opera - Carmen

Opera is a form of theatre in which the drama is conveyed wholly or predominantly through music and singing. Opera emerged in Italy around the year 1600 and is generally associated with the Western classical music tradition. Opera uses many of the elements of spoken theatre such as scenery, costumes, and acting. Generally, however, opera is distinguished from other dramatic forms by the importance of song and conventions of vocal technique. The singers are accompanied by a musical ensemble ranging from a small instrumental ensemble to a full symphonic orchestra. Opera may also incorporate dance; this was especially true of French opera for much of its history.
Comparable art forms from various other parts of the world, many of them ancient in origin, exist and are also sometimes called "opera" by analogy, usually prefaced with an adjective indicating the region (for example, Chinese opera). These independent traditions are not derivative of Western opera, but are rather distinct forms of musical theatre. Opera is also not the only type of Western musical theatre: in the ancient world, Greek drama featured singing and instrumental accompaniment; and in modern times, other forms such as the musical have appeared.





Contents[hide]

1 Operatic terminology
2 History

2.1 Origins
2.2 Italian opera

2.2.1 The Baroque era
2.2.2 Reform: Gluck, the attack on the Metastasian ideal, and Mozart
2.2.3 Bel canto, Verdi and verismo
2.3 German-language opera
2.4 French opera
2.5 English-language opera
2.6 Russian opera
2.7 Other national operas
2.8 Contemporary, recent, and Modernist trends

2.8.1 Modernism
2.8.2 Other trends
2.8.3 From musicals back towards opera
3 Operatic voices

3.1 Vocal classifications
3.2 Historical use of voice parts
4 See also

4.1 Lists
4.2 Related topics
5 Notes
6 References
7 Further reading
8 External links

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The Teatro alla Scala in Milan, Italy. Founded in 1778, La Scala is one of the world's most famous opera houses.


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Bolshoi Theatre.


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The Sydney Opera House is one of the world's most recognizable opera houses and landmarks.

Operatic terminology
The words of an opera are known as the libretto (literally "little book"). Some composers, notably Richard Wagner, have written their own libretti; others have worked in close collaboration with their librettists, e.g. Mozart with Lorenzo da Ponte. Traditional opera consists of two modes of singing: recitative, the plot-driving passages often sung in a non-melodic style characteristic of opera, and aria (an "air" or formal song) in which the characters express their emotions in a more structured melodic style. Duets, trios and other ensembles often occur, and choruses are used to comment on the action. In some forms of opera, such as Singspiel, opéra comique, operetta, and semi-opera, the recitative is mostly replaced by spoken dialogue. Melodic or semi-melodic passages occurring in the midst of, or instead of, recitative, are also referred to as arioso. During the Baroque and Classical periods, recitative could appear in two basic forms: secco (dry) recitative, accompanied only by "continuo", which was often no more than a harpsichord; or accompagnato (also known as "stromentato") in which the orchestra provided accompaniment. By the 19th century, accompagnato had gained the upper hand, the orchestra played a much bigger role, and Richard Wagner revolutionised opera by abolishing almost all distinction between aria and recitative in his quest for what he termed "endless melody". Subsequent composers have tended to follow Wagner's example, though some, such as Stravinsky in his The Rake's Progress have bucked the trend. The terminology of the various kinds of operatic voices is described in Section 3 below.[1]

Why your questions are as same as me?So funny.
~Tortoise