The Promised (or Threatened) Opera Thread

[Bobcat]

I just had to start one after the "Everything Else" discussion of, among other things, death metal, shaded into various Requiems (especially Verdi's) and segued into into benching to Puccini and Paperboy's sideways suggestion that he might have seen Marty in the role of Canio in Pagliacci. :lol: I'd like to hear Marty deliver the last line: "La commedia e finita." :twisted:

I went to a performance of Aida by Opera Verdi Europa on March 31. Third row center seat. Although there were sets and stage movements as well as costumes, it was billed as a concert version. (No elephants.) Opera Verdi Europa is a Bulgarian company, and they proved that the Bulgarians are good at things other than olympic weightlifting. There were several personnel changes announced right before the performance began. They took it in stride. They've got some depth.

As for the Verdi Requiem--which was criticized in the 19th Century as too operatic--I have two recordings. I've got the 1964 Eugene Ormandy version. Wow! What a Verdi tenor Richard Tucker was! I've also got Daniel Barenboim's version.

Anyone else care to comment on a recent performance, a favorite opera composer or a noteworthy recording?

[CinnamonGirl]

Aida sounds wonderful, Bobcat. I have seen Madam Butterfly, and it was SUBLIME! I would love to see Aida and Carmen.

I mentioned that I went to a performance of the Verdi Requiem. I was struck at how different it was from the Faure Requiem which is much more gentle. Verdi's Requiem is BIG, dramatic and follows traditional death liturgy more faithfully. When I went to the performance I was seated higher in the audience, and could see that the bass percussionist was actually jumping to beat on that drum, probably during the Dies Irae.

The Faure Requiem does not actually have a Dies Irae -- instead, it is incorporated in the Libera Me. Faure seems to see death as more of a happy deliverance, a reaching for eternal happiness. If you love choral music, you will love the Faure Requiem -- and I would recommend the recording with Robert Shaw and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra and Chorus.

[Bobcat]

I have heard the Faure Requiem (albeit not live :( ), and I agree that it's on the whole a much gentler piece. Still, Verdi starts out startlingly soft: it's a big piece but full of contrasts, including dynamic contrasts. Alas, I'll be missing a performance next Friday due to a commitment involving conflicting theater tickets.

I missed a performance of Madama Butterfly in February due to the flu. Patrons with uncontrollable coughs are never welcome! (I've had to content myself with a number of Saturday afternoon broadcasts over the years.) I attended a performance of Carmen many years ago in which the man who was my voice teacher played Escamillo. I also got to watch the dress rehearsal, which was quite an interesting experience. I'm sure you'll enjoy Carmen, CinnamonGirl. If you get the opportunity, jump on it.

[CinnamonGirl]

I still remember the moment when the curtain went up for Madama Butterfly -- there was an audible gasp because the set was so beautiful.

Now that you've revealed that you've a musical background I am not surprised at your interests. I became familiar with the Faure Requiem because I was a supplemental accompaniest for a small choral group that performed it. A friend of mine was the director. She sang in the performance of the Verdi Requiem that I attended.

[Bobcat]

Musical background? Ya got me, CinnamonGirl. I also played trumpet when I was young. I have sung with a few choral groups, both as a chorister and occasionally as a tenor soloist. I came to regard accompanists as the "unsung" heroes of the world of music. I hope the singers were appreciative of your efforts.

Where was this Madama Butterfly performed? Do you remember who designed the wonderful sets?

[CinnamonGirl]

I agree that accompanists are unsung heros . . . although I can't honestly claim that I was that good. I had the years of study . . . then quit when I went away to college (I was really burned out -- I studied hard through a formal program -- complete with adjudication and technical exams for each level), and it was more than ten years of not touching the piano when my friend -- who always pushes on me to stretch myself -- asked me to help her out. I'll say that I was passable -- and it was nice that the other accompanist (an organist) took the lions share.

We saw Madama Butterfly in Sacramento (about 12 years ago, I think) -- and I cannot say for certain but I think it may have been on tour. The main focal point was a tree, with blossoms and foliage, and the rest of the set, with the exception of her little "cottage," was more two dimensional and stylized -- to resemble a hillside.

[Marty]

Cool - I like this talk though I don't understand it - so how does this madame butterfly stack up to the rock opera Tommy? Does Requiem compare favorably to Jesus Christ Superstar? Do you really think Pavoratti has got the chops of Meatloaf in "estasy by the dashboard lights?" Just curious...

[Bobcat]

Perhaps a different kettle of fish, but I'd take Madama Butterfly on most days. (Sometimes, you just want to listen to the Who!) Cinnamon Girl was right (on the other forum) when she said you'd have to have a heart of ice to be immune to Puccini . . . even though he's been accused of playing to the lowest common denominator in some of the plots of his operas--e.g., Tosca--he wrote some wonderful melodies. It's also fun, though perhaps a somewhat guilty pleasure, to hear good tenors and sopranos negotiate "Pucciniland", the territory above the staff.

I personally don't think Andrew Lloyd Weber has yet written anything on the level of the Verdi Requiem. (I'm not knocking Andrew Lloyd Weber. In fact, I went to a performance of Jesus Christ Superstar in the early 1970's.) Verdi's Requiem is the work of a mature composer and mature man at the height of his musical powers, as well as the work of a man genuinely moved by the loss of someone he admired. Verdi was old enough to have long ago abandoned any illusions of personal immortality. He throws death in your face and makes the whole experience beautiful. The Verdi Requiem never ceases to amaze me when I reflect upon the fact that a mere mortal composed it.

Pavarotti is retired now. If you get a chance, check out some recordings of Pavarotti in the late 1960's or early 1970's. I'll have to get back to you on Pavarotti vs. Meat Loaf. I haven't listened to Meat Loaf in quite a while.

By the way, Mozart's Magic Flute is on this Saturday from 1:30 to 4:40 . . . "live from the Met." The intermission features are usually fun and informative. This opera is a great place to start if you want to understand all the talk. Do you get WAMU where you are? I think that's the Washington station that carries the Met.

[ms_irreverent]

Cool - I like this talk though I don't understand it - so how does this madame butterfly stack up to the rock opera Tommy? Does Requiem compare favorably to Jesus Christ Superstar? Do you really think Pavoratti has got the chops of Meatloaf in "estasy by the dashboard lights?" Just curious...

Give me Meat Loaf any day. I can't listen to Pavarotti. He goes flat too often.

[CinnamonGirl]

I do remember that song of Meatloaf's -- Ecstasy . . . by the dashboard light (?!!) but I can't recall what I thought of his singing. Meatloaf -- didn't he play the guy in one of the cancer support groups in the movie Fight Club?

I cringe when it seems like the vibrato is so broad that the performer is going flat -- so I can relate to what Ms_irreverent is saying. Sometimes a trained ear can be a trial! And, while I do usually pick rock and roll over classical if I get to do the choosing, Meatloaf is not in my collection.

Love the Who. Also love the occasions for wearing dressy clothes and going to hear classical music or the theater. Based upon the other posts, I would say we're all eclectic. 8)

Love how Marty says he doesn't understand, then puts out a thought or a question that says he understands more than he thinks!

[Bobcat]

Yes, Marty does seem to be on the ball here, doesn't he?

Cinnamon Girl & ms_irreverent, I agree that too-wide vibrato is an occasion for cringing--especially in duets! Yeow! Cat claws on the chalkboard! It's pretty hard not to have some "amplitude" in your voice once you're in your 50's if you've made a career of singing. It happens earlier to folks who really abuse their voices. (This comes from a 50-year-old tenor who has not made a career of singing.)

What I recall best about Meat Loaf was his smallish part in The Rocky Horror Picture Show. He did some good singing!

[ms_irreverent]

Eclectic is an understatement. See my addition to effective music (http://martygallagher.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?p=768#768). :)

Incidentally, it's Paradise by the Dashboard Light. I rather liked that one. He, at least, stayed on pitch!

[CinnamonGirl]

Bobcat -- are you familiar with Anuna? If you aren't, but have seen the Michael Flatley version of Riverdance - they are the choral group that performed in it. Beautiful, mostly unaccompanied "choral" music. The performers are all on the youngish side -- think clear and pure soprano voices. They sing lots of traditional Celtic, and even ancient things. Lovely music for chilling out.

[Bobcat]

I'm not familiar with them, but they sound like a great group. They got any recordings of their own out? I could go to Barnes & Noble and have a listen.

[CinnamonGirl]

Try finding it on Amazon. Their site includes samples and customer opinions . . .

[Bobcat]

Of course! What was I [not] thinking. :roll: And Barnes & Noble has samples, too. I checked out some samples from "Essential Anuna." Definitely no too-wide vibratos. My initial thought was Tallis Scholars meet Anonymous Four meet Episcopal cathedral choir tradition meet . . . and move to Ireland. I then read the review B & N had posted; I wasn't too far off. It was really lovely. And it was a bit frustrating that the samples didn't include an entire track.

[CinnamonGirl]

It's funny how people can think so alike. So . . . you've heard (performed, perhaps) a choir at an Episcopal cathedral . . . if you get to do so regularly, you're a lucky man. I love that kind of music.

If you're ever in Seattle on a Sunday night, I would recommend that you go hear the Compline service at the cathedral -- all male, all sung . . . a fabulous way to end the weekend and refuel for the coming week.

[Bobcat]

We're not Episcopalians, and I never sang for them, but there is a cathedral about a block from my office. When my stepdaughter was much younger, she decided she, too, wanted to learn to sing. I asked around, and learned that the cathedral was starting a girls' choir. The head musician at the time was organ virtuoso and composer Bruce Neswick (who has since moved on). So my then little girl--who is 21 now--got a fine musical education, and I got to hear a lot of good music. She also got to sing in a Cav-Pag performance by the Kentucky Opera.

[vinay]

This whole thread is so confusing! I feel like alice in wonderland when I read these posts.

[ms_irreverent]

What's confusing you?

[Bobcat]

Vinay,

This thread got started when the "Effective Music" thread on the "Everything Else" forum veered into opera. It has broadened somewhat to vocal music in general, vocal culture and people's musical backgrounds.

The second time I looked at your post, I noticed the topic: "What's Episcopalians?" (It took two looks because the print is small and bifocals do not cure all ills.) Those are folks who are members of the Episcopal church. It's affiliated with the Church of England, and some members refer to themselves as Anglicans. They have a very strong tradition of wonderful choral music--thus their appearance in this thread.

Irony of ironies, someone has composed an opera based on Alice:

http://www.boosey.com/pages/opera/news/further_info.asp?NewsID=10949&LangID=

[vinay]

Thanks for clearing that up. I never been to an opera, so its all new to me.

[CinnamonGirl]

Vinay, I am sorry that our discussion seemed like a trip down the rabbit's hole. When you made that reference to Alice in Wonderland, I must admit that I laughed out loud. Please accept my apologies!!

Anyway, this community is so COOL. I always look forward to seeing what people are talking about . . . and when I find a discussion where I feel I can contribute I sometimes go overboard. I bet Bobcat wondered where we were going to go as our discussion gained momentum. :roll:

[Bobcat]

I must admit I wondered occasionally--but overboard? No. No floatation device required. More like anticipation--wondering what comes next and looking forward to finding out. And interesting (to me) things have kept appearing. I love discussing my musical passions with people who share some of my other interests as well. And believe me--keeping my heart, lungs, muscles and stomach "in tune" is definitely an interest of mine.

It would certainly be a bonus to see readers of this thread check out some of what we've discussed here. 8) Dare we hope that Marty will tune in this Saturday afternoon and sample The Magic Flute?

Vinay, if you are interested in what the opera crazies are raving about, here's a good place to start: http://www.metoperafamily.org/metopera/discover/

[CinnamonGirl]

Bobcat, thanks for letting me feel comfortable about our chats.

I think we certainly could dare to hope that Marty would sample the Magic Flute, especially if he visits the boards and sees your post. He seems the sort of fellow who goes looking for ways to expand his horizons.

[Bobcat]

You're welcome. Keep on chatting.

And now, I'm off to Keeneland (a beautiful racetrack) to place a few $2.00 bets and mostly enjoy the weather. April weather here sends " Im Wunderschonen Monat Mai" through my head.

[CinnamonGirl]

Have a fab weekend BobCat. Hope you win!!

[Bobcat]

I appreciate your kind wishes, CinnamonGirl. Nice new avatar, too.

Stayed for the second race through the eighth. My tickets paid in two races. The eighth was the best: $21.20 on a $2.00 bet. Meager winnings did not quite cover food, drinks, admission and program, but it was a beautiful day--and a string ensemble was playing on the roof above the entrance! (This in addition to the track bugler.) Beautiful flowers, green (blue) grass, lots of sunshine.

Back to opera, though. Today I had the pleasure of doing reasonably heavy conventional deadlifts, incline bench presses, and thumbless overhand pull-ups to the first act of Magic Flute. Hardly traditional, but very enjoyable. The intermission feature is on now.

[CinnamonGirl]

Bobcat, sounds wonderful -- beautiful surroundings, horses, music and your winnings must have been the perfect icing on top.

Lifting (maintaining and improving your physical plant) to the Magic Flute . . . sounds like a room in your happy place.

Thanks for sharing your interests and impressions. Our conversations remind me to be grateful for friends and life itself -- I am sure others feel the same.

[Bobcat]

Thanks for reading them (i.e., interests & impressions), too. I am grateful as well.

Hear any good music this past weekend? Anything an opera lover should run through his head while exercising? Or between sets?

[CinnamonGirl]

Sorry to say that I didn't listen to much good music at all this past weekend. It would have made a big difference to my frame of mind if I had purposefully done so. I did go to Barnes and Noble and preview the new Essential Anuna. I will eventually buy that one . . . but when I saw the U2 CD I've been wanting in the bargain bin, I went for that.

So . . . from an opera lover's perspective . . . what are the three you would recommend to see as as good introduction?

Do you enjoy other classical music?

Do you enjoy theater?

What about ballet? In 1976 I saw Nureyev with the Royal Ballet at Covent Garden. Sat in the first row behind the orchestra pit . . . got to enjoy watching the orchestra, and to be close enough to the stage to see the rosin float off the floor as they danced.

[Bobcat]

Three for beginners? The Magic Flute, La Boheme & Carmen. They're all very approachable, they're not marathon length (such as, for example Die Walkure which is on from 12:30 to, I think, 5:45 this Saturday), they all have unforgettable melodies and each one manages to make some noteworthy vocal demands upon at least one singer.

I do indeed enjoy other classical music. Choral and oratorio, for sure, as previous posts suggest. Lieder as well; I'm particularly fond of Dichterliebe. Brass ensembles (naturally enough for a former trumpet player), string ensembles, organ music and, of course, orchestral music.

As for theater, we have an Actor's Guild of Lexington season pass. I was at the premiere of Checking In Friday night. The playwright played himself and the women who were the bases for the other characters were in the audience. They were all laughing at themselves through both acts. AGL has a new Artistic Director who has managed to bring in professionals (i.e., Equity) to perform. The plays are not all equally wonderful, of course, but the quality of the actors' performances stays pretty high.

I take in ballet less often; however, I have seen a number of Nutcrackers and Swan Lakes since my stepdaughter is remarkably fond of both. We have a Ballet Under the Stars series in August; however, most years I have found the combination of heat, humidity and, especially allergens to be prohibitive. We also, a few years ago, had huge artist vs. business manager clashes in a ballet company together with big deficits and complaints from the local omnibus arts funding organization. There are now two dance companies in town. One of them always uses live music (Yessssss!), but their orchestra isn't as good as some. I suppose dance is kind of the weak link in the performing arts scene here. I'd probably make more of an effort were it up to the quality of the other performing arts here.

There's certainly nothing here to compare with Nureyev, the Royal Ballet and Covent Garden. That sounds wonderful. It must have been, for you to remember it so vividly 29 years later.

[CinnamonGirl]

I'm glad to hear that your life is so consistently rich and varied.

Thanks, Bobcat, for the suggestions for opera. Now that I have a well-recommended list, I will start looking for opportunities to get those under my belt.

Sacramento is a stopping point for the various touring shows, and we also have a summer "music circus," that leans in the direction of the Broadway tried and trues.

I love most classical music, although chamber music can seem boring to me. I have too many "favorite" composers to list.

Ballet in Sacramento is troubled in much the same way you describe. I believe the only consistent money-maker is Nutcracker -- and that one's usually the only one with live music.

The trip to Europe so long ago was part of a semester abroad with 19 other English Lit students. A very memorable 13 weeks full of sightseeing, world class drama, a couple of side trips to the continent, an exciting time in Israel, and 20 papers. That ballet performance was the first time I really saw the physical realities of ballet. It really made me appreciate how effortless and beautiful they can make it seem.

[Bobcat]

Sounds as if your life has some richness and variety as well, CinnamonGirl.

The benefits of study abroad can last a lifetime.

Broadway "tried & trues" can be lots of fun. Any favorites? There used to be a company devoted to producing musicals here, but it folded several years ago.

[ms_irreverent]

Man of La Mancha, Guys and Dolls, My Fair Lady, South Pacific, Bye Bye Birdie...want more? ;)

I love musicals (can you tell?).

[CinnamonGirl]

Yes, my life has been enriched too . . . and now that the younger of my two kids is in college, the door is opening to more of those opportunities.
It certainly is an exciting time to be alive.

The first production I saw at the Music Circus (when it was actually held in a tent -- and you sat perspiring or SWEATING in folding chairs, hip to shoulder with your neighbor) was Mame. Joanne Worley played the title role. That was a favorite. I also have enjoyed Fiddler on the Roof, South Pacific, My Fair Lady and Oliver under that tent.

So . . . what's on your list of "want to see's?" I would have loved to have seen Sarah Brightman on her Harem Tour. Looking forward to seeing Wynton Marsalis someday . . . when he reschedules for Northern California.

[CinnamonGirl]

Come out of the shadows, all you lurkers -- this is an invitation to join our conversation. I'm taking Bobcat all over the place . . . and he hasn't complained yet (to me anyway!) It's safe in here!

[CinnamonGirl]

Hi, Ms_I. I don't consider you a lurker (just in case you were wondering).

[ms_irreverent]

LOL! Didn't even occur to me. I hadn't said anything previously because I don't like opera, Carmen notwithstanding. I've also enjoyed Fiddler, but it's low on my list. I'd forgotten all about Oliver. And then there's Oklahoma! and The Sound of Music.

I think the only one that I've never seen but would have liked to is Miss Saigon. (Yes, I know its derivation. ;))

[Bobcat]

CinnamonGirl, what's to complain about?

ms_irreverent, welcome back! You're not the only lover of musicals here.

The Music Circus reminds me of the early years of the Ash Lawn festival (back when I lived in Charlottesville, Virginia). People were invited to bring picnic dinners and wine--and we did. Ash Lawn had an abundance of pea fowl, half of whom felt fiercely competitive with the sopranos. Opera on a broiling evening to the accompaniment of screeching pea fowl. Was there ever a sweeter vision of heaven on earth? Ash Lawn now typically does two operas and one musical per summer.

I like Fiddler on the Roof, Oklahoma!, Guys and Dolls (I occasionally imagine myself singing Nicely, Nicely's part), and Music Man, among others. (Way, way long ago, I played Music Man's third trumpet part in a pit orchestra.) I'd like to see Cats--see, I said earlier I wasn't knocking Andrew Lloyd Weber. I've liked TSE's serious poetry for decades and was delighted by Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats before the musical came out. And the musical has some great tunes. Of course, I would like a show about cats . . . . :wink:

[CinnamonGirl]

Bobcat -- I wasn't complaining, truly. I just happened to notice that there were about nine views for every post, and you know, we had a pretty exclusive discussion goin' on there until Ms_I jumped back in again.

Can't say that I've experienced anything that could compare with pea fowl competing with human vocalists. The picnic dinner at Ash Lawn reminds me of the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Fest -- picture this -- a sloping sandy beach on the east shore of Lake Tahoe, table cloths, stemware, CANDELABRAS -- anyone care for some aspic with your game hen? Really fun stuff!

Of course, you'd love a show about cats . . .

[Bobcat]

CinnamonGirl,

Perhaps I wasn't clear enough. When I asked what's to complain about, I was referring only to your comment, "I'm taking Bobcat all over the place . . . and he hasn't complained yet (to me anyway!)." So feel free to lead the tour.

Shakespeare on the lake sounds great--so does game hen. No doubt some of the singers at Ash Lawn entertained the fantasy of trussed and roasted pea fowl :twisted: , but I have no doubt that game hen would taste better. That reminds me. Another good opera for novice opera buffs is Don Giovanni. Lest you think that a truly lunatical leap of logic, I'll add that I heard Don Giovanni performed at Ash Lawn. Also, as the Don is being dragged down to hell he screams--in fact, if I remember correctly, Mozart writes it as a G with a glissando. Quite a respectable scream for a baritone or bass-baritone, yet a musical one. I'm sure the pea fowl loved it. Back to Shakespeare. Were there any performances you particularly liked or any favorite plays?

ms_irreverent,

A few posts ago, you listed some favorite musicals and asked, "Want more?" Bring it on!! Please tell us why you like the musicals you list so well.

[CinnamonGirl]

Shakespeare at Lake Tahoe is fun. The pre-show dining ambience can be quite campy and entertaining in itself.

What I really love is to drive to Ashland Oregon for the Shakespeare festival there. World class quality, start to finish. We have been going for the past 10 years and try to see two or three shows per season. My favorites so far have been the Tempest (we've seen two productions -- the more recent with Prospero played by a woman, which was SUPER!), Pericles, Troilus and Cressida and Midsummer Night's Dream. Can you tell that I lean toward the lighter stuff? This year we plan to see Richard III and the Tragical History of Dr. Faustus (really looking forward to that one -- haven't seen a Marlowe play since 1976).

Don Giovanni has been added to my list. I saw the movie Amadeus and thought crossed my mind that I should try to see that one the next time the opportunity comes my way.

[ms_irreverent]

ms_irreverent,

A few posts ago, you listed some favorite musicals and asked, "Want more?" Bring it on!! Please tell us why you like the musicals you list so well.

The music, mainly. The stories are uneven; some are so much better than others. I could also add to the list The King and I, Carousel, All That Jazz (the dancing!) and Brigadoon.

I have soft spots for Bye Bye Birdie because I was Kim in a junior high school production, and for The King and I because I was Anna in a summer camp show. I can't act my way out of a paper bag, by the way, but I can sing.

[CinnamonGirl]

Ms_I, if I had the choice between singing and acting, singing would win every time.

Taking voice lessons is in the top five of my "to do" list -- right behind taking a performance driving class. :D

[ms_irreverent]

Oh, you too? One of these centuries I intend to go down to Summit Point.

[Tom]

Yeah, me too. I wanna do bootlegger turns.

[CinnamonGirl]

Yup, me too. I've got a 2005 Mini Cooper S that I'm longing to drive the way it was designed to be driven.

[ms_irreverent]

Oh, cool. What color?

[Bobcat]

Another musician! That's great, ms_irreverent. What do you like to sing? (I assume that you like to sing show tunes.)

CinnamonGirl, I have Mini Cooper envy! I'd love to have one. (I used to have an orange MGB--fun, but unreliable.) But I'll submerge my green envy :mrgreen: and hope that you get the opportunity to take that driving class before too long.

[ms_irreverent]

Show tunes and whatever's on the CD at the moment, if it's at least roughly within my range, which is shrinking rapidly over time. ;) I haven't been involved in any sort of choir since high school, a loooooooooong time ago.

[CinnamonGirl]

My Mini is hyper blue. Since the local dealer didn't have an inventory of new Minis, we got to configure ours from the ground up using their website.

It is the very first new car that I've owned, and I love it. If there's a Mini dealer nearby, stop in and test drive one.

So . . . Ms_I and Bobcat, what kind of cars to you drive?

[ms_irreverent]

2002 C230 Kompressor Sportscoupe, in arrest-me red (considerably brighter than this picture!)

http://img249.echo.cx/img249/5737/susanscoupe8jm.th.jpg (http://img249.echo.cx/my.php?image=susanscoupe8jm.jpg)

Oh, and I can't believe I forgot to include West Side Story in my list of musicals.

[CinnamonGirl]

I love West Side Story too, Ms_I.

A Kompressor! That explains your avatar . . . lucky girl! I imagine that traffic must be a frustration when you know that it would be so much fun to have the road pretty much to yourself.

When you take longish road trips . . . what's in your CD player . . . or do you listen to satellite?

[Marty]

Hey I was being a funny wise-ass with all that meatloaf stuff - how do you take seriously a man whose nickname is "meat?" Tommy was pretty pretentious even by rock standards - want to laugh until you vomit? Get a collection of old rock record albums and after everyone has had a few cocktails, starting reading the linear note "Lyrics" out loud...oh yes, all those little blurbs that seemed so stuffed with profundity back in the day,

("There's a little black hat caught in the tree today...It's the same old thing as yesterday.")

...suddenly exposed as moronic pretention-cubed...

anybody see any of Ken Burn's "Jazz" specials? Top shelf stuff...

[ms_irreverent]

Hey I was being a funny wise-ass with all that meatloaf stuff - how do you take seriously a man whose nickname is "meat?" Tommy was pretty pretentious even by rock standards - want to laugh until you vomit? Get a collection of old rock record albums and after everyone has had a few cocktails, starting reading the linear note "Lyrics" out loud...oh yes, all those little blurbs that seemed so stuffed with profundity back in the day,

("There's a little black hat caught in the tree today...It's the same old thing as yesterday.")

...suddenly exposed as moronic pretention-cubed...

anybody see any of Ken Burn's "Jazz" specials? Top shelf stuff...

ROFL! C'mon, Marty, you know all that stuff was all meant to be experienced, well, shall we say, under the influence, and I don't mean alcohol. ;)

I caught some bits and pieces of that jazz series. Outstanding.

CinnamonGirl--no satellite, just CDs. I have a six-disk changer, and if I program it right, I can make it from home all the way to the beach in South Carolina without having to replenish. Last year's trip, I think I had in there Nine Inch Nails, Gary Numan, Apoptygma Berzerk, Covenant, Alice in Chains, and Kraftwerk. My taste is all over the map, but I have a lot of industrial and experimental stuff plus synth pop, most of which my son introduced me to (he's a musician/composer. He calls what he does ambient noise). My CD collection is eclectic, to say the least. From electronica and Krautrock to Keiko Matsui and Smetana!

You're right about the roads; traffic is a nightmare. But we still have some wonderful two-lane country roads not too far from me, and sometimes I am lucky enough to be able to drive this car the way it should be driven, as you say. What a treat.

[CinnamonGirl]

Ms_I said, "ROFL! C'mon, Marty, you know all that stuff was all meant to be experienced, well, shall we say, under the influence, and I don't mean alcohol. ;)"

I was thinking exactly the same thing, Ms_I.

[Bobcat]

Marty,

Thank God! :D I didn't really want to go find a Meat Loaf recording, do a comparison and post it; however, I was going to as a token of appreciation for your site. Nevertheless, Meat Loaf did sing well in The Rocky Horror Picture Show. :twisted: So I suppose ya fooled me.

As for the other stuff, you just had to inhale. :mrgreen:

CinnamonGirl,

I drive a Toyota Corolla geezer edition--you know, power and automatic this and that, two map lights, two electrical outlets (to recharge your hearing aid, I suppose; I didn't quite catch all of the salesman's explanation :wink: ). A comfortable commuter car.

Everybody here with a musical bent,

I love West Side Story, too. I didn't think to include it in my list of beloved musicals because opera companies have started to perform it. Just like what happened with Porgy and Bess. West Side Story has great, great music--some of which I've actually sung. I think the most passionate production of it I've ever seen was in--of all places--Barboursville, Virginia. It was minimalist. Small sets, small stage, small hall without air conditioning, instrumental music that didn't go much beyond a piano reduction. Surprisingly powerful!

[CinnamonGirl]

Hey there, Bobcat. Everyone thinks they're funny today! Your contribution was definitely the most subtle though. I had to think a while before it registered. :roll:

Don't discount your commute car -- comfort is important for commuting. I don't know how far or how long your commute takes you, but I know that the most comfortable car is always my favorite. We have three cars that we cycle through to reduce the miles accumulated -- the Mini, a 1995 Mazda MX6 and a 1993 Ford Ranger.

[Bobcat]

And it's a joke at my own expense. I do have a bit of high-frequency hearing loss--probably from playing trumpet next to another trumpeter and a trombonist and in front of a drummer; and singing with chorus and small orchestra. It doesn't just happen to rock musicians. Oh, well. I can still tell whether it's in tune--and sing in tune--and I can still hear the inner parts. As for opera, Joan Sutherland used to say that people didn't come to hear her sing so they could hear all the lyrics clearly.

Cars. It's a short commute, really. I usually get to work in under 20 minutes. My wife, who travels a lot more than I do (she's got offices in two different cities 45 min. apart) drives a Saturn. I've bestowed upon my stepdaughter the 1989 Festiva I used to drive. She dubbed it "Festiva of Joy." People used to make fun of them, but now they have achieved a kind of cult status. I'm told they are considered cool road rally vehicles. I was surprised to learn, about 2 years ago, that they were based upon an English design for a small racing car. I've never driven anything that goes through snow better without studs on the tires.

But seriously, I do like Mini Coopers. In fact, I appreciate small sports cars in general. If they've got good music playing as you drive, so much the better.

[CinnamonGirl]

I'm hard of hearing in some settings too -- conversations in noisy settings seem more difficult for me than the other participants. I get tired of being teased about it -- and I find that it NEVER works to my advantage - I can ALWAYS hear when someone is singing off-key.

It must be nice to spend so little time in your car; I would enjoy a 20 minute commute. It takes me 25 minutes to get to the highway, another 25 minutes to get to the Light Rail station, and another 40 minutes before I'm at my desk. My husband drops me off at the station and parks the car for free at his work. The best thing about my commute is that we spend time together, AND I have made some good friends on the train. While those are nice things, I find myself wishing quite often that I lived within walking distance of work. It must be nice to go home during the lunch break and start dinner.

[Bobcat]

Sounds as if your ears have the same problem as mine. Occasionally, it works to my advantage, but it's still cat claws against a chalk board if someone sings or plays out of tune.

20 minutes is usually the maximum commute. The usual trip isn't long enough to play CD's on my (rather nice) car stereo. Small price to pay, I suppose. And, as my posts always say, eating well is the best revenge. :wink: On the other hand, it sounds as if you have access to good public transportation.

[ms_irreverent]

It's nice to know I'm not the only one who finds off-key anything as bad as nails on a chalkboard. :shudder:

My commute is usually 20-25 minutes during mostly off hours (and I can get on the zip lanes two days out of three), so I don't have any real complaints. This morning's notwithstanding.

[Marty]

anyone like Jazz?

[CinnamonGirl]

Starting a new discussion, Marty -- Jazz deserves to stand alone!

See you there.

[CinnamonGirl]

BobCat, I listened to a couple of hours of Wagner on NPR on Saturday. I got to hear my favorite part -- thanks for drawing my attention to the opportunity! :)

[Bobcat]

I listened to a lot (but not all) of it, too. Wotan's "what do I do with my favorite daughter" plight never fails to move me. What's your favorite part?

I continue to be amazed that Placido Domingo can sing like that at his age. He makes the contributors to this thread look like young folks.

By the way, any of you contributors or lurkers like Gilbert & Sullivan?

[CinnamonGirl]

The Ride of the Valkryies is my favorite part . . . although I heard some additional parts that could quickly rise to be among my favorites.

I love big music -- Carmina Burana/O Fortuna, Pictures At An Exhibition**/The Great Gate At Kiev, The Planets/Mars among others.

Could explain my hearing challenges!!

**the first memorable "hearing" was Emerson Lake and Palmer's version.

[ms_irreverent]

I love Gilbert & Sullivan. :)

Re Carmina Burana/O Fortuna, it's been sampled by a couple of the more unusual bands that I listen to--and if I hear it now, I always expect it to veer off into something else!

Also, last month there was a production of it here in D.C. that merited this review:

In-a-Gadda-da-'Carmina Burana'
Tim Page
Washington Post Staff Writer
787 words
5 March 2005
The Washington Post
FINAL
C01
English
Copyright 2005, The Washington Post Co. All Rights Reserved

Love it or loathe it, Carl Orff's "Carmina Burana" (1937) is the most commercially successful classical composition of the 20th century. Its primal tunes and pounding rhythms, once encountered, are impossible to forget: The opening chorus, "O Fortuna," has been used incessantly in film and increasingly on the dance floor, and if you have a friend who owns exactly one classical CD, if it isn't Handel's "Messiah," chances are that it is "Carmina Burana."

Yet admiration for "Carmina Burana" is far from universal in musical circles. Its frank paganism, combined with its origins in Hitler's Germany, have led some detractors to dismiss it as an exercise in musical brutalism (although Orff was never sympathetic to the Nazis). For others, "Carmina Burana" is little more than dumbed-down, popularized Stravinsky, and whatever pleasures it may offer are guilty ones indeed.

I continue to find "Carmina Burana" both viscerally exciting and remarkably ahead of its time. But it is hard to imagine even the score's most rabid foe wishing upon it the treatment received Thursday night at MCI Center, when a troupe called "Carmina Burana Monumental Opera" turned it into the classical music equivalent of "This Is Spinal Tap."

Imagine, if you can, a 60-foot blob in the middle of the arena that looked now like the iceberg that wrecked the Titanic, now like the machine, complete with whirling cogs, that ate Charlie Chaplin in "Modern Times." A bell gonged gloomily while choristers, clad in black and carrying torches, mounted the stage slowly and reverently, as though this all meant something.

When the music finally started, conductor Walter Haupt led the Metropolitan Orchestra and Chorus of Greater Montreal and his three vocal soloists off to a corner of the stage, while 30 dancers (in what were promised as 300 different costumes) pranced through mystifying pseudo-psychedelic monkeyshines.

Hobbits on parade? Shakespeare for mimes? No, according to the program (which cost a cool 12 smackers for any patron who might have wanted to learn what was going on), we were watching 24 "magical images" telling "stories of life and death, of fortune and misfortune, becoming and fading under the continuously turning 'wheel of life.' "

As Cheech and Chong might have put it -- "Oh wow, man!"

Here's one of those stories, rendered precisely in the program's deathless English: "Representing clerical power the abbot of Cucania appears. In his sermons he first wants to draw attention to the sinfulness of gluttony but in the end he is overcome by lust himself and joins the merry crowd. Even church cannot vanquish human feelings and cravings. Together they lively indulge their craving for alcohol."

Setting aside the hideous amplification -- the MCI loudspeakers made it sound as though "Carmina Burana" were being played through the world's largest cell phone -- the purely musical presentation was not at all bad. Haupt knows his Orff and led his somewhat tattered forces in a tautly propulsive performance. He was joined by soprano Ramona Eremia, who sang with a fierce sweetness; baritone Nikolai Nekrassov, who was ardent and mostly suave; and tenor Nikolaj Visnjakov in the vivid, freakish role of a soon-to-be-roasted swan.

If the score looks back toward Stravinsky in certain movements, it also looks forward to a number of compositional trends that were yet to be born. The orchestral dance "On the Lawn," for example, might have come from Aaron Copland's "Americana" phase; the piano syncopation in "Veni, Veni, Venias" is right out of "West Side Story"; and the lush, gorgeous soprano solo "In Trutina" prefigures Henryk Mikolaj Gorecki's Third Symphony by four decades. Moreover, Orff's chiming, reiterative orchestration anticipates the minimalism of Steve Reich. Nobody but the most antiseptic musical snob need apologize for enjoying -- and admiring -- "Carmina Burana."

"Carmina Burana Monumental Opera" is something else again.

The program began with a tepid selection of five works for orchestra and chorus by Giuseppe Verdi: A hapless spokeswoman announced this as "Viva Verdi," pronouncing the words as if she had no idea what either of them meant. The restive audience suffered through this with the edgy tolerance that used to be accorded opening acts in the heyday of arena rock. (You want to hear Pink Floyd, kid? First you get to hear Kansas.)

The same announcer went on to proclaim that "Carmina Burana Monumental Opera," which has been presented throughout Europe and Canada since 1995, was now in the midst of a "victory march throughout the world!" In context, such triumphalism sounded a little sinister, as though an invasion of the Sudetenland was in the offing.

[CinnamonGirl]

Hi Ms_I.

I haven't heard the entire Carmina Burana . . . and I have to say that I hear O Fortuna most often on The Screen Behind the Mirror (Enigma). What other bands use it? (I know I could google it, but I'm more interested in hearing your opinion).

[ms_irreverent]

Heh, neither have I. I know only O Fortuna. But that review really amused me and left me wishing I'd known about it ahead of time to go see it.

Aside from Enigma (which is one of the ones I was thinking of), Apoptygma Berzerk uses it in Love Never Dies, which is on the album 7. This is the one I always expect it to turn into. (In fact the last time I listened to Enigma, I got really confused! LOL) I think there's yet another group, too, but I'm coming up blank. I'll try to remember to ask my son. He may know.

[CinnamonGirl]

Hey Bobcat . . . for all the lurkers in this discussion, I find it REALLY surprising that there are just a couple of nibbles, and I mean nibbles on the Jazz discussion. I guess this means that most lifters are either rock and roll, rap, country or new age music fans. Or, are there lots more classical/opera fans in hiding? :wink:

What do you think?

[Bobcat]

CinnamonGirl,

Given all the hits the site is getting, there have to be more people who either are currently making music or have made music earlier in their lives.

There are probably more classical fans who have yet to go public. Perhaps it's opera that puts them off. It does seem to collect an image as either a snooty art or a pursuit for rich people only. Oh, well. In 19th Century Italy, they had opera riots! (Soccer riots are newcomers by comparison. Both kinds of riots are clearly refined, high-class activities, no? :lol: ) And a couple of weeks ago, at the end of The Magic Flute, the narrator told the radio audience about the visual appeal of the production. She pointed out that they had dancing pink flamingos on stilts! (What was Papageno the bird-catcher smoking? I don't know, but I'm sure he inhaled.)

Of course, metal is traditional lifting music. So is "dinosaur" hard rock. There are probably fans galore around.

As for jazz, you'll see my post shortly. There have to be some jazz fans around, too.

[CinnamonGirl]

I think you are right about the people who have been reading but don't contribute to this thread. When I think about my musical past, I have regrets and a certain amount of guilt for letting music go. I have a baby-grand piano in my living room, and I haven't touched it except to dust it this year!

Maybe those kinds of regrets and the feelings they elicit are keeping folks from jumping in.

[Bobcat]

Makes sense. But in many cases, it's not too late--even if you no longer perform regularly--to do something musical.

A baby grand . . . must look great even if not recently dusted. :wink: We had a spinet until we moved to our current digs in Dec. 2001. It's now in my sister-in-law's home. Of course, I never learned to play the piano. But this one was useful--it was a real "singer's piano." It was good for getting a starting note or for laboriously picking out a puzzling passage. It had, shall we say, Baroque tuning 8) --all right, all right; it was always a bit flat. That's what made it such a great singer's piano!

[ms_irreverent]

LOL! I might have to (mis)appropriate that.

Mine (also a baby grand, with *ivory* keys) is so out of tune it's awful. Unfortunately when the budget gets cut, piano tuning falls off the priority list, and it's been several very bad years. But I like to think good times are coming.



I can dream, anyway.

[Bobcat]

Feel free to take it, ms_irreverent. It's not original with me. I heard the term "singer's piano" years ago and started using it. Some singers (I say some, but there are doubtless many others who won't admit it) just tend to like pianos that are a little flat by today's standards. A = 425 or 432 is easier at the top end of one's voice than A = 440, or 442 or whatever satanic tuners are dictating these days. (I think I read a few years ago about a proponent of A = 451. :evil: )

My teacher used to say, "Singing is an athletic art." The higher the tuning, the more likely the "athlete" is to develop that wobble that sounds so awful in duets.

[CinnamonGirl]

Ditto for me on the piano tuning, Ms_I. Don't play it anymore -- why spend the $$? The cat thinks it's her personal lounge. The floor space beneath it is nifty for storing my dumbbells.

Bobcat, I know that singing is an athletic art. A friend of mine (former soprano with the Stuttgart opera chorus) used to say that she always knew she had sung using "correct form," if she was fatigued afterwards.

Let's raise our protein shakes in a toast. Here's to a year filled with accomplishments, be they fitness, artistic, financial -- whatever-- for all of us -- **clink**

I know I'm richer in friends. Thanks, Ms_I and Bobcat!

[Bobcat]

And I raise my glass of The Pink Drink to y'all as well. :) When it's time to soften up for gains, it will be one of those martinis I like to mix. (They are shaken, not stirred.) Oh, right. The martini comment was on the jazz thread. :lol:

[ms_irreverent]

Ditto for me on the piano tuning, Ms_I. Don't play it anymore -- why spend the $$? The cat thinks it's her personal lounge. The floor space beneath it is nifty for storing my dumbbells.

Bobcat, I know that singing is an athletic art. A friend of mine (former soprano with the Stuttgart opera chorus) used to say that she always knew she had sung using "correct form," if she was fatigued afterwards.

Let's raise our protein shakes in a toast. Here's to a year filled with accomplishments, be they fitness, artistic, financial -- whatever-- for all of us -- **clink**

I know I'm richer in friends. Thanks, Ms_I and Bobcat! What is it with cats and pianos? My beloved late Harley used to curl up inside mine along the back curve. I have some wonderful pictures of him in there.

I don't play mine much even when it is in tune because it tends to make my RSI flare up. Sigh.

[Bobcat]

My brain is proceeding at a largo tempo. (I was thinking, " RSI? Or RSD?" Well, anyway, I finally figured it out.) Sad that music can take its toll on our bodies--from wobbles to RSI to . . . what was that you said? . . . didn't quite catch it all. I understand that lawyers who serve as counsel to large professional music organizations do a good bit of worker's comp.

[CinnamonGirl]

YUP . . . RSI can be a big bummer -- it gets you, often before arthritis can do its thing.

[ms_irreverent]

Amen. Thank G-d for acupuncture!

[vinay]

Hello,

I thought RSI only attacked people like me who live in front of a computer. Whats the other sources of RSI ?

[Tom]

Musicians get it a lot. The root cause is the same; endless repititions of very small motions. The secret to avoiding it is to not practice very much. :)

Tom

PS Actually, I used to have a bit of carpal tunnel syndrome, but it seems to have gone away when I started lifting heavy.

[ms_irreverent]

Mine is definitely computer related, and the piano makes it worse, as do certain weightlifting movements.

Other jobs/professions that cause it: massage therapy (my therapist has even had surgery for it); meatpacking and related slaughterhouse-type work; supermarket and other checkout clerks--the scanning motion does it; assembly line work.

[Bobcat]

Computers are evil for RSI's. The mouse on my computer at home is set up for right hand use. The mouse on my computer at work is set up for left hand use. Of course, since I do a lot of trial work, my jaws are most at risk for RSI. :lol:

Back to musicians. In the 1980's, another career ago, I had a student who was a violinist. In the 1990's, I saw him numerous times when he was performing with some choral group or another I was singing with. (A real pro--showed up on time, tuned up, played beautifully . . . he could even sight read.) A few years ago, I ran into him and he told me all about how RSI's were doing him in; he was talking about changing careers. Entirely too sad. :(

[ms_irreverent]

LOL! I use cordless mice, which helps significantly.

Drummers can get it bad. Max Weinberg has had multiple surgeries on both wrists.

[CinnamonGirl]

I can't believe we missed a chance to ask Tom if he's a musician, or if he's a well-informed fan!

[Tom]

I play the electric bass guitar. I used to play in garage bands as a lad, but now it's all I can do to find the time for an occasional practice session. Typing keeps my fingers nimble, though.

[JimmyVengeance]

The breadth of this thread is truly astounding, but thus far I've been far out of the loop (such things happen to punk rock singer/guitar players on opera threads; we try not to take it personally). The RSI business, though, hits very close to home. I used to have rather debilitating carpal tunnel. It was pain that prevented typing, lifting, guitar playing, or bumping my wrist into anything harder than a cotton ball without BLINDING pain.

Here's what worked for me. I hope it can be of some use to any of my fellow sufferers:

1)Get one of those ergonomic keyboards. Microsoft makes the most basic and ubiquitous model, and it's the one I use. Before I started my company, I worked as a transcriptionist, which will put you in RSI hell mighty quick. On a busy day, I could log 250,000 keypresses and doing that many reps of anything is pretty rough on you, but doing it with fully pronated wrists will just destroy your wrists. It takes a few hours ot get used to the new 'board, but it's worth it!

2)Ice baths. When I felt things starting to feel a little bit fishy, I'd pour a big bucket of icewater and jam my hands in it, halfway up my forearms. Keep 'em in there until the cold gets too insufferable, then pull 'em out. Back in when you think you can stand it. Keep going for about an hour.

3)Just a simple NSAID can work wonders early on to keep the inflammation at bay. Aspirin and ibuprofen seem to be the winners.

Hope this helps!

[ms_irreverent]

D'oh! I've been using an ergo keyboard forever. Can't believe I forgot to mention it. Anytime I see someone with a regular keyboard with the back end tilted up I absolutely cringe. That is just sooo bad!

I find acupuncture does a great job. I haven't taken a painkiller in I don't know how long.

[CinnamonGirl]

I'll switch my mouse from one side to the other at work if I notice that I'm starting to hurt.

At home, I use a wireless mouse and keyboard. I agree, Ms_I, that it makes a world of difference.

I'm happy to see that Tom and Jimmy have contributed to this thread. It's been a great place to get to know folks!

[Bobcat]

Hooray! Two more music-lovers. :) Good to see you guys in this part of the forum.

[Bobcat]

A couple of days ago, a public radio disk jockey played "Au fond du temple saint" from The Pearl Fishers. She said that every time she plays it, somebody calls and comments. I had to park my car and get on with the day's business :x , so I didn't listen past the end of the duet and so didn't get to hear what comments came in. She played the recording most disk jockeys play: Jussi Bjorling and Robert Merrill. Anybody familiar with this brilliant and beautiful tenor-baritone duet? In any version whatsoever? (First time you hear it, it will take your breath away!) Comments . . .

[Marty]

Do you know about Clannad? Spooky feminine irish voices - bogs and peat and druid mystic shimmer waves - sometimes I need lush and nothing else will do

[ms_irreverent]

I have seen Clannad in concert. :)

[CinnamonGirl]

Clannad is wonderful, Marty -- and lucky you, Ms_I. I remember hearing one of their pieces on the movie, Patriot Games. I just HAD to find out who recorded that piece, and that was the beginning of my love for certain types of celtic music.

Bobcat, you've added another one to my list. If I get to visit Borders or Barnes and Noble, I'm looking for it.

[Bobcat]

CinnamonGirl,

I have the two-disc set, "Jussi Bjorling: The Ultimate Collection," RCA Red Seal. If you come across this, "Au fond du temple saint" is the first track on the second disc.

Bjorling was an absolutely astonishing singer who didn't live all that long (1911-1960). No doubt his absolutely astonishing drinking had something to do with that. I read recently that when he was in Chicago, he liked to eat and drink at the Italian Village, a restaurant that's still there. (Back in my first career, I'd eat there every time the American Philosophical Association Central Division met in Chicago.) Supposedly, there are still folks there who remember Bjorling and who still won't talk about some of the things he did and said while drinking there!

[CinnamonGirl]

I found it on Amazon.com, Bobcat! It has joined my wishlist.

[Bobcat]

You won't regret it! :)

Edit 6/4: as a result of writing about this duet, I've been playing it over and over--mostly, but not exclusively, on my car stereo. (I do this; you may think it's nuts but it's not. Something new to notice each time. That's why Great Dead Singers were great.) One remarkable thing among many: Bjorling and Merrill have wonderful exposed notes at the end. Plenty of vibrato. All in tune! (Bjorling was good at singing in tune.)

[Bobcat]

About a month ago, I promised or threatened (depending upon your attitude toward this kind of music) to revive the opera thread when the Metropolitan broadcast season started.

It has begun! It's 2:09 Eastern time, and Rigoletto and Gilda are singing their famous duet . . . from Rigoletto, of course.

The duck a l'orange is underway.

Anyone else here listening to Rigoletto?

[CinnamonGirl]

I am! I have to admit that I'm not a well-informed fan of opera, so I'm listening, but I can't say what I've heard so far. Today I'm making Christmas gifts -- two kinds of cocktail cookies, two kinds of sweet cookies and peppermint bark. I'll be running out to ship something and will pick up the last few things at the grocery store. If things are't too crazy out there and I can get those things accomplished quickly, I'll stop by the gym and get a quick cardio workout.

[Bobcat]

I am! I have to admit that I'm not a well-informed fan of opera, so I'm listening, but I can't say what I've heard so far.

Check out http://www.metoperafamily.org/metopera/discover/stories/synopsis.aspx?id=134 and all will be revealed.

[Old Olympic Lifter]

Hi Bob

I like your taste in music.I'm not sure if I could sit through a complete rendition of what might be termed 'heavyweight' operas,however I certainly do enjoy listening to some of the great Italian composers,my special favourite being Puccini.

Strange as it may sound,Bob,despite through the years having produced some really outstanding singers (eg.Malvina Major and Kiri Te Kanawa) opera does not have a great following here in New Zealand,nor does our country have an opera house worthy of International standards.Palmerston North has an excellent theatre which stages regular concerts by various overseas performers,but alas,they are priced way beyond the reach of the average wage earner (or superannuitant). :(

Regards and best wishes
Ron

[Bobcat]

I like to listen to Puccini, too, Ron. Lovely melodies, even if they lie in "Pucciniland" (nosebleed high) for tenors.

It's a real shame that some wonderful artistic events are just so expensive.

[CinnamonGirl]

I like to listen to Puccini, too, Ron. Lovely melodies, even if they lie in "Pucciniland" (nosebleed high) for tenors.

It's a real shame that some wonderful artistic events are just so expensive.

I agree that those events are expensive. It's great that they're becoming increasing accessible through television and DVD recordings. But, there is something wonderful AND incomparable about dressing up and GOING to see them.

On Sunday afternoon I went to a Chanticleer concert. Chanticleer is a male choral ensemble . . . this is the first time I've been to see them. It was sublime, Bobcat. You would have loved it.

[Bobcat]

On Sunday afternoon I went to a Chanticleer concert. Chanticleer is a male choral ensemble . . . this is the first time I've been to see them. It was sublime, Bobcat. You would have loved it.

I'm sure I would have. I've heard Chanticleer before. First-rate group.

[CinnamonGirl]

They are. This is the first time I've seen/heard adult men sing SOPRANO -- beautifully clear, with spot on pitch.

[Old Olympic Lifter]

Hi Bob

It's Christmas Eve over here as I type this,and my wife and I have just been watching a 90 minute TV performance of the "Nutcracker Suite" by the Royal New Zealand Ballet.I realise this isn't strictly opera,however I just thought that you might be interested.Tchaikovsky is one of my very favourite classical composers - his "1812 Overture" is,I feel,one of the most inspiring pieces of music ever written.
Have a good holiday break.

Regards and best wishes
Ron

[Bobcat]

O.k., people.

I'm listening to Donizetti's L'Elisir D'Amore (The Elixir of Love). It's a pretty good one for the novice opera fan or the merely curious. The broadcast is scheduled to last until 4:03--including a 29 minute intermission--so it's nothing like a Wagnerian marathon. There's beautiful bel canto singing, a light and frothy plot and just some delightful music. :D The leads, Adina and Nemorino are being sung by Ruth Ann Swenson and Ramon Vargas. They sound very good so far.

[Bobcat]

This afternoon, in anticipation of Mozart's 250th birthday (the 27th), the Met broadcast consists of Mozart selections from past broadcasts going back to 1943. No plot line; just lots of excellent vocal music.

[Bobcat]

Today, The Magic Flute. (This is the opera which started the process of turning me into an opera fan.)

[Bobcat]

Tomorrow, January 28, the broadcast is Mozart's Cosi Fan Tutte. This opera features a "fluffy" kind of plot and a scene or two which I have seen played in a positively silly way. It also contains some amazingly beautiful and touching music. For example, check out Ferrando's aria "Un' aura amorosa" in the first act.

[CinnamonGirl]

I may be able to stay home tomorrow . . . in which case, I'll have public radio playing.

[Bobcat]

I hope you enjoy it!

[vinay]

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-8500401081471609052&q=cricket

You might like the music, but do you like cricket ? :P

[Bobcat]

I don't know enough about cricket to know whether I would like it. Mozart I like. I even saw a production of The Magic Flute Saturday. It was far from a traditional production--Sarastro as a California new age guru, complete with sandals and organic cotton drawstring pants--but it was not cricket.

[CinnamonGirl]

Besides . . . don't some bobcats eat crickets? (Present company excepted, of course!) :P

[vinay]

Besides . . . don't some bobcats eat crickets? (Present company excepted, of course!) :P

:lol:

[Bobcat]

Crickets (orthopterans) as opposed to cricketers (hominids), right? I think it takes a larger cat, probably a super-heavyweight, to eat a cricketer--especially if he is good with his bat. :shock: I believe pixie bobs--cute little kee-tees bred to look like lynxes--eat crickets and the like, as most kee-tees do. But I'm nowhere near the 123 pound class. :wink:

[Bobcat]

The overture to The Marriage of Figaro just started. This is an excellent opera for people who are new to opera. It's also great music for a spring day no matter how many operas you may have heard. It's worth tuning in.

[Marty]

The comedy is OVER!

sounds like a line I throw to a lifter before they walk to the platform...

"The comendy is OVER! Bring the PAIN!"

we say this sort of meaningless jibbersh to each other before maximum efforts - inarticulate, incoherent macho-isms...

[CinnamonGirl]

I went to see Apocalypto last week and was amazed to see a trailer for opera.

Some theaters will be showing performances of opera! Bobcat, did you know about this?

[Bobcat]

There was a blurb in November's Opera News: six Metropolitan Opera performances are going, live via satellite and high-definition projection, to some theaters.

Subscribers to Sirius radio get to listen to a new opera channel. It includes, I think, at least four live broadcasts per week.