Opera Anyone?
 

Inspired by the who should say Buh-bye thread....


Who besides me actually listens to Opera???

What's your favorite.....
Opera?
Composor?
Aria?
Singer?
CD?
Thing about Opera?


What's your least favorite...
Opera?
Composer?
Aria?
Singer?
CD?
Thing about opera?

PS....NO FLAMES ABOUT HOW OPERA SUCKS...blah, blah, especially if you've never even been to an opera.

Mine are...

Favorites....
The Magic Flute
Mozart
Aria I can't sing....Der Holler Roche (Queen of the Night)
Aria I can sing.....Vedrai Carino (Zerlina, Don Giovanni)
Duet(sorry, thought of another one)...La ci daraem la mano (Don Giovanni)
Cecelia Bartoli
The Art of Cecelia Bartoli
The humor that you only get from studying the languages


Least Favorites....
Cosi Fan Tutti...but I think that's only because I saw the Baz Luhrman(sp?) interp of it
Purcell...sorry buddy, but after awhile, all your stuff sonds the same
Caro Mio Ben...you can only hear it so many times before you want to puke
Pavarotti...dude, you're time's up
"Opera for People Who Don't Like Opera" collections
I hate how all the collection/various CD's all have the same freakin songs on them...(Un Bel Di, Der Holler Roche, O mio babbino (NOT bambino as I've seen on some albums) caro, Mi chiamo Mimi, Nessun Dorma, Dalla su pace...etc...)

Favorites....
Cosi Fan Tutte, The Old Maid and the Thief, Turandot, La Boheme
Mozart
Nessun Dorma; Mon couer, s'ouvre a ta voix
Rene Fleming, Ronan Tynan
don't have a favorite CD
The humor that you only get from studying the languages and the realization that people back then weren't so prudish. The sexual innuendos are incredible!


Least Favorites....
I don't have any least favorites, although I can't stand the personalities of most opera singers I know. The drama and whining got to me. And I'm not a huge Wagner fan, either.

This is really an interesting thread!

Not big into opera, I have seen one opera so far. It was Turandot, and we missed the ending of it because it was raining and they decided to stop it towards the end (since it was on the open amphiteater in Verona). Missed the key word of the show.

I have heard good things about Aida, so I want to see it sometime. Is there any good opera house in Atlanta?

I like the bull fighter song

and then that other one they always play

I generally like ANY Mozart opera -- The Handel ones are decent too because they're in English (kind of boring librettos though). Occasionally, I'd play in a pit orchestra, so I've been to a few (although the view from down there sucks).

Rossini and is good. I've also wanted to go see Fidelio (Beethoven's only opera). Bizet is also good.

Favorite arias...
Definitely the "Queen of the Night" aria from that Mozart piece (I must have played the 2nd violin part to it 1thousand times) -- it was a favorite for vocal majors trying out for the solo contest. I think we had someone sing it at least every other year.

"Figaro" from The Marriage of Figaro -- I know the words (no idea what they mean).

And when we did Handel's Sampson, there was a choral piece about "Bright Seraphims" that one was nice.

One thing about operas -- I love the prelude music (especially in Mozart). Great stuff -- and engaging for string players unlike some operas.

Okay, I need some help...my mom has never been to the opera, and she is really jealous that I am going today, so I want to take her for either hannuka or her birthday. Which is the best out of these options (and remember, she is new to opera):

Fidelio
A Wedding
Aida
Cunning Little Vixen
Tosca
Anything in Wagners Ring (but I am seeing Das Rheingold today)

My first opera ever was Albert Herring, and it was just okay, IMO, and then I saw Carmen and was BLOWN AWAY. I expect Das Rheingold to do the same.

Any advice?

Carmen :)

Start with something English....or if it is forgien, get her a DETAILED summary (I know, it sucks knowing what's going to happen in the end, but if not, you're not going to know what's going on when you get there)

ETA: Check with local universities also, to see if they're offering anything...I just performed The Magic Flute in English last semester at Western Illinois University, and if you're willing to drive, I know they're doing Candid next Spring...and college is a little easier to watch then professional.

Re: Opera Anyone?
 

What's your favorite.....
Opera?
Suor Angelica. La Boheme, Gianni Schicchi, Die Fledermous and Il Pagliacci probably come in close after. And I love Humperdink's Hansel und Gretel.
Composor?
Puccini. Call me crazy, but I love Wagner, too.
Aria?
"Senza Mamma (o bimbo, tu sai morto)" from Suor Angelica (see the pattern developing?)
Singer?
Kiri Te Kanawa
CD?
Don't think I could pick that. Maybe Florence Foster Jenkins' "The Glory of the Human Voice?" or "The Anna Russell Album." (Major kudos to anyone who knows these two masterworks.)
Thing about Opera?
How music, lyric, and drama (or comedy) can combine to tell a compelling story.

What's your least favorite...
Opera?
Probably Cosi Fan Tutte.
Composer?
I know that this will sound like heresy, but I really don't care for Mozart operas (except for Die Zauberfloete, which I really, really like). Never been big on Verdi either. Weird, I admit.
Aria?
Not really an aria, but the "Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves" from Nabucco.
Singer?
Weird again, I know, but there's something about Pavarotti's voice that I've never really liked.
CD?
Can't say I have a least favorite.
Thing about opera?
When an opera drags, it really drags.

I like anything by Wagner. One of these days I will see a live performance of all four operas of the Ring Cycle in one sitting. I'm currently playing the Magic Flute overture in woodwind quintet, and I've played several other Mozart overtures in orchestra and wind ensemble. Those are really fun to play. :)

I'd be all over Fidelio just because anything Beethoven is good :D

Never seen it or heard it, but you just can't go wrong with Beethoven.

Hee. I read this, and Les Miserables & Rent popped into my head b/c my brother & I were talking about them this weekend.... He saw Les Mis on Saturday and commented on how much he enjoyed it-I told him I was shocked b/c he had always told me he hated opera music...hehehe. Imagine his surprise when he found out Les Mis is an opera.

As for the traditional operas, too many to list. I love La Boheme, dislike Amahl and the Night Vistors ("this is my box. this is my box. I never travel without my box.")

Ms. MysticCat and I are always sing-quoting that bit, whenever the subject of Amahl or of a box comes up.

I have to admit I like Amahl, and between being in English and being a one-act, I think it's a great introduction to opera, especially for kids since the main character is a kid. I think I'm taking the 7-year old to see it next month.

Speaking of Rent and Les Miz, I have a recording of West Side Story with Kiri Te Kanawa as Maria, Jose Carreras as Tony, Tatiana Troyanos as Anita and Marilyn Horne singing "Somewhere." Before anyone thinks "how bizarre," I should also note that Bernstein both conducts and cast the album -- so far as I know, it is the only recording of all of the music from WSS. Bernstein always saw WSS as more of an opera than a musical, and he did this recording to get the sound he always wanted. If you get past Carreras's noble but unsuccessful attempt to sound like an American, his "Maria" is fantastic -- a wonderful sustained high note toward the end that is the way Bernstein wrote it but that no one on Broadway or the movie had been able to do.

When I saw the thread title, I immediately thought of the Opera web browser until I realized it was in the entertainment forum. I've been a web designer too long. :p

I've been to a few operas. Can't really say I have favorites or least-favorites, though; opera isn't really my thing.

I'm not a big Three Tenors fan, though. My folks have a CD from them where they take turns singing, and it's patently obvious they are simply trying to outdo each other. :rolleyes:

Good point. I guess I dislike it b/c we did it when I was undergrad (yeah 15 years ago), and our director just beat us down (and the girl who was playing Amahl had a voice that just GRATED on my nerves, so that's what I think of...). I'll try to be more open minded about it next time it comes up, and take my 7 & 9 year olds to see it....

A girl played Amahl? :( Hate to say it, but that probably would have grated on my nerves too.

OMG!!! I'm tickled pink that you started this thread! :) I've been singing opera for the past three years now. I'm a lyric soprano, and we've just revitalized the historical Opera/South Company housed at Jackson State University here in Jackson, MS. Our last production was Mozart's The Magic Flute. I could go on and on, but my favorites are ...

La Boheme
Carmen
The Magic Flute
The Nozze di Figaro
Cosi fan tutte
Die Fledermaus
Lucia di Lammermoor
The Barber of Seville
Gianni Schicci
I Pagliacci
Lakme

... and I'm sure others will form as soon as I submit this reply. :p It's so refreshing to know my greek friends have so much class. ~sigh~

I love the Magic Flute as well...I'm singing the Pamina/Papageno duet (The Man That Feels Love's Sweet Devotion) for a wedding in August...although we're altering it slightly. (Example: Instead of "Rise to join the gods above" we're singing "Rise to join with God above".)

That is so cool. Mozart is my favorite composer in the world and I love all of his operas, ... except for Don Giovanni. I'm still trying to get that one to grow on me a little. His operas are great for younger voices. His music was so playful, but still difficult at times as well. It's so awesome that I found this thread. :D

Thanks to my family having season tickets, I've been to over 40 operas. I love Carmen, Turandot (Nessun Dorma is so beautiful), Tosca, Rigoletto, F_a_u_s_t (for some reason, it's coming up as a 'dirty word') and Don Giovanni (so dramatic!)

opera's not my all-time favorite, but i don't mind some of it

i've seen carmen in england
and i saw a french opera that i can't remember the name of
when i was lucky enough to go to the absolutely AMAZING paris opera house.. i loved it. it's a beautiful place

I am a subscriber to the Lyric of Chicago. I think Turandot was my favorite last season, and this season I am really looking forward to La Boheme.

Has anyone seen Doctor Atomic? I have tix for that this year, and I suspect I will either love it or hate it.

Why do 3/4 of Opera aria compilation CDs start with "O mio babbino caro"?

Seriously, I know it's a common song and good for beginners (in my studio you started with that or "Caro mio ben")...but really, who needs 8 recordings of it?? I think my favorite is the one that has it labeled "O mio bambino caro". She's singing to her father about a boy she wants to be with, not to a baby.:p

Oh, and Pavoratti, I'm on to you with your Opera collection. Does every disc NEED "Nessun Dorma"??? Yes, it's a pretty song, and you sing it OK, but once again, I don't need 8 recordings of it...especially when all of them are of YOU.:rolleyes:;)

I went inside that Opera House too....amazing. (and in true French style, there was a student-protest going on about something..)

Was it "The Pearl Fishers" by Georges Bizet or maybe "*****" by Gounod? I've seen both, but don't really remember them.

The first opera I saw live was the Barber of Seville, when I was doing my study abroad in the UK. I also saw Baz Luhrmann's production of La boheme in 2003.

I do agree that Caro mio ben is over sung by beginning voice students. As is Nel cor piu non mi sento (gosh, I hope I spelled that right).

You did.:D

I would have loved to see a Baz Luhrman production. I saw one on video he did of Cosi with the girls as valley girls (Dorabella and Fiordiligi) and the boys (Guglielmo and Ferrando) as surfer boys and it was set in a 50's diner. Great stuff...

as a musician (instrumentalist) i am ashamed to admit this, but i only KNOW 2 operas off the top of my head. :o
Barber of Seville, and La Bohème

I am seriously considering subscribing to the Washington National Opera this season (they have a young people club thingy)... but my schedule is crazy so we'll see.

does anyone have any suggestions for operas to start kids off with?

i rented Phantom when it came out, and my 6 year old loves it with a passion. so much, that i had to buy the dvd, the poster, the soundtrack, and relive scenes of it in the car with her lol! i would prefer something in english so that she doesnt slaughter the words while shes singing it...

The Mikado (or any Gilbert & Sullivan, really) - it's really an Operetta, but it's still that direction...
The Old Maid and the Thief
The Magic Flute (many, MANY companies perform this in English)

Also, if you are lucky enough to find a company doing this...Alice in Operaland is an opera based on (duh) Alice in Wonderland and is designed to introduce kids to opera.

My first opera/operetta was Pirates of Penzance, when I was about 8 or 9. Loved it.

My suggestions are usually performed at Christmas, one for obvious reasons. I think Amahl and the Night Visitors is a great first opera for kids. I took my son when he was in first grade, and I hope to take my first grade daughter this year. It's in English, it's one act and the lead is a child. Plus, it's a great Christmas story, complete with the 3 kings.

Hansel and Gretel is another good one for kids -- I got a "highlights" recording of it for my 6th birthday (I had a "come dressed as your favorite story-book character" party and I was Hansel and had a gingerbread house cake), and I played it into the ground. Got one for my kids a few years back.

Opera
 

I absolutely love Opera and attend at least two performances each year. I am a fan of Verdi (Aida, Falstaff, Rigoletto, A Masked Ball) but tend to lean towards newer productions.

I saw Margaret Garner and it was incredible! I also like Porgy & Bess (when it is done properly).

Children will enjoy Hansel and Gretel and Cinderella. A good opera company will also provide quality educational activities geared toward children as well.

Holy thread bump!

I saw Lohengrin last night at the Lyric, and really enjoyed all five f*cking hours of it. I saw Das Rheingold a few years ago, and loved it, but then shied away from Wagner because pretty much everything else he did is in excess of four hours, and he's not exactly one for really stand-out arias. I may be a convert now, but I still don't think I'll be sitting through the ring cycle any time soon.

~bump~ :D

I hope it doesn't appear that I'm using GreekChat to promote my own accomplishments, but I just thought I'd share. I don't know how much longer I'll be singing this opera stuff, so I decided I'd better at least try to promote the little bit I've recorded.

I hope you guys enjoy ...

http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/sheilalramseysoprano

What's your favorite.....
Opera? Don Giovanni by W.A. Mozart, because there's only one tenor
Composer? I don't really have a favorite; I generally really enjoy opera
Aria? "Smanie implacabili" from Cosi fan tutte. I love singing the song and acting kinda crazy, even if I don't like the character
Singer? Renee Fleming, Mariusz Kwiecien (sang the role of Don Giovanni in the Met in HD production)
CD? I don't have any opera CD's besides a CD version of a really old Carmen recording
Thing about Opera? You can manipulate so many things about the music to convey different emotions and thoughts.


What's your least favorite...
Opera? Wozzeck or I Pagliacci, but only because they both creep me out.
Composer? Don't have one off the top of my head
Aria? Don't have one off the top of my head
Singer? Don't have one yet, and hope to never have one.
CD? My Carmen CD. The recording quality is weird, and the Carmen sounds about 60 years old.
Thing about opera? How someone always needs to die half the time (in tragic opera) :p

Florence Foster Jenkins is the greatest singer who ever lived. I kid, of course, but you have to admire her commitment to her, um, art.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtf2Q4yyuJ0

The overture
http://http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?...%3D6ZPF5mPIpXU