Lacombe opera star sings in Benedict's home town

Anna Maria Kaufmann

By RAMON GONZALEZ
WCR Staff Writer
Munich

Canadian-German opera singer Anna Maria Kaufmann, formerly of Lacombe, says singing for Pope Benedict as he visited his birth town of Marktl-am-Inn in Germany Sept. 11 was an unforgettable experience.

"It was very special," Kaufman said from her home in Munich. "For me it was a big honour."

The pope's late afternoon visit to Marktl-am-Inn, a town of 2,700 people about 100 km from Munich, lasted about 30 minutes.

Upon his arrival he was driven in his limousine to the marketplace in the centre of the town where tens of thousands of people were standing around waving. The pope shook hands and blessed babies among the crowd and then entered St. Oswald's Church to meet his brother, Georg, a retired priest.

The two men paused in prayer for several minutes before the font in which they were both baptized.

The pontiff was then driven in his popemobile to the yellow and white-painted house where his family had lived until he was two years old. He paused at the house where he spent his first two years and then blessed a bronze column made by a local artist showing scenes from his life.

Amazing Grace

"The people were just thrilled (that he went up to them and shook their hands)," Kaufmann said. "That wasn't part of the protocol that was made for him. He just did that freely."

Accompanied by a professional orchestra and her own pianist, Kaufmann, 44, sang several classical pieces while the pope passed by, including Amazing Grace and Alleluia by Amadeus Mozart. "I sang in the background but it was for him," Kaufmann said.

"This was an unforgettable experience for me because everyone sensed that the pope was excited about being in his town of birth. You could feel that somehow. And he was so friendly and open and he did things that they didn't plan for him to do."

Kaufman, a well-known German-Canadian opera and musical singer, was invited to sing for the pope's visit because she had sung in Marktl-am-Inn eight months ago during a cultural event. The pope's pilot, who is also a musician and was in charge of musical arrangements for the visit, remembered Kaufmann and invited her to sing with his orchestra.

"Being from a small town in Canada and raised Catholic having this opportunity to sing for the pope was a very inspirational and wonderful experience."

Kaufmann was the only professional singer at the event. "I didn't get to meet the pope but I sang for him."

She hopes to meet the pontiff next year in Rome during the celebrations of his 80th birthday, where she is expected to perform.

Born in Edmonton and raised in Lacombe, Anna Maria studied French in Montreal before travelling to Germany to work and learn the language some 22 years ago. She received musical training at the Robert Schumann Institute for Music in D�sseldorf and also trained as a ballerina and actor.

Phantom of the Opera

Her big break came with the role of Christine in the Andrew Lloyd Weber hit Phantom of the Opera in 1990. She played the role in more than 500 performances and subsequently became an award-winning singing star in Germany. She has won a number of prestigious awards as a performer in Europe.

In addition to numerous starring roles in operas and musicals throughout Europe, Kaufmann is known as an actress in Germany, with many television appearances to her credit. Later this year she will tour several Canadian cities, including Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver. She will perform at Edmonton's Winspear Centre as a guest in a concert with Pablo, the Greek guitarist, in early November.

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