A Night at the Opera: An Irreverent Guide to The Plots, The Singers, The Composers, The Recordings (Modern Library Paperbacks) [Paperback]

Sir Denis Forman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1998 | Series: Modern Library Paperbacks

With an encyclopedic knowledge of opera and a delightful dash of irreverence, Sir Denis Forman throws open the world of opera--its structure, composers, conductors, and artists--in this hugely informative guide. A Night at the Opera dissects the eighty-three most popular operas recorded on compact disc, from Cilea's Adriana Lecouvreur to Mozart's Die Zauberflöte. For each opera, Sir Denis details the plot and cast of characters, awarding stars to parts that are "worth looking out for," "really good," or, occasionally, "stunning." He goes on to tell the history of each opera and its early reception. Finally, each work is graded from alpha to gamma (although the Ring cycle gets an "X"), and Sir Denis has no qualms about voicing his opinion: the first act of Fidelio is "a bit of a mess," while the last scene of  Don Giovanni "towers above the comic finales of Figaro and Così and whether or not [it] is Mozart's greatest opera, it is certainly his most powerful finale."
The guide also presents brief biographies of the great composers, conductors, and singers. A glossary of musical terms is included, as well as Operatica, or the essential elements of opera, from the proper place and style of the audience's applause (and boos) to the use of surtitles.
A Night at the Opera is for connoisseurs and neophytes alike. It will entertain and inform, delight and (perhaps) infuriate, providing a subject for lively debate and ready reference for years to come.
        

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

As a nuts-and-bolts operagoer's guide, Denis Forman's book is richly incisive. It's equally satisfying as a tart, effervescent take on the solemn world of opera.

The author--a British television executive and former deputy chairman of the Royal Opera House--covers most of the likely offerings of your local repertory company, with a few questionable omissions (Peter Grimes) and inclusions (The Threepenny Opera). For each he provides a synopsis, musical highlights, critical remarks, and historical information (the premiere of Il Trovatore: "stupendous"; that of Norma: "a flop"). Another section offers comments on everything from the craze for authenticity to the practice of booing.

Forman's opinions sometimes run athwart of convention. Falstaff "has no sex appeal and no heart, and opera demands both these qualities"; Tristan und Isolde is the creation of "the Wagner that liked to spend time stroking velvet." His tone, especially in the synopses, is often evocative of Anna Russell's opera parodies: "It really is too bad of you Tristan to die on me like this. She passes out."

The prose can be cute, but that fits Forman's approach of puncturing the inflated atmosphere of opera while glorying in it. Though he is most entertaining when he's daring to shout in church, his enthusiasms are as illuminating as his barbs. "Traviata is the first grown-up opera about contemporary life," he says, adroitly locating that work in operatic history. In Don Giovanni, "Mozart brought terror to the opera stage for the first time." It's the book's greatest pleasure that Forman's passion is matched by his knowledge. --David Olivenbaum

From Booklist

The author, a former deputy chairman of the Royal Opera House, may well become the Anna Russell of print with this irreverent guide to plots, singers, composers, and recordings of more than 80 operas.

Forman's criteria for selection is that of recorded popularity--the opera must have had three or more versions listed in the Gramophone CD catalog of December 1992. Operas are alphabetically arranged from the backstage tragedy Adriana Lecouvreur to the psychiatric tragedy, Wozzeck. All are described in degrees of irreverence and are also rated--from alpha-plus to gamma. Also included is a description of the cast, running time, and a unique commentary on the major arias, described as "Look Out For," with the maximum of a three-star rating awarded "at the whim of the author." The arias are listed in "minutes from start." Notes, news and gossip, and a comment section complete the entries. The book concludes with a dictionary of opera terms; brief biographies of composers, conductors, and singers; and an index.

Although there is much in this volume that might be considered sacrilegious by the serious opera aficionado, Forman's style is humorous, entertaining, and insightful--Hansel and Gretel is said to be loved in Munich because of its "Grimm Teutonic nature." Originally published in Britain in 1994 as the Good Opera Guide, A Night at the Opera belongs in all music reference collections. It will balance the serious, weighty tomes and perhaps spark an interest in opera for those who think it dull and boring. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 976 pages
• Publisher: Modern Library; Rev Sub edition (September 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375751769
• ISBN-13: 978-0375751769
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 1.7 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #67,493 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #27 in Books > Arts & Photography > Music > Theory, Composition & Performance > Sheet Music & Scores > Forms & Genres > Opera

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great, though irreverant, guide to opera, September 28, 2000

By 

dcreader (Washington DC area) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: A Night at the Opera: An Irreverent Guide to The Plots, The Singers, The Composers, The Recordings (Modern Library Paperbacks) (Paperback)

Much more than just a collection of synopses of the great operas, A Night at the Opera provides a great starting point for learning about any major opera.

First, you'll learn about how the opera came to be written and the story behind the story. Then, there's a full synopsis of the opera. Next is a musical description of the numbers, with a system of noting the highlights to watch out for. Finally, there's an essay by the author, Covent Garden's Denis Foreman and his rating.

There's about five pages or so per opera, with longer ones getting much more (there's a whole introduction to The Ring). The style is breezy and colloquial. Foreman writes in a very tongue in cheek way that obviously some people don't get or like. Still, unless you despise dry English humor, it's a lot of fun. The synopses can get a little hard to follow with some of Foreman's jokes at times, however.

Also, there's a large glossary in back with lengthy dissertations (again, very tongue in cheek), and composer/singer/conductor bios. All in all a great resource, even if you already have a book of opera synopsis.

46 of 52 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nutty, profound, and extremely enjoyable, July 9, 2002

By 

E. A. Lovitt "starmoth" (Gladwin, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: A Night at the Opera: An Irreverent Guide to The Plots, The Singers, The Composers, The Recordings (Modern Library Paperbacks) (Paperback)

Suppose you had an eccentric, British uncle who was absolutely nuts about opera. You're a tyro yourself, so whenever you go CD shopping or attend a live performance, he entertains you with a humorous summary of the libretto (not too hard to do with an opera if it's not "Wozzeck"), tells you which bits to really listen for, and provides a critique of singers. He's an expert---after all he was the deputy chairman of one of England's great opera houses---but he's not a snob. Listen to what he has to say about death in the mystic land of Oprania:

"Death is extremely common and has an almost universal characteristic unknown in our world, namely a period of Imminence during which the doomed person suffers a compulsion to sing. There are few known cases in Oprania where death has occurred without an aria, or at least a cavatina, being delivered during Imminence. The period of Imminence for long deaths can last for up to a whole act. Not even decapitation can ensure an aria-free death..."

If you think bursting into song at death's door is highly unlikely, listen to what the author--I mean your uncle--has to say about Valentin's death (he was stabbed by Faust with the help of the devil) in Gounod's "Faust:"

"Valentin is found dying in the street by a respectful and horrified chorus. He makes the customary brave gestures of a soldier in the face of death and turns on Marguerite [his sister who is Faust's lover] rather nastily (first in recitative and then in a short aria) saying that the only course open to her now is to become a hooker for the rest of her life."

Valentin curses his sister and dies, and for all his musical effort is only awarded one star (out of a possible three) by Sir Denis. "Faust" itself is rated a 'beta' (on a scale where 'alpha-plus' is reserved for truly great operas such as "The Marriage of Figaro", and 'gamma or less' for truly forgettable operas such as "La Rondine").

I almost subtracted a star from my review because Sir Denis awarded 'betas' to two of my favorite operas (Handel's 'Caesar' and Verdi's 'Forza'), but "A Night at the Opera" is way too good and funny and idiosyncratic (in the grand style that only British authors seem to be able to carry off) to be anything but a five-star book.

The eighty-three operas that were chosen to appear in this book all had three or more versions listed in the "Gramophone" CD catalogue of December 1992, from Cilea's "Adriana Lecouvreur" to Berg's "Wozzeck." Each opera's libretto is lovingly (and somewhat whackily) described. There is a "Look Out For" section that describes and rates the opera's arias, preludes, choruses, intermezzos, etc. with one to three stars. Example: "Si adempia il voler" from Puccini's "Tosca":

"The final scene [of Act II]: Scarpia sits down to write the phoney letter of safe conduct to a sweeping melody,** calm but full of menace, giving us a breathing space between the storms past and the storm to come: then the 'kiss of Tosca' [she stabs Scarpia] with all the stops out--and the calm melody plays the scene out (All Rome trembled before him) ending with a sonorous funereal version of Scarpia's theme accompanied by a death rattle of drums. Stupendous."

Stupendous, indeed, even though Sir Denis only gives it two stars.

The final two sections describing each opera are "News and Gossip"--background on how and why the opera was composed, and "Comment"--the author's summary of where the opera fits in the repertoire (plus any other remarks he chooses to make).

This is a grand old book, all 959 pages of it. I read the whole thing, even the penultimate "Words Words Words" dictionary, and the final page of acknowledgements, "Friends, Supporters, Colleagues and Minders."

Please, just one more quotation from the final page:

"I would like to thank: Bamber Gascoigne for giving me the idea in the first place (and let it be noted that this handsome acknowledgement in no way affects the author's title to 100% of the copyright)."

I loved this book and you will too, even if you only have a sneaking fondness for the 'Queen of Music'.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unique, June 29, 2004

By 

Carvet "carvet" (Houston, TX United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Night at the Opera: An Irreverent Guide to The Plots, The Singers, The Composers, The Recordings (Modern Library Paperbacks) (Paperback)

This guide is one of several books that I purchased to learn about opera (so, beginners, listen up - opera experts go elsewhere). This guide is unique, witty, and entertaining. The "irreverent" style of the synopses is fun at first, but if you read several in a row it can wear thin. Read the synopsis of Adriana Lecouvreur that Amazon furnishes online to see if you appreciate the style - it is fairly typical except that some of the others have more of a British accent. The British slang sometimes goes over my head which means that I miss the point that is being made so cleverly. However, the real plus of the irreverent style is that it helps to cast the story in more contemporary light (which makes suspension of disbelief easier).

I like that there are real opinions about the works, not just descriptions. Some guides are so brief and sterile that you don't really get any flavor - not so here, there is flavor everywhere. What you may not be able to tell from the Amazon exerpt is that the four-page synopsis they show for Adriana Lecouvreur is only about half of the coverage of that opera. Following the synopsis is a scene-by-scene description of the action with what to look for at each point, then followed by a news and gossip and a comments section. Very comprehensive. The synopsis is only about half the coverage of each opera. The appendices at the back of the book also are good study material. They include: operatica (an elementary who's who and what's what at the opera house, about 55 pages); composers (brief biographies, about 40 pages); artists (again bios, about 25 pages); and a glossary (about 15 pages).

To learn about opera you need several references. This one is so unique that I say you should get it just for variety. Other good considerations: "Opera 101" for the absolutely best overall introductory study of opera in general. "100 Great Operas" for a more garden variety, shorter, simpler, and easier-to-read synopsis of individual operas. I also like the "Rough Guide to Opera". All of these are very different.