Every year, I am amazed!
La Boheme certainly isn't very Christmassy, and old Fledermaus is not really all that festive and beautiful. Amahl and the Night Visitors will not do.
There ought to be something that is lush & romantic, beautiful to look at, full of gorgeous music, fabulous instruments, beautiful scenery,.....it amazes me.....we not only have all the instruments of the modern orchestra, we have all those nice instruments we use now in 'early music' ... the ballet, Nutcracker, has shown us the lure of toys and snowy Christmas trees that come to life, even though the story is not really for grown-ups.
What we need is something that is beautiful to look at, great for a night at the opera, just right for children, and fun for the opera company. Have I missed anything? The big opera houses are behind the times? No. People are just so "right there" for a new opera or two !
I can smell peppermints right now...but where is the music? Please?
2007-09-28 10:50:21 · 6 answers · asked by LS 1 in Entertainment & Music ➔ Music ➔ Classical
well folks, have we all forgotten the one work that was premiered at Christmas 1893 and made a hit ( and stays a hit) with kids of all ages? Hänsel und Gretel.
for you curiosity seekers, when I studied at U.C.L.A. ( back in the Stone Age), Dr. David Morton wrote a one-acter, The Gift, based on O.Henry's short story. I don't know if it is still gathering dust somewhere in the archives, or if someone has had the courage to publish it, but it was tuneful enough to be given a listen. It's not the Christmas mood that you are after, but I thought I'd toss it into the mix.
Hmm, what story would you have set?
2007-09-28 20:58:38 · answer #1 · answered by lynndramsop 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I'm in total agreement with Glinzek here. I can't fathom why Amahl won't do. It truly captures the spirit of Christmas without (OK it is very sentimental) the glitz and commercialism that Christmas has become and it is a regular fixture in many regions. and as Cubcur mentioned there is always Rimsky-Korsakoff's Christmas Eve rather tuneful if I recall correctly.
but Amahl is ingrained in many of us as much as the movies Holiday Inn or White Christmas having seen every Christmas on television for many years
and having sung in the chorus in a production directed by Maestro Menotti I even have a Christmas present from the Maestro .... he wanted a skinny tenor up front and called me skinny tenor something no one would even think of now ;))
2007-09-28 23:59:31 · answer #2 · answered by toutvas bien 5 · 3⤊ 0⤋
And why will Amahl not do? It is a Christmas tradition,and nobody else has done a Christmas opera because they cannot improve on this simple, sweet story.
What does lush and romatic have to do with Christmas? This opera perfectly captures the spirit of Christmas, and it is deliberately NOT stupendous and collosal. Wasn't Jesus born in the most humble and unassuming of places? Isn't Amahl's willingness to give up his crutch the ultimate Christmas gift? And his healing the ultimate reward for his simple child-like act of faith? How can you improve on that?
The opera should be staged outside with the audience members having to stand and watch it, instead of in a plush opera house with folks all gussied up in their "see and be seen" outfits.
Boy, am I nuts or what?
2007-09-28 11:16:07 · answer #3 · answered by glinzek 6 · 4⤊ 0⤋
Handel's Messiah is a great oratorio for Christmas and Easter. I think that there isn't too many Christmas themed operas because, in the olden times, is was sacrilege to put sacred text in the form of an opera. Opera was for secular themes, not sacred themes. If you think about it, there aren't any really good operas around Easter, either. Handel brought us the oratorio, which blended opera music with sacred texts and he was able to get away with that because there wasn't any costumes or sets required to pull it off. Oratorios basically had the orchestra, chorus, and soloists standing in front. It wasn't really until more recent times that it became socially acceptable to put sacred text to secular forms of music (think Jesus Christ Super Star).
2007-09-28 11:14:15 · answer #4 · answered by kdollmusic 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Trying to stay within the spirit of Christmas -- I enjoyed Glinzek's post so much, I am hesitant to post at all -- and thinking of diversity so folk who enjoy the opera house in preference to the outside experience are comfortable too, why not consider Rimsky-Korsakoff's opera "Christmas Eve" as an alternative? Here's a taster...
http://www.tradebit.com/filedetail.php/1936015
2007-09-28 13:11:00 · answer #5 · answered by CubCur 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
It's simply because operas in general are too heavy for Christmas. It's obvious. People don't need headache for Christmas. They would rather hear something very lush and bouncy unless you have such strong ears that listening to a 3 hours opera seems easy task. That's just my opinion.
2007-09-28 12:01:56 · answer #6 · answered by sting 4 · 0⤊ 5⤋