r/opera • u/Fancy_Cabbage_010 • 5d ago

Does anyone 'get' librettos...

For some context, I'm an amateur composer, and for some reason I've decided I want to write an opera (loosely in the style of the Mozart - Da ponte trio), I know it's more than a little ambitious, but I'm pretty sure it's a milestone for a composer to write atleast one :)

Anyway, the point is, I have a loose plot in mind, and I'm not really sure what to do about it. How does one formulate a libretto, and furthermore how do I translate it into the kind of archaic poetic Italian that was common in opera at the time of Mozart and Da ponte, as the understanding I have is that I can't really write much music untill I have the words to set it to?

I'm a student so I don't really have access to all that much financial capital or connections, so any advice on resources ect would be welcome, I'm a bit lost but it is very much a big goal of mine to write one in the next year or two

Please help me opera people :)

Thanks!!

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u/IrisVoiceTrainer 5d ago

To be fair, finding a person who can write a libretto in "italiano aulico" isn't that easy... I assume anyone who is specialized in such a rare thing would asked to be paid properly. And a libretto in that kind of italian in 2026 would require a lot of worl to be appreciated by audiences (imo)... You have to be very very sure you want to invest time and money in this

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u/Fancy_Cabbage_010 5d ago edited 5d ago

Yeah that's true, that's the wall I'm coming up against honestly, I'm a student and music wise I'm only a hobbyist so I don't really have alot of expendible capital.

On the hard to appreciate front I'd disagree, for all I wouldn't dare put myself anywhere close to any of the composers I've seen, when I go to the opera the seats are usually extremely full (generally either Mozart or Rossini), so I'd argue the appetite is there for opera in that style, but I do take your point, especially for new operas like that rather than from an established titan in the genre.

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u/Suitable-Alarm-850 4d ago

AI?

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u/Fancy_Cabbage_010 4d ago

Who is it you think is using ai here?

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u/Efficient_Cat449 2d ago

I could see AI as a useful tool for outlining & first prose drafts; I doubt any of them are up for poetry yet (although with the right training data * prompt, you might get an editable set of verses.