch: Bass, 3 years extra chorus, 23 years regular chorus (1987-2013)

David fondly recalls the Carnegie Hall concerts with Maestro Levine conducting, as well as the many chorus solo roles he performed during his tenure. (Favorites include the Fisherman in Britten’s Peter Grimes and an Elder in Schoenberg’s formidable Moses und Aron.) I asked David who made the biggest impression on him while at the Met. As a former Met chorus music librarian, David appropriately gave me a comprehensive list of influential and impressive solo artists, conductors and stage directors that read as a "Who's Who" list of opera. During the Volpe era, David felt the two most influential figures were James Levine and Franco Zefferelli.

Act II: Where Are They Now?

Elaine and her husband Peter currently live in a stone home on nine acres of a historic farm outside of Kingston, NY. She is loving the country life and having every bit of nature outside her door, from the critters such as hawks, coyotes and the occasional bear, to Peter's well-tended garden and small peach orchard! For the last three years Elaine has been working part-time at the circulation desk at the library in Stone Ridge. Elaine has also kept her feet wet in the performance arena, having performed leading roles in five musicals. She is currently rehearsing her 8th play, Neil Simon's Rumors, which opens on January 10th for two weekends at the Center for Performing Arts in Rhinebeck, NY. (Click here for information and tickets.)

Elaine found it helpful taking a sabbatical prior to retirement, which gave her time to discover what retirement could be like. During that time away she discovered her new theater community as well as her little "mad money" job at the library. "After all those years of schedules, it has been nice to make my own schedule as full, or not, as I choose. Having things to do, people to see, and reasons to get out of bed make for, hopefully, a long life. I think it's the only time in my life when I've actually planned ahead." On a less serious note, I have had the great enjoyment of witnessing Elaine's vocal impersonation of the "Chipmunks Christmas Song" during our chorus holiday parties, which she admits "never fails to make a lasting impression."

Theresa Teng is currently living in Fort Lee, New Jersey in a high-rise building that includes many Met subscribers who often flatter her after discovering she sang at the Met! She's enjoying traveling and attending the Met’s final dress rehearsals. She's also a big fan of the Met Live in HD broadcasts as well as watching the live broadcasts of the Bolshoi Ballet. She doesn't miss commuting to work twice daily from New Jersey.

Greg Lorenz is living in Dutchess County now where he can finally spend more time with his family, singing recitals, and volunteering for an organization called 'Sing for Hope', which often involves singing for people in long term care facilities and veterans hospitals. He's particularly drawn to composers of the late romantic through the twentieth century, and spends a fair bit of time “listening to the likes of Coltrane, Bird, Miles, and Ellington. As far as Met listening, I refer to Sirius as my 'scrapbook.' It's really fun to be driving around and hear some performance or another and say I was there!" Greg's advice to those thinking of retiring is "Remember that life is life. In other words, there are always trials and triumphs no matter where you are or what you do. Seek joy, share love and hope for the best."

David Asch currently resides in Delray Beach, Florida. He sings in the chorus with the Palm Beach Opera, and has a regular church job as well as a seasonal temple job. He also maintains a partial presence in the NYC metro area, where he still performs on occasion with the Bard Festival Chorale and the Russian Chamber Chorus (in that vein, he is hoping to start a chamber chorus, Russian or otherwise, in South Florida). He most recently took an extensive trip visiting many of the National Parks out West.

Here’s what David has to say about retirement: "The first couple of years post-retirement were challenging. I didn't sing a note for the first year but eventually returned to what I thought I could do best. I was fortunate to be hired in Florida, though at first I wasn't sure I would fit in anywhere. I considered returning to graduate school in an alternative field, but realized it wasn't practical, particularly considering the age factor." Some advice from his experience is to "enjoy letting go of the Met's rigorous, highly structured schedule for a while, but have some sort of game plan."

Mr. Mayberry, a living kidney donor, received his Bachelor's Degree from DePaul University, and continued his studies at Indiana University.

Mr. Mayberry has appeared in solo roles with the Metropolitan Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago (Ryan Opera Center), San Francisco Opera (Merola), Santa Fe Opera, Glimmerglass Opera, Chicago Opera Theater and Des Moines Metro Opera. He is also a co-owner of Swirlz Cupcakes, a Chicago bakery dedicated to "making people happy" since 2006.