Opera Explained - Monteverdi: Orfeo - Thomson Smillie torrent

Category: Art, History
Language: English
Keywords: Art Culture History Music

Written by Thomson Smillie
Read by David Timson
Format: MP3
Bitrate: 64 Kbps
Unabridged

Length: 1 hr and 17 mins
Release date: 10-26-12

Publisher’s Summary

Monteverdi’s Orfeo, first performed in 1607, generates a special excitement because it is the first unquestioned masterpiece of opera. Notable for its precise orchestration and powerful drama it was a groundbreaking work. It concerns the legend of Orpheus, the demigod whose music had the power to conquer the forces of Hell and to bring his wife back, briefly, to life. The extracts used in this introduction are from Naxos’ full recording; it uses authentic period instruments, which serve to evoke the early Baroque period of the opera’s composition.