Opera, some of my friends say, is like Marmite: you either love it or you hate it.
Those who prefer their music lighter and more popular, complain about it being too long, too intense and too stuffy.
Whilst not entirely agreeing with them, I can understand how they might have reached a conclusion. Just like Marmite, I tell them, opera is an acquired taste.
I’m not an opera devotee but understand the appeal of the spectacle, the singing and the setting as well as the rich history it has, which of course also is part of my personal history being born in Austria.
Like other forms of music, there are some pieces and some performers who are more accessible and those which are not. It may be easy for beginners to follow the storylines of Madame Butterfly or Carmen without too much trouble or even translation but start with Ligeti’s Grand Macabre or Wagner’s lengthy Ring Cycle can leave people cold.
In the last 20 years or so, efforts have been made to engage with those who might not be classed as traditional opera lovers. For many people, the Kiri te Kanawa and late Luciano Pavarotti are associated more for recording football and rugby anthems than roles in The Marriage of Figaro or as Pagliaccio. The beautiful Romanian soprano Anghela Gheorghiu is known as ‘Draculette’ by readers of gossip columns familiar with her love life but who might not have heard her sing a note.
Even at the last TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh a full blown musical spectrum made the audience listen: From Imogen Heap’s techno-infused musical gloves to Danielle de Niese’s soprano voice singing Franz Lehar’s ‘Meine Lippen sie kuessen so heiss’ (I was happy to notice that I still knew every line….).
This month, there is another opportunity to ease oneself into opera with a series of shows by the Spanish performer Placido Domingo at the Royal Opera House in London (27-30 October) With Pavarotti and fellow countryman Jose Carreras, Domingo was one of the celebrated ‘Three Tenors’. He has enjoyed a glittering career among his art’s very best, occupying the most notable lead roles, making more than 100 recordings and winning 12 Grammys.
Those who aren’t ROH regulars but were lucky enough to get a ticket for one of the shows may encounter another reason why some people find opera..well….uncomfortable. In some venues, opera is not just about the performance but the event.
Unlike a pop concert, it’s not something you can turn up straight from work in jeans and scuffed shoes. At Vienna’s Volksoper, the Metropolitan Opera in New York the famed La Scala in Milan, people dress up for the occasion.
If newcomers don’t wear evening dress, they can feel and look out of place for certain venues and performances, adding to whatever tension they may feel about unfamiliar material.
There is no need, however, to spend lots of money, something which might dissuade people from going in the first place. If they apply my recommended ‘two-minute rule’ before getting ready in the same way that they should do before going to the office or to dinner with a partner in a nice restaurant, they can create a smart look which can help put them at ease and to enjoy the arias.
Loading ...