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From: gam@proper.UUCP (Gordon Moffett)
Newsgroups: net.music
Subject: Re: Opera on TV / Opera for Novices
Message-ID: <967@proper.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 3-Feb-84 15:03:31 EST
Article-I.D.: proper.967
Posted: Fri Feb  3 15:03:31 1984
Date-Received: Thu, 9-Feb-84 07:22:32 EST
References: <134@olivej.UUCP>
Organization: Proper UNIX, San Leandro, CA
Lines: 24

Though I enjoy classical music, I have not yet gotten into opera.
However, I saw Mozart's `The Marriage of Figaro' on PBS a few years
ago and really enjoyed it!  I beleive it was produced for TV rather
than a broadcast of a stage performance.

The most helpful things were:  between acts, the announcer would synopsize
the action thus far and for the next act; the opera (in Italian) had sub-
titles.

(I would rather hear a work in its native tongue -- I would have
Beethoven's 9th no other way! -- but concurrent translation is helpful).

So there's hope!  I CAN enjoy opera.  (I did watch parts of `The Magic
Flute' a few weeks ago, but it was not as interesting, and I was put-
off by the black-face characters, which seemed racist to me).

I enjoy Mozart and those guys (Baroque thru early Romantic periods)
very much -- I would be interested is recommendations for introduction
to opera, specifically record sets of good performances with printed
translations in them.
-- 
Gordon A. Moffett
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