On my way home from today’s seminar class I had to turn off the radio in the car because nothing on Z100 or Fresh FM could compete to the music which I had just spent that last hour and forty minutes listening to. Today in seminar, we listened to opera.

When I was five years old, my aunt gave me a VHS tape of the movie version of Rigoletto (1993) and it soon became one of my favorite movies to watch. Although this version was not entirely set to music and the libretto was in English, this was my first introduction to opera and ever since that time this particular form of music has reminded me of my childhood. Despite this early introduction to opera, I soon became more interested with the world of musical theater, which I suppose isn’t too far out of the realm of opera.  However, today I was excited to get reacquainted with the opera and listen to Pavarotti perform Nessun Dorma. I had heard Nessun Dorma performed many times before today’s class yet each time I hear it lifts me out of my skin. The notes soar with the music in a way that captivates me like no other form of music does.

In addition to listening to clips from famous operas we also discussed some of the technical aspects of opera.  I found this part of the class particularly interesting, because although I was fond of opera I never thought too much about the technique that went into such things as writing the libretto of an opera.  A librettist must convey the plot, allow the performer to show off their vocal skills, provide the listener a pleasant melody while also making sure that the text is not too difficult for the singer to say while holding high notes.  In addition to the difficult work of a librettist, I also found the various voice parts interesting. I was aware of the three male registers, (tenor, baritone and bass) and I was aware of (contralto, mezzo soprano, and soprano) yet I was unaware of the many different levels of the female vocal range.

After today’s class I am excited to attend my first opera this coming Wednesday.

~Naomi~

Today in Seminar we examined and analyzed various different operas, opera voices, composers, and opera performers.  I was intrigued to see the different opera scenes performed, and without a doubt, the three performances we saw of Luciano Pavarotti were incredible.  Opera is a fascinating and beautiful art form and I’m looking forward to attending my first opera on Wednesday.

We learned about each of the different types of opera voices today, for both men and women. For each type of voice, Professor Kahan showed a scene from an opera, where the performer was singing in that type of voice.  I’m glad she did this, because not only were we able to physically hear what we were being taught, but it allowed us to see different types of arias and recitativos being performed in several operas.  For me, these were the best parts of the class.  For the lowest opera voice a man can perform, the bass, we were shown a clip from Don Giovanni, composed by Mozart.  The bass voice in the scene was the voice of the servant of Don Giovanni, who is showing Giovanni’s current “girlfriend” the book of every woman Giovanni has ever seduced, in the various countries he has visited.  It is a comical sort of scene, and the bass voice fits nicely with this comical tone.

The other male voices are a baritone and a tenor.  For these voices, we were shown a clip from Il Barbiere di Siviglia, composed by Rossini, Othello composed by Verdi, and Nessun Dorma from the opera Turnadot, the play we are going to see as a class.  Nessun Dorma is a famous aria from the opera Turandot, and has been performed various times by the tenor, Luciano Pavarotti.  Professor Kahan showed us three different performances of this piece by Pavarotti, and I was fascinated.  He was able to perform this piece at age 45, age 63, and age 71, and he sounded flawless all three times.  Of course, there were slight differences as he aged and gained musical maturity, but all three times, he was powerful and emotional and was able to nicely present the intensity of this piece of music.  It was very interesting to watch.

Then came my absolute favorite part of today’s class.  We first identified the several types of female opera voices, and then we saw a clip from Carmen in order to hear a female mezzo-soprano.  I have seen the movie Carmen and I love the music, the dancing, and of course, the singing.  The actress playing Carmen has a beautiful voice.  Everybody knows the tune of the opening scene of Carmen and for me, that makes it even more enjoyable to watch.

I learned much more about the opera than I had ever known in today’s class.  For example, I did not know that librettists had such a difficult job creating a libretto for an opera, and how much work goes into it.  They have to think about which words to use, what music to set it to, and still be able to get the plot of the story across to the audience. I also was unaware that women always die in an opera.  It’s true, but just something I had never noticed. Something else I noticed during today’s lesson is that many modern tunes and music used in films, shows, etc. comes from the music of operas.  For example, the music used in Carmen and the music used in Il Barbiere di Siviglia are both tunes that everyone knows because of something else they’ve seen or heard.  It seems that opera music is universal and applicable to many situations, even commercials we see on TV.

I look forward to attending my first real opera and continuing to learn about the different musical styles of the art world.