I am not a fan of opera, having seen only one live performance in my life. It was a long time ago when I was in Germany and we were taken as a group to see Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman. My reaction? Kind of meh. But I decided to take advantage of the New York Metropolitan Opera’s decision, during the time when they are shut down due to the pandemic, to broadcast recordings of their past live streams of operas for free with a new one every night. (See this post for details).
The first one yesterday was Carmen and I decided to watch it. I was surprised by two things. One was that I enjoyed it as much as I did, given that I did not understand a word of it. I had, however, read a brief synopsis of the plot so that I could generally follow what was going on and why people suddenly switched from tenderness to anger. The second was how very familiar much of the music was even to a non-opera buff like me. It shows how much of this music has penetrated into all areas of culture.
These opera singers are quite amazing. They are able to project their voices into the large auditorium without looking as if they are making much of an effort, even when they are in positions that are not conducive to singing, such as lying on the ground. If this was not serious opera put on by a reputable institution in front of a live audience, you might be tempted to think that they were lip-syncing, so effortless did they make it look.
I now plan to watch today’s streaming of Puccini’s La Boheme.
Meanwhile the governor of California has issued an order for people in five counties to ‘shelter in place’ from midnight Tuesday until April 7. What does that mean?
Residents “may leave to provide or receive certain essential services or engage in certain essential activities and work for essential business or government services”.
The key word here is “essential”. Going to get groceries, seeking medical attention, bringing a dog to a veterinarian or picking up medication are all activities that officials consider essential.
Residents working in the healthcare field will be able to go to and from their jobs. Workers with jobs like garbage collection will be able to continue their work.The order also allows for outdoor exercise, “provided that the individuals comply with social distancing requirements”.
Although I do not live in any of the counties affected by the order, I plan to be effectively following it by staying at home for the next few weeks except for going out for walks in the neighborhood. I have enough food to last me for a few weeks and I am quite comfortable being alone for long periods of time, so this is by no mean a hardship for me. I have also been playing bridge online.
Since I plan to be watching the Met’s operas during this time, who knows, I may emerge from this period of isolation with a broader cultural horizon than before.
I, too, am not much of an opera fan, but should I have occasion to be listening to it, I concentrate on the amazing things the singers do with their voices. Even without understanding the libretto, I can really enjoy the sounds coming from their mouths, all the while marveling, (as you noted), at how easy they make it seem. This may be a prejudice of my ancestry, but listening to German opera is like listening to marbles falling on a tin roof. Opera was simply not created with the German language in mind. It should be performed in a Romance language, preferably Italian. (I know nothing about opera and yet I’m an opera snob!) Anyway, I think you’ll enjoy Puccini.
I guess they didn’t include English subtitles then. That’s too bad. (In the other thread, I mentioned this recording from the National Center for the Performing Arts in Beijing — both Chinese and English subtitles. Not the absolute best version you could ever hope to hear, although still very good. You just shouldn’t need to know French.)
One of my favorites will always be Porgy and Bess. (The opera’s in English, of course, but that video has Spanish subtitles too, for those interested.)
Good memories playing it … seems like ages ago now, when I was just a kid really. The singers were unforgettable; they were the best part about the whole experience. I don’t say that lightly either. I’m very used to being irritated with ill-prepared, prima donna vocalists. They were definitely not that. And this was not a major opera company, mind you. A lot of great musicians, but for all I know, many of them might be flipping hamburgers now, if they’re lucky.
I’d want at least $30/hr to put up with opera. But it’s better than ballet, at least; that would be more like $50/hr.
—
They might have become useful to society, then.
John, you may want to be a tool, but not everyone does.
John Morales
bless your heart
have a nice day
Opera is useful to opera lovers. No need to bag anyone whose interests differ from your own.
CR:
Heh. Did you know that idiom refers to someone who is unaware they’re being used?
(You don’t usually employ malapropisms, but in this case you’ve managed it)
So. You might want to see people prancing around and warbling emotively, but not everyone does.
In short, you have your opinion about opera, I have mine.
You expressed yours, I expressed mine.
(We also clearly differ as to the merit of being a musician versus being a burger flipper, but that’s another matter)
heh
really? where?
You cared about a person being “useful.” I was referring to that.
Moreover, you were saying this in reference to a bunch of black folks who were involved in a work that portrays the ways marginalized people struggle with themselves and struggle against their oppressive society.
I don’t give a fuck if you don’t find that kind of activity “useful,” or if you have a preference for the culinary arts. Go preach the good word to somebody who does.
Nobody’s forcing you, dumbass.
I’ve got nothing to say about “the merit” of being either, and you do. That is one difference.
I want both sets of workers to be fairly compensated for their work, and it’s not clear whether we differ on that.
What makes you doubt me, chigau?
(Call it an operational definition)
CR:
You say that, but your actions evince otherwise.
I was forced once, back in primary school. Some Beatrice Potter thingy where people pranced around in fur suits. After that experience, the school decided I did not have to go to such compulsory outings any more, and we were both happy about that arrangement.
More to the point, nobody is forcing you to get all exercised because I think it’s a stupid thing to do and to watch.
So, I just quoted you having nothing to say about this, right?
Let the people who like opera compensate the performers, then.
Me, I object to my taxpayer dollars being used for their compensation.
cf. https://theconversation.com/does-opera-deserve-its-privileged-status-within-arts-funding-84761
CR:
I was saying it about opera, not about any particular work.
But let’s have a look (Wikipedia):
“Porgy and Bess (/ˈpɔːrɡi/) is an English-language opera by the American composer George Gershwin, with a libretto written by author DuBose Heyward and lyricist Ira Gershwin. It was adapted from Dorothy Heyward and DuBose Heyward’s play Porgy, itself an adaptation of DuBose Heyward’s 1925 novel of the same name.”
Huh. White people wrote it, black people performed it. Admirable for some.
https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Tool
Ah, the old “I don’t like it so it’s useless garbage” mindset. Sometimes the people putting that out there come as no surprise.
I too am not an opera / ballet (I tend to conflate the two) buff, but did attend a few when I lived in London — and the ones I kind-of liked were “non-traditional” ones (not necessarily in English). From slightly embarrassingly vague memory, one I particularly-liked was one set in(?) Africa performed by the Dance Theatre of Harlem. It may have been South African Suite? (Obviously more ballet than opera, but like I said, I typically conflate those two performing arts.)
In any case, I tried to connect several times to the Met’s offering (from France), and never succeeded. I’ll try again, as it could be potentially interesting. The only way I’ll find out is to try, rather than demanding to be paid and hurtling insults at everyone who points out the first thing to do when in a hole is stop digging.
publicola @ 1 Opera was simply not created with the German language in mind.
It lends itself well to cursing, however. Where else can you call someone a pig-dog and have it sound obscene? /snark
#7 John
Actually in this context, it means something along the lines of bell-end, wanker, douche, insufferable, etc. Polysemy and all that.
Choose one of these positions. They contradict.
#11 John
Good thing the overwhelming majority disagrees with you; a nation in which no tax monies are used to fund arts would be a dreary one.
La Boheme had subtitles for me yesterday -- maybe it’s a setting?
If someone needs more opera -- the Staatsoper Berlin is streaming too: https://www.staatsoper-berlin.de/en/