Orphée et Eurydice

Orphée et Eurydice - Week 2

Welcome students and teachers to Opera Online. This week we will continue to look at the Opera Company of Philadelphia's new production of Gluck's Orphée et Eurydice paying most attention to the "Trouser Role"!!

Web Site of the Week

In our opera, the role of the tragic Orpheus is sung by a mezzo-soprano. The composer originally intended the role sung by a castrato. This version of the score was revised by French composer Hector Berlioz for mezzo-soprano Pauline Viardot.
Still, the use of the female voice for the male role reflects an occasionally used operatic convention known as the "trouser" role.
For those of you who have downloaded the study guide you can read more about the trousers role on page 27. To find out more about it visit this website.

YouTube Clip of the Week

The Trouser role

We will be looking at Orphée's arias in the coming week so I have three other examples of the famous trouser roles that are performed today.

The role of Cherubino singing "Voi che sapete" from Le nozze di Figaro by Mozart
Sung by mezzo-soprano Susanne Mentzer

The role of Oscar singing "Saper vorresti" form Un ballo in maschera by Verdi
Sung by soprano Ingrid Kertesi

The role of Octavian singing the famous duet "Mir ist die Ehre widerfahren..." with Sophie from Strauss's Der Rosenkavalier
Sung by contralto mezzo-soprano Vesselina Kasarova

Opera on the Air

Leos Janacek's KATYA KABANOVA (sung in Czech)

On Saturday, May 29 at 1pm WRTI Radio will broadcast the Lyric Opera of Chicago's production of Leos Janacek's Katya Kabanova (sung in Czech) conducted by Markus Stenz starring Karita Mattila as Katya, Judith Forst as Kabanicha and Brandon Jovanovich as Boris.

Don't forget to invite your friends to sign up to receive these alerts by emailing their name, school, and age to us at outreach@operaphila.org.

Until next week…

Comments

Carmen Blog

WRITE A REVIEW: Having had the opportunity to see Carmen at Opera Philadelphia, tell us what you thought. Be as detailed in your response as possible. Consider using "Wring a Review of the Opera" found of p.51 of your student guide to help organize your thoughts. We will accept all reviews, positive or negative! We simply ask that you thoroughly defend your opinion. In your response consider commenting on the story, the sets, the characters, the music, and more. With both options we ask that you include your: FIRST NAME: SCHOOL: GRADE: You never know, if your blog entry is well written, we may just have to put it on Opera Philadelphia's official blog page. We look forward reading your entry! Happy writing. ...

Tosca Student Reviews

Students in the Opera Company of Philadelphia's Sounds of Learning program saw the final dress rehearsal of Puccini's Tosca on Wednesday, April 27, 2011 at the Academy of Music. Now that you've studied the opera and seen it, what were your impressions? Tell us what you think and post your reviews here! Did you like the opera? Why or why not? Which was your favorite character and why? Did you like the costumes and sets? Who was your favorite singer? Which singer had the best and most im pressive singing voice? Your review should be at least 50 words or more. Please include your first name, school and grade in your post. Don't forget to support your opinion! Click here if you want to learn more about these operas, the singers in the production, and more! Messag e from the Production Staff: We want to thank all participating schools for their wonderful behavior during the dress rehearsal! You were the best Co-Producers the Opera Company of Philadelphia has ever seen! A...

Otello Student Reviews

Students in the Opera Company of Philadelphia's Sounds of Learning program saw the final dress rehearsal of Verdi's Otello on Wednesday, May 5, 2010 at the Academy of Music. Inspired by Shakespeare, Otello tells the story of a slave who overcomes great obstacles to become a noble general, but is then driven to unspeakable jealousy by a scheming, envious officer in his army. Passion, political intrigue and a fatal flaw are at the center of this intense musical drama that stands at the pinnacle of grand opera experiences. Now that you've studied the opera and seen it, what were your impressions? Tell us what you think and post your reviews here! Did you like the opera and why? Which was your favorite character and why? Did you like the costumes and sets? What did you think of Mark Delavan, who sang Iago from a wheelchair? Who had the best and most impressive singing voice? Your review should be at least 50 words or more. Please include your first name, school and ...

Sounds of Learning

Search This Blog