Music - Classical, French Opera, Opera - General & Miscellaneous, Post-Romantic Classical Music - General & Miscellaneous
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Overview
Readers of this entertaining guide to opera by Roger Englander will be hooked by the first chapter, which summarizes the plots of fifty popular operas in outrageous, yet accurate, tabloid headlines. Englander introduces opera's great composers and performers; traces the history of opera from its origins in Renaissance Florence through present-day musical theater; and uses an in-depth study of Bizet's Carmen to demonstrate how an opera evolves. Throughout, his personal asides and observations dispel the mystique of opera and make this grand and complex art accessible to all.Editorials
Children's Literature -
Packaged with a full-length compact disc featuring the incomparable Maria Callas as Carmen, this book is a light-hearted look at an artform that many neophytes consider dreadfully devoid of humor. After an unfortunately self-aggrandizing foreword, the author launches into a discourse about the creation of an opera, discussing both the librettists and the composers, followed by sections reviewing the "interpreters" (i.e., the singers, conductors and stage directors). Finally, the audience and critics are given a nod. Details and examples taken from the production of Carmen follow each chapter. A glossary, several appendices and a discography also are included. Especially appreciated are the author's synopses of opera plots as tabloid headlines (e.g., Madama Butterfly becomes "Jilted in Arranged Marriage; Wife Destroys Self). Not only does the book serves as an excellent introduction, but it also contains items that will be of interest to seasoned opera lovers. 1994 (orig.Book Details
Published
February 1, 1983
Publisher
Walker & Company
Pages
192
Format
Hardcover
ISBN
9780802764911