Why did you choose such a broad repertoire for this album?

José Carreras:With this album we wanted to give an impression of the Viennese operetta and the American "operetta" from Broadway and Hollywood, and that's why we made such a wide selection.   Also, quite spontaneously, we picked out the pieces that we thought would be the most appealing to the audience and, of course, the ones I think I am able to sing best.

Were the songs your own personal choice?

José Carreras: In some ways, yes. I had the opportunity to choose from a beautiful range of songs and melodies.  Of course I picked the songs I think the audience is going to like – I hope the audience is going to like – and the ones I think I am able to sing because they are within my limits in every aspect.  But apart from some suggestions from the producer and the record company, I'd say that for a high percentage of the choices, if there is somebody to blame, it's me.

You've changed the original language of some songs – why is that?

José Carreras:Most of the songs are in the original languages.   For example when I sing "Dein ist mein ganzes Herz" from The Land of Smiles, or The Merry Widow I sing in German and I sing most of the American repertory in English.  But for a couple of songs, I thought, as there were already translations, I could do it in Italian, or do one of them in Spanish. It's different and also it's a way of giving a certain public – in this case, the Spanish public or the Italian public – the possibility of hearing the same pieces they have heard so many times in the original language, in their own language.

Why does the album have such an international flavour?

José Carreras:To reach as large a spectrum of the public as possible. And if this helps the album to go to more and more people in different countries, it's of course a very positive thing for me as a singer and an artist.

Do some of the tracks on the album relate to your Spanish roots?

José Carreras:I think this type of music, the Zarzuela, is the Spanish contribution to the Operetta world, so somehow through the Zarzuela I feel close to this kind of repertory, even if it's not really a hundred percent my repertory.  That's not where my roots are.  My roots are in opera, the opera world of the stage, operatic roles by Verdi, Puccini, Bizet, etc.   But I've always felt quite close to this kind of music.  And also all the important Spanish tenors from the past such as Fleta, Cortis, as well as Krauss later on – or Plácido Domingo and myself nowadays – we all used to sing this type of music.

Are you hoping to bring something new to your 'grand opera' audience?

José Carreras:One always hopes to bring something new to the audience, particularly to young people. But I think that this kind of album can easily reach a very wide audience.  It's not a kind of music that is addressed to a small segment of music lovers.  We hope to reach a wide range of people with this.

Some of the songs are humorous – do you enjoy singing them?

José Carreras:The fact that I am a romantic hero on stage, or a heroic hero on stage, doesn't mean that I don't have a sense of humour – I think that I do have a sense of humour!  Therefore, I very much enjoy sometimes singing a lighter repertory.  Also, because it's refreshing and it gives me the opportunity to show that I am able to feel not only sorrow and passion and sadness – all those things that opera normally brings – but also joy in a very light way.

Do you have a favourite song on the album?

José Carreras: Of course, there are a lot of my favourite pieces on this album like the songs from The Student Prince.   But I think that the piece I like best in the album is from The Land of Smiles, the famous "Dein ist mein ganzes Herz" or "Yours is my Heart Alone".   I think this is the quintessence of Viennese operetta and certainly one of the most beautiful pieces in this field.

Nigel Wright also produced your album Passion – why does the partnership work so well?

José Carreras: It's a wonderful communion of feelings between him and me, and it's a real pleasure, I have to say.  I think he's a tremendous professional, but not only that.  He's a person who's very serious and rigorous when he's working, yet has a great sense of humour – like most of the British! But really, it's a pleasure because he's a man who knows what he wants; knows – and this is very important – what he can expect from an artist at a particular moment, because an artist, when in different kinds of moods and situations, is not able to offer the same thing every minute of every day. So he knows exactly what an artist is able to give at each particular moment and he also knows how to wait for the right moment to ask the artist to give the best of himself. So it's a wonderful experience working with Nigel and I hope that this is just the beginning of a long, long, long collaboration with him.

Copyright © 1997 Time Warner Co.