Lecture 19. Romantic Opera: Verdi's La Traviata, Bocelli, Pavarotti and Domingo

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7 Dec 201252:40

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TLDRThis opera course lecture by Professor Wright discusses 19th century opera, focusing on Giuseppe Verdi and his work La Traviata. After providing background on Verdi's career and La Traviata's story about the tragic courtesan Violetta, the lecture analyzes excerpts of the opera. It explores the music and singing, highlighting tempo rubato, bel canto style, accompanied recitative, and the cabaletta convention. The lecture then discusses operatic singing technique and compares famous 20th century singers like Callas, Sutherland and Pavarotti. Overall it examines components of compelling opera through Verdi's La Traviata.

Takeaways

😊 The script discusses 19th century opera, focusing on Giuseppe Verdi and his work La Traviata.
🎵 Verdi had initial failures but persevered to become one of the most prominent opera composers.
🎤 The script analyzes different opera singing voices - their tone, power, focus.
🎼 Musical examples demonstrate tempo rubato, accompanied recitative, and cabaletta conventions.
😢 La Traviata tells the story of the tragic love between Alfredo and the courtesan Violetta.
🎭 The script describes a video production of La Traviata directed by Franco Zefirelli.
👂 Analyses compare the voices of famous 20th century tenors Luciano Pavarotti and Placido Domingo.
🎶 Comparisons are also made between sopranos Nellie Melba, Maria Callas, Renée Fleming and Joan Sutherland.
✨ Pavarotti is described as having an unparalleled 20th century voice in terms of power and tone.
💃 A coloratura soprano example is provided to demonstrate extremely high, focused soprano singing.

Q & A

What is La Traviata about?
-La Traviata is about a courtesan named Violetta who falls in love with Alfredo. They live happily for a while before quarreling and separating. Violetta becomes ill with consumption and they reunite before she dies at the end of the opera.
How does Verdi's use of the orchestra differ from Wagner's?
-In Verdi's operas, the focus is on the voice and bel canto singing, with the orchestra often disappearing completely during vocal passages. In contrast, Wagner's orchestral scores are much more dominant over the vocal parts.
What is a 'scena' in opera?
-A scena is an operatic convention that combines an aria, a recitative, and a fast closing aria called a cabaletta, often used for the protagonist to make an emphatic statement before exiting the stage.
What is tempo rubato?
-Tempo rubato refers to flexibility of tempo, with speeding up and slowing down, which was a characteristic of romantic era music. It translates to 'robbed time'.
What constitutes a good operatic voice?
-A good operatic voice needs qualities like smooth tone through all registers, richness of tone color, power to project without amplification to fill large halls, good focus and control of vibrato, and vocal stamina.
How do Pavarotti's and Domingo's voices compare singing the same passage?
-Pavarotti's voice is more powerful, richer, and has greater stamina. He holds a high note much longer than Domingo.
What are the different categories of female voices in opera?
-From lowest to highest, they are: contralto, mezzo-soprano, lyric soprano, dramatic soprano, and coloratura soprano.
How does Nellie Melba's singing style differ from later sopranos?
-Melba has a lighter, more focused sound typical of 19th century singing, as compared to later more Wagnerian and powerful sopranos like Callas.
What makes Renee Fleming's voice special?
-Fleming has beautiful control over her voice, able to shape tones with flexibility in dynamics and speed in a way unmatched by other sopranos.
Why is Joan Sutherland considered the greatest soprano of the 20th century?
-Sutherland had an extraordinarily beautiful voice in all ranges, with superb coloratura technique, great power and focus - a complete soprano voice package.

Outlines

00:00

🎵 Intro to 19th Century Opera and La Traviata

The professor introduces 19th century opera, focusing on Giuseppe Verdi and his opera La Traviata. Background is provided on Verdi's life and career as a composer. The basic storyline of La Traviata is summarized - it tells the tragic love story of Alfredo and Violetta, a courtesan who ultimately dies of consumption.

05:02

📜 Discussion of Literary Influences

The literary influences on La Traviata are discussed, including the play "The Lady of the Camellias" by Alexandre Dumas fils which was based on his real-life affair with Marie Duplessis, a famous Parisian courtesan. Comparisons are drawn between Duplessis's notoriety and modern celebrity figures.

10:11

🎶 Musical Excerpts and Analysis

Several musical excerpts from La Traviata are played and analyzed, comparing the music of different characters like Alfredo and Violetta. Concepts like tempo rubato, bel canto singing, and the relationship between voices and orchestra are discussed.

15:12

🎭 The Scena Convention

The professor explains the scena convention in opera, which consists of an aria, then a recitative, then a closing cabaletta aria. An example is provided from La Traviata showing Violetta grappling with her feelings for Alfredo.

20:12

😢 The Tragic Plotline

The tragic storyline of La Traviata is summarized - Alfredo and Violetta live happily for a time before quarreling and separating. They reunite at the end but Violetta is ill with consumption and ultimately dies in Alfredo's arms.

25:16

🎥 Discussion of Video Production

Background on the video production of La Traviata is provided, including the director Franco Zefirelli and lead actress Teresa Stratas. Many opera houses worldwide still use this same production today.

30:17

🎤 Evaluating Operatic Voices

Criteria for evaluating operatic singing voices are discussed, including tone quality, projection, power, focus, and range. Recordings of Andrea Bocelli, Plácido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti are compared.

35:41

🎶 Comparing Sopranos

Several famous sopranos are compared singing the same passage from La Traviata: Nellie Melba, Maria Callas, Renée Fleming, and Joan Sutherland. Differences in tone, power, control and range are analyzed.

40:41

😲 Odd Version of "Habanera"

As an amusing finale, a comedic animated video is shown providing an unusual rendition of Bizet's "Habanera" tune, contrasting it with more serious operatic performances.

46:11

👌 Joan Sutherland's Vocal Prowess

A clip shows soprano Joan Sutherland effortlessly hitting an extremely high note at the conclusion of the aria, demonstrating her unmatched technical mastery as a singer.

51:14

🚶‍♂️ Class Conclusion

The professor concludes the class, referencing the upcoming quiz and encouraging students to listen to the La Traviata excerpts on the course CDs.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Opera

Opera refers to a theatrical performance where the actors sing throughout the performance, accompanied by an orchestra. The video focuses specifically on 19th century Italian opera, discussing composers like Verdi and works like La Traviata in detail. Opera is the overarching theme of the lecture.

💡La Traviata

La Traviata is a famous opera by Giuseppe Verdi, first performed in 1853. It tells the story of Violetta, a courtesan in 19th century Paris who falls in love with Alfredo. Their relationship struggles due to societal pressures and Violetta's illness. Excerpts of La Traviata, such as the drinking song and love duet, are analyzed in the lecture.

💡Verdi

Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901) was one of the pre-eminent opera composers of the 19th century. Unlike Mozart, he had initial difficulties establishing himself. He is known for operas like Nabucco, Rigoletto and La Traviata which form the foundation of the standard opera repertoire today. The lecture focuses on his compositional techniques.

💡Bel Canto

Bel Canto literally means beautiful singing in Italian. It refers to lyrical, expressive singing technique meant to showcase the beauty of the human voice. The lecturer explains that in 19th century Italian opera like La Traviata, the singers took prominence over the orchestra, unlike Wagner's music dramas.

💡Cabaletta

A cabaletta is a fast, lively aria sung by a character at the end of a scene in 19th century Italian opera. It was used as a vehicle for the singer to impress the audience with their virtuosity and exit the stage on a high note. For example, Violetta sings the famous cabaletta 'Sempre Libera' in Act I of La Traviata.

💡Recitative

Recitative is a style of vocal delivery used in opera that imitates lyrical speech. Earlier operas used simple, sparsely accompanied recitative between arias, while 19th century composers like Verdi started using accompanied recitative with fuller orchestral backing to heighten the drama.

💡Scena

Scena refers to a sequence of three parts - an aria, a recitative and a cabaletta that forms a dramatic scene in 19th century Italian opera. For example, Violetta has a scena in Act I of La Traviata, moving from the aria about love to questioning her future to emphatically reclaiming her freedom.

💡Tempo Rubato

Tempo rubato means literally 'robbed time' in Italian. It's an important performance practice in Romantic era music, involving flexible, fluctuating tempos subjectively shaped by the performer to enhance expressiveness. The love duet in La Traviata demonstrates tempo rubato, with the tempo slowing down and speeding up.

💡Tenor

In opera, a tenor refers to the highest standard male vocal range. The lecture compares legendary 20th century tenors Luciano Pavarotti and Placido Domingo, highlighting qualities like Pavarotti's unmatched power and brilliance.

💡Soprano

This refers to the highest standard female vocal range in opera. Different soprano sub-types are elucidated, like coloratura soprano and dramatic soprano. Iconic sopranos Maria Callas, Joan Sutherland and Renée Fleming are analyzed singing excerpts from La Traviata.

Highlights

Verdi's career spanned 5-6 decades, one of the longest productive careers in music history

Verdi initially faced rejection but persevered, ultimately becoming one of the most popular and frequently performed opera composers

La Traviata depicts the tragic love story between Alfredo and Violetta, a courtesan; it is Verdi's most popular and most frequently performed opera

The vocal style emphasizes bel canto singing focused entirely on the voice, with very little orchestral accompaniment

Tempo rubato, flexible and unstable tempos, are a hallmark of Romantic era music

Good operatic voices need power to fill large halls, smooth tone quality across registers, precise pitch, and controlled vibrato

Pavarotti is considered to have the greatest 20th century operatic tenor voice in its prime (until about 1980), known for its power, tone, stamina and high range

Domingo transitioned from baritone to tenor voice; highly intelligent, great actor and conductor but lacked the vocal power of Pavarotti

Callas had a piercing, sometimes unpleasant tone but was a major mid 20th century diva famed as much for fashion/glamour as her voice

Fleming has exceptional breath and tone control, allowing beautiful shaping of phrases, though lacks sheer volume of Wagnerian voices

Sutherland, with gorgeous coloratura soprano, is considered perhaps the greatest overall soprano of the 20th century

Melba's lighter, well-focused voice is more typical of 19th century operatic style before amplification needs

Contraltos sing the lowest female vocal range, mezzo-sopranos in the middle, sopranos on top with coloratura sopranos specializing in a light, high range

Andrea Bocelli blends pop and operatic styles; studied with Pavarotti but lacks the same vocal mastery, power and smoothness

Opera remains extremely popular today; La Traviata is currently being performed in 5 US opera houses just this week

Transcripts

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