# Favorite Opera



## welldressedfellow (May 28, 2008)

What is yours?As for me,I have far too many to even begin to mention.


----------



## boatshoe (Oct 30, 2008)

*hm*

I just saw Don Giovanni at the Metropolitan Opera in New York for the first time. It's now my favorite opera, but I've seen too few to really have a favorite that I can defend well. The first opera I saw was Aida, which I actually went to twice, because I enjoyed it so much. The Met staging was pretty amazing, with real horses on stage for one scene.

But back to Don Giovanni. It is Mozart, so the music is tremendous, and it's da Ponte, so it is alternately hilarious and dramatic.


----------



## welldressedfellow (May 28, 2008)

boatshoe said:


> I just saw Don Giovanni at the Metropolitan Opera in New York for the first time. It's now my favorite opera, but I've seen too few to really have a favorite that I can defend well. The first opera I saw was Aida, which I actually went to twice, because I enjoyed it so much. The Met staging was pretty amazing, with real horses on stage for one scene.
> 
> But back to Don Giovanni. It is Mozart, so the music is tremendous, and it's da Ponte, so it is alternately hilarious and dramatic.


Don Giovanni is one of my many,many favorites.


----------



## Simon Myerson (Nov 8, 2007)

Love the Opera, although I've never got on with Wagner. I'm particularly fond of The Love for Three Oranges (Prokofiev), which my local company does with the aid of scratch and sniff cards!


----------



## topbroker (Jul 30, 2006)

Good idea for a thread. I have numerous favorites, and here are a few:

Britten, _Billy Budd_
Shostakovich, _Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District_
Debussy, _Pelleas et Melisande_
Janacek, _Jenufa_
Nielsen, _Maskarade_
Hindemith, _Die Harmonie der Welt_
Berg, _Wozzeck_
Schoenberg, _Moses und Aron_
Gershwin, _Porgy and Bess_
Sondheim, _Sweeney Todd_
Wagner, _Die Meistersinger von Nurnberg_
Humperdinck, _Hansel und Gretel_
Berlioz, _Les Troyens_
Rossini, _William Tell_
Beethoven, _Fidelio_
Mozart, _Don Giovanni_

I have a hard time picking out just one Verdi opera, but I like the grand ones, so let's say _Don Carlos_.

I need to listen to a lot more Handel before I can make a choice there.


----------



## TMMKC (Aug 2, 2007)

_La Boheme:aportnoy:_


----------



## Miket61 (Mar 1, 2008)

welldressedfellow said:


> What is yours?As for me,I have far too many to even begin to mention.


I've grown fond of _Turandot_, even though it's the _Edwin Drood_ of the opera world.

Part of that is due to a recently deceased friend's having recorded "Nessun Dorma" with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.


----------



## welldressedfellow (May 28, 2008)

Miket61 said:


> I've grown fond of _Turandot_, even though it's the _Edwin Drood_ of the opera world.
> 
> Part of that is due to a recently deceased friend's having recorded "Nessun Dorma" with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra.


Sorry to hear about your friend.


----------



## boatshoe (Oct 30, 2008)

*Les Troyens*

Hey, topbroker. I saw _Les Troyens _a few years ago in New York. Unfortunately, at the time I was just starting my opera-watching career, so I didn't really take to it too well. Also, the set design was rather modern and was meet, alternately, with cheering and booing. It was only my second opera _ever _and the audience's reaction left quite an impression.

Simon, Wagner can be a real chore at times. I saw _Die Walkure _last year at the Met for my first venture into Wagner. Surprisingly, I liked it much more than I would have thought. In part it was enjoyable because I know some German and was able to follow. But even if I didn't, it would have been worth the price of admission just for the Ride of the Valkyries.


----------



## Miket61 (Mar 1, 2008)

welldressedfellow said:


> Sorry to hear about your friend.


Thank you. Dale Elliott was an accomplished pianist who became a very popular cabaret performer here in Atlanta and in New York. Bobby Short once said he would be the next Bobby Short.


----------



## welldressedfellow (May 28, 2008)

Miket61 said:


> Thank you. Dale Elliott was an accomplished pianist who became a very popular cabaret performer here in Atlanta and in New York. Bobby Short once said he would be the next Bobby Short.


I've heard of him,though I haven't heard any of his work.


----------



## Miket61 (Mar 1, 2008)

welldressedfellow said:


> I've heard of him,though I haven't heard any of his work.


He recorded three albums, all far more serious than what he's known for. The first one was a live show in 1976, which is probably the most representative.

The last one is tied up in legal limbo waiting for bills to be paid for production work. I got a bootleg copy of "Nessun Dorma" given to me from that album.


----------



## anglophile23 (Jan 25, 2007)

Mozart's La Nozze de Figaro was my first so it is my favorite. However, I have yet to see an opera I didn't like.


----------



## Lushington (Jul 12, 2006)

_ Rigletto_ _The Magic Flute_ _Parisfal_


----------



## Penang Lawyer (May 27, 2008)

My first opera was in 1948 at the old Met and saw La Boheme. The next performance was Carmen with Rise Stevens. She was an american and looked the part of Carmen. The old Met was a joy but the new Met at Lincoln center is great. I pefer Italian or French Operas. You are right Aida is staged there very well. If you can go to Rome and see it at "The Baths of Carracalla(?)" It is outdoors and spectacular.


----------



## Des Esseintes (Aug 16, 2005)

Gentlemen

if I may cast several votes, my vote for the "obvious" favourite goes to The Magic Flute (the digitally re-mastered edition of the first unagridged recoding with Beecham, dating back to 1937, I believe, is a firm favourite in my CD collection) my vote in the category "favourite less well known opera by famous composer" goes to La Clemenza di Tito, again by Mozart, while the crown for "favourite operatic obscurity" goes to Croesusm by German Baroque composer Reinhard Keiser (on CD, there is a multi-award winning Harmonia Mundi France CD-Set of a production conducted bty Rene Jacobs).

dE


----------



## Kav (Jun 19, 2005)

I must champion Gilbert and Sullivan. Learning all the puns directed at victorian public figures and obscure words is musical Sherlock Holmes.

I took a music appreciation class in college. We had to attend an opera. The only one even remotely feasable was a local production of Dialog of the Carmelites. I hate DOTC with a passion.

Driving home, D'Oyly Cart playing full blast on my tape player with the windows open to the cold was a welcome antidote.


----------



## Franko (Nov 11, 2007)

*Like draught Guinness, an aquired taste.*

No takers for John Addams or Phillip Glass here then.

A pity there's no reference to Monteverdi, he was The Daddy and the mummy of it all.
We almost didn't get Opera, the papal power, the catholic church banned it, may be why Verdi hated the institution, the scene of the Auto de Fe in Don Carlos is there to discredit the church.

Wagner can be a bit of a yawn and sometimes repetetive but the the last hour of Das Rhinegold is loaded with great tunes, he would be put out to hear it described as opera, prefering the phrase "music drama".
For film music composers like Max Steiner, Korngold and others of their generation he was their idol, and his music informs much of their work during the thirties, The Flying Dutchman and it's overture is the progenitor of the music for The Sea Hawk.

An overtures' purpose is to preface and give a flavour of what is to follow, for devotees of trivia and lovers of The Lone Ranger, none of the music and tunes from the overture to Rossinis' William Tell is represented in the opera.

The radio can be good for bringing diverse and varied operas to our attention, it may be heresy to say this on a clothing related site, but it's a blessing not to have to get dressed up and go out to experience it.

Obviously some will reach a different conclusion, but I think one would look a bit of a tool standing outside ones' house wearing court dress/whatever with a portable to the ear.

I have heard many operas on the radio during long car journeys, one that comes to mind is _Bluebeard_ (Bartok?) awesome audio experience but turn down the treble, truckloads of screaming women go to meet their doom, rather like DOTC referenced by Kav previously, but without the drum rolls.

F.


----------



## rip (Jul 13, 2005)

boatshoe said:


> I just saw Don Giovanni at the Metropolitan Opera in New York for the first time. It's now my favorite opera, but I've seen too few to really have a favorite that I can defend well. The first opera I saw was Aida, which I actually went to twice, because I enjoyed it so much. The Met staging was pretty amazing, with real horses on stage for one scene.
> 
> But back to Don Giovanni. It is Mozart, so the music is tremendous, and it's da Ponte, so it is alternately hilarious and dramatic.


Though not my favorite by him, DG is arguably Mozart's deepest opera. Personally, I'm drawn to Marriage of Figaro, which I think contains some of his most exquisite music, albeit wrapped in a very silly story.


----------



## NZNorm (May 9, 2005)

Topbroker, that is an interesting repertoire list. You have quite a varied musical pallette. I prefer Lulu to Wozzeck and Mathis der Maler to Die Hormonie. And Franco, you have to admit that Adams' Nixon in China is a fun opera.

I still love Boheme, Turandot and Carmen, but a rare gem like Ernani is always great to hear. Give me a story and a melody, and I am there.


----------



## Franko (Nov 11, 2007)

*You talking to me?*



NZNorm said:


> And Franco, you have to admit that Adams' Nixon in China is a fun opera.


Ugh! what?
Are you mad? 
Where did I suggest it, or any other, may not be ?
Three days before you showed up, I simply observed that there was no support for Adams or Glass in the posts, I will though answer my own question to help you. . . . . Below.

Klinghoffer is not a fun opera.
Just a great one.

F.


----------



## TMMKC (Aug 2, 2007)

We are seeing Handel's _Julius Ceasar_ tonight. I do no recall ever seeing any Baroque opera. I hear it's quite different and that you need to keep an open mind.


----------



## Franko (Nov 11, 2007)

TMMKC said:


> We are seeing Handel's _Julius Ceasar_ tonight. I do no recall ever seeing any Baroque opera. I hear it's quite different and that you need to keep an open mind.


You are in for a treat, trumpets, drums and great tunes, including "See the Conquering Hero".
The tune (v.famous, adorns many a ring tone and ansa machine:icon_smile also features in his Chandos anthems, even Handel needed to eat after all.

F.


----------



## Joe Frances (Sep 1, 2004)

All of Mozart; and a little Gluck. That's the era I like best.


----------



## topbroker (Jul 30, 2006)

boatshoe said:


> Hey, topbroker. I saw _Les Troyens _a few years ago in New York. Unfortunately, at the time I was just starting my opera-watching career, so I didn't really take to it too well. Also, the set design was rather modern and was meet, alternately, with cheering and booing. It was only my second opera _ever _and the audience's reaction left quite an impression.


I first got to know and love _Les Troyens_ through the classic and highly recommended Colin Davis recording.

I love the tradition of sprawling, gargantuan French grand opera. I am a big fan of Meyerbeer, and should have mentioned _Le Prophete_ in my list above. I like how Verdi approached the style in _Les Vepres Siciliennes_ and _Don Carlos_.


----------



## topbroker (Jul 30, 2006)

Kav said:


> I must champion Gilbert and Sullivan. Learning all the puns directed at victorian public figures and obscure words is musical Sherlock Holmes.
> 
> I took a music appreciation class in college. We had to attend an opera. The only one even remotely feasable was a local production of Dialog of the Carmelites. I hate DOTC with a passion.
> 
> Driving home, D'Oyly Cart playing full blast on my tape player with the windows open to the cold was a welcome antidote.


Well, I think _Dialogues of the Carmelites_ is a unique and great opera, but I love Gilbert & Sullivan, too.


----------



## AMVanquish (May 24, 2005)

Merry Widow, Magic Flute, Barber of Seville... anything with catchy arias and wacky humor. Yeah, I know, I'm probably a purist's nightmare.


----------



## sakalee (Nov 10, 2008)

Berg _Wozzeck:crazy: (_Boulez recording is great!)
Berg _Lulu_
Schoenberg _Moses und Aron_
Wagner _Tristan und Isoldeic12337:_ (rec. Furtwangler, 1953 EMI)
Mozart _Don Giovanni:devil: _(rec. Furtwangler, Live from Salzburg Festival, 1954 EMI)
Mozart _Marriage of Figaro:icon_smile_wink: _(rec. Erich Kleiber, 1959-London)
Monteverdi _Orfeo:icon_pale:_

Beyond the silliness with the smiles above, all time favorites are the entire Ring Cycle of Wagner, particularly conducted by Furtwangler:aportnoy:


----------



## music4sherry (Sep 29, 2008)

My knowlegde of opera is still out of sync with other area however seeing Peter Grimes at the royal opera house with Ben Heppner and the sublime Janice Watson was pretty life changing. 
Also saw Wozzeck there, which is i think my favorite. It's mind boggling to think how he brought it all off.


----------



## Pale Male (Mar 24, 2008)

*Confessions of an Adolescent Wagnerite*

Teenagers have many silly ideas. Onstage, I find it Deadly and the only composer I can't sit through. For big and loud give me Traviata.

Not much for Puccini, though a Zefferelli extravaganza at least gives one something to look at. The only Boheme I enjoyed was Baz Luhrmann's on Broadway, and that should have been done in English.

Love the Da Ponte Mozarts. And I seem unable to resist another Giovanni.

But I'm one of those Philistines who think opera in America should be sung in English -- and the more like that Cluytens Carmen, the better.


----------



## AMVanquish (May 24, 2005)

Out of curiosity, has everyone here listened to more contemporary operas, like Nixon in China, or Harvey Milk, or the Bonesetter's Daughter? Just wondering if there were any real good ones out there.


----------



## topbroker (Jul 30, 2006)

AMVanquish said:


> Out of curiosity, has everyone here listened to more contemporary operas, like Nixon in China, or Harvey Milk, or the Bonesetter's Daughter? Just wondering if there were any real good ones out there.


I'm sure there are, but I need to catch up in that area; I tend to fixate on the 1865-1945 era.


----------



## anglophile23 (Jan 25, 2007)

AMVanquish said:


> Out of curiosity, has everyone here listened to more contemporary operas, like Nixon in China, or Harvey Milk, or the Bonesetter's Daughter? Just wondering if there were any real good ones out there.


Docter Atomic by John Adams was good, I thought.


----------



## SilkCity (Apr 3, 2004)

La Traviata;

William Tell


----------



## Joe Frances (Sep 1, 2004)

sakalee said:


> Berg _Wozzeck:crazy: (_Boulez recording is great!)
> Berg _Lulu_
> Schoenberg _Moses und Aron_
> Wagner _Tristan und Isoldeic12337:_ (rec. Furtwangler, 1953 EMI)
> ...


Oh, yes, you remind me, I am beginning to dip my toe into the "deep end of the pool" with Tristan and the Flying Dutchman. I have watched the Ring when James Levine and the Met did it on PBS some ten or more years ago, but I didn't just sit through it all, I did laundry in the meantime.

Still,Tristan is pretty great. And, I believe they are doing it on next Saturday's live Met broadcast, so that will be a treat, and AND it begins at 11 in the morning. Fancy that!


----------



## upr_crust (Aug 23, 2006)

*If you like your opera in English, you'll love the ENO . . .*

The English National Opera sings virtually everything in English - get yourself to London and indulge your taste for opera in English. (Their current production of Handel's "Partenope" is excellent, if you can stand that much Handel - some 3.5 hours worth, with two intermissions - in one sitting.)



Pale Male said:


> But I'm one of those Philistines who think opera in America should be sung in English -- and the more like that Cluytens Carmen, the better.


----------



## upr_crust (Aug 23, 2006)

*In my coming senescence, I am becoming a convert . . .*

. . . to bel canto.

I spent the weekend listening to "Puritani" and "Sonnambula", and there is something about Bellini (and Donizetti) that sticks in one's head. (The fact that both recordings featured Callas may have something to do with the case as well.)

The only problem with Bellini is that one can't listen to it late into the evening - otherwise, one wakes up at 4:00 AM with "A te o cara" running through one's head.


----------



## SilkCity (Apr 3, 2004)

UC--Bravo and welcome to the bel canto fan club!

I was once outside of the Met. Opera House, when a stranger and I struck
up a conversation while waiting for a performance of 'Rosenkavalier. 

When I advised him that I really liked the bel canto and,
being an Italian-American boy, raised on Verdi, Bellini, Rossini, et al, the Italians
generally, he proceeded to denigrate the Italian operas; almost without exception.

My response was that if it were not for the Italians, we'd be standing in an empty
lot!

SC


----------



## nick.mccann (May 3, 2009)

I would like to see Lakme.


----------



## doublebucklemonk (Feb 15, 2009)

Glass-Monsters of Grace
Berlioz-Damnation of Faust
Bartok-Bluebeard's Castle
Weill- Threepenny Opera


----------



## Belle_Epoque (May 10, 2009)

Oh, I love Brecht/Weill!
Although Dreigroschenoper isn't exactly an opera, at least not (musically speaking) a conventional one. I think in German 'oper' might be a faux ami, since Threepenny is far less operatic than Mahagonny, although Mahagonny is a 'songspiel' whereas the former is an 'oper.'

But, anyway,
my favourite will always be Fidelio. Then La Boheme (what else), the Flying Dutchman, and Simon Boccanegra.

Aida gets honourable mention for its famous March.


----------



## doublebucklemonk (Feb 15, 2009)

Belle_Epoque said:


> Oh, I love Brecht/Weill!
> Although Dreigroschenoper isn't exactly an opera, at least not (musically speaking) a conventional one. I think in German 'oper' might be a faux ami, since Threepenny is far less operatic than Mahagonny, although Mahagonny is a 'songspiel' whereas the former is an 'oper.'


Yeah, the Weill is a bit of a stretch, but I like it so much I had to include it. Mahagonny is pretty fantastic as well. I suppose while I'm at it, I would add Weber-Die Freischutz to my list as well.


----------



## Belle_Epoque (May 10, 2009)

A stretch worth making


----------



## DCLawyer68 (Jun 1, 2009)

Figaro, La Boheme and Il Trovatore are my "big three".

Rounding out the top ten would be:

Barbiere
Hansel und Gretel
Die Fledermaus
Carmen
Traviata
Parsifal
L'Elisir D'Amore


----------



## Lebewohl (May 21, 2009)

Currently La Boheme, Carmen and Salome.


----------



## Serenus (Jun 19, 2009)

On top of my list would have to be Berg -- Wozzeck

Of course Mozart -- for his unbelievably sensitive way of treating the human side of people.

Rameau's Hippolyte is incredible and one of his most daring operas -- subsequently he bowed to criticism and things got a bit more tame thereafter.

Many, many others.


----------

