Amazon.com: Twentieth Century Opera: A Guide (9780879102753): George Martin: Books

Buy New

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
or
Amazon Prime Free Trial required. Sign up when you check out. Learn More
Buy Used
Used - Acceptable See details
$10.24 & eligible for FREE Super Saver Shipping on orders over $25. Details

or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
   
Sell Back Your Copy
For a $0.88 Gift Card
Trade in
More Buying Choices
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
Twentieth Century Opera: A Guide
 
 
Tell the Publisher!
I'd like to read this book on Kindle

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

Twentieth Century Opera: A Guide [Paperback]

George Martin (Author)

Price: $25.00 & this item ships for FREE with Super Saver Shipping. Details
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
In Stock.
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com. Gift-wrap available.
Only 2 left in stock--order soon (more on the way).
Want it delivered Tuesday, February 28? Choose One-Day Shipping at checkout. Details

Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Paperback $25.00  

Book Description

August 1, 2004
Martin provides a guide to opera that is sweeping in its scope, thorough in its detail, and authoritative in its commentary. He recalls a century of achievement in an art form that today enjoys unprecedented popularity and that has been generously enriched by challenging works - in many cases yet to be fully recognized - of the modern era.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

When George Martin first attempted a reference book on 20th-century opera in 1979, it was already a sprawling topic. He then expanded and refined his ideas twice before this fourth version, and his long immersion in the subject has paid dividends. Martin begins with six essays, two of which offer general historical overviews; the earlier one shows how World War I was the defining event for the form. Martin discusses what he sees as the two revolutions in opera (12-tone music and electronic amplification), makes an interesting comparison of religion with psychoanalysis, and touches on the literary quality of opera librettos. The later essay takes on the idea of rock in opera (Martin still has hopes) and the waxing importance of stage directors (especially Robert Wilson) and declares Martin's view of newer operas as a return to "gigantism" with works such as Zimmermann's Die Soldaten. These chapters frame four others on specific composers: Puccini (three biographies are compared for their psychological insights), Prokofiev, Stravinsky (whose shorter operas Martin rather persuasively deems "failures"), and Janácek. The bulk of the book offers a chronological series of 90 plot synopses. There is thorough representation of Britten, later Strauss operas, and Janácek, two works each by Philip Glass and Hans Werner Henze, and even Sondheim's Sweeney Todd. Martin spends more time on operas likely to be encountered in actual performance (such as Poulenc's Dialogues des Carmélites) and takes the chance of including relatively recent works (Nixon in China by John Adams and The Ghosts of Versailles by John Corigliano) that have not yet made it into the repertory. He even offers approximate timings of each scene to help operagoers through the evening. Martin is a refreshingly honest companion, quite free with his opinions. He goes so far as to point out places where a first-time listener might be bored--and why. This volume is a fine companion to The Metropolitan Opera: Stories of the Great Operas, which covers so many of the 18th- and 19th-century works. --William R. Braun

Product Details


More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews


There are no customer reviews yet.
Video reviews
Video reviews
Amazon now allows customers to upload product video reviews. Use a webcam or video camera to record and upload reviews to Amazon.



Inside This Book (learn more)
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
music master, beggar woman, elder son, honey man, kékszakállú herceg vára, mrtvého domu, dancing master, stage prem, plainsong hymn, musical link, doubling piccolo, wood breathes, concert suite, happy dust
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
New York, Mother Marie, Sir Edgar, Introductory Essays, United States, World War, Don Jerome, Baby Doe, Billy Budd, Peter Grimes, Covent Garden, Die Frau, Dialogues des Carmélites, Benjamin Britten, Mme Flora, Gianni Schicchi, The Consul, The Fiery Angel, Sweeney Todd, Street Scene, Don Inigo, Lord Barrat, Madame Mao, Richard Strauss, Oedipus Rex
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:

Citations (learn more)
1 book cites this book:

Tag this product

 (What's this?)
Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.
Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store

If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store. Learn more

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums


Listmania!


Create a Listmania! list

So You'd Like to...


Create a guide


Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject