The Metropolitan Opera: Stories of the Great Operas

by John W. Freeman, James Levine (Foreword by), Peter Allen (Introduction)

Overview

For seasoned opera-goers and first-time listeners alike, the definitive collection of opera stories. Now offered as a handsome boxed set, this guide treats opera lovers to 225 absorbing plot summaries. John Freeman has carefully selected the works to represent every opera performed today in the world's great houses, and he succeeds in vividly recounting the often intricate narratives. Whether used as a pre-performance refresher or a bedside companion, this new set of Metropolitan Opera Stories of the Great Operas, Volumes One and Two, is an essential addition to any opera lover's library.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780393018882
Publisher:	Norton, W. W. & Company, Inc.
Publication date:	11/17/1984
Series:	Metropolitan Opera Stories of the Great Operas Series , #1
Pages:	584
Sales rank:	797,325
Product dimensions:	6.50(w) x 9.60(h) x 1.50(d)

About the Author

Beverly Sills (b. 1929 – d. 2007) was an American opera singer, general manager of the New York City Opera, Chairman of Lincoln Center, and Chairman of the Metropolitan Opera.

Editorial Reviews

Freeman, associate editor of Opera News and author of the first volume of The Metropolitan Opera Stories of the Great Operas (LJ 11/15/84), presents this second volume of stories from 125 more operas, this time covering less familiar works, such as early pieces (Monteverdi's Il ritorno d'Ulisse in partria, 1640) and contemporary ones (John Adams's Nixon in China, 1987). The entries are arranged by composer, with a brief introduction providing background on the life and works of each. Because Freeman focuses on less familiar works, he includes Verdi's early operas (I Lombardi, Stiffelio, I due Foscari) rather than the works often performed today. Many of the operas are known more from references in the literature of opera (Halvy's La Juive, 1835) or because of well-known excerpts from otherwise forgotten works (Catalani's La Wally, 1892). However, these works are part of the vocabulary of opera, so there is a need for the hard-to-find information presented here. The biographies and shorter synopses of many of these pieces are available in standard reference works, but this is still a good selection for larger music collections with a need for in-depth materials.-James E. Ross, WLN, Seattle

Library Journal