Television opera - that is, opera commissioned for television - was
one of the earliest attempts by television to bridge the
distinction between high culture and popular culture: between 1951
and 2002, in Britain and the United States, over fifty operas were
commissioned for television. This book discusses three case
studies, the first a live broadcast, the second a video recording,
and the third a filmed opera made for television: Gian Carlo
Menotti's 'Amahl and the Night Visitors' (NBC, 1951; Benjamin
Britten's 'Owen Wingrave' (BBC, 1971), taking into account
Britten's earlier television experiences with 'The Turn of the
Screw' (Associated Rediffusion, 1959) and 'Billy Budd' (NBC, 1952
and BBC 1966); and Gerald Barry's 'The Triumph of Beauty and
Deceit' (1995), part of Channel 4's decision in 1989 to embark upon
a series of six hour-long television operas. In each case, the
composer's response to the demands of television, and his place
within the production's hierarchy, are examined; and the effect of
the formats and techniques peculiar to television on the process of
composing are discussed. JENNIFER BARNES is Assistant Principal and
Dean of Studies at Trinity College of Music, London.From its
beginnings, television has relied on music to signal its message to
the broadest market, and opera was a significant part of that plan.
But whereas in opera the role of the composer is paramount and his
vision provides the driving force, in opera commissioned for
television there are other priorities, both practical and artistic.
Over the decades, conflict of expectations, methods and authority
have influenced the production of many television operas. To chart
these changes, this work examinesthree, commissioned at twenty-year
intervals - Menotti's 'Amahl and the Night Visitors', Britten's
'Owen Wingrave' and Barry's 'Triumph of Beauty and Deceit.Over
fifty operas have been commissioned for television since the early
1950s. Examining changes in television techniques, Jennifer Barnes
considers their impact on the role of the composer and questions
whether television, in its rapid evolution, has abandoned early
indigenous production methods, and with that its secrets of writing
and producing opera for television.
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