I recently picked up Doctor Atomic on DVD. It is an opera composed by John Adams about the testing of the first nuclear bomb. After one viewing my initial impressions are mixed. I felt that the first act was much stronger than the second, and ended on a more powerful climax. But that could change after repeated viewings. It might also be different if I were watching the performance live in a theater.
But the act one finale and its visual presentation are stunning:
Another highlight for me is this beautiful aria by Oppenheimer's wife earlier in the first act:
There are some great moments in the second act as well, but those two arias are my favorites. One of the cool things about this opera is that all of the text is taken either from actual things the characters said, or from some of Oppenheimer's favorite poets. This is a fantastic piece of work.
Showing posts with label Opera. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Opera. Show all posts
Sunday, May 03, 2009
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Keeping Busy
The things I'm trying to fit into the next few days keep piling on.
Tomorrow night I'm going to see the UT Opera production of Street Scene.
On Saturday I've got choral rehearsal in the morning. Then I'm going to try to swing by the Prop 8 protest at the World's Fair Park since I'll already be downtown (got an email alert about this tonight). After that is the movie meetup group (movie not yet chosen). And the KCS performance at 8:00.
Sunday I'm going to Allison's senior recital at Carson-Newman. Heading straight from there to Gatlinburg where I've got the time share for two nights.
Then it's back to work as Thanksgiving weekend (and Black Friday) draws nigh. I can't believe November is almost halfway over.
The second Rigoletto rehearsal was this evening. Have you heard this stuff? Some of it is like the fastest tongue twister ever, set to music. How many vowels can you cram onto one eighth note, seriously? It's going to come together, and it's going to be good. But this is one hell of a show for a first timer.
Tomorrow night I'm going to see the UT Opera production of Street Scene.
On Saturday I've got choral rehearsal in the morning. Then I'm going to try to swing by the Prop 8 protest at the World's Fair Park since I'll already be downtown (got an email alert about this tonight). After that is the movie meetup group (movie not yet chosen). And the KCS performance at 8:00.
Sunday I'm going to Allison's senior recital at Carson-Newman. Heading straight from there to Gatlinburg where I've got the time share for two nights.
Then it's back to work as Thanksgiving weekend (and Black Friday) draws nigh. I can't believe November is almost halfway over.
The second Rigoletto rehearsal was this evening. Have you heard this stuff? Some of it is like the fastest tongue twister ever, set to music. How many vowels can you cram onto one eighth note, seriously? It's going to come together, and it's going to be good. But this is one hell of a show for a first timer.
Monday, October 20, 2008
Good News, Everyone!
I've just been invited to sing in the male chorus for Rigoletto, the Knoxville Opera's first full production of the season! Whooooo!
Friday, October 10, 2008
Paper Faces On Parade
I will be performing in the opera chorus on Nov. 1 for the Knoxville Opera's Halloween Spectacular. We'll be performing selections from Sweeney Todd, Phantom of the Opera, and Mefistofele. It is a costume ball, so you'd need to suit up if you want to come. The theme is orange and black.
Tickets start out around $25. There's more info about it here.
Hope some of you can make it. I think it will be a lot of fun.
Update: apparently tickets are even cheaper for students. Like fifteen bucks, or something.
Tickets start out around $25. There's more info about it here.
Hope some of you can make it. I think it will be a lot of fun.
Update: apparently tickets are even cheaper for students. Like fifteen bucks, or something.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
The Opera!
I lucked into a small opera gig a few weeks ago. One of my former music teachers at Pellissippi had to drop out of a performance and asked me to replace him. I couldn't turn down such a generous offer.
It's for an opera fund raiser, not part of the actual season. We'll be performing selections from Romberg's operettas, "The Student Prince" and "The New Moon". The fund raiser is on Oct. 10. Tickets are $100 so I don't imagine I'll be seeing any of you there. I'm looking forward to it though.
But it just hit me how soon the performance is. Our first rehearsal - the first time I ever sang this music - was last Tuesday. I have to be off book next Tuesday. That's the shortest I've been on book for anything. It's in English, and it's fairly easy, but there are some tricky fast songs that I'm a little worried about. I will be in cram mode until next week.
Wish me luck!
It's for an opera fund raiser, not part of the actual season. We'll be performing selections from Romberg's operettas, "The Student Prince" and "The New Moon". The fund raiser is on Oct. 10. Tickets are $100 so I don't imagine I'll be seeing any of you there. I'm looking forward to it though.
But it just hit me how soon the performance is. Our first rehearsal - the first time I ever sang this music - was last Tuesday. I have to be off book next Tuesday. That's the shortest I've been on book for anything. It's in English, and it's fairly easy, but there are some tricky fast songs that I'm a little worried about. I will be in cram mode until next week.
Wish me luck!
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Busy Weekend
Thursday:
I went to the first Sundown of the year. One of probably only two that I'll actually attend. The crowds are unbearable unless you really want to see the band. So many people show up just for the social event, and don't really pay attention to the music. This was especially apparent if you walked through the park at the south end of Market Square. It looked like the entire emo population of Knoxville was setting up a shanty town. It's the biggest concentration of losers I've seen in a long, long time. I really wish I'd snapped a picture of it.
Market Square, before it got crowded.
This guy was trying to make money by
looking like an idiot and standing very still.
The band playing was Galactic, who I like a lot. They have a "jam band" vibe, which wears a bit thin, but it's funky. The best part was that they had an MC performing with them. Boots Reilly is part of the hip-hop group, The Coup. I hadn't heard of them before, but he was great. Very high energy, great stage presence. And the song are very good, too. I've checked out some of The Coup/s stuff since Thursday and it's really good. Very political, socially conscious hip-hop, but great party music at the same time.
Friday
I went with a friend to see the Knoxville Opera Company's production of Puccini's Tosca. I'm kinda late to the whole opera thing, but it's grown on me very quickly over the past several years. Puccini is by far my favorite right now. I wasn't familiar with the music or story of Tosca before going to see it. The production was fantastic, overall.
The soprano playing Tosca was amazing. The lead tenor, Mario, had a good voice but it was a bit on the weak side. When they sang together he nearly got drowned out.
The show was stolen, however, by the villain, Scarpia. The guy who played him was phenomenal. And he knew it, too. He completely owned the stage, even during the curtain call. One of the best villains I've ever seen in a show.
The thing I like about Puccini is how simple all his stories are, but how masterfully he handles each moment. Tosca has the best use of a chorus I've ever heard in an opera. The only minor complaint I have is that the final act is a bit weak compared to the first two. It's not bad at all, but the first two blew me away. This probably has a lot to do with the fact that Scarpia is only in the first two acts. You really miss him in the third.
Saturday:
Saturday was the Rossini Festival. Hooray! Unfortunately I forgot to take my camera with me so I didn't get any good pictures.
I got there a bit late because I had to work that morning, but I'm just glad the weather cleared up enough for the festival to go on. It was pouring rain Saturday morning, and I was worried the festival would be ruined. But it was mostly clear throughout the day, with occasional light (but cold) sprinkling.
I was happy to find out that the Pellissippi Variations choir was performing. I still have a lot of friends in the group, and it was great to see them perform. Especially since I missed their spring concert on Thursday to attend Sun Down. It was a good show, but the sound system was terrible. The guy running the board never really got a good mix, and there were several instances when we were assaulted by loud feedback.
Immediately after this, the Knoxville Chamber Chorale performed. This is a smaller group consisting of members of the Knoxville Choral Society. Both this choir and the Pellissippi choir are conducted by Bill Brewer.
By the time they were finished the sun was going down and it was starting to get cold, so it was time to leave. I'm glad I got a chance to enjoy myself before the week of hell I'm about to have at work!
I went to the first Sundown of the year. One of probably only two that I'll actually attend. The crowds are unbearable unless you really want to see the band. So many people show up just for the social event, and don't really pay attention to the music. This was especially apparent if you walked through the park at the south end of Market Square. It looked like the entire emo population of Knoxville was setting up a shanty town. It's the biggest concentration of losers I've seen in a long, long time. I really wish I'd snapped a picture of it.
looking like an idiot and standing very still.
The band playing was Galactic, who I like a lot. They have a "jam band" vibe, which wears a bit thin, but it's funky. The best part was that they had an MC performing with them. Boots Reilly is part of the hip-hop group, The Coup. I hadn't heard of them before, but he was great. Very high energy, great stage presence. And the song are very good, too. I've checked out some of The Coup/s stuff since Thursday and it's really good. Very political, socially conscious hip-hop, but great party music at the same time.
Friday
I went with a friend to see the Knoxville Opera Company's production of Puccini's Tosca. I'm kinda late to the whole opera thing, but it's grown on me very quickly over the past several years. Puccini is by far my favorite right now. I wasn't familiar with the music or story of Tosca before going to see it. The production was fantastic, overall.
The soprano playing Tosca was amazing. The lead tenor, Mario, had a good voice but it was a bit on the weak side. When they sang together he nearly got drowned out.
The show was stolen, however, by the villain, Scarpia. The guy who played him was phenomenal. And he knew it, too. He completely owned the stage, even during the curtain call. One of the best villains I've ever seen in a show.
The thing I like about Puccini is how simple all his stories are, but how masterfully he handles each moment. Tosca has the best use of a chorus I've ever heard in an opera. The only minor complaint I have is that the final act is a bit weak compared to the first two. It's not bad at all, but the first two blew me away. This probably has a lot to do with the fact that Scarpia is only in the first two acts. You really miss him in the third.
Saturday:
Saturday was the Rossini Festival. Hooray! Unfortunately I forgot to take my camera with me so I didn't get any good pictures.
I got there a bit late because I had to work that morning, but I'm just glad the weather cleared up enough for the festival to go on. It was pouring rain Saturday morning, and I was worried the festival would be ruined. But it was mostly clear throughout the day, with occasional light (but cold) sprinkling.
I was happy to find out that the Pellissippi Variations choir was performing. I still have a lot of friends in the group, and it was great to see them perform. Especially since I missed their spring concert on Thursday to attend Sun Down. It was a good show, but the sound system was terrible. The guy running the board never really got a good mix, and there were several instances when we were assaulted by loud feedback.
Immediately after this, the Knoxville Chamber Chorale performed. This is a smaller group consisting of members of the Knoxville Choral Society. Both this choir and the Pellissippi choir are conducted by Bill Brewer.
By the time they were finished the sun was going down and it was starting to get cold, so it was time to leave. I'm glad I got a chance to enjoy myself before the week of hell I'm about to have at work!
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