2. Begins on page 106 Chapter 12 Opera in the Baroque

3. Beginning of opera  desire for expressive vocal music  wanted to return to ancient Greek dramas  first opera houses founded in Venice, Italy  over the years, goal of expressive music was replaced by virtuoso singing

4. Elements of Opera  Voices and roles  Ensembles  Orchestra  Libretto  Staging

5. Operatic Conventions  Everything is sung  “Bigger than life” qualities  Often in foreign language  Compressed time frame

6. Enjoying opera  Much beautiful music  Expressiveness of music and words combined  Appeals to both eyes and ears  Has a “bigger than life” quality

7. Monteverdi’s The Coronation of Poppea  Monteverdi was the most important composer of the early Baroque  The Coronation of Poppea was his last opera  Contains many characteristics of recitative Copyright © 2010 by Schirmer Cengage Learning

8. Purcell’s “Dido’s Lament” from Dido and Aeneas  Recitative and aria  Ostinato bass line repeated 11 times  No virtuoso singing Copyright © 2010 by Schirmer Cengage Learning

9. Summary  Elements of opera  Operatic conventions  Monteverdi’s The Coronation of Poppea  Purcell’s “Dido’s Lament” from Dido and Aeneas