Customer Reviews

Amahl and the Night Visitors: Vocal Score (Vocal Score Series)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

This lovely Christmas book is based on Menotti's own cure of lameness as a child in 1911 Italy. In this book, Amahl, the lame boy, meets up with the Wise Men on the way to Bethlehem. His poor mother and he give the Wise Men a place to bed down for the night and Amahl is repaid for his faith by being cured and going with the Wise Men to meet the Christ Child. This delightful Christmas story is full of mystery and awe, reinforced well by the full color illustrations. This book belongs on every child's bookshelf and makes an excellent Christmas gift for six to eleven year olds. I am a church librarian and bought this book for our church library.

Look no more! At a wonderful price, this IS the complete score reduced for piano. Of course, performance rights and other instrumental orchestrations must be obtained through the publisher, but the info. that you need to do that is included in this book. If you're looking to get started into "Amahl", this and the video are the way to do it!

The score was complete and arrived within a few days of ordering. It was written clearly and I was able to accomplish the task I wanted without any trouble. It included both vocal soloists and choral parts so that the choir would be able to manage it easily. I was very pleased with my purchase.

This gorgeously illustrated storybook has become the favorite part of my Christmas, since I found it 8 years ago. As an elementary music teacher I found this to be a fabulous way to introduce opera to my 4th grade classes. Each year I read the story to them inserting selected vocal works from the opera. This allows the children to hear the words spoken first, preparing them for the selections from the opera.

I would encourage anyone who wishes to teach their children about opera to purchase this book along with a quality audio recording. Enjoy!

The first opera I ever remember seeing and hearing was Amahl and the Night Visitors in about 1955. I have loved this made-for-television opera ever since. Finding the complete vocal score on Amazon was a rare treat. While the score is not a novel, if you read the words of the music you have the entire story. I can sit with this score and read and hear the music in my mind. I treasure this score, and have purchased it for my now-grown children. It has been the source of inspiration for a couple of Christmas presents (this is my box, this is my box . . . filled with the thing mentioned in the song). And now, no Christmas holiday is complete without finding this lovely little opera being performed somewhere. Would I recommend someone purchase this vocal score? If you love the opera, the score is a must have.

Enjoyed this story as a child and looking forward to sharing this with my grandchildren. A Christmas story of selflessnes and honor and wanting to do the right thing. How can you go wrong? Love the graphics, too. I would highly recommend.

This is a dvd of the original cast presentation in 1955, conducted by Menotti himself. The quality is representative of what was available at the time and is in black and white. The extras and interviews are really worthwhile, and give a lot of information of what went into the production and the creative process. Unfortunately the disc I received was defective. Tried to get them to take it back. No luck. Take your chances. I wouldn't buy from this company again.

Some people are saying this is a story book, others are saying it's the piano vocal score. If you do the "look inside" thing on the product page, you'll see pages of sheet music. But a warning: this is not the piano vocal score. I repeat: it's NOT the score. It's a picture book. The "look inside" pages are incorrect.

Amahl is a young, crippled boy who lives with his widowed mother in the Middle East. One night, three kings come to their hut and ask to spend the night. The kings are following a giant star that they believe will lead them to baby Jesus, the promised Messiah. When they find Jesus, they plan to give him expensive gifts. Amahl wants to give Jesus something of value too, so he asks if he can offer his crutch. Amahl's mother reluctantly lets him go along with the kings, to give away his crutch.

This is a nice Christmas book with beautiful illustrations. It is based on a opera by Gian Carlo Menotti. Younger children, in particular, will enjoy the story, while older children and adults will be inspired by Amahl's generosity and sacrifice. This would be a nice addition to anyone's Christmas collection.

I have faint memories of watching Amahl and the Night Visitors every year at Christmas back in the 50's. This is the actual show from one of those years - it brings back all of the memories in a beautiful, tender production.