Top Ten Operas

Imagine yourself, well dressed in expensive furs or sporting a slick Italian suit. You step into your personal box with red velvet carpet and gold laced curtains. Tonight you will see an Opera. "Ladies and Gentlemen! Welcome to this evening's premiere of our own beloved favorite--the Magic Flute!"

Opera is a powerful art form that many of the naive fail to appreciate. Opera singing requires a passion for music and a lifetime of practice. A typical opera involves a full orchestra, elaborate sets and costumes and elegant opera houses. It is one of the highest "brow" entertainment events.

Opera had its beginnings during the Renaissance in an effort to bring back the old Greek dramas. It was understood then, that the Greek tragedies included music which was sung to. The word opera means "work" in Italian. Learn more.

I recently saw these two operas at the Utah Opera in Salt Lake City. Both are brilliant one-act operas by Puccini. Gianni Schicchi featured the famous aria, "Mio Babbino Caro."

Learn more about Gianni Schicci here

Papageno's Baritone Aria from Mozart's The Magic Flute
Read entire libretto
View the YouTube Video above

Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja, The birdcatcher am I indeed,
Stets lustig heisa hop-sa-sa! Always merry, heisa, Hop-sa-sa!
Ich Vogelfänger bin bekannt I, birdcatcher, am well known
Bei alt und jung im ganzen Land. To old and young throughout the land.
Weiß mit dem Lokken umzugehn, Know my way around with the traps,
Und mich aufs Pfeiffen zu verstehn! And how to be understood on the fife!
Drum kann ich froh und lustig sein, Thus can I happy and merry be,
Denn alle Vögel sind ja mein! For all the birdies belong to me!!

Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja, The birdcatcher am I indeed,
Stets lustig heisa hop-sa-sa! Always merry, heisa, hop-sa-sa!
Ich Vogelfänger bin bekannt I, birdcatcher, am well known
Bei alt und jung im ganzen Land. To old and young throughout the land.
Ein Netz für Mädchen möchte ich, A net for girls is what I would like,
Ich fing sie dutzendweis für mich! I'd catch them by the dozen for me!
Dann sperrte ich sie bei mir ein, Then lock them up I would by me,
Und alle Mädchen wären mein. And all girls would be belong to me.

Wenn alle Mädchen wären mein If all girls belonged to me
So tauschte ich brav Zukker ein, I would bravely trade in sugar,
Die welche mir am liebsten wär, The one I liked the best,
Der geb ich gleich den Zukker her, Her I would immediately give the sugar,
Und küsste sie mich zärtlich dann, And if she kissed me tenderly then,
Wär sie mein Weib und ich ihr Mann. She would be my wife and I her husband.
Sie schlief an meiner Seite ein, She would fall asleep by my side,
Ich wiegte wie ein Kind sie ein. I would cradle her to sleep like a child.

What a frozen little hand,
let me warm it for you.
What's the use of looking?
We won't find it in the dark.

But luckily
it's a moonlit night,
and the moon is near us here.

Wait, miss,
I will tell you in two words
who I am,
who I am,
what I do,
and how I live.
May I?

Who am I?
I am a poet.
What do I do?
I write.
And how do I live?
I live!

In my carefree poverty
I squander rhymes
and love songs
like a lord.
When it comes to dreams and visions
and castles in the air,
I've the soul of a millionaire.

From time to time two thieves
steal all the jewels
out of my safe, two pretty eyes.

They came in with you just now,
and my customary dreams
my lovely dreams,
melted at once into thin air!

But the theft doesn't anger me,
for their place has been
taken by hope!
Now that you know all about me,
Speak to me:
tell me who you are!

Here is a little list of some famous opera houses. When attending an opera in any of these locations, admiring the opera house is just as important as admiring the Opera.

• Wiener Staatsoper (Vienna State Opera), Vienna


• Národní Divadlo (National Theatre), Prague


• Coliseum Theatre (English National Opera), London
  
• Palais Garnier, Paris


• Deutsche Oper Berlin (Berlin German Opera), Berlin


• Oper Frankfurt (Frankfurt Opera), Frankfurt


• Teatro alla Scala, Milan (La Scala)


• Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Rome


• Sydney Opera House, (Opera Australia), Sydney


• Metropolitan Opera House (Metropolitan Opera), New York, New York
  


• Dorothy Chandler Pavilion (Los Angeles Opera), Los Angeles, California

It was perhaps, complete chance that the small theater was filled that evening. The splendid chit-chatting, gossiping and discussions filled the room almost in a symphonic rumble. Silly, pompous women dressed in overly "clothy" gowns and roccoco jewelry whispered to eachother in the upper boxes. They seemed to cling to the late Baroque style in their prided attitudes and overemphasized fashion. A night at the theater meant a night of sociality, where one could interact with the elegant and highly cultured class of Vienna. It also meant a night of social competition.

The scarlet carpet seemed to wave in the candlelight that evening. Wax candles flooded the simple chandelier hanging over the center chairs. The air above bended and skewed as the heat rose and cast its waxy paste on the ceiling. The room was pleasant, although a little warm. Late September wasn't usually so hot and stuffy as it was today.

Freihaustheater auf der Wieden was situated a little out of town in the suburb of Vienna. It happened to be south of Karlskirche in a lovely neighborhood. (Read the rest at my blog: Zauberflote Premiere)