― anthony, Saturday, 8 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
― Pennysong Hanle y, Saturday, 8 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
― stevo, Sunday, 9 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
― anthony, Sunday, 9 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
― francesco, Sunday, 9 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
― Kodanshi, Sunday, 9 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
― Tadeusz Suchodolski, Sunday, 9 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
― Bill, Sunday, 9 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
― Sean, Monday, 10 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
Last opera I saw was "Rigaletto" at the Met. It was doubly cool because I'd done stuff with the BSO as a member of the chorus with two of the cast members (Rene Pape and Hei-Kyung Hong).
― Dan Perry, Monday, 10 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
― Bill, Monday, 10 September 2001 00:00 (11 years ago) Permalink
I wrote Rodgers and Hammerstein when I meant Gilbert and Sullivan. Jesus.
― gabbneb (gabbneb), Wednesday, 5 July 2006 14:54 (6 years ago) Permalink
whoa - http://gothamist.com/2007/07/12/opera_tenor_jer.php
― gabbneb, Thursday, 12 July 2007 21:25 (5 years ago) Permalink
holy shit
― HI DERE, Thursday, 12 July 2007 22:18 (5 years ago) Permalink
saw The Nose last night while suffering with a headcold and it was like exquisite torture: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5h60UYezR5wfzDkGkwxJDRZ815iMwD9E8VKHO0
Visually mindboggling, musically nearly incomprehensibly complex and varied, utterly lacking anything resembling a plot. Amongst the most spectacularly vivid things I've ever experienced and very painful; not sure if I enjoyed it exactly but it was SOMETHING
― forksclovetofu, Sunday, 7 March 2010 00:15 (3 years ago) Permalink
I was at the same show and had a somewhat similar reaction to forks.
― Ole Rastaquouère (James Redd and the Blecchs), Friday, 12 March 2010 03:33 (3 years ago) Permalink
oi, Shostakovich is a hack who outta be drawn 'n quartered for foisting "Moscow, Cheryomushki" on the world that never asked for it. 'is balls should be in a museum afterwards as a warnin!
― Sexplosion!, Friday, 12 March 2010 03:44 (3 years ago) Permalink
So I'm a lifelong opera hater in spite of, or perhaps because of growing up in an opera-loving house. Got free tix to see Traviata at the Met. Listening now to a recording - I can't say I feel strong revulsion or anything but the music seems so uninteresting compared to most classical music that I like. It sounds so simple and limited. Maybe that's just Verdi. Has anyone found themselves changing their mind about opera later in life?
― hills like white people (Hurting 2), Wednesday, 7 April 2010 03:37 (3 years ago) Permalink
i bet i could if you'd take me more often.
― forksclovetofu, Wednesday, 7 April 2010 03:46 (3 years ago) Permalink
Fun times in LA.
― Ned Raggett, Friday, 14 May 2010 18:23 (3 years ago) Permalink
― my baby's got the bans (ksh), Friday, 14 May 2010 18:27 (3 years ago) Permalink
Pink Floyd's The Ring
gotta say, this director seems like a cock
― Have a slice of wine! (HI DERE), Friday, 14 May 2010 18:30 (3 years ago) Permalink
somehow i feel like ass-backwards into loving opera
(not tons of it, but like, the magic flute, marriage of figaro, and some other stuff)
the whole genre just kinda come out of nowhere to knock me on my ass over the last year or so.
i mean i knew i would eventually get into it (and more into classical) as i got old and stuff
but it has been a revelation. wonderful.
― NUDE. MAYNE. (s1ocki), Saturday, 22 May 2010 05:49 (3 years ago) Permalink
yall can recommend me some good non-n00b stuff if you like.
right so
― delanie griffith (s1ocki), Sunday, 20 June 2010 12:51 (2 years ago) Permalink
anyone
― al-goreda (s1ocki), Monday, 19 July 2010 18:41 (2 years ago) Permalink
Bartok's Duke Bluebeard's Castle! Scary and moody and overwhelming
Beethoven's Fidelio! Beautiful and touching and it makes you cry. And it's wonderfully corny.
Don't know how you feel about baroque opera, it can take a while to get into, but almost any opera by Handel is worth taking time to enjoy. I love Ariodante, Guilio Cesare, Rinaldo, Orlando, Acis and Galatea and Partenope.
Continuing with baroque: Rameau's Les Boreades and Les Indes Galantes have great earthy music.Purcells' Dido and Aeneas is refreshing and punchy.
Monteverdi's L'Incoronazione di Poppea is to my mind ont of the top 10 operas, it's incredibly dark, and sexy and mischeivous, and all at a time when the villains were not supposed to get away with it.
You cannot pass by Boris Godunov by mussorgsy, this is the great Russian opera. The music is absolutely fabulous.
The only Verdi I've seen are Aida, Falstaff and Macbeth, and they were all wonderful (Macbeth could stand to be longer).
Real operaheads will tell you that Richard Strauss's Elektra, Salome and Der Rosenkavalier are fatastic, and I've only heard snipppets of each, but I'm sure that's right. There's a lot more Strauss to explore if you like them.
I enjoy listening to King Roger by Szymanowski, Berg's Lulu, Dvorak's Rusalka, and Jenufa by Janacek.
Any Rossini is fun. I just saw Die Meistersinger by Wagner, and it was good but, um , could have done with less philosophising imo.
― henri grenouille (Frogman Henry), Monday, 19 July 2010 21:13 (2 years ago) Permalink
thanks so much
― al-goreda (s1ocki), Monday, 19 July 2010 21:15 (2 years ago) Permalink
Suggestions I will second because I've seen them:
FidelioDido and AeneasOrlandoFalstaff <----- A++++++ suggestion
I also recommend Carmen and Die Zauberfloete (The Magic Flute).
If you want to dip your toes into more modern stuff, Porgy and Bess, Nixon in China and The Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny cover a lot of musical territory and are all excellent.
― HI DERE, Monday, 19 July 2010 22:07 (2 years ago) Permalink
i'm pretty obsessed with the magic flute these days... just watched the ingmar bergman version which is great. even used some music from it for this lil vid http://vimeo.com/13425089
― al-goreda (s1ocki), Monday, 19 July 2010 22:27 (2 years ago) Permalink
last amazing opera i saw = salome
overwhelming
― لوووووووووووووووووووول (lex pretend), Monday, 19 July 2010 22:39 (2 years ago) Permalink
i liked dr. atomic a lot?and the nose was interesting but I had a headcold and i thought i was gonna die.
― i'm gonna need a +1 so me & a friend can kick you in the balls (forksclovetofu), Monday, 19 July 2010 22:57 (2 years ago) Permalink
I'm going to the opera twice over the next few days (Magic Flute and Madame Butterfly). Never been before, I have no idea what to expect besides rich men in tuxedos and hecklers. And non-stop disco dancing.
― seandalai, Friday, 5 November 2010 22:02 (2 years ago) Permalink
Will report back.
dunno where you're located but hipsters opera too these days
― a pun based on a popular ilx meme (forksclovetofu), Friday, 5 November 2010 22:04 (2 years ago) Permalink
Both of those are awesome! The Magic Flute, depending on the production, can be really funny, and the music is just WOW.
The music in Madama Butterfly is just as WOW but... not funny. Not even a little bit.
― DJP, Friday, 5 November 2010 22:06 (2 years ago) Permalink
Will keep an eye out for hipsters - it's in Vienna btw
― seandalai, Friday, 5 November 2010 22:18 (2 years ago) Permalink
All you need:
― VanityVEVO (corey), Friday, 5 November 2010 22:24 (2 years ago) Permalink
really want to get into opera...the time is right i know it...
― LocalGarda, Thursday, 24 March 2011 13:31 (2 years ago) Permalink
Are you interested in classics, new works, or rarely performed pieces?
― ancient, but very sexy (DJP), Thursday, 24 March 2011 13:33 (2 years ago) Permalink
i think classics, in my mind i'm imagining sort of dark intense italian stuff, tho this is based on childhood memories of it being on tv.
― LocalGarda, Thursday, 24 March 2011 13:34 (2 years ago) Permalink
So like Puccini, Verdi, Rossini, Donizetti?
FYI Verdi operas tend to be like DAMN
― ancient, but very sexy (DJP), Thursday, 24 March 2011 13:39 (2 years ago) Permalink
There are some great modern stagings of The Magic Flute on DVD. Apart from the music being fantastic the opera lends itself to wacky expressionist stage sets and costumes.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mozart-Zauberflote-Magic-Flute-Royal/dp/B0000BV1JB/ref=sr_1_2?s=dvd&ie=UTF8&qid=1300973831&sr=1-2
That's my fave.
If you've got Sky Arts or access to it they broadcast modern performances of classics weekly. I know Mozart isn't the dark intense Italian stuff but I feel like Magic Flute or Don Giovanni are better intros to opera in many ways because they are so playful but still intense. If you wanna go straight to the 19th Century masters then my personal fave is Rigoletto which fulfils the dark intensity stuff v. well.
― a SB-in' artist that been in the game for a minute (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 24 March 2011 13:39 (2 years ago) Permalink
Mozart operas are fantastic, yes.
― ancient, but very sexy (DJP), Thursday, 24 March 2011 13:42 (2 years ago) Permalink
Actually "The Magic Flute" is a good starter; it's not wall-to-wall singing but when the songs start, every other one is like OMG WAU.
― ancient, but very sexy (DJP), Thursday, 24 March 2011 13:43 (2 years ago) Permalink
i do have sky arts actually...must sky plus some of these.
― LocalGarda, Thursday, 24 March 2011 13:44 (2 years ago) Permalink
Yeah, they show very good productions, spoiled me a bit for when I first went to see one live.
― a SB-in' artist that been in the game for a minute (Noodle Vague), Thursday, 24 March 2011 13:46 (2 years ago) Permalink
DVDs were made for operaI like the BBC National Orchestra of Wales' version of "Turn Of The Screw"
― Odult Ariented Rock (Ówen P.), Thursday, 24 March 2011 14:32 (2 years ago) Permalink
― I HAVE NO HOOS and i must steen (James Redd and the Blecchs), Saturday, 9 April 2011 02:38 (2 years ago) Permalink
any recs for opera on dvd? i feel an obsession coming on
― badtz-maruizm (donna rouge), Thursday, 16 June 2011 17:33 (2 years ago) Permalink
Bergman's version of the Magic Flute is the best opera movie I have seen. It's done in that style like The Boyfriend or Olivier's Henry V where it is set in a theatre with an audience etc and the action apparently takes place onstage. Lots of cool and traditional theatrical effects are employed and some of the songs are performed as close-ups on the singers faces which works really well. The Magic Flute is one of the most enjoyable operas and this is a stylish and fun movie.
― everything, Thursday, 16 June 2011 19:16 (2 years ago) Permalink
I don't know if it's going to be released on DVD but PBS recently broadcast the Met production of "Nixon In China" from this past February and it is fucking great.
I need to go back and see which Mahagonny DVD is the one I picked up; I know it's a German production and in the whore scene they wheel out a table with naked women on it.
― chupacabra - a delicious burrito (DJP), Thursday, 16 June 2011 19:23 (2 years ago) Permalink
Another one that I like, though it is stictly speaking an operetta, is a version of Ruddigore from the 80s with Vincent Price as Sir Despard. This is not a stylish movie and the whole thing is laughably cheap. Kinda feels like one of those productions that was made just so there is a filmed version of the opera to put in libraries around the world. However the performances are wicked, especially the woman playing Mad Margaret who is a riot. This whole thing is on youtube.
― everything, Thursday, 16 June 2011 19:23 (2 years ago) Permalink
does the met typically release all of its productions on dvd or just some of them? i missed the new production of 'rheingold'
― badtz-maruizm (donna rouge), Thursday, 16 June 2011 19:38 (2 years ago) Permalink
Ruddigore appeared in crossword the other day, did not know of its existence until them. Don't know Nixon In China but did enjoy Dr. Atomic so would check it out.
― James & Bobby Quantify (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 16 June 2011 19:42 (2 years ago) Permalink
I have a strong bias towards NiC because it was my first professional opera chorus gig but it really is a great, great piece of work, plus the dude who was the original Nixon was in it.
― chupacabra - a delicious burrito (DJP), Thursday, 16 June 2011 19:48 (2 years ago) Permalink
wow, you'd think after 15+ years the corpse would be a little smelly
― badtz-maruizm (donna rouge), Thursday, 16 June 2011 19:52 (2 years ago) Permalink
(sorry)
― badtz-maruizm (donna rouge), Thursday, 16 June 2011 19:53 (2 years ago) Permalink
You got to sing with Rich Little? That's your most impressive collabo yet!
― James & Bobby Quantify (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 16 June 2011 19:53 (2 years ago) Permalink
haha
there is one stretch where dude (James Maddalena, btw) SERIOUSLY falls out of voice, which is understandable considering it happened after his 10-minute aria but aside from that it was great; I have the biggest artistic crush on the concept/performance of Mao's secretaries
― chupacabra - a delicious burrito (DJP), Thursday, 16 June 2011 19:55 (2 years ago) Permalink
also the writing for Madame Mao is vituperative coleratura soprano with something like 12 high Cs in the aria, it's fucking nuts
click here to hear Kathleen Kim tear this song UP in the Met production; didn't direct link in case anyone wanted to be all "NO SPOILERS" about it
― chupacabra - a delicious burrito (DJP), Thursday, 16 June 2011 20:01 (2 years ago) Permalink
Will click on that later, thanks. Saw Kathleen Kim play the doll in the Tales of Hoffmann and that was pretty great.
― James & Bobby Quantify (James Redd and the Blecchs), Thursday, 16 June 2011 20:11 (2 years ago) Permalink
Search: Les Arts Florissants for baroque opera, partic. Rameau's Les Indes Galantes
― corey, Friday, 17 June 2011 02:07 (2 years ago) Permalink
omg, okay, i'm like ready to DIVE IN. i've been listening to Cosi fan tutte and Die Zauberflotte and a few other things, i know some Verdi and i'm pretty well-versed in most contemporary stuff. all i want to do is listen to opera and metalcore right now, it's really weird.
― bitch u ain't british (the table is the table), Wednesday, 22 June 2011 00:34 (1 year ago) Permalink
I've got Das Rheingold queued up for this weekend.
― corey, Wednesday, 22 June 2011 00:35 (1 year ago) Permalink
and seriously listen to Berg's Wozzeck. It plays out a lot like an Expressionist film from the 20s or 30s set in music.
― corey, Wednesday, 22 June 2011 00:38 (1 year ago) Permalink
oooh ok on the list. merci beaucoup, mon ami
― bitch u ain't british (the table is the table), Wednesday, 22 June 2011 00:41 (1 year ago) Permalink
Just listened to Das Rheingold (Levine, Met Opera) all the way through, reading along in the libretto — found it a lot easier going than I thought and not at all tedious. The instrumental segues give it a feeling of seamlessness and the story is fun — I imagined a sort of JRPG setting, probably influenced by playing the Golden Sun games over the past few weeks. Moar Wagner!
― corey, Saturday, 25 June 2011 02:26 (1 year ago) Permalink
the met's 11-12 season is coming up! i'll be going to some (probably not all) of the live in HD perfs out here - really looking forward to the wagners, the verdis, gounod's faust, and the baroque fantasia:
http://www.metoperafamily.org/metopera/liveinhd/LiveinHD.aspx
― the *facepalm* at the trend of the hivemind (donna rouge), Monday, 19 September 2011 22:41 (1 year ago) Permalink
^^hah, how ambitious of me - i only went to one of those screenings :(
gonna make a more concerted effort this year tho - v excited for donizetti's 'l'elisir d'amore' because NETREBKO - but waking up early on saturdays for the opera is tough esp. if i have no one to go with
― these wilburys taste like wilburys (donna rouge), Tuesday, 2 October 2012 16:38 (8 months ago) Permalink
man I would wake up very, very early to go see netrebko do l'elisir d'amore
― too many encores (underrated aerosmith bootlegs I have owned), Friday, 28 December 2012 19:19 (5 months ago) Permalink
had to pass up free tix to Les Troyens at the Met last week because mother-in-law was about to arrive >:[
― ~farben~ (Jon Lewis), Friday, 28 December 2012 19:45 (5 months ago) Permalink
~farben~
i assume this is a schoenberg ref, if so <3
― nevaeh for evaeh (clouds), Friday, 28 December 2012 20:18 (5 months ago) Permalink
― ~farben~ (Jon Lewis), Friday, 28 December 2012 15:45 (33 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink
the dawn of a new genre of super high-brow mother-in law jokes
― kristof-profiting-from-a-childs-illiteracy.html (schlump), Friday, 28 December 2012 20:33 (5 months ago) Permalink
xpost yes, yes it is
― ~farben~ (Jon Lewis), Friday, 28 December 2012 20:43 (5 months ago) Permalink
i did this and it ruled
― curly moe shempsen (donna rouge), Friday, 28 December 2012 20:48 (5 months ago) Permalink
since then i've gone to one other screening, mozart's 'la clemenza di tito'. wasn't crazy about the lead tenor but i enjoyed the production otherwise, beautiful set design and loved the villainess
― curly moe shempsen (donna rouge), Friday, 28 December 2012 20:50 (5 months ago) Permalink
Oh I wanted to see that, compare it to the production I did
― GIMME SOME REGGAE (DJP), Friday, 28 December 2012 21:28 (5 months ago) Permalink
some of those arias were doozies!
― curly moe shempsen (donna rouge), Friday, 28 December 2012 21:36 (5 months ago) Permalink
Yeah they are, that tenor aria in the second act is like woah but I think that Sesto aria is the most ridiculous thing in the whole show
― GIMME SOME REGGAE (DJP), Friday, 28 December 2012 21:41 (5 months ago) Permalink
i was listening to this opera trivia thing this morning and there was this quote they had "my dear, i've found that in real life there is little to be excited about, outside of books"
anyone know where this is from? google is being worthless
― k3vin k., Tuesday, 9 April 2013 03:12 (2 months ago) Permalink
quote may not be exact but it is close
― k3vin k., Tuesday, 9 April 2013 03:13 (2 months ago) Permalink
(it's eugene onegin)
― k3vin k., Wednesday, 10 April 2013 21:36 (2 months ago) Permalink
which i believe is kicking off the met's 2013-14 season, and which will have netrebko and mariusz kwiecien in it, and which means i'm just gonna go ahead and die
― the bagel is the bagel (donna rouge), Wednesday, 10 April 2013 21:38 (2 months ago) Permalink
Just sent in my ticket order
― What About The Half That's Never Been POLLed (James Redd and the Blecchs), Wednesday, 10 April 2013 21:47 (2 months ago) Permalink
Please take this parody in the loving spirit in which it was presumably intended
― Blue Yodel No. 9 Dream (James Redd and the Blecchs), Sunday, 5 May 2013 16:00 (1 month ago) Permalink