Through a deft compilation of primary sources letters, memoirs, and
personal accounts from composers, librettists, and performers
Michael Rose re-creates for his readers the circumstances that gave
rise to fifteen operatic milestones. From Monteverdi and Mozart to
Puccini and Berg, each chapter focuses on a well-known opera and
tells the story that lies behind its creation.
Rather than retreading familiar ground with pages of historical
and musical analysis, Rose places each opera firmly in the context
of the composer s life and provides an engaging text in which the
varied and colorful personalities involved are seen to discuss,
comment, and contribute in one way or another to the progress of
its composition. The reader will find Mozart with a new and
flamboyant librettist tackling the risky enterprise of Le Nozze di
Figaro; Wagner confessing his hidden love for the woman who
inspires him as he creates the passionate drama of Tristan und
Isolde; Verdi deep in Shakespearian discussion with Boito as they
remodel the tragedy of Otello; and Debussy coming almost literally
to blows with Maeterlinck over the soprano to take the leading role
in Pelleas et Melisande.
Throughout, Rose offers his readers the most direct possible
link to events that have often become twisted or obscured by
operatic myth, and in so doing he captures the bizarre interactions
of chance, genius, practical necessity, and dogged determination
that accompanied the making of some of opera s most enduring
masterpieces."
General
Imprint: |
W W Norton & Co Inc
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Release date: |
April 2013 |
First published: |
March 2013 |
Authors: |
Michael Rose
|
Dimensions: |
244 x 165 x 38mm (L x W x T) |
Format: |
Hardcover - Cloth over boards
|
Pages: |
464 |
ISBN-13: |
978-0-393-06043-0 |
Categories: |
Books >
Arts & Architecture >
Performing arts >
Theatre, drama >
Opera
|
LSN: |
0-393-06043-8 |
Barcode: |
9780393060430 |
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