Ticket to the Opera: Discovering and Exploring 100 Famous Works, History, Lore, and Singers, with Recommended Recordings

Phil Goulding has written a marvelous book. This monumental source of information features everything you can learn about opera- its history, the plots to the operas, famous singers, famous recordings, composers, lore, facts and comments from opera stars themselves. Like one reviewer said, it's the Opera Bible, although I prefer to label it an "Opera Encyclopedia". It serves more as an encyclopedia than it does a spiritually enlightening Bible. Phil Goulding is down-to-earth, witty and genuinely funny as he takes us on an exploration of discovery. If you are a novice or a lay person and want to get into opera and become more understanding of it's purpose and power, then this is the book for you. For experts, it's still a great book to refer to and to look up information about opera you may have missed or forgotten about.Phil Goulding starts appropriately with the history of opera. It began as the last creation of the Renaissance. In the late 1500's, a group of aristocratic theatre and music lovers from Florence, Italy, collectively known as the Camerata, came up with a new medium of theatre - the opera. It was drama to be sung by its actors and to be played against music. The Baroque Era (1600-1750) witnessed the glory of the Baroque Opera. With music that was conventional for the new Baroque style which now featured instrumental orchestra (the music of Bach, Handel and Vivaldi)performers on stage sang to an elite royal audience. The operas of this time re-told legends and myths of ancient Greece and Rome (such as Daphne And Cloe or Orpheus and Eurydice) and the characters were gods, goddesses, kings and queens. The opera composers kept the characters and stories elevated so as to reflect the high status of the kings and queens who sponsored the operas. George Frederick Handels' Julius Caesar is regarded as the best of this type of opera. The rest of the history follows the careers of the 18th and 19th century composers and their operas. In the 1ate 18th was Mozart (Le Nozze Di Figaro, Don Giovanni and Magic Flute) and in the 19th century comes a big list- Rossini comedies (Barber Of Seville) Bellini (Norma)and Donizetti (Lucia Di Lammermoor, La Fille Du Regiment, Anna Bolena, Roberto Devereux, Lucrezia Borgia). This period is known as the Bel Canto Era. After that came Verdi, who dominated the opera scene in the mid-19th century (Trovatore, Rigoletto, La Traviata, Aida, Othello) which was followed by Puccini (La Boheme, Madam Butterfly, Tosca). Let's not forget the Germans- Wagner (Ring Of The Nibelung, Tristan And Isolde) and Richard Strauss (Salome, Elektra, Der Rosenkavalier).The book lists the different types of singers- tenor, baritone, bass for men and soprano, mezzo soprano and contralto for women. A variety of singers past and present are credited. The different arias suited for these voices and opera roles are also mentioned and recordings by these famous artists- Tenors John Vickers, Franco Corelli, Carlo Bergonzi, Placido Domingo, Lu

This book most profoundly influenced my knowledge of opera and its unique style. I do not exaggerate when I call it the Opera Bible. It is not only a formal introduction to the magic sound world of opera, but a terrific source of the mechanics of the living art of acting and singing. As a music teacher and vocal coach, this book has become quite handy. Author Phil G. Goulding himself has no affiliation with the opera, he is not a vocal coach, he is not a professional opera singer, but has keenly observed the art and has acquired knowledge and variety of tastes. Goulding calls the newcomer and novice who wishes to get acquianted with opera as "unwashed". The opera buff, connoisseur and opera tyrant is called "washed". Thankfully, there is no decline in the world of opera. There have been many people who serve as spokespeople for the cause of opera and have managed to draw crowds of young audiences away from rock and contemporary pop for a while so that they can hear the sublime sounds of tenors and sopranos.This book has it all. It offers a history of opera, a list of composers and their operas, the categories the operas themselves fall under, for example, individual repertoire- French lyric opera, Italian bel canto opera, Italian verisimo, German Singspiel, opera-comique, Russian opera, grand opera, etc. It provides profiles and biographies on famous singers past and present. He does'nt seem to miss a single one- tenors Enrico Caruso, Placido Domingo, Luciano Pavoratti, baritone Ezio Pinza, Samuel Ramey, dramatic sopranos Maria Callas, Shirley Verret, Montserrat Caballet, Birgit Nilsson, Kirsten Flagstad, Beverly Sills, Joan Sutherland, and so forth. He is detailed on the diverse vocal ranges for men and women. Gould draws the reader with commentary on key moments of operas, providing us with their plot and the structure of the arias and ensembles. All the great names, which he calles warhorses, are here: Wagner's Ring of the Nibelung, Bizet's Carmen, Verdi's Aida, Puccini's La Boheme, I Pagliacci and Cavalleria Rusticana, and the lesser known operas, operettas by Offenbach and Suppe, and the Russian operas, such as Dvorak's Rusalka, magic operas by Rimsky-Korsakov. Along the way, he writes what famous tenors and sopranos have said about their experiences in the opera, among them comments by Placido Domingo, who cried during a performance in his hometown in Spain where he started obscurely as a Zarzuela singer, and Beverly Sills whose advise for the brave soprano taking on the role of Bellini's Norma is "wear comfortable shoes." The wit and humor Goulding mixes with effective criticism is very enjoyable. Ticket to the Opera is your ticket to a great new world, full of orchestra and voices, drama, passion, tragedy, comedy, laughter, sorrow, romance- everything that is human. I regard opera as the most human art form. For those who turn away from opera out of ignorance and fear, I strongly urge you to think twice. Opera is not just for the social

This book is a great introduction to the world of opera. The author is informative and never condescending. He is an excellent writer, interjecting just the right amount of humor and anecdote to keep the reading interesting. Because he isn't an self-appointed expert and isn't an opera "snob", his approach is not intimidating to people new to the form. I greatly appreciated his warm, open-armed welcome to the world of opera which made me feel comfortable rather than uneducated. He gives a brief history of opera which is interesting and not too detailed. You will learn in a very short time what many of the confusing terms in opera really mean--for example, coloratura, soufrette, bel canto. You will also learn what the different singing voices are and he gives a list of particular arias to listen to to get the feel for each type. I found that very helpful, since people who are more experienced with opera than I seem to have no difficulty telling one type from another. I wondered if there was something wrong with me-? No--I just needed a gentle teacher to educate me. Goulding was it.The author has chosen what he calls the Top 100+ by selecting the operas that have had the most performances at the MET. I like this method, because it wasn't based on his own personal bias, but on records kept at the opera house. 85 operas make up what he calls The Collection. He also has sections on 20th Century Eurpoean and American operas, bringing the total to 140 which is enough to keep anyone busy for a long time. For each opera, he includes interesting commentary, a synopsis, and a list of recommended recordings.If you're new to opera, you can't go wrong with this book. Another great one is "Opera 101" by Plotkin.

This book is a fabulous introduction to opera, and I'd be willing to bet that even those very knowledgeable about opera could learn something new. Goulding gives the reader a succinct history of the opera and the different styles of opera, he provides history, plot, and anecdotes about each of the top 85 operas and their composers, and explains the different types of opera voices and the roles to which they are suited. If that's not enough information for you, he lists the most famous opera singers of the 20th century, including a fair evaluation of the best of the best. He makes recommendations for recordings of each opera, though I find "The Rough Guide" to be more complete in this area.What's really great about this book is that Goulding is not a professional musician, so the book is written from a layman's (or "unwashed") point of view -- easy to understand -- but with comprehensive research that gives weight to his opinions. His writing style is excellent, and he injects good-natured humor with a skill that lesser writers of similar books can only dream of achieving.The book is well-organized and very readable -- a must have for anyone wanting to learn and appreciate this ultimate art form.

I bought this book a few years ago when I decided to learn more about operas and have been using it since. It is very user-friendly, funny and informative. Yes, it may not have the detailed discussion about the music or idea behind each opera. But as a beginner, this is the kind of book that you will not feel intimidated by. The author also gives us the fairly unbiased opinions towards composers and singers. His recommendation on recordings and videos is also very reliable. The only thing missing here is the discussion about conductors. I will recommend this book to every neophyte who knows nothing about operas but wants to explore this supreme form of arts. For more discussion about particular operas, you may also need to consult "Opera 101" by Fred Plotkin, another good book for the beginner.