Welcome Students and Teachers to Opera Online!! Last week we looked at the opening scenes of the opera and were introduced to Spanish nobleman Belmonte and the Bassa Selim's servant Osmin.
Video Clips of the Week
This week we'll introduce our heroine, Konstanze and her opening aria, "Ach, ich liebte" ("Ah, I was in love"). You can find the text for this aria on page 19 of the student guide in the gray box, or use the "Inside the Music" passage in the teacher guide.
Konstanze's music is decidedly different from Belmonte and Osmin's scene. It's significantly more serious, but in what other ways would you describe it? As you watch the video clips below, keep a list of adjectives describing your reaction to the performance or the emotions you see the singers portraying. How is each of the singers' different from one another?
First we'll see a performance by Danish soprano Inga Nielsen in a performance from the Royal Opera Covent Garden in London, England in 1988. This video clip features English subtitles.
INGA NIELSEN
Next up, is American soprano Ruth Ann Swenson. Ms. Swenson was born and raised on Long Island in New York and studied singing at the famous Academy of Vocal Arts here in Philadelphia. She made her Opera Company of Philadelphia debut in 1991 as Rosina in Rossini's famous The Barber of Seville. Here she is as Mozart's Konstanze in a production from the same year in Stuttgart, Germany.
RUTH ANN SWENSON
Following Ms. Swenson, we'll offer the aria as performed by legendary soprano Edita Gruberova who hails from the former Czechoslovakia. Early in her career she was well known for acrobatic vocal pyrotechnics and stunning high notes. She made her stage debut when she was 21 in 1968 and has been singing ever since. This clip also features English subtitles.
EDITA GRUBEROVA
Next we have a rather unusual performance by soprano Christine Schäfer from the 1997 Salzburg Festival. Not only is the production in modern dress, but listen to how Ms. Schäfer subtly changes the melody ever so slightly. You can hear this the most easily on the first two phrases of the aria. Be sure to check out her website at http://www.christine-schaefer.com as she has one of the more interesting sites out there.
CHRISTINE SCHÄFER
Website of the week
Enough with Konstanze's aria! Our websites of the week take a look at the Age of Enlightenment, also known as the Age of Reason and the set designer for this production, Guia Buzzi.
This opera is mired in the Age of Enlightenment. The roles women play are defiant and strong, not subservient or purely mythological. Women live for true love and fidelity (like Konstanze's love for Belmonte), not to be subservient to men and treated horribly (as Osmin would probably treat Blonde). Take a look at these website with information on the Enlightenment: http://history-world.org/age_of_enlightenment.htm and http://worldhistory.pppst.com/age-of-reason.html
This production is designed by Italian artist Guia Buzzi. Her designs have been seen at the Opera Company of Philadelphia before in productions of Maurice Ravel's L'Enfant et les Sortileges and Puccini's Gianni Schicchi.
Opera on the Air!
On Saturday, January 21st, radio station WRTI will broadcast a performance of new opera that's been made by taking bits of old operas by Handel, Vivaldi, and other baroque composers! It's called Enchanted Island. and So if you can tune your radio to WRTI, 91.1 FM on Saturday afternoon between 1PM and 4PM, you're in for a treat!
For those who might be interested in venturing out to see one of the great Opera in HD broadcasts that are screened from time to time in the area, this weekend you can see the brilliant American mezzo-soprano as Cinderella in Massenet's Cendrillon at the Bryn Mawr Film Institute. It's on Sunday afternoon at 1 PM and it's only $10 for students with their ID! For a sneak peak of the opera, visit BMFI's website.
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!
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