Opera For Everyone

Richard Wagner refused to call Parsifal an opera, but instead considered it a rite of “consecration.” For many years, its performance was restricted to the small German town of Bayreuth: the destination of a new kind of artistic/religious pilgrimage.  

The story itself is somewhat perplexing; both mythic and strangely fragmentary.  It is a tale of knights, witches, sorcerers, and one pure innocent fool… all of them engaged in a mystical struggle between good and evil.

It is this cosmic aspiration that has made Wagner’s final operatic composition an enduringly controversial work of art.  People adore Parsifal, revile it, groan at the thought of its great length, and celebrate its beauty and power… and often, do so all at once.

Join Pat & Grant & Kathleen for an exploration of the most operatic not-opera ever written.

For more cultural and arts commentary by Kathleen Van De Wille, visit Constructive Criticism on Substack.

Lohengrin is THE quintessential “knight in shining armor” coming to the rescue of a damsel in distress.  Swanning in on his mysterious boat, he is a literal answer to her prayers.  But though he may be a gift from God, terms and conditions very much apply.  Opposing this knight and damsel are an evil sorceress and her hapless husband.  Good triumphs over evil in the end, though, as you might have guessed if you’ve ever experienced another Wagner opera, the ending isn’t quite a happy one for the virtuous maiden.

Join Pat & Grant & Kathleen for an exploration of the utterly Romantic, and thoroughly Wagnerian opera.

For more cultural and arts commentary by Kathleen Van De Wille, visit Constructive Criticism on Substack.

Cornwall in the mid-eighteenth century was a remote and isolated region along the southwest coast of Britain, one where a ship and its crew might easily be dashed on the jagged rocks. And sometimes, that catastrophe might be nudged along by missing or misplaced warning lights. The inhabitants who practiced this deception often justified their actions, claiming to be favored by God. Stories of these “wreckers” of ships and a visit to the desolate region fired the imagination of composer Ethel Smyth, leading to the creation of The Wreckers, or Les Naufrageurs, as it was called in its original French.

For over one hundred years Ethel Smyth held the distinction of being the only female composer to have a work (Der Wald) performed at New York’s Metropolitan Opera in 1903.  She is not as well-known today as many of her male contemporaries, though she was exceptionally well-regarded in her day.  Join Pat and guest co-host Gerald Malone in getting to know this fascinating and talented woman and one of her masterpieces.

Gerald Malone’s website, TheRestIsOpera.com is brimming with commentary on opera productions that he has seen around the world, as well as “scuttlebutt” about opera from a surprisingly well-informed little dog.

A seemingly all-powerful sorceress rules over her own island domain.  She enchants not only nature, but also men, who are helpless to resist her charms.  And when she does tire of those besotted men, it’s nothing that a transfiguration from man to animal cannot solve.  However, downfall is imminent when she truly falls in love with one of the ensnared men.  It turns out that this man’s true love is a fearsome warrior woman, whose skills rival those of Charlemagne’s famed paladins.  (Big trouble for Alcina!)

This story, like Vivaldi’s Orlando Furioso (Ep. 130), is based on a 16th century epic that is so rich in dramatic detail and power that it has inspired countless works of art in myriad mediums.  Alcina is one of the three (!) operas by Handel based on this source material.  Join Pat and guest co-host Jeff Counts as we meet this enchanting woman and the characters who surround her.

Jeff Counts is the general manager of the Grand Teton Music Festival and KHOL’s film critic.

Known to history as “The Scourge of God,” Attila was a rampaging conqueror who famously turned aside from the city of Rome after a meeting with the Pope.  In this version, Attila is also opposed by a vengeful slave, a morally flexible Roman general, and a wily and determined warrior woman.  Historical? Not so much.  But this stunning opera from early-career Verdi, Attila is a work that deserves to be heard and enjoyed, full of exquisite arias, duets, ensembles, choral numbers, and what may be opera’s most expeditious on-stage lead character death.

Hosted by Pat with co-host Grant