Listening
Giuseppe Verdi, beginning of Act 1 of La Traviata (opera)
Recall from week 5:
Opera
A story or drama presented in music. It is sung throughout using two techniques for conveying the text:
- Recitative (think “recitation”)
- declaiming words musically in a heightened, theatrical manner
- moves the action of the story forward
- Aria
- elaborate, extended piece for solo singer
- pauses the action in order to immerse the audience in the character’s feelings
Excerpts:
“Dell’invito trascorsa è già l’ora” and “Libiamo ne’lieti calici” performed by Opera Nova w Bydgoszczy Orchestra. [Watch on YouTube]
“Libiamo ne’lieti calici” performed by Diana Damrau, Juan Diego Flórez, and the Met Chorus [Watch on YouTube]
IN YOUR DISCUSSION POST FOR THE VERDI :
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Provide a sentence or two that comments on the interaction between the voice and orchestral music in these excerpts.
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This opera opens with a scene that raises questions for the audience. What is one question you have about the plot or characters after watching the opening of this opera? Please do not search for the plot of this work. We will discuss the plot in lecture.
Reading
Who is Verdi?
“Verdi, Giuseppe (Fortunino Francesco).” Baker’s Biographical Dictionary of Musicians, edited by Nicolas Slonimsky and Laura Kuhn, vol. 6, Schirmer, 2001, pp. 3771–3774. Gale eBooks.
Wider Context
OPTIONAL: For a wider context, see Oxford Reference for timelines of world history by century.
Optional
Please note: The following composer represented views that do not align with this class. The music is included here because of its impact in the late 19th century.
Richard Wagner – end of Prelude and beginning of Act 1 from Tristan und Isolde (music drama)
Music drama: Wagner’s term for his operatic works.
11:00–21:21 only: Directed by Daniel Barenboim, performed by René Kollo, tenor, Johanna Meier, soprano, and the Bayreuth Festival Chorus and Orchestra, [Listen on YouTube]
Playing Wagner’s Music in Israel, Brandeis University, February 24, 2023.
“Wagner, Richard (1813–1883).” Encyclopedia of European Social History, edited by Peter N. Stearns, vol. 6: Biographies/Contributors, Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2001, pp. 353–356. Gale eBooks.
