Anyone else like opera?
#183566 - 06/04/05 08:42 PM
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Linz
Reged: 09/01/03
Posts: 8242
Loc: England
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I love opera but had never before been to see an actual performance, but this evening I went to an open air performance of 'La Traviata' and it was so, so wonderful. It was freezing, but I adored it.
I had to go on my own as I married a Philistine, my best friend's in the middle of exams and my Mum's away sailing. EVERYONE else was there in groups (think 3 generations of families)...but I did get to arrive late and then find space right at the front. 
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Linz,
I love opera. It is so special to see an opera in person. I can't even describe the feeling of being there and seeing someone sing with such powerful, beautiful voices. I think even people who don't like to listen to opera are moved seeing it in person. That is why they always show first timers going to the opera in movies and they are usually brought to tears. It is a very moving experience.
Glad you had a good time and sorry you had to go by yourself.
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Janey
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I've enjoyed the opera that I've seen, that being said, I've only been to two of them, Mozart's Don Giovanni and Donnizetti's Lucia de Lammermoor. The former was a student production at Dalhousie, while the latter was at the Lyric Opera in Chicago, which was very cool. Then again, I've studied classical music since I was 8, taught for a number of years, and though I have a wide range of music on CDs, the majority is classical, so I'm probably not the 'typical guy' when it comes to this stuff. I would probably have gone to more, but being a student, it's one of the more expensive forms of entertainment.
I think the problem with opera, for those that don't just 'get it' right away, is that it's one of those forms that, in a way, has to be learned to be appreciated. If you're not used to the classical genre in general, it might be difficult to get through. I think the main reason is that contemporary music has left us a little ADD when it comes to listening to a particular piece - we want the instant gratification of the catchy chorus, not a 10 minute exposition of the interesting things that can be done to a particular theme.
Though obviously not as difficult as a symphony, for instance, opera still demands on us an attention span longer than some people might be used to giving. Add to that the fact that the whole thing would be an alien experience to most people, and the typical image of opera is the Aryan soprano with the horned helmet singing for hours in a foreign language, I suppose it's not surprising that people tend to shy away from it.
However, I think they're missing out. 
- Vincent
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...they had on an electronic screen. 5 minutes of people singing "Let's get drunk" as the most beautiful music! 
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I've been to the opera twice (if you include the 4th grade field trip) and enjoyed it.
I remember two things about the 4th grade trip: I was the only kid who didn't fall asleep and we rode back on the bus singing the McDonald's jingle at time.
A couple years ago, I saw M. Butterfly here in town. Wonderful!
Carmina Burana is coming later this year. Don't know if my husband will want to go, but I'm so there!
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Carmina Burana
#183922 - 06/06/05 09:39 AM
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jrs
Reged: 03/31/03
Posts: 317
Loc: Aberystwyth, Wales
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I was just going to say that I saw Carmina Burana at Ravinia last year, and it was pretty fantastic. I've had the music for years but seeing it live is another thing altogether. About your husband -- just let him know that it's not an 'opera' but a 'cantata,' and maybe it will help his decision.
- Vincent
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You do know the history of the texts, right? They're a bunch of authentic midieval love poems (some more racy than others), and about tavern life, eating, drinking and being merry. That's what you get when you have an honours degree in Music. Useless little details.
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Formerly HanSolo. IBS, OCD, Bipolar, PTSD times 3.
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Yeah, I know a bit of its history.
As for useless details, I know all about those! I have a MS in coffee table books. Okay, the diploma says historic preservation, but I've used "coffee table books" as sources before.
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Wow - I have always wondered about the text. It always sounded like German and then Latin (or was it the other way 'round?). I just never thought to look it up. Is it in fact two languages or am I hallucinating?
sperry_twiggins
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Yes, parts of it are in both German and Latin. The lyrics for the entire thing can be found here.
The other interesting piece of info about Carmina Burana is that it's probably the most famous piece of music composed during the Third Reich. Although eventually hailed as a work of German genius, there were some critics who saw it as 'degenerate ,' meaning that it did not meet the heroic ends that the German National Socialists thought were the requirement for good art. As far as I know though, Orff himself was not a Nazi, so unlike Wagner, who was a professed anti-Semite, his music is played without controversy in Israel.
- Vincent
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