fyeahoperasingers

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I hopped in for part 2! It was a great discussion! 

Don’t worry if you missed the Opera21 live panel on sexism in opera, it’s right HERE!! and here’s part 2

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Was Gilda Legitimately Raped: Naming and Understanding Sexual Violence in Rigoletto and Beyond

By Laura Petrarcha 

In December 1850, a few months before Verdi’s Rigoletto was set to premiere at La Fenice, Verdi received a letter from the Austrian censors. At the time, Venice was a part of the Austrian Empire, and the Austrian government censors plundered all public art (especially opera) for material that was politically or morally suspect. Rigoletto, which was then called La Maledizione, enraged them. They made several demands of Verdi and his librettist Francesco Maria Piave: they wanted to remove Rigoletto’s hump, make the Duke more sympathetic, deemphasize the curse, and get rid of the sack in the final scene.  An extremely angry Verdi wrote a letter to the president of La Fenice theater explaining why he couldn’t make the revisions. Here is an excerpt:  

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I should probably explain my complete absence lately. It's kind of been the perfect storm of major life changes and really fun mental health issues! Yay! I don't want to promise regular posting, at least until my semester is over.

BUT.

I wrote this thing for Opera21 (you are all reading this magazine, yes? okay, good). It's about sexual violence in Rigoletto and how we might be able to put opera in the context of the current political climate. And since THAT made no sense, you now have to read it to know what I'm talking about!

Also seriously read all the other stuff in this issue because lots of great people hit it out of the park this month.

xxxx viva la opera!

Laura

October Issues: Verdi!

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Vasily Petrenko, principal conductor of the National Youth Orchestra and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, says women distract orchestras. A mezzo-soprano disagrees.

Mezzo Sarah Connolly is having ABSOLUTELY NONE of your sexist bullshit, Vasily Petrenko. A fabulous op-ed.

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In many ways, of course, classical music is rather like a religion. We humble ourselves, performers and audience, before the creative spirit of our ancestors; we perform arcane rituals according to laid-down formulae; we improve ourselves; we imagine ourselves privileged to glimpse something transcendent, some small piece of the infinite.

Ian Bostridge, A Singer’s Notebook, p. 19 (via fyeahianbostridge)

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That time of year again. Soprano Lisa Della Casa sings Strauss's 'September.'

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I was so so so charmed by today's Google Doodle that I went on a crazy Debussy youtube spree. And I thought I would share this: Soprano Arleen Auger singing Debussy's 'Romance.' Two minutes of sheer bliss. 

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Happy Birthday, Dame Janet. 

And thank you.

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Hi all. So it's been a crazy couple of weeks, and I wanted to thank you all for being patient with me. I was really happy to be a part of the discussion about the situation in Russia, and I plan to continue raising relevant issues and participating in debates. Meanwhile, I'm going to make a point to post regularly. I'm still in a state of transition, so bear with me, but finding material for this forum is really a great joy for me. And as are you, followers <3

Here is a young Elina Garanca singing 'Non piu mesta' from Rossini's 'La Cenerentola.' Cardiff Singer of the World 2001. Congrats to her on her second pregnancy (it's a girl!!!). We will miss her this season, but we wish her health and happiness and look forward to welcoming her back soon :D

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Rebloggable by request

I still dont understand why the two have to be connected, but Tchaikovsky supressed it. It drove him crazy. He didn't want to be gay. Using Tchaikovsky as support for LGBT is like using the Pope to support Abortion. But if i understand everything correctly, the only person being dissed is Putin. You want the Met to do this in a way to speak up against him. But just because they don't, doesn't mean they are supporting Putin. It means they have to deal with the political ramifications. Right?

-- Anonymous

Hm. Where to begin.

I don’t know much about Tchaikovsky’s life, but a quick google search reveals that you’re simplifying the situation. Musicologists are torn on whether or not Tchaikovsky really felt tainted because of his sexuality. They agree, however, that Tchaikovsky suppressed his sexuality because he was concerned about what would happen to him and his loved ones should it become public. Being homosexual in Tchaikovsky’s Russia meant being stripped of all rights and possible banishment to Siberia, so Tchaikovsky’s concern was completely legitimate. Under those circumstances, of course he would hide it.

The abortion analogy you use is flawed. Has the Pope had an abortion in this hypothetical? Abortion is a serious issue, and I don’t think bringing it into the discussion really adds anything to the debate.

Putin’s laws in Russia are indefensible. They legitimize anti-gay violence and force the LGBT community and its supporters to live in fear of the law. Speaking on behalf of gay rights and spreading “gay propaganda” is now a crime in Russia. It’s all frighteningly close to how Tchaikovsky lived in the 1800s.

Should the Met speak out for gay rights, it might have political ramifications for Met artists and employees (it might force the Met’s Russian artists to take a side). It might alienate more conservative members of its clientele. So yeah, there are consequences, and you’re right, being quiet doesn’t necessarily mean they are supporting Putin. But if everyone is silent, it signals that we are complacent with the status quo. I don’t know how the Met might begin to deal with this issue, but the reality is that this is happening. No one could have predicted it five years ago, but here we are, and I think it’s irresponsible for the Met (or maybe not Met, maybe this should come from the opera community) to completely ignore it. Someone, something has recognize what’s going on in Russia. It’s not just business as usual. Looking away from the situation is telling the queer community in Russia and around the world (and in the past, including Tchaikovsky himself) that this violation of their rights is not worth our time and attention.

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To be clear, the article talks about how the situation puts Netrebko and Gergiev in a very bad position. If they declare support for the LGBTQ* community, they could get in serious political trouble back home. The petition does not call for them to make a statement, although in the article Rudin (the creator of the petition) pressures the performers into taking a side. That might be taking things too far, which is why I recommended that everyone read the full article before signing. Having the Met declare the support seems to have fewer political ramifications, but it still has political ramifications for everyone. I want to raise awareness of what Putin is doing in Russia and how it directly affects the opera world, but as I said before, I don't particularly care if you sign or not. This argument is a valid counter and completely worthy of consideration.

We can probably have a healthy discussion on how singers, composers, and opera companies interact with the political landscape, but I think we, as audience members, can and should use opera to discuss current events. Opera's place in society used to be political; google 'verdi censorship' and you'll start to see what I mean. Opera is meant to entertain us, certainly, but there will always be some works that force us to think critically about the world around us. That's one of the functions of art, so it should be one of the functions of opera.

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Peter Illyich Tchaikowsky is the beloved composer most widely known to have been homosexual and to have suffered for it in his lifetime. For America’s leading opera house to open its season with one of his works, performed by a conductor and a leading soprano who support Putin’s recent laws against homosexual people and those who support them dishonors the work of a great artist and his legacy as well as the progress made in our own country to secure equality for all citizens.

Read this article in full so you understand the situation. I don't care if you sign or not, but if you're participating in the Met Season 13-14 opener you should know about this.

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Sorry about my disappearance. I'm in the midst of making a major life change (and moving!), so I've had a lot of things on my mind, including how I can/should be running this blog. But I want to address this interview because there's something in this elitism vs. populism argument that we're not talking about.

Let me start off by saying that the interviewer's tone is pretty inexcusable. She intends to have a debate with two clear sides, but trying to provoke her opponent like this is just bad form. And Thomas Hampson, much to his credit, remains calm, argues well, and advocates beautifully for the opera.

I wouldn't say opera is the most expensive entertainment (see: Broadway, sports games, the list goes on), but my local house (The Met) is not making it easy on middle class patrons. This year, the Met is raising Family Circle prices and lowering Orchestra prices; essentially it's following the model of a Republican tax plan. This strategy welcomes those who can pay $100+ per performance and forces those who can only pay $25-36 per performance to make compromises. Those making less money who want to go to the opera must take time off work (you need to be on line before 5pm to get a ticket) or be very choosy about the performances they can attend (popular operas, new productions, and weekend performances often cost more). The Live in HD program is a great help, but as Hampson points out, the magic really happens in the opera house.

Yes, we do have a lot of problematic attitudes surrounding the opera. As we know, plenty of young people love it, as do plenty of people outside the wealthy and uber-educated elite. But if we truly want to say opera is not elitist, having Thomas Hampson talk eloquently on the subject is not enough. Companies have to reflect the philosophy in their pricing models.

*I am thinking specifically about the Met in this example, although I believe ROH uses a similar system. Student programs are certainly helpful for young people, as are educational programs for public high schools. I would love to hear about the great (or not so great) things your local house is doing for audience development.

Someone find me Thomas Hampson so I can give him a hug.

This is EXACTLY the kind of thing that needs to be happening: we need people like him to defend to the death the glorious art form that is opera and to keep dispelling the myth that only super-rich grannies and grandpas are the people who enjoy it.

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Leontyne Price on “What’s My Line."  This was a panel game show from the 50’s where celebrities would come on as guests, and a blind-folded panel had to ask questions to try and guess who the guest was.  They were only allowed to ask “yes" or “no" questions, and if they got ten “no" answers, they lost.  

The look on Arlene Francis’ face at 6:30 - she looks so starstruck!!

Side note, Arlene Francis was such an awesome person. 

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Opera Singer Becomes (Soprano) Voice Of Protest In Portugal

Anti-austerity protesters throw Molotov cocktails in Greece and blockade parliament in Spain. The Portuguese are a bit more mellow. Ana Maria Pinto shot to fame for drowning out the country’s president in song. She’s now a regular at street protests, leading choirs of ordinary people venting against Portugal’s conservative fiscal policy and its soaring unemployment rate.

Read the rest and listen to the story on Morning Edition.

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Die Post from Schubert’s Winterreise, sung by Teresa Berganza.

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Mozart’s concert aria Misero! O sogno … Aura, che intorno spiri, sung by Lawrence Brownlee.