Opera without sopranos

Started by Harry, June 12, 2007, 03:27:09 AM

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Harry

Maybe a utterly stupid question, but are there romantic opera's without soprano's?


And to set a few things straight I can stomach operetta's with coloratura soprano's without problems.
In fact I am going to buy quite a few of them, including Kalman, Lehar, Strauss and many others.
Started with one from Kalman, and posted about that.
That is funny, isn't it.
Bur recommendations concerning operetta would not come amiss.
So, please............

BachQ


Harry

Quote from: D Minor on June 12, 2007, 03:50:16 AM
Elgar, The Spanish Lady

That is a operetta?
Elaborate in major please! ;D

BachQ

Quote from: Harry on June 12, 2007, 03:55:08 AM
That is a operetta?
Elaborate in major please! ;D

Do you think D Minor listens to operettas?

Harry

Quote from: D Minor on June 12, 2007, 03:56:17 AM
Do you think D Minor listens to operettas?

Yes, of course!
Why?

Larry Rinkel

Benjamin Britten's Billy Budd has an all-male cast.

But what is your issue with sopranos?

Harry

Quote from: Larry Rinkel on June 12, 2007, 04:02:25 AM
Benjamin Britten's Billy Budd has an all-male cast.

But what is your issue with sopranos?

Artificial vibrato I guess.

Britten is on my list.

lukeottevanger

Janacek's From the House of the Dead is an almost-soprano-free zone; also possibly his single finest work. But I think the two facts are coincidental  ;D

BachQ


Larry Rinkel

Quote from: lukeottevanger on June 12, 2007, 04:05:10 AM
Janacek's From the House of the Dead is an almost-soprano-free zone; also possibly his single finest work. But I think the two facts are coincidental  ;D

Luke, I hear Boulez is going to conduct this sometime soon. What is your reason for putting it at the top of the Janacek heap?

Larry Rinkel

Quote from: D Minor on June 12, 2007, 04:05:40 AM
Any male sopranos?

You would have to go back to the Baroque for them.

Harry

Quote from: lukeottevanger on June 12, 2007, 04:05:10 AM
Janacek's From the House of the Dead is an almost-soprano-free zone; also possibly his single finest work. But I think the two facts are coincidental  ;D

Good I love the music of Janacek!
My list grows.
Thanks.

karlhenning

Quote from: Harry on June 12, 2007, 04:03:56 AM
Artificial vibrato I guess.

Pray tell, what is artificial about a soprano's vibrato, which miraculously becomes natural with an alto, tenor or bass?  ;D

lukeottevanger

Quote from: Larry Rinkel on June 12, 2007, 04:06:23 AM
Luke, I hear Boulez is going to conduct this sometime soon. What is your reason for putting it at the top of the Janacek heap?

It is the most advanced example of the 'integrative' aesthetic that he applied to all his music, but especially from about 1917 onwards. In other words, it is a stark, spare, stripped-down piece where every note speaks volumes. That was always Janacek's ideal; he achieves it more than any other composer I know - but From the House of the Dead goes furthest in that direction, and is also a very brave human document.

Janacek's 'Violin Concerto' - left in a sketched state and later reconstructed - is closely linked to this opera thematically. For that reason - bizarrely, as it isn't a true 100% Janacek work - I think it is among the most essential pieces of orchestral music in his output. An incredibly beautiful piece, too.

Harry

Quote from: karlhenning on June 12, 2007, 04:14:51 AM
Pray tell, what is artificial about a soprano's vibrato, which miraculously becomes natural with an alto, tenor or bass?  ;D

Well I said, I guess, didn't I? ;D

71 dB

Quote from: Harry on June 12, 2007, 03:55:08 AM
That is a operetta?
Elaborate in major please! ;D

It is an unfinished Opera, Op. 89
Only a sort orchestral suite of it exists.
Spatial distortion is a serious problem deteriorating headphone listening.
Crossfeeders reduce spatial distortion and make the sound more natural
and less tiresome in headphone listening.

My Sound Cloud page <-- NEW Jan. 2024 "Harpeggiator"

Larry Rinkel

Quote from: lukeottevanger on June 12, 2007, 04:15:29 AM
It is the most advanced example of the 'integrative' aesthetic that he applied to all his music, but especially from about 1917 onwards. In other words, it is a stark, spare, stripped-down piece where every note speaks volumes. That was always Janacek's ideal; he achieves it more than any other composer I know - but From the House of the Dead goes furthest in that direction, and is also a very brave human document.

Janacek's 'Violin Concerto' - left in a sketched state and later reconstructed - is closely linked to this opera thematically. For that reason - bizarrely, as it isn't a true 100% Janacek work - I think it is among the most essential pieces of orchestral music in his output. An incredibly beautiful piece, too.


Don't know the concerto. Recordings?

lukeottevanger

Quote from: Larry Rinkel on June 12, 2007, 05:26:49 AM
Don't know the concerto. Recordings?

I have two, both on Supraphon: Suk/Neumann and Zenaty/Jilek. Hard to choose between them, though Suk is obviously wonderful.

71 dB

Quote from: Larry Rinkel on June 12, 2007, 04:02:25 AM
Benjamin Britten's Billy Budd has an all-male cast.

Gay Opera?  ;D
Spatial distortion is a serious problem deteriorating headphone listening.
Crossfeeders reduce spatial distortion and make the sound more natural
and less tiresome in headphone listening.

My Sound Cloud page <-- NEW Jan. 2024 "Harpeggiator"

lukeottevanger

Quote from: 71 dB on June 12, 2007, 05:33:32 AM
Gay Opera?  ;D

No, The Beggar's Opera has soprano roles, IIRC....