Understanding Italian Opera
stage? -- and shrouded in mystique. In this engaging and entertaining guide, renowned music scholar Tim Carter unravels its many layers to offer a thorough introduction to Italian opera from the seventeenth to the early twentieth centuries. Eschewing the technical musical detail that all too often dominates writing on opera, Carter begins instead where the composers themselves did: with the text. Walking readers through the relationship between music and poetry that lies at the heart of any opera, Carter then offers explorations of
five of the most enduring and emblematic Italian operas: Monteverdi's The Coronation of Poppea; Handel's Julius Caesar in Egypt; Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro; Verdi's Rigoletto; and Puccini's La Bohme. Shedding light on the creative collusions and collisions involved in bringing opera to the
stage, the various, and varying, demands of the text and music, and the nature of its musical drama, Carter also shows how Italian opera has developed over the course of music history. Complete with synopses, cast lists, and suggested further reading for each work discussed, Understanding Italian
Opera is a must-read for anyone with an interest in and love for this glorious art.
Publisher Name | Oxford University Press USA |
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Author Name | Hagendorf, Col |
Format | Audio |
Bisac Subject Major | MUS |
Language | NG |
Isbn 10 | 0190247940 |
Isbn 13 | 9780190247942 |
Target Age Group | min:NA, max:NA |
Dimensions | 00.93" H x 00.06" L x 00.00" W |
Page Count | 288 |
Tim Carter is David G. Frey Distinguished Professor of Music at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and a noted scholar of opera and musical theatre. He frequently gives pre-performance lectures and workshops on opera to a wide variety of audiences in both the US and the UK.