Opera singer remembered as ultimate professional

Archie Drake knew that the show must go on, so the beloved Seattle Opera bass-baritone waited until a few hours after the last curtain of Verdi's "Macbeth" before suffering the massive heart attack that led to his death four days later, on Wednesday. He was 81.

A consummate professional, Mr. Drake sang more than 2,000 performances with Seattle Opera, in 109 different roles, since his debut here in 1968.

"Archie Drake stood for all that is best in the opera or the theater," said Seattle Opera general director Speight Jenkins. "He was always prepared; he never performed at less than 100-plus percent."

If any performer were capable of postponing a heart attack, it was Mr. Drake. He lived by the code of discipline and professionalism at Seattle Opera, where he made most of his career and was a beloved figure among audiences and colleagues alike.

Mr. Drake also sang with such other companies as the San Francisco Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Arizona Opera and Portland Opera. He performed as well as a guest artist alongside youngsters in the Seattle Opera Young Artists Program, passing to them the fruits of his long experience.

In a note to Seattle Opera staffers Wednesday evening, company administrative director Kelly Tweeddale called Mr. Drake "the heart and soul of what Seattle Opera is all about. His career encompassed the Wagner repertoire and everything in between. He had a fierce dedication to his art ... and will be remembered for his wry wit and warm heart.

"Those of us who heard him sing at the closing night's performance of Macbeth on Saturday night can attest that his voice never sounded stronger, and he made the most of every note he sang."

Most singers end their careers long before 81, but Mr. Drake was an exception to nearly every rule he encountered. A distinguished bass-baritone who started out on the high seas, not the high C's, Mr. Drake was a born in England as a descendant of the seafaring family whose most famous member was Sir Francis Drake.

As a 15-year-old, Mr. Drake left his home in Great Yarmouth to follow the family tradition at sea. He served in World War II as a deckhand in the merchant navy. After attending the nautical academy in Newcastle, he joined a shipping line and was working on shore when he joined a choir in Vancouver, B.C.

Urged by friends to take up serious vocal study, Mr. Drake worked with the renowned singer/teacher Lotte Lehmann at the Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, Calif. He won a coveted spot in the Roger Wagner Chorale, and traveled around the world on cultural exchanges for the U.S. State Department, singing in more than 500 performances.

In 1968, after Mr. Drake's debut at San Francisco Opera, Seattle Opera founder Glynn Ross offered him a job in Seattle. In a 2001 interview with Seattle Opera's Jonathan Dean, Mr. Drake recalled: "Glynn said, 'I can pay you so much, I know it ain't a lot, but it's year-round and I can give you health coverage.' So I thought about it, and I thought, 'This sounds like it might turn into something.' "

Mr. Drake believed opera was all about the art of communication. "For me, opera is basically an exploration of the human spirit, and it can take you further into emotions and feelings and concepts and understandings and divining than any other way," he once said.

"I talk to children about this, in schools. They'd say, 'Why sing?' and I'd say, 'Did you ever get so mad at somebody that you couldn't even talk?' and they all said, 'Yeah, I did.'

"I said, 'All right, next time, sing to 'em!' Because you can get more expression into singing than all the talking in the world."

He gave small roles the same attention as starring parts.

On the Seattle Opera stage, Mr. Drake appeared as a Japanese prince, a Mandarin prince, a Russian prince, an Egyptian priest, a Mexican captain, a Bohemian artist, a flying Dutchman, the king of the gods (Wotan) and the devil (Mephistopheles), among many other roles. During several seasons, he sang in every Seattle Opera production. In his final performance in "Macbeth," he was the doctor.

Busy to the end, he was booked for the role of the Notary in an upcoming production of Strauss' "Der Rosenkavalier" this August.

Through it all, he was an ideal colleague, Jenkins said.

"In the second intermission of his last performance, he said to me, 'Good show. Everyone is at his best.' I have never known a man for whom I had more respect than Archie Drake. His work, his life, his whole being was concerned with giving."

Mr. Drake is survived by nephews Robin Adams, Douglas "Barney" Adams, Brian Adams and Chris Adams, and by niece Lorraine Saunders, all of the United Kingdom.

Seattle Opera is planning a memorial event in Mr. Drake's honor, tentatively scheduled for late June, with details to be announced later.

Melinda Bargreen: 206-464-2321 or mbargreen@seattletimes.com.