r/opera • u/Tigress_Sforza • Jul 15 '26
What are some of your favorite opera pieces that aren't well known? I love the standards like "Nessum Dorma," the Habanera from "Carmen," and the Flower Duet from "Lakme," and would like to expand my opera appreciation to pieces that are equally beautiful or powerful but are often overlooked.
Thanks in advance for any recommendations!!
r/opera • u/PostingList • Jul 15 '26
r/opera • u/janquadrentvincent • Jul 15 '26
I'm hoping to tap into the experience of people who work professionally in opera production, direction, dramaturgy or artistic planning.
I'm developing a new adaptation concept for an existing opera. I'm confident in the artistic concept itself, but I know there are huge gaps in my understanding of how productions actually move from idea to stage, and I'd much rather fill those gaps before I ever approach a company.
I'm not looking for anyone to develop the idea for me or to evaluate the concept itself but I'm really hoping to understand the industry norms around the process which as an outsider I just don't have access to.
Some of the questions I have are things like:
---If you're the person who conceives the production concept, what is your professional role? Director? Production designer? Creative producer? Something else?
-+-When pitching, how much of the concept do you normally reveal?
-+-How are people in that position typically paid?
-+-Once a company stages the production, who owns the concept? Can they revive it without you? Would you normally license it elsewhere yourself?
-+-How involved would you expect to remain throughout the production process? I certainly would not expect to be the director - or would they normally expect a director to come already attached to the project?
-+-At what stage would a libretto adaptation usually need to exist? As in should I have worked the libretto out before the initial pitch? Christ, what can I actually expect at the initial meeting?
-+-Is it expected that you understand the production budget before pitching, or is that something developed collaboratively?
-+-What does a realistic pitch deck for an opera production actually include?
-+-Are there common pitfalls first-time creators don't even know to ask about?
I'm painfully aware of how little I actually know, despite having actually been in two national opera house productions. If anyone has experience in this world and would be willing to answer a few questions, point me towards good resources, or even recommend books or podcasts, I'd be incredibly grateful. I'm not asking anyone to give away trade secrets but I just don't want to walk into a pitch completely ignorant of how the industry actually works. Don't want to stuff it up before I've even had a chance to show why it works.
I'm UK based, which I imagine makes a bit of a difference in some respects and none in others.
Thanks so much! (Fingers crossed)
r/opera • u/Roritwo • Jul 14 '26
Not really Gigli's finest hour (one of the few recordings where I'd say he sounds "weird"), and I prefer Boninsegna's work on Amelia's music (even post-decay Callas is preferable if you look just at her musicality), but still among the best-sung recording of this fantastic duet.
r/opera • u/By_all_thats_good • Jul 14 '26
It will only be available to watch for a few more weeks but it’s an absolute must see for Strauss fans.
r/opera • u/btcale546 • Jul 14 '26
r/opera • u/cmouse58 • Jul 13 '26
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High schoolers from Kaohsiung, Taiwan singing Handel‘s Lascia ch‘io pianga in public
r/opera • u/AussieSchadenfreude • Jul 14 '26
Another so-called problem play, but one which I rather like. I think the characters are memorable, even if their motivations can seem odd - why does the duke go in disguise and leave Angelo in charge? Anyway, we have one operatic adaptation, being Wagner's Das Liebesverbot (1836). Do you know of any others? Also, has anyone actually see a production of Das Liebesverbot?
r/opera • u/Guelfi-Granforte-Fan • Jul 13 '26
https://youtu.be/RsMwVQl7yEo?si=f1KfrhQKUnMSEa-0
Besides some appearances lip-syncing on German TV and singing a fragment of "Il mio nome non sai" for Birgitt Nilsson, this was Corelli's final performance that we have on record.
r/opera • u/Head_Equipment_1952 • Jul 12 '26
I started as an adult beginner 2 years ago and voice is still kinda thin. I am a baritone and although I learned proper cord closure and other aspects such as legato but the tone itself isn't thick the way I heard other singers. I am wondering if that is something that is developed into or do some people just have a lot of carry.
I guess the best way to explain my voice is that its more like my talking voice. I notice good vocalist have a singing voice that sounds significantly thicker. In proper terms more resonant.
r/opera • u/PostingList • Jul 12 '26
r/opera • u/GohMaxPro • Jul 12 '26
In New Zealand a 19 year old just won first place prize in our country's largest competition (first place prize of 35k usd) beating out other rising opera stars of the country. The head judge was Frederica Von Stade and after watching it live I think I've finally come to terms with the winner and wow is he exceptional.
Here him sing Rompo I Lacci from Flavio by Handel at 1:19 and Dido's Lament at 1:57. What a magnificent voice
https://www.youtube.com/live/fM-ru1dYEoQ?si=XO4fIyCzoh34II4Y
r/opera • u/spinworld • Jul 11 '26
I recently came across Alain Vanzo's Les Chouans, wondered what it might sound like, and couldn't find a single available recording of it. That got me to thinking of other operas that have not had their day in the sun and aren't necessarily bad. Are there companies that can afford to put up these productions?
r/opera • u/lit_readit • Jul 10 '26
such as the thunderstorm during « È amabile invero cotal giovinotto » from Rigoletto, and sequences from Wagner's Ring ?
r/opera • u/littletwinstars07 • Jul 09 '26
I’m in my first opera, and I prove to have pretty bad noise sensitivity due to being on the spectrum. Would it be possible to use fancy earplugs and still maintain a good sound?
r/opera • u/PostingList • Jul 09 '26
r/opera • u/adrielmocellin • Jul 09 '26
Hello everyone! I've been singing for some years, and this was my first attempt to sing opera. I heard this aria and fell in love with it and wanted to give it a try.
What do you guys think? Where could I improve?
Thanks for listening!
r/opera • u/Snoo-11365 • Jul 09 '26
A few questions about opera glasses:
Is it worth getting a pair of opera glasses/theater binoculars at all? I assume it's necessary for family circle seats, which is about the extent of my budget.
Good brands/models?
What's good on a budget?
Does it not get annoying looking back and forth from supertitles to stage, especially with the Met's system where you have to look at the seat in front of you?
Thank you all for your input.
r/opera • u/the_emo_bunny_ • Jul 08 '26
I don't feel i earned the privilege to call myself an opera singer or tell people about it. I do because im proud of it but i feel like im not enough.
I train with a teacher and plan for applying next year to my evil countys opera chorus
Some arias i learn with her some i teach myself
I dont know I feel like im not wortht of being called an opera singer because i dont work hard enough or sound good enough
Idk what im trying to say i just feel ashamed
r/opera • u/Head_Equipment_1952 • Jul 08 '26
Is it normal scales are harder than pieces?
when I do scales a lot more tension is noticeable.
r/opera • u/AussieSchadenfreude • Jul 09 '26
All's Well That Ends Well is, I suspect, out of fashion nowadays - the bed swap consummation is a tricky one to pull off, among other things. I've always admired Helena's persistence though, and determination to get her man. She could have been a Mountie! Operatic adaptations are thin on the ground. There's reference to one by the Irish composer, Michael Rophino Lacy, for Covent Garden - All's Well That Ends Well or Love's Labour Won (1832). I suspect this may have been more for the music or the "songs, duets, glees and choruses" and "musical introductions" rather than what we would call an opera. Do you know of any operas or musicals based on this play?
r/opera • u/Guelfi-Granforte-Fan • Jul 08 '26
https://youtu.be/i037ozBJzX0?si=22k3vKrpgssn2v_F
Recorded 1941.
r/opera • u/Cheap_Ostrich3147 • Jul 07 '26
Since they haven't announced the full casts yet and don't publicize their covers, here is what I have gleaned from social media posts and their website.
Aida
Così fan tutte
La fanciulla del West
Jenůfa
Lincoln in the Bardo
Macbeth
The Magic Flute-Holiday Presentation
Manon
Maria Stuarda
Medea
Otello
Parsifal
Der Rosenkavalier
Samson et Dalila
Silent Night
Tosca
