Ludwig van Beethoven Fidelio [Paperback]

This book explores the fascinating musical and dramatic elements within Fidelio, Beethoven's only complete opera.Beethoven's only complete opera is one of the most admired and problematic. These essays explore the fascinating musical and dramatic elements within the work as well as its debt to the traditions of French opera in the late eighteenth century and the French Revolution.Beethoven's only complete opera is one of the most admired and problematic. These essays explore the fascinating musical and dramatic elements within the work as well as its debt to the traditions of French opera in the late eighteenth century and the French Revolution.Fidelio is Beethoven's only complete opera and one of the most admired, and problematic, in the repertoire. This Opera Handbook explores the fascinating musical and dramatic elements within the work as well as the debt to the traditions of French opera in the late eighteenth century and the French Revolution. Winton Dean offers a comparison of the opera's first (1805) and final (1814) versions. Essays by Michael Tusa and Joseph Kerman consider its musical idiom and the challenges Beethoven faced as an instrumental composer trying his hand at opera. A final chapter examines the opera's performance history, and the volume also includes a synopsis, bibliography, and informative illustrations.List of illustrations; General preface; 1. Introduction; 2. Synopsis; 3. Beethoven and opera Winton Dean; 4. The French theatrical origins of Fidelio David Charlton; 5. Fidelio and the French Revolution; 6. Music as drama: structure, style and process in Fidelio Michael C. Tusa; 7. Augenblicke in Fidelio Joseph Kerman; 8. An interpretive history; Notes; Select bibliography; Index. This is a well-rounded and provocative collection of essays. Choice