Teen opera buff
hits the high notes

By William Kenny
Times Staff Writer

Joe and Helenea Tierney should be very thankful parents. The Bustleton couple have three wonderful children, including an aspiring professional singer in daughter Kaitlyn.
Best of all, the talented 18-year-old doesn’t idolize Britney Spears.
Instead, the Central High School senior is lining herself up for a career in opera. And while opportunities in that classical genre are at least as rare as those found in pop music, opera has at least one big advantage over Britney’s domain.
"I think this is more stable, at least I hope," Helenea Tierney chuckled last week during one of her daughter’s brief respites.
Home for the Easter break, Kaitlyn Tierney is fresh off of last month’s concert appearance with the All-City Choir at the Kimmel Center. The performance included her own solo number.
Now she’s looking ahead to trips to San Francisco and Europe this spring. And come summer, she’ll take her usual place with the Delaware Valley Opera Company before heading up to Boston in the fall to start classes at the prestigious New England Conservatory.
By the time she returns to Northeast Philly after that, she may be giving Spears a run at star power, though Kaitlyn will tell you not to count on it.
"I don’t think I’d really want to be that famous," Tierney said. "I just want to be able to sing."
She’s been able to do that for as long as anyone can remember. She started taking formal lessons at age 10, but had shown aptitude and nerve long before then. Tierney always sang along with songs on the radio. And when it was time for talent shows at the Gilbert Spruance School, she was first to sign up.
"She would do solos and stuff," Helenea Tierney said. "She was never afraid to go up by herself. She’s great onstage."
Kaitlyn studied under a series of teachers before enrolling at the Settlement Music School over three years ago. She has sung in her school choirs since third grade and at Mass as cantor for Our Lady of Ransom Church since age 11.
Over the years, she routinely has performed at weddings and community events. On May 20, for example, she will sing the national anthem at the annual Breast Cancer Walk sponsored by the Ladies of Port Richmond. Her mom works in a beauty salon in the neighborhood.
Tierney began emphasizing opera on the advice of her voice teacher at Settlement, Susan Rheingans. The teen is a mezzo-soprano. In opera, many principal roles are available to women with that vocal range.
The Delaware Valley Opera Company, based out of Hermitage Mansion in the city’s Wissahickon Valley Park, generally produces three operas in the summer. Tierney has yet to land a principal role, but she has learned a lot since joining the company.
"I’m in the chorus. The lead roles usually go to professionals, the older people," she said.
In doing so, she’s had a front-row seat for performances by many of the region’s most seasoned vocalists.
"I try to study what they’re doing," she said. "I think when I sing with that group, I see what the point of view of a real professional is."
Tierney spends about an hour a day at home rehearsing without wearing down her voice.
"It takes a lot of practice to perfect the voice, especially opera," she said. "If you’re a pop singer, it doesn’t really matter. (Classical) is much more challenging.
"You have to learn what every word means and be sure of what you’re singing. A lot of it is in different languages — Italian, German, French and some English."
Of countless hopefuls, very few young people actually make the big time as featured opera singers. There simply aren’t a whole lot of available parts.
"You have to be really motivated and try to go out and get what you want," Tierney said. "I know it’ll be hard."
She’s used to challenges, though. She placed second at a recent scholarship competition at Temple University, sponsored by the magazine Classical Singer, and earned a trip to the national semifinals and finals in San Francisco in late May.
Her travel plans also include a trip with the Central High choir and orchestra to Vienna, Austria, and Budapest, Hungary, in June. The groups are trying to raise the $250,000 they’ll need for the 10-day journey, during which they’ll perform a series of concerts at local venues.
Under the direction of teacher Stephen Wilenski, the student musical groups have been holding fund-raisers all year, including bake sales and concerts, because the school district can’t pay for the trip.
"If one person can’t afford to go, it’s not fair to say, ‘You can’t go because of money,’" the teenager said.
She and a partner, Marcus Simmons, are preparing a duet, La Ci Darem La Mano from the opera Don Giovanni, that they hope to bring on the trip.
Her mom has been a bit surprised by Kaitlyn’s commitment to classical music.
"When she started singing, you’d never think she would ever pick opera," Helenea Tierney said. "What fifteen-year-old picks opera?"
Though mom is learning to appreciate the genre more and more, Kaitlyn Tierney knows it’s not something that’s going to win over everyone.
"I try to put it on in the car and my sister’s like, ‘I’m not in the mood for it, Kaitlyn,’" she said. ••
Reporter William Kenny can be reached at 215-354-3031 or bkenny@phillynews.com