Harvey Milk : An Opera in 3 Acts (World Premiere Recording) [Box set]

Stewart Wallace (Composer), Donald Runnicles (Conductor), San Francisco Opera (Orchestra), Robert Orth (Performer), Elizabeth Bishop (Performer), Juliana Gondek (Performer), Jill Grove (Performer), James Maddalena (Performer), Gidon Saks (Performer), Raymond Very (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 17, 1998)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Box set
• Note on Boxed Sets: During shipping, discs in boxed sets occasionally become dislodged without damage. Please examine and play these discs. If you are not completely satisfied, we'll refund or replace your purchase.
• Label: Teldec
• ASIN: B00000E8O7
• Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #355,090 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 1: The Closet. Part 1. Prologue. November 27, 1978. Yitgadal

2. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 1: The Closet. Part 1. Standing Room at the Old Met, New York City - the 1940s. Bravo Bravo...

3. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 1: The Closet. Part 1. Central Park at Midnight, the War Years. Like chocolate, soldier?

4. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 1: The Closet. Part 1. Central Park at Midnight, the War Years. An angel will go before you

5. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 1: The Closet. Part 2. Harvey's Walk-In Closet, New York City - the 1960s. Harvey

6. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 1: The Closet. Part 2. Harvey's Walk-In Closet, New York City - the 1960s. Closets are a necess

7. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 1: The Closet. Part 2. Harvey's Walk-In Closet, New York City - the 1960s. Poor dear is beside

8. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 1: The Closet. Part 2. Harvey's Walk-In Closet, New York City - the 1960s. You don't have to st

9. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 1: The Closet. Part 2. Standing Room at the New Met. Who are these men?... My forefathers

10. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 1: The Closet. Part 2. Standing Room at the New Met. From dust we come

See all 20 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 2: The Castro. Part 2. Harvey and Scott's Bed. Scott? Are you asleep?

2. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 2: The Castro. Part 2. The Haircut. Orchestral Interlude

3. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 2: The Castro. Part 3. Gay Bashing (The Hillsborough Murder). Faggots!

4. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 2: The Castro. Part 3. Gay Bashing (The Hillsborough Murder). What we have here is not what it

5. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 2: The Castro. Part 3. Gay Bashing (The Hillsborough Murder). Thank you, San Francisco!

6. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 2: The Castro. Part 3. The Parade. Thank you, San Francisco!

7. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 3: City Hall. Part 1. The Corridors of Power. I can live with that

8. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 3: City Hall. Part 1. The Corridors of Power. These are the corridors of power

9. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 3: City Hall. Part 1. The Corridors of Power. The issue of the floor is... Not in my backyard

10. Harvey Milk, opera: Act 3: City Hall. Part 1. The Gay Rights' Bill. Next on the agenda... Good-bye, Judy Garland

See all 19 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars A really wanted to like this opera, November 6, 2011

By 

William S. Oser "Snowy and Manny's Dad" (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Harvey Milk : An Opera in 3 Acts (World Premiere Recording) (Audio CD)

Harvey Milk, the opera by Stewart Wallace and Michael Korie came on the heals of several other American Operas with historical situations, Nixon in China, Death of Klinghoffer, and Phillip Glass's three semi historical pieces. I like many modern American Operas and being a Gay Man of a certain age, I desperately wanted Harvey Milk to be an opera for the ages, but its not. It seems like it might play fairly well on stage if directed well but musically it is not very interesting. The title character has 2 arias, if you can call them that. They are in that modernistic, no melody in sight style. There are important choral scenes which seem to drive the opera, where the crowd conveys all the action and the emotion, like a modern Greek chorus. Nothing in the music seems to cry out for repeated listenings. With that said, Robert Orin as Harvey Milk delivers a powerful performance. It does not seem like an easy sing, the arias are rangy and call for a great deal of baritonal power, all of which is delivered. Also making important contributions are Raymond Very as a tenor Dan White and Bradley Williams as Harvey's lover Scott Smith. Other smaller roles seem to be well taken. I imagine that this was as good a performance as this opera could ever get. I just wish that the musical content were stronger.