Opera as the Art of All Arts – Comprehensive Lecture Notes

Defining Opera

• Speaker’s central claim: “Opera is the art of all arts.”
  • Combines music, drama, storytelling, acoustic science, visual design, dance, and costuming.
• Classroom definition offered by a student: “an application of emotions through the form of drama and music.”
• Key tension: The lecturer dislikes rigid hierarchies (high vs. low art) but still frames opera as uniquely comprehensive.

Acoustic & Architectural Foundations

• Voices must project over an orchestra of 70–80 instruments without microphones.
  • Requires an understanding of breath control, resonance, and the physics of sound—even if singers do this intuitively rather than calculating in real time.
• Typical opera house features:
  • An orchestral pit recessed beneath the stage.
    • Lowers the orchestra’s sound level so singers have a “fighting chance.”
  • Reflective materials (often wood) on walls and balconies for natural amplification.
• Contrast with musical-theatre venues: often use electronic amplification and different building materials; orchestra frequently on stage or elevated, not hidden in a pit.

The Singer’s Dual Job

• “Artist + Human Acoustician.” The performer must shape vowels, modify placement, and adjust dynamics to exploit hall acoustics.
• Vocal production strategies:
  • Squillo (ring) to cut through orchestration.
  • Registration balancing (head vs. chest).
  • Awareness of hall “sweet spots.”

Personal Origin Story of the Lecturer

• Grew up singing church “anthems” and quasi-Gregorian chant in an Episcopal context.
• Early skill set: strong aural memory; weak music-reading, “faking it” in choir.
• Principle learned: “My gift made room for me” → persistence and innate vocal ability opened career doors.

Canonical Plot Studies & First Impressions

1. Puccini – Madama Butterfly

   • Story: U.S. Naval Lieutenant marries Japanese geisha (Cio-Cio-San). He leaves, returns with American wife, claims son; Butterfly commits suicide.
   • Lecturer’s first live-opera experience: “completely blown away” by the emotional impact.
   • Immediate sociological critique:
     • All-Japanese story composed by an Italian in 1898\text{–}1904 without first-hand cultural knowledge.
     • Pre-Internet era = limited research resources ➔ reliance on exoticism and imagination.

2. Puccini – Il Tabarro (“The Cloak”)

   • Set on a barge on the Seine.
   • Characters: Michele (barge owner), Giorgetta (wife), Luigi (her lover).
   • Plot climax: Michele strangles Luigi, hides body under cloak, summons wife to “fetch my coat” → she discovers dead lover.

3. Puccini – La Bohème

   • Focus on young Bohemian artists in Paris (writers, painters, musicians).
   • Mimi leaves Rodolfo for practical reasons, returns gravely ill and dies in his arms.
   • Opera praised for capturing fragile love, poverty, artistic idealism.

Cultural Representation, Casting, & Appropriation

• Opera requires hyper-specialized voices; casting pool is already small → cultural mismatch risk grows.
• Classroom brainstorming on solutions:
  • “Artistic license,” rigorous research, consulting culture-bearers, specialty casting.
• Lecturer’s confession: performed Goro (marriage broker) in Madama Butterfly while being non-Asian.
  • Production (≈ 15 years ago) used makeup and costuming to create Japanese appearance—acknowledged today as problematic.
• Core dilemma: How to honor universal human themes while avoiding cultural caricature?
  • Difference between appreciation (respectful engagement, benefit-sharing) vs. appropriation (extractive use).

Who Owns Art? – Intellectual Property vs. Communal Meaning

• Philosophical question presented: “If nobody owns art, how do we reconcile that with U.S. copyright law?”
  • Composer retains legal rights, yet audiences, cultures, and interpreters co-create meaning.
• Modern music industry illustration:
  • Song ➔ composer, producer, label, distributor, radio, streaming platform—all claim revenue shares.
  • The visible artist is often NOT the primary financial beneficiary.

Case Study: Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess

• Composer: George Gershwin (white, Jewish, New Yorker).
• Subject: Black life in Catfish Row, Charleston.
• Gershwin’s estate enforces a contractual clause:
  • All singing roles must be performed by Black artists; only police officers (white characters) may be spoken, not sung.
  • Renewed every copyright cycle to preserve authenticity.
• Demonstrates how a non-insider attempted to respect representation by embedding it in legal language.

Systemic Exclusion at the Metropolitan Opera

• Ledger from early 1900s shows internal comments about submissions: “uninteresting,” “not suit for the Metropolitan,” etc.
• 138-year gap before first Black-composed opera staged at the Met.
• William Grant Still (\“Dean of African-American composers\”) submitted 3 operas across 20 years—rejected each time.
  • Reflects gatekeeping, racism, and the Met’s role as industry bellwether.

Contemporary Breakthrough: Terence Blanchard’s Fire Shut Up in My Bones

• Premiered at the Met; adaptation of Charles M. Blow’s memoir (growing up in rural Louisiana, 1970s–1980s).
• Blanchard profile: jazz trumpeter, long-time Spike Lee collaborator, 6 Emmy wins, 2 Oscar nominations.
• Production hailed as “unlike any other opera” for its blend of jazz idioms, spirituals, and classical orchestration.
• Symbolic significance: cracks a racial barrier; invites new audiences; pushes stylistic boundaries.

Emergent Themes & Ethical Implications

• Opera’s capacity for empathy: despite linguistic or cultural differences, human struggles (love, betrayal, poverty, family rupture) remain relatable.
• Responsibility of artists and institutions:
  • Accurate research; engagement with culture-holders.
  • Transparent benefit distribution.
  • Willingness to update staging traditions (e.g., end yellowface/blackface makeup).
• The blurred line between homage and exploitation often depends on:
  1. Who profits?
  2. Who speaks for whom?
  3. Did creators seek informed consent or collaboration?

Why Opera Remains Relevant

• Stories written 100+ years ago still address infidelity, immigration, war, disease, class struggle—challenges unchanged even if fashion, technology, or politics evolve.
• Dense artistic layering means multiple re-visits reveal new angles; first impressions can be incomplete (“deception for a reason”).

Study Prompts & Reflection Questions

• Define opera in your own words. How does multi-disciplinarity shape audience impact?
• Outline acoustic features of an opera house and explain why each matters.
• Debate: Should only culture-insider singers portray culturally specific roles? Where might exceptions be justified?
• Compare Gershwin’s contractual clause with Puccini’s open casting history—whose model better navigates appropriation?
• Analyze financial pathways in modern music/opera production. Who ultimately “owns” a performance?
• Consider how Blanchard’s success may (or may not) alter systemic barriers within major institutions.