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Nine Rivers From Jordan
''Nine Rivers from Jordan'' is an opera in a prologue and three acts by composer Hugo Weisgall. The work uses an English libretto by Denis Johnston who derived the libretto from the book of the same title he wrote based on his experiences as a BBC radio reporter during World War II. The work premiered on October 9, 1968, at the New York City Opera. The opera musically, dramatically and symbolically attempts to deal with the unprecedented moral problems caused by the circumstances of the Second World War. The use of many different languages in the libretto, the rapid changes of scene and the geographical extent of the action mirror the universal involvement and confusion of those years. In the opera, actual happenings and imaginary events are juxtaposed. Synopsis Don Hanwell, a British soldier stationed in the desert by the Dead Sea, is warned by a mysterious woman not to carry a weapon, as it is ordained that man will meet his death according to the arms he bears. Don heeds her war ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Opera
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librettist and incorporates a number of the performing arts, such as acting, scenery, costume, and sometimes dance or ballet. The performance is typically given in an opera house, accompanied by an orchestra or smaller musical ensemble, which since the early 19th century has been led by a conductor. Although musical theatre is closely related to opera, the two are considered to be distinct from one another. Opera is a key part of the Western classical music tradition. Originally understood as an entirely sung piece, in contrast to a play with songs, opera has come to include numerous genres, including some that include spoken dialogue such as '' Singspiel'' and '' Opéra comique''. In traditional number opera, singers employ two styles of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Soprano
A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880 Hz in choral music, or to "soprano C" (C6, two octaves above middle C) = 1046 Hz or higher in operatic music. In four-part chorale style harmony, the soprano takes the highest part, which often encompasses the melody. The soprano voice type is generally divided into the coloratura, soubrette, lyric, spinto, and dramatic soprano. Etymology The word "soprano" comes from the Italian word '' sopra'' (above, over, on top of),"Soprano" '' |
1968 Operas
The year was highlighted by protests and other unrests that occurred worldwide. Events January–February * January 5 – " Prague Spring": Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. * January 10 – John Gorton is sworn in as 19th Prime Minister of Australia, taking over from John McEwen after being elected leader of the Liberal Party the previous day, following the disappearance of Harold Holt. Gorton becomes the only Senator to become Prime Minister, though he immediately transfers to the House of Representatives through the 1968 Higgins by-election in Holt's vacant seat. * January 15 – The 1968 Belice earthquake in Sicily kills 380 and injures around 1,000. * January 21 ** Vietnam War: Battle of Khe Sanh – One of the most publicized and controversial battles of the war begins, ending on April 8. ** 1968 Thule Air Base B-52 crash: A U.S. B-52 Stratofortress crashes in Greenland, discharging 4 nuclear bombs. * ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operas By Hugo Weisgall
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by Singing, singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a libretto, librettist and incorporates a number of the performing arts, such as acting, Theatrical scenery, scenery, costume, and sometimes dance or ballet. The performance is typically given in an opera house, accompanied by an orchestra or smaller musical ensemble, which since the early 19th century has been led by a conducting, conductor. Although musical theatre is closely related to opera, the two are considered to be distinct from one another. Opera is a key part of the Western culture#Music, Western classical music tradition. Originally understood as an entirely sung piece, in contrast to a play with songs, opera has come to include :Opera genres, numerous genres, including some that include spoken dialogue such as ''Singspiel'' and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Operas
Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librettist and incorporates a number of the performing arts, such as acting, scenery, costume, and sometimes dance or ballet. The performance is typically given in an opera house, accompanied by an orchestra or smaller musical ensemble, which since the early 19th century has been led by a conductor. Although musical theatre is closely related to opera, the two are considered to be distinct from one another. Opera is a key part of the Western classical music tradition. Originally understood as an entirely sung piece, in contrast to a play with songs, opera has come to include numerous genres, including some that include spoken dialogue such as ''Singspiel'' and ''Opéra comique''. In traditional number opera, singers employ two styles of singing: ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
English-language Operas
English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the island of Great Britain. Existing on a dialect continuum with Scots, and then closest related to the Low Saxon and Frisian languages, English is genealogically West Germanic. However, its vocabulary is also distinctively influenced by dialects of France (about 29% of Modern English words) and Latin (also about 29%), plus some grammar and a small amount of core vocabulary influenced by Old Norse (a North Germanic language). Speakers of English are called Anglophones. The earliest forms of English, collectively known as Old English, evolved from a group of West Germanic (Ingvaeonic) dialects brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the 5th century and further mutated by Norse-speaking Viking settlers starting in the 8th and 9th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michael Devlin (bass-baritone)
Michael Devlin (born November 27, 1942, in Chicago, Illinois) is an American opera singer who is internationally known as a bass-baritone and singing-actor. New Orleans Opera The protégé of the great Norman Treigle, Devlin began his career with the New Orleans Opera Association, where he debuted in a small role in ''La bohème'' (with Audrey Schuh as Mimì), in 1963. His next appearance was as Spalanzani in ''Les contes d'Hoffmann'' (a performance now available on Compact Discs, from VAI), with Beverly Sills and Treigle, in 1964. He was subsequently seen in ''Werther'' (opposite Giuseppe di Stefano), ''Carmen'', ''Ariadne auf Naxos'', ''Aïda'' (as Amonasro, with Marisa Galvany) and, in 1999, returned for ''The Ballad of Baby Doe'' (as William Jennings Bryan). New York City Opera At the New York City Opera, Devlin first sang the Ermitaño Ciego in the North American premiere of Ginastera's ''Don Rodrigo'', conducted by Julius Rudel and staged by Tito Capobianco, in 1966. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nico Castel
Nico Castel (August 1, 1931 – May 31, 2015), born Naftali Chaim Castel Kalinhoff, was a comprimario tenor and well-known language and diction coach, as well as a prolific translator of libretti and writer of books on singing diction. Although Castel performed throughout Europe, North America and South America, he was best known for his nearly 800 performances at The Metropolitan Opera, where he also served as staff diction coach for three decades. Biography Castel was born in Lisbon, Portugal, the "scion of a multigenerational dynasty of Sephardic rabbis" with roots in 15th century Castile.Fox, Margalit"Nico Castel, Tenor and Diction Coach at the Met, Dies at 83" ''The New York Times'', June 3, 2015 He was raised in Venezuela by multilingual parents and a German nanny and attended a French school in Caracas. After some vocal study in Caracas and then the University of Mainz in Germany, Castel moved to New York City at the age of 16 to pursue a singing career and to study romance ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joaquín Romaguera
Joaquin Romaguera (born September 5, 1932, Key West, Florida) is an American tenor and actor. A longtime performer with the New York City Opera from the 1960s through the 1980s, he notably created the role of Professor Risselberg in the world premiere of Gian Carlo Menotti's ''The Most Important Man'' in 1971. On Broadway he originated the role of Adolfo Pirelli in the original Broadway production of Stephen Sondheim's '' Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street'' (1979). He was nominated for the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical for his portrayal of Teddy in the 1987 Off-Broadway revival of Cole Porter's ''Gay Divorce''. Other career milestones included portraying Nicolas Orsini in the world premiere of Alberto Ginastera's '' Bomarzo'' with the Opera Society of Washington (1967, a role which he also recorded on disc), and appearing as Captain Pirzel in the United States premiere of Bernd Alois Zimmermann's '' Die Soldaten'' with conductor Sar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Stewart (tenor)
John Harger Stewart (born March 31, 1940, in Cleveland) is an American tenor, conductor, and voice teacher who had an active international singing career in concerts and operas from 1964 to 1990. He began his career singing regularly with the Santa Fe Opera from the mid-1960s through the early 1970s; after which he appeared only periodically in Santa Fe up through the mid-1980s. He was particularly active with the New York City Opera during the 1970s and 1980s, and with the Frankfurt Opera from the mid-1970s through 1990. He also appeared as a guest artist with several other important American opera companies, including the Metropolitan Opera and the Washington National Opera, and at other European opera houses like the De Nederlandse Opera in Amsterdam, the Deutsche Oper Berlin, the Grand Théâtre de Genève in Switzerland, and the Wexford Festival Opera in Ireland. Now retired from singing, he is currently the Director of Vocal Activities at Washington University in St. Louis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bass-baritone
A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing three Wagnerian roles: the title role in ''Der fliegende Holländer'', Wotan/Der Wanderer in the ''Ring Cycle'' and Hans Sachs in '' Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg''. Wagner labelled these roles as ''Hoher Bass'' ("high bass")—see fach for more details. The bass-baritone voice is distinguished by two attributes. First, it must be capable of singing comfortably in a baritonal tessitura. Secondly, however, it needs to have the ripely resonant lower range typically associated with the bass voice. For example, the role of Wotan in ''Die Walküre'' covers the range from F2 (the F at the bottom of the bass clef) to F4 (the F above middle C), but only infrequently descends beyond C3 (the C below middle C). Bass-baritones are typically divide ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
John Lankston
John Lankston (1934, Bridgeport, Illinois - July 12, 2018, Bridgeport, Illinois) was an American tenor and actor who had a career in opera and musical theater from the 1950s through the 2000s. After making his Broadway debut in ''Redhead'' (1959), he went on to create the roles of Adolph and the Ziegfeld Tenor in Jule Styne's '' Funny Girl'' (1963) in which he was a featured soloist with Barbra Streisand. For his work, he and the rest of the main cast were awarded the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album at the 7th Annual Grammy Awards. He was a regular performer with the New York City Opera from 1966 to 2001. His greatest success with the NYCO was his creation of the quintuple role of Voltaire/Pangloss/Businessman/Governor/Gambler in the 1982 revival of Leonard Bernstein's ''Candide'' which was directed by Hal Prince and filmed for national broadcast on PBS's ''Live from Lincoln Center''. The company later recorded the production on disc, and Langston and the rest of the ar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
