Book contents
- Leonard Bernstein in Context
- Composers in Context
- Leonard Bernstein in Context
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Illustrations
- Musical Examples
- Contributors
- Preface
- Part I Bernstein’s World
- Part II Conducting
- Part III Composition, Creation, and Reception
- Chapter 11 The Crisis of Faith
- Chapter 12 Popular Music
- Chapter 13 American Sound
- Chapter 14 Exotic Evocations
- Chapter 15 Opera
- Chapter 16 Women, Gender, and Sexuality
- Chapter 17 Film
- Chapter 18 Early Shows
- Chapter 19 Late Shows
- Part IV Bernstein as Musical and Cultural Ambassador
- Part V Connections
- Part VI The Legacy
- Further Reading
- Index
Chapter 15 - Opera
from Part III - Composition, Creation, and Reception
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 06 April 2024
- Leonard Bernstein in Context
- Composers in Context
- Leonard Bernstein in Context
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Illustrations
- Musical Examples
- Contributors
- Preface
- Part I Bernstein’s World
- Part II Conducting
- Part III Composition, Creation, and Reception
- Chapter 11 The Crisis of Faith
- Chapter 12 Popular Music
- Chapter 13 American Sound
- Chapter 14 Exotic Evocations
- Chapter 15 Opera
- Chapter 16 Women, Gender, and Sexuality
- Chapter 17 Film
- Chapter 18 Early Shows
- Chapter 19 Late Shows
- Part IV Bernstein as Musical and Cultural Ambassador
- Part V Connections
- Part VI The Legacy
- Further Reading
- Index
Summary
Early on, Bernstein often conducted operas (Cherubini, Bellini) and other sung stage works (Blitzstein, Weill). He would later make renowned opera recordings in New York and Vienna. His greatest contributions to the genre are three quite varied compositions. The short, all-sung Trouble in Tahiti (1952) is bitingly satirical. Candide (1956) is an operetta, with plentiful spoken dialogue. The words were provided by a half-dozen collaborators, partly for later productions (each production included a somewhat different selection of musical numbers). The entirely serious A Quiet Place (1983−86) deals with family tensions and disappointments. Its style is highly eclectic, ranging from blues to twelve-tone. A Quiet Place has one official version (in which Trouble in Tahiti becomes two interludes in Act 2) and one in which the orchestration has been reduced by Garth Edwin Sunderland. The latter omits Tahiti but restores important passages that the official version omits.
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- Leonard Bernstein in Context , pp. 123 - 130Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2024