Metastasio Opera Buffa

Dies Irae was written in the classical era, an era that stressed harmony in music, common sense in people and scientific advancements. During the classical era aristocrats continued to rule. Classical era was greatly influenced by ancient Greece. This is also the era that combined philosophical and intellectual movements, also referred to as the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment played a big role in how music was made. In fact, it is argued to be the reason why classical style music is preserved and treasured in modern western civilization. To clarify, the “natural simplicity” of music in this era led to an international musical style (Forney, Kristine, 2017, pg. 132). The patronage system played a big role in how art was viewed by the people. Music was a sophisticated lifestyle done by nobility, meaning that there palaces were the center of musical life.

Blanche Gangwere, Music History During the Renaissance Period, 1520–1550. Westport, Connecticut, Praeger Publishers. 2004, Pg. 52

Gioachino Rossini, like many great composers, was born in the right place at the right time. The musical firmament was still mourning the loss of Wolfgang Mozart in 1792 when Rossini was born. His parents were both gifted musicians, and young Gioachino was in a music conservatory by the age of 14. Rossini composed ten operas within the following seven years and had established himself as a gifted composer in the opera buffa style. This genre of comic opera was strikingly different from the rigorous opera seria, but it still managed to acquire some noticeable traits. Primarily, the arias in opera buffe shirk the da capo style of the seria mold. The subject matter deals frequently

30. What is a comic opera? Reaction against baroque style. Light in mood and modest in

The main objective in the performance of Renaissance music is that everything done by the singer is subservient to the text. Musicians of the Renaissance were fixated on the concept of music serving the text. Composers set poems to text attempting to imitate natural speech and inflection pattern in the rhythms of the music, and wished to write the music in such a way that the words could be understood. Singers should strive toward clear diction, making sure their vowel shapes and ornamentation do not obscure the text.

I agree with you, Erin. The fundamental aspect of man that makes him marvelous, according to Pico, is that he is essentially free to choose his own destiny. I loved the question Pico posed: “Why, I asked, should we not admire the angels themselves and the beatific choirs more” (28)? After all, what makes man more marvelous than the angels they themselves praise? Following this, Pico made an important distinction between mankind and both the creatures that dwell in Heaven and on Earth: “The nature of all other creatures is defined and restricted within laws which We have laid down; you, by contrast, impeded by no such restrictions, may, by your own free will, to whose custody We have assigned you, trace for yourself the lineaments of your own nature” (29). Here, we see that through personal thought, decisions and actions, man can, as Erin has quoted, descend to a lower form of life or ascend to a divine life (29). According to Pico, not even the highly-regarded angels posses this free-will. Therefore, now we begin to understand that it is not a matter of hierarchical rank that makes man marvelous, yet the unique ability humans have has to shape their life. This is why there is nothing more marvelous than man.

        The Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries were distinguished times, in which new thoughts and great legends were being born and Europe was changing. People were seeing their world in a new, dazzling light. Humanity's greatest writers, scientists, and composers were beginning to share their gifts. However, underneath these artistic overtones were the political changes, too. There was a New World out there, and its potential was undefined and many countries overlooked its capabilities. England, on the other hand, had placed its foot firmly into the foundation of the New World, and the footprint left behind influenced both the countries' possibilities, and the artists' works.

One of the greatest composers of music, even though it was only slightly notated at the time, was Guillaume de Machaut (d. 1377), “one of the undisputed pinnacle geniuses of Western music…” His most famous piece was the four-voice Mass of Notre Dame, which maintained his reputation through the changes in fashion (Roberge). After almost a millennium’s worth of music was composed and contributed, the style of music began to change with the next era.

Like the previous eras, Opera continued to be one of the most important music genre is the 19th century, especially in Italy, German and France. Opera served as a form of entertainment for the people of higher social class. Opera music was also popular among the people of other social classes due to the availability of transcribed opera music for them to enjoy in salons or homes of the middle class. This genre was extensively explored and developed by the Italians and Germans. This paper will discuss how Italian and German opera were developed by comparing each composer’s distinctive compositional traits.

The Florentine Camerata was a group formed during the Italian Renaissance comprised of several philosophers, scholars, and musicians. The Camerata is commonly credited with creating the earliest forms of opera. One of the main themes of the Italian Renaissance was the idea of studying the classics for the purposes of reviving them and also improving upon them. The Florentine Camerata was no exception to that

Commedia dell’arte was established during the sixteenth century at a time when theatre flourished in Italy. Despite such a rich time for the arts, a divide in the church as well as

Rossini is probably the most popular composer of this era. His works are many and are extremely popular. Rossini was born in Pesaro in 1792 and on December15th, 1815 when he was only twenty-three years old, he signed a contract to write an opera for a theater in Rome (Weaver, 11). His childhood friend, Gertrude Righetti Giorgi, premiered as Rosina in Rossin’s Il barbiere di Siviglia, on opening night for the Nobile Teatro di Torre Argentina (Weaver, 19). Il barbiere di Siviglia went on to become one of the more famous operas of Rossini’s. This opera went through many struggles, however, because of the similar story

So, how does a company like Opera Atelier reinvent a period piece that was initially staged in the basement of an all girls school, at a time when the gods were a part of recent history, and music so boring it could send one to sleep?

When considering the music of the Medieval Era in comparison with the music of the Renaissance Era, it is incredibly easy to fall into the trap of solely realizing the disparities of the two genres. While there are undoubtedly many clear differences between the two musical time periods, it is important to note that, due to the predecessor-successor relationship inherent in the time span comprising of both eras, the latter period (Renaissance, 1400 - 1600) carried over particular similarities of the Medieval Era, which lasted from c. 500 - 1400. The two pieces to be discussed are “Communion from the Mass of Christmas Day,” a Medieval Era plainchant whose composer is anonymous, and “Solo e Pensoro,” a Renaissance Era madrigal composed by Luca Marenzio.

When students study to sing Italian bel canto opera, it’s better to use the work which performed by people who is original singer to imitate and practice. However, there are still a series of problems will happen for non-Italian students when they are study singing the opera, for example Semiramide. Bel raggio lusinghier. Even according to the video soundtrack to imitate, the overall effect artistic and performances is not satisfactory. The problems are pronunciation hesitation, slurred speech, unknown the meaning of the text. All of these problems will reduce the bel canto opera artistry.