The birth of opera / F.W. Sternfeld.

Author/creator Sternfeld, Frederick W.
Format Book
Publication InfoOxford : Clarendon Press ; New York : Oxford University Press, 1993.
Descriptionx, 266 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm
Subjects
Opera--Italy.
Libretto.

Contents Orpheus, Ovid, and opera -- Definitions and non-definitions -- The problem of the finale and Poliziano's solution -- The finale in the sixteenth century -- The operatic finale -- The lament -- Repetition and echo in poetry and music.
Abstract This book looks at the predecessors and early examples of opera from Poliziano's Orfeo (c. 1480) to Monteverdi's Arianna (1608). It pays considerable attention to the role played by such poets as Poliziano, Tasso, Guarini, Rinuccini, and Chiabrera and the conventions that gradually developed for shaping the dramatic plot with regard to operatic structure, in particular the problem of the finale. The author focuses on the early operas of Peri and Monteverdi and their predecessors, the intermedi, but frequent references to later operas by Cavalli, Gluck, Mozart, Verdi, and Stravinsky relate the origins of the genre to its essence through the centuries. In particular, he explores the enduring fascination with the Orpheus myth, from ancient Greece to Haydn and Stravinsky, in greater detail than in most histories of early opera. His fascinating and accessible book will be essential reading to a wide range of students, scholars, and opera buffs.
Bibliography noteIncludes bibliographical references (pages 227-254) and indexes.
LCCN 92030841
ISBN0198161301 (acid-free paper)

Availability

Library Location Call Number Status Item Actions
Music Music Stacks ML1733.2 .S73 1993 ✔ Available Place Hold