Posted on 01/09/2012 4:55:07 AM PST by jimbo123
It may be curtains for the New York City Opera.
The broke opera company, which is entangled in a bitter contract dispute with two unions, says it plans to lock out its musicians today, throwing the future of the company into doubt.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
You wouldn’t want a singer of Art music to improvise any more than you would want an actor in a production of Shakespeare or a pianist playing a Beethoven piano sonata to do so. The idea that someone like Kristen Flagstad wasn’t expressive is absurd on its face.
Yeah right!
They get paid an awful lot to play/sing it “just like the record”
There is no room for “expression” They’re just like those “artists” that will do specific custom paintings in colors that match your interior decor.
IE: they’re professional copycats...or similar to various brands of player pianos. (Oooh, that Yamaha is sooo expressive)
A buff could tell a one operatic performer’s interpretation from another’s instantly. Not to mention a good performer from a bad one.
In a field of restored black 1937 Packards, a connoisseur could rate the quality of the paint jobs. But at the end of the day, they're all still black 1937 Packards.
But back to the topic at hand, and all seriousness aside, Shirley they must have open-mic Opera jams at your local pub on Sundays.
Except that black 1937 Packards were all made the same way. Opera has an immense amount of variety. The invention of Opera some four centuries ago is the single most important event in the history of Western music. Most everything else stemmed from it.
I saw a football game once, no need to ever see another one. Same for any other ball sport.
The invention of Opera some four centuries ago is the single most important event in the history of Western music.
European maybe. Although I have European roots, I'm an American, partial to American culture. American music formats spring from Irish, French and African roots.
American music: Blues, Rock and Roll, Rock, Country, Bluegrass, Jazz...are America's largest export commodity. Opera, well...not so much.
That’s like saying I saw a play once and have no need to see another one. Or read one novel and...
I meant in Western music. Serious music. And even in popular idioms...the idea of a single voice with harmonic accompaniment - something that is the basis of popular music, - can be traced back to opera.
Nope, plays, novels, paintings, movies, sculpture, classical music, modern music...tons of variables.
Opera...just annoying warbling and tiresome repetition of redundant vocal exercises do re mi fa sol fa mi re do...Ha ha ha ha ha ah ah ah aaaaaaaa! (glass breaking)
The only opera I ever liked was "Tommy".
Spoken like someone who just hasn’t heard many and is going by the pop culture stereotypes. Opera IS Classical music. One of its foundations actually.
Exactly, proud of it, and intend to keep it that way. I also hate all cities, and I've seen plenty of them.
Oh and btw Tommy isn’t opera. Not remotely. Hell, even ‘Porgy and Bess’ is a borderline case.
I know, that's probably why I liked it.
But it was called "The Rock Opera Tommy"
Part of the long standing tradition of pop music figures with Art music pretensions. ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ ain’t opera either for what it’s worth.
I know. I liked some of that too, but also thought it was partly sacrilegious.
If it’s any consolation, I’m not very mainstream. I like almost any food, but have a general disdain for most super-popular entertainment, TV, Hollywood, sports, top-40 etc. Not too crazy about pickups either.
Opera has its own spectrum ranging from populist to completely arcane and inaccessible.
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