James Bradley Arsenault, Founder Of Bainbridge's Opera Northwest

James Bradley Arsenault, founder and director of Opera Northwest, wanted to bring music to everyday people.

Mr. Arsenault's theory behind starting his own opera company, on Bainbridge Island, was that everyone should know good music, said his older sister, Elizabeth Mack of Boston. He had the knack for making opera understandable, she said.

"He would talk about the complete story and the plot . . . like Alistair Cooke (from PBS Mystery series), so you knew what was being sung and what was being said," said Dale Peters, longtime friend.

That way, all audience members had to do was sit back, close their eyes and listen to the music - which is exactly what Mr. Arsenault wanted, Peters said.

"He was born moving to music," Mack said.

Mr. Arsenault created the regional opera company in 1987 as a nonprofit, educational organization. Its home base on Bainbridge gave island residents - not just those living in Seattle or other big cities - a chance to experience operas. It also gave young, aspiring opera singers the opportunity to perform publicly until its closing last year due to financial problems and Mr. Arsenault's failing health.

During his two year term as manager and stage director, Mr. Arsenault produced and directed "Arts-By-The-Bay" concerts, "Wednesday Evenings in the Park," "Monthly Cabarets," and "Melodramas" on Bainbridge Island and elsewhere in the northwest part of the state.

Mr. Arsenault died on June 26, in a Seattle hospital, from an AIDS-related illness.

His friends and family agreed that he was not one to focus on his illness. "He just picked himself up and said he was going to do what he wanted to do until he couldn't do it any longer," Peters said.

According to Sue Trask, whatever Mr. Arsenault did, it was usually for someone else.

"He used everything he had, his knowledge of sewing, costuming and music, and gave it to everyone he came in contact with," said Trask, another longtime friend.

A good sense of humor was another of Mr. Arsenault's endearing qualities.

Peters recalled a time when he and Mr. Arsenault met for coffee at a Queen Anne espresso shop.

He said that Vanna White had donated one of her gowns to the cafe to help it raise money for a particular charity.

"It was 25 cents to touch Vanna's dress, and I remember Jim saying to me `they'd probably make more money if they let people try it on'," Peters said.

Mr. Arsenault, was born on June 24, 1948, in Wellesley, Mass. He graduated sum cum laude from the University of Massachusetts with a bachelor's degree in music in 1973.

Between his junior and senior years he studied music at Trinity College in Oxford, England. While in attendance there, he wrote the music to the prayer students now sing before each meal, Mack said.

Mr. Arsenault began his opera career as an assistant to Sarah Caldwell at the Opera Company of Boston shortly after his graduation. He spent the next 18 years surrounding himself with the chords and costumes of anything operatic.

He worked in every aspect of the theater from costumer to director in opera companies from Boston to British Columbia.

And in each one of those cities, friends said, Mr. Arsenault always made people feel at ease. "He'll never be forgotten as long as his music is around," Mack said.

Mr. Arsenault is survived by a brother Thomas G. Arsenault of Hopedale, Mass; three sisters, Elizabeth A. Mack of Boston; Mary J. Gautier of Harrisville, N.H., and Martha R. Fraser of Burlington, Vt.; two aunts, two uncles, several nieces and nephews and many friends.

A memorial service and musical celebration of his life will be held at 7 p.m. Saturday at St. Mark's Cathedral, 1245 Tenth Ave. E., Seattle. Friends planning to attend are encouraged to bring a single flower as a tribute.

The family requests that donations be made to the Chicken Soup Brigade in Mr. Arsenault's memory and sent to the Chicken Soup Brigade, P.O. Box 20066, Seattle, WA 98102.