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A History of Opera
Why does opera continue to attract new audiences at a time when the stream of original works that was once its lifeblood has dried to a trickle? Carolyn Abbate and Roger Parker answer this question in their modern retelling of the history of opera, examining its evolution over several centuries and its continued appeal to generations of audiences. Integral to this nuanced...more
Hardcover, 576 pages
Published
November 26th 2012
by W. W. Norton & Company
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It was really great. Although I was a little let down by their diagnosis of the demise of new operas, maybe I wanted a more interesting answer than "opera is expensive and the new ones aren't as popular." They brought up some interesting issues - e.g. one composer mentioning that there's a 2 million dollar investment being placed on him but he's writing something he's never written before, and about how the tradition ended a hundred years ago so there's no guideline on how to write a modern oper...more
Early assessment. These two people are not gifted writers. They leave too much of the verbal underbrush that is common in academic writing: weak sentences that purport to convey authority. E.g. "The important thing to notice here is..."
Their ideas are interesting; it's too bad they don't have confidence in them.
Later assessment (05/16/13): I had to put this on hold because it is so freaking boring. It's not a history so much as a series of marginally insightful essays about opera arranged in mo...more
Their ideas are interesting; it's too bad they don't have confidence in them.
Later assessment (05/16/13): I had to put this on hold because it is so freaking boring. It's not a history so much as a series of marginally insightful essays about opera arranged in mo...more
May 04, 2013
Peggy Moller Darling
is currently reading it
It's my brother's book, so I need to wait until I visit in Bellmore again to make some progress on this book . . . so far, for a history book, I am surprised at how readable it is . . .
This was barely more narrative and entertaining than a textbook but it was okay for me because it wasn't musical theory heavy (I'm an opera fan but have no musical education).
I slogged through this because I paid $40 for it and I love opera but if it had been a library book I would have returned it unfinished.
I slogged through this because I paid $40 for it and I love opera but if it had been a library book I would have returned it unfinished.
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Mar 09, 2013 06:01pm