MUS 266
Verdi and Wagner
Last Offered Spring 2014
Division I Writing Skills
This course is not offered in the current catalog

Class Details

Born in the same year (1813), Giuseppe Verdi and Richard Wagner stand as the two central figures of nineteenth-century European opera. Their divergent approaches to the genre provoked heated debate that continues today. Both composers not only transformed the operatic forms they inherited, but they also had a significant impact on the cultural and political histories of their emerging nations. Throughout the semester we will juxtapose major works by these composers in order to investigate such topics as opera’s relationship to its literary sources; the staging of opera; intersections between opera and film; connections between opera and political context; and biographical influences on the creation of opera. Our final meeting will be devoted to the broader operatic and cultural legacies of these two composers. Focusing on one opera per week, we will study Verdi’s Nabucco, Il trovatore, La traviata, Aida, Otello, and Falstaff, and on Wagner’s Tannhaüser, Lohengrin, Die Walküre, Tristan und Isolde, Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, and Parsifal. When possible, this tutorial will include field trips to live performances and/or live HD broadcasts of these operas.
The Class: Format: tutorial
Limit: 10
Expected: 10
Class#: 3508
Grading: no pass/fail option, no fifth course option
Requirements/Evaluation: evaluation will be based on five 5- to 6-page essays and on the quality of the student's critical engagement with the work of his/her tutorial partner
Extra Info: may not be taken on a pass/fail basis
Prerequisites: previous related course work and/or musical experience is desirable, but is not required; open to all students
Enrollment Preferences: sophomores, juniors, and seniors
Unit Notes: MUS Group A Electives--class of 2016
Distributions: Division I Writing Skills
Attributes: MUS Group A Electives

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