Passion for Opera - Learning to Love it: The Greatest Masters, Their Greatest Music (Paperback)

From the beginnings of opera in Italy over 400 years ago to the present day, the historical and artistic context of the most dramatic of all arts is elucidated in pleasurable, non-technical prose. Mozart, Verdi, Wagner, and Puccini are featured, but not to the exclusion of a thorough consideration of French and Russian master-works, as well as operetta, Richard Strauss, and a comprehensive introduction to modern operatic music. Stories of great singers, past and present, and the author's friendly association with some of them, enrich this engaging personal account. Peter Fox Smith, raised in an operatic family, has brought his passion for opera into the lives of thousands through his music tours, college teaching, lectures here and abroad, and for twenty-seven years as the writer, producer, and voice of fifteen hundred "Saturday Afternoon at the Opera" broadcasts on Vermont Public Radio. He lives in North Pomfret, Vermont.