''Upload'' is an

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 librett ...

in nine scenes with music and text by

Michel van der Aa Michel van der Aa (; born 10 March 1970) is a Dutch composer of contemporary classical music. Early years Michel van der Aa was born 10 March 1970 in Oss. He trained as a recording engineer at the Royal Conservatory of The Hague, and studie ...

. The 2021 productions were conducted by

Otto Tausk Otto Tausk (born 1970 in Utrecht) is a Dutch conductor. Biography Tausk was a violin student of Viktor Liberman and István Párkányi. He studied conducting with Jurjen Hempel and Kenneth Montgomery. He continued his music studies with Jonas Al ...

and directed by Michel van der Aa. The opera was commissioned by

Dutch National Opera The Dutch National Opera (DNO; formerly De Nederlandse Opera, now De Nationale Opera in Dutch) is a Dutch opera company based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Its present home base is the Dutch National Opera & Ballet housed in the Stopera building, a m ...

, Cologne Opera, Bregenzer Festspiele,

Ensemble Musikfabrik The Ensemble Musikfabrik (music factory ensemble) is an ensemble for contemporary classical music located in Cologne. Their official name is Ensemble Musikfabrik Landesensemble NRW e.V. (Ensemble Musikfabrik of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia ...

, Park Avenue Armory, and DoubleA Foundation. In October 2021 it was the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' critic's pick, and in November 2022 won "Best Digital Opera" at the

International Opera Awards The International Opera Awards is an annual awards ceremony honouring excellence in opera around the world. Origins The International Opera Awards was founded in 2013 by Harry Hyman, a UK businessman, philanthropist and supporter of opera, and ...

ceremony in Madrid.

Plot

The story recounts a daughter whose father has had his memories "uploaded" to the digital cloud, in order to achieve eternal consciousness as a digital being. The opera questions the roles that fate, identity, and the cost of immortality play in our lives. The story is told through two storylines: one through pre-recorded film, and the other by two live opera singers. Live motion-capture projections are also used, allowing for the daughter character to interact with her "digitised" father.

Roles

Live cast (singing roles) Film cast (acting roles)

Recording

A film version of the opera was made available on Medici.tv from July 16, 2021. The Dutch premiere was on October 1, 2021, at the

in Amsterdam. There were performances at the Park Avenue Armory New York in March 2022 and at the Cologne Opera in April 2022.

References

{{authority control 2021 operas English-language operas Operas