Opera and politics : from Monteverdi to Henze / John Bokina.

Author/creator Bokina, John
Format Book
Publication InfoNew Haven, CT : Yale University Press, ©1997.
Descriptionxiv, 240 pages ; 22 cm
Subjects
Opera--Political aspects.

Contents The prince as deity, beast, and tyrant: Monteverdi's Orfeo, Ulisse, and Poppea -- The dialectic of operatic civilization: Mozart's Don Giovanni -- Opera and revolutionary virtue: Beethoven's Fidelio -- The utopian vision of romantic anticapitalism: Wagner's Parsifal -- The politics of psychological interiorization: Strauss's Elektra and Schoenberg's Erwartung -- The aesthetic politics of the German artist-opera: Pfitzner's Palestrina, Hindemith's Mathis, and Schoenberg's Moses -- Eros and revolt: Henze's Bassarids.
Abstract To what extent do operas express the political and cultural ideas of their age? How do they reflect the composer's view of the changing relations among art, politics, and society? This book focuses on political aspects and meanings of operas from the baroque to postmodern period, showing the varied ways that operas become sensuous vehicles for the articulation of political ideas. Bokina begins with an analysis of Monteverdi's three extant operas, which address in an oblique way the political and ideological dualities of aristocratic rule in the seventeenth-century Italy. The author then moves to Mozart's "Don Giovanni", which he views as a celebration of the demise of a predatory aristocracy. He presents Beethoven's "Fidelio" as an example of the political spirit of a revolution based on republican virtue, and Wagner's "Parsifal" as a utopian music drama that projects romantic anticapitalist ideals onto an imagined past. He shows that Strauss's "Elektra" and Schoenberg's "Erwartung" transform the traditional operatic depiction of madness by reflecting the emerging Freudian psychoanalysis of that era. And he argues that operas by Pfitzner, Hindemith, and Schoenberg explore the political roles of art and the artists, each couching contemporary conditions in an allegory about the fate of art in a historical period of transition. Finally, the author offers a reappraisal of Henze's "The Bassarids" as a political opera that confronts the promise and limits of the sensual-sexual revolt of the twentieth-century.
Bibliography noteIncludes bibliographical references (pages 209-228) and index.
LCCN 96053455
ISBN0300069359 (cloth)

Availability

Library Location Call Number Status Item Actions
Music Music Stacks ML1700 .B74 1997 ✔ Available Place Hold