This week is all about bel canto. While you will hear many interpretations of what bel canto is, there is no such thing as a bel canto opera. Bel canto is a style or way of singing in opera from the mid-18th to early 19th centuries, although it can be traced back to operas birth in the 15th century. During this period, composers made it clear that the singer was to take over in any way they pleased. It has been said that once a composer had written a score it was considered a skeleton and they expected the singer to fill it out. The composer would often make note of this preference in the score by using the phrase “col canto” which was instruction to the accompanist to follow the soloist’s tempo (time). The literal translation is “with the melody”.
The notion that early composers of this genre provided "the skeleton" for the music, and the singer was expected to festoon it with the voice, brought to mind improvisational jazz. I especially enjoyed the two videos of Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti and Marilyn Horne just hanging out and "talking shop" with the accompanist. Since I'm neither a musician nor a singer, they have given me some new opera vocabulary to think about: legato, trill, crescendo, register, mezzo di voce. They have also given me their irreverent characterizations of bel canto as a circus act and having lots of tricks. Athlete-artists! Everything today on bel canto was a sumptuous meal for listening and viewing. I am hooked!
Everything seemed to be in this piece, soft, lively, upbeat and drama all packed in 7 mins! Thank you.
The notion that early composers of this genre provided "the skeleton" for the music, and the singer was expected to festoon it with the voice, brought to mind improvisational jazz. I especially enjoyed the two videos of Joan Sutherland, Luciano Pavarotti and Marilyn Horne just hanging out and "talking shop" with the accompanist. Since I'm neither a musician nor a singer, they have given me some new opera vocabulary to think about: legato, trill, crescendo, register, mezzo di voce. They have also given me their irreverent characterizations of bel canto as a circus act and having lots of tricks. Athlete-artists! Everything today on bel canto was a sumptuous meal for listening and viewing. I am hooked!