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Understanding Opera: Key Concepts Explained

Opera is a drama where characters sing rather than speak their lines. It combines acting, singing, orchestral music, costumes, scenery, and often dance. There are two distinct singing styles: recitative which moves the story quickly with simple music, and aria which features lyrical melodies for solo singers to express emotion. The two main types are opera seria featuring larger-than-life characters, and opera buffa featuring everyday people in a lighter, more comical style. An opera contains overtures, acts, scenes, songs such as arias and cadenzas, as well as leitmotifs and supertitles if not in the native language.

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Dhea Angela A. Capuyan
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451 views4 pages

Understanding Opera: Key Concepts Explained

Opera is a drama where characters sing rather than speak their lines. It combines acting, singing, orchestral music, costumes, scenery, and often dance. There are two distinct singing styles: recitative which moves the story quickly with simple music, and aria which features lyrical melodies for solo singers to express emotion. The two main types are opera seria featuring larger-than-life characters, and opera buffa featuring everyday people in a lighter, more comical style. An opera contains overtures, acts, scenes, songs such as arias and cadenzas, as well as leitmotifs and supertitles if not in the native language.

Uploaded by

Dhea Angela A. Capuyan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

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OPERA
2.6 DEFINITION OF OPERA
What is an opera?
A drama wherein characters sing, rather than speak, all or most of their lines.

Why is it the most complex art form?


Because it combines acting, singing, orchestral music, costumes, scenery and
often ballet or some other form of dance.

What are the Opera's two distinct singing styles?

Recitative

What is Recitative Opera?


Narrative type. Simple music to let the story move quickly, becomes
sometimes singing so much makes the story confusing and irritable. It
is a breath of fresh air.

Aria

What is Aria Opera?

OPERA 1
It is lyrical and is accompanied with heavy melodies and harmonies.
An aria in an opera is a set-piece song for a solo singer in which the
character expresses an emotion or ideal that doesn't necessarily drive
the story forward.

What are the two types of Operas?

Opera Seria

What is Opera Seria?


A serious opera with larger than life characters.

Opera Buffa

What is Opera Buffa?


It is a lighter and more comical type of opera about everyday people

What are things that you will encounter in an Opera?

Overture

Acts

Scenes

Songs

Cadenza

What is a cadenza?

Generically, an improvised or written-out ornamental passage


played or sung by a soloist or soloists, usually in a "free" rhythmic
style, and often allowing virtuosic display.

Leitmotif

What is a Leitmotif?

"Short, constantly recurring musical phrase" associated with a


particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical
concepts of idée fixe or motto-theme.

Supertitles

What are Supertitles?

OPERA 2
If the Opera is in a different language, there wil be supertitles at the
top of the stage for its translation.

How old is Opera?

400 years old

What are the 4 main voice types of Opera?

Soprano

What is a soprano?
Highest voice for women and mostly played by damsels in distress
and powerful women

Mezzo-soprano

What is a Mezzo-soprano?
It is the mid to low female voice. They often play older women, young
boys or mean women.

Tenor

What is a Tenor?

It is the highest voice for male. This is played by the heroes and the
love interests.

Bass

What is a Bass?

Lowest of the low. Played by the villain or the father.

What are voice types also called?

fachs

What should you wear to an opera?

Business Formal Attire

What are the four types of Clapping Etiquette?

When the conductor arrives at the podium

When the singer finish their aria

OPERA 3
At the end of an act

During Bows

How do you cheer?

For Male
BRAVO!

For Female
BRAVA!

A group of Men

BRAVI!

A group of Women

BRAVE! (pronounced as bravey not brave as in courageous lol)

If you want to hear it again

ENCORE!

2.7 The Ring of the Nibelung


What are the four operas of the cycle of The Ring of the Nibelung?

The Rhine Gold 1869

The Valkyrie 1870

Siegfried 1871

Twilight of Gods 1874

OPERA 4

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