ARTH 25 Lecture Notes - Lecture 8: Giacomo Durazzo, Art Of Europe, Ranieri De' Calzabigi
7 May 2020
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Document Summary
Gluck and the reform of the italian opera. By the 1760s, opera had become a very stereotypical art form w/ the number and types of arias rigidly codified. Since many of the italian libretti were so well known, people went to the opera not so much for the plots or even the music, but for the virtuoso coloratura singing of the great castrato singers. Abuses had crept into the traditions of opera seria and the time was right for changes to be introduced. These changes were to be both dramatic and musical, and were undertaken by three individuals all located in vienna: the author, raniero calzabigi, the director of theatres in vienna, count. Durazzo and the composer, christophh willibald ritter von gluck (1714-1787) All three had experienced french opera, w/ its emphasis upon drama, spectacle, and choral singing and dancing. They wanted to introduce french sensibilities into italian opera.
