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The Most Important Man
''The Most Important Man'' is an opera in three acts with music and libretto by Gian Carlo Menotti. Commissioned by Julius Rudel for the New York City Opera, the work premiered at Lincoln Center in 1971 in a production directed by Menotti with sets designed by Oliver Smith and costumes by Frank Thompson. An opera focusing on racial tensions in Africa with a central black hero, the work was poorly received by most critics. However, Menotti personally believed that this was one of his best operas on par with ''The Consul'' and ''The Saint of Bleecker Street''. The work's first European performance was at the Teatro Lirico Giuseppe Verdi in Trieste, Italy, on January 17, 1972. The opera uses Menotti's characteristic lyrical style which is inspired by Puccini and the Italian verismo opera tradition. In this work he infuses African percussion and rhythms, much in the way Puccini infused Asian inspired melodies and musical practices into his opera ''Madama Butterfly''. Roles Plot Set ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gian Carlo Menotti
Gian Carlo Menotti (, ; July 7, 1911 – February 1, 2007) was an Italian composer, librettist, director, and playwright who is primarily known for his output of 25 operas. Although he often referred to himself as an American composer, he kept his Italian citizenship. One of the most frequently performed opera composers of the 20th century, his most successful works were written in the 1940s and 1950s. Highly influenced by Giacomo Puccini and Modest Mussorgsky, Menotti further developed the verismo tradition of opera in the post-World War II era. Rejecting atonality and the aesthetic of the Second Viennese School, Menotti's music is characterized by expressive lyricism which carefully sets language to natural rhythms in ways that highlight textual meaning and underscore dramatic intent. Like Wagner, Menotti wrote the libretti of all his operas. He wrote the classic Christmas opera '' Amahl and the Night Visitors'' (1951), along with over two dozen other operas intended to appe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baritone
A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C (i.e. F2–F4) in choral music, and from the second A below middle C to the A above middle C (A2 to A4) in operatic music, but the range can extend at either end. Subtypes of baritone include the baryton-Martin baritone (light baritone), lyric baritone, ''Kavalierbariton'', Verdi baritone, dramatic baritone, ''baryton-noble'' baritone, and the bass-baritone. History The first use of the term "baritone" emerged as ''baritonans'', late in the 15th century, usually in French sacred polyphonic music. At this early stage it was frequently used as the lowest of the voices (including the bass), but in 17th-century Italy the term was all-encompassing and used to describe the averag ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Don Yule
Don Yule (January 28, 1935, Enid, Oklahoma — July 3, 2015, Brooklyn, New York City) was an American operatic bass who performed regularly with the New York City Opera (NYCO) for fifty years. A graduate of the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, he joined the NYCO in 1960 where he made his debut as Gluttony in a revival of Hugo Weisgall’s ''Six Characters in Search of an Author''. He went on to perform in a total of 83 roles with the NYCO in more than 1,700 performances, most often in comprimario parts. Some of the roles he was associated with included Alcindoro and Benoit in Giacomo Puccini's ''La Bohème'', Antonio and Bartolo in Mozart's '' The Marriage of Figaro'', Dr. Grenvil in Giuseppe Verdi's '' La Traviata'', and the Jailer and the Sacristan in Puccini's ''Tosca''. Yule notably created the role of Professor Grippel in the world premiere of Gian Carlo Menotti's '' The Most Important Man'' in 1971. In 1982 he portrayed the Huntsman and the Bulgarian Soldier ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bass (voice Type)
A bass is a type of classical male singing voice and has the lowest vocal range of all voice types. According to ''The New Grove Dictionary of Opera'', a bass is typically classified as having a vocal range extending from around the second E below middle C to the E above middle C (i.e., E2–E4).; ''The Oxford Dictionary of Music'' gives E2–E4/F4 Its tessitura, or comfortable range, is normally defined by the outermost lines of the bass clef. Categories of bass voices vary according to national style and classification system. Italians favour subdividing basses into the ''basso cantante'' (singing bass), ''basso buffo'' ("funny" bass), or the dramatic ''basso profondo'' (low bass). The American system identifies the bass-baritone, comic bass, lyric bass, and dramatic bass. The German ''Fach'' system offers further distinctions: Spielbass (Bassbuffo), Schwerer Spielbass (Schwerer Bassbuffo), Charakterbass (Bassbariton), and Seriöser Bass. These classification systems can ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Jamerson
Thomas Jamerson is an American baritone who had an active international career as an opera and concert performer from the 1960s through the 1990s. He first drew distinction in the field of opera in 1968 when he recorded the role of Baron Douphol in Giuseppe Verdi's ''La traviata'' for RCA with conductor Georges Prêtre, the RCA Italiana Orchestra, and Montserrat Caballe as Violetta and Carlo Bergonzi as Alfredo. In 1969 he portrayed roles in the United States premieres of two operas at the Santa Fe Opera: Der Auserwählte (The Chosen One) in Arnold Schoenberg's ''Die Jakobsleiter'' and Captain of the Royal Guard in Hans Werner Henze's ''The Bassarids''. He was a principal artist with the New York City Opera from 1969 to 1984. In 1971 he notably created the role of Professor Bolental in the world premiere of Gian Carlo Menotti's ''The Most Important Man''. He currently teaches voice on the faculty at the Music Conservatory of Westchester in White Plains, New York. Life and career Bo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joaquin 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 Sarah Caldwe ... [...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] |
Richard Stilwell (bass-baritone)
Richard Stilwell III (born 6 May 1942 in St. Louis, Missouri) is an operatic and concert baritone. After graduating from Indiana University in 1966, Stilwell joined the Army Chorus in Washington. He appeared as a soloist with the chorus singing the tribute: "One Small Step" in a national telecast with the returning astronauts of Apollo 11 and President Richard Nixon. He also appeared with the American Light Opera Company. He currently lives in McLean, Virginia with his wife and two sons. Stilwell sang Billy Budd in the premiere of Britten's '' Billy Budd'' at the Metropolitan Opera, directed by John Dexter, and The Lodger in the premier of Dominick Argento's '' The Aspern Papers'' alongside Frederica Von Stade and Elisabeth Soderstrom. He appears alongside Frederica von Stade in the landmark recording of '' Pelléas et Mélisande'' under the baton of Herbert von Karajan, and as the voice of Count Almaviva (from ''Le nozze di Figaro'') and Don Giovanni in the 1984 film, ''Am ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Joanna Bruno
Joanna Mary Bruno (born. 1944, West Orange, New Jersey), also known as Joanna Bruno-Clarke, is an American operatic soprano who had an active international career during the 1960s and 1970s. A lyric soprano, she often performed in operas by Giacomo Puccini and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. In the United States she performed frequently with the Santa Fe Opera and the New York City Opera, and in Europe she performed in multiple operas with the Dutch National Opera and the Scottish Opera among others. She is best remembered for her performances in the operas of Gian Carlo Menotti, notably creating the role of Cora Arnek in the world premiere of Menotti's ''The Most Important Man'' in 1971. Life and career Born in West Orange, New Jersey, Bruno began her vocal music studies with Katherine Eastment in New Jersey. She studied opera with Jennie Tourel at the Juilliard School where she graduated as an undergraduate student in 1967. She continued graduate studies at the Juilliard Opera Center wi ... [...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" '' |
Beverly Wolff
Beverly Wolff (November 6, 1928 – August 14, 2005) was an American mezzo-soprano who had an active career in concerts and operas from the early 1950s to the early 1980s. She performed a broad repertoire which encompassed operatic and concert works in many languages and from a variety of musical periods. She was a champion of new works, notably premiering compositions by Leonard Bernstein, Gian Carlo Menotti, Douglas Moore, and Ned Rorem among other American composers. She also performed in a number of rarely heard baroque operas by George Frideric Handel with the New York City Opera (NYCO), the Handel Society of New York, and at the Kennedy Center Handel Festivals. Wolff made only a few appearances on the international stage during her career, choosing instead to work with important opera companies and orchestras in the United States. She was particularly active with the NYCO with whom she performed frequently from 1958–1971. ''Opera News'' stated, "Wolff was one of a go ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mezzo-soprano
A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C to the A two octaves above (i.e. A3–A5 in scientific pitch notation, where middle C = C4; 220–880 Hz). In the lower and upper extremes, some mezzo-sopranos may extend down to the F below middle C (F3, 175 Hz) and as high as "high C" (C6, 1047 Hz). The mezzo-soprano voice type is generally divided into the coloratura, lyric, and dramatic mezzo-soprano. History While mezzo-sopranos typically sing secondary roles in operas, notable exceptions include the title role in Bizet's '' Carmen'', Angelina (Cinderella) in Rossini's ''La Cenerentola'', and Rosina in Rossini's ''Barber of Seville'' (all of which are also sung by sopranos and contraltos). Many 19th-century French-language operas give the leading female role to mezzos, includin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
