Module Details
| Module Code: |
MUSC8047 |
| Title: |
Opera Studies
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Long Title:
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Opera Studies
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| NFQ Level: |
Advanced |
| Valid From: |
Semester 1 - 2016/17 ( September 2016 ) |
| Field of Study: |
2121 - Music & Performing Arts
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| Module Description: |
This module explores opera in its socio-historical and cultural contexts from c. 1600 to the present day. The course considers opera as a vehicle for ideas and social change and examines issues relating to stage design, performance practice and gender on the operatic stage.
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| Learning Outcomes |
| On successful completion of this module the learner will be able to: |
| # |
Learning Outcome Description |
| LO1 |
Contextualise significant developments in opera from c. 1600 to the present day |
| LO2 |
Interpret key figures, operatic works and developments in opera of selected periods |
| LO3 |
Analyse interpretations of selected operatic works |
| LO4 |
Evaluate the significance of a selected opera composer, performer or development in opera |
| LO5 |
Research and present an approved specialised topic in opera |
| Dependencies |
Module Recommendations
This is prior learning (or a practical skill) that is strongly recommended before enrolment in this module. You may enrol in this module if you have not acquired the recommended learning but you will have considerable difficulty in passing (i.e. achieving the learning outcomes of) the module. While the prior learning is expressed as named MTU module(s) it also allows for learning (in another module or modules) which is equivalent to the learning specified in the named module(s).
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Incompatible Modules
These are modules which have learning outcomes that are too similar to the learning outcomes of this module. You may not earn additional credit for the same learning and therefore you may not enrol in this module if you have successfully completed any modules in the incompatible list.
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| No incompatible modules listed |
Co-requisite Modules
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| No Co-requisite modules listed |
Requirements
This is prior learning (or a practical skill) that is mandatory before enrolment in this module is allowed. You may not enrol on this module if you have not acquired the learning specified in this section.
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| No requirements listed |
| Indicative Content |
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Mozart and opera
Mozart's stylistic development in opera; choice of musical forms; treatment of the voice; focus on works complementary to those covered in other modules including Mozart and the Singspiel/opera seria
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French opera in the nineteenth century
The origins and development of grand opéra; scenic effects and stage design in French opera; Mayerbeer and Gounod; the influence of grand opéra on Wagner and Verdi
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Gender and opera
Gender representation on the operatic stage; the social and historical phenomenon of the castrato; depiction of women in nineteenth-century opera; opera and the embodied voice
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Opera and mythology
Early opera and mythology; the Orpheus myth through the centuries: from Monteverdi to Birtwistle; mythology in French opera: Rameau; Wagner and Strauss; mythology and contemporary opera
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Specialised topic
Medium length (4,500-5,000 word) essay OR lecture/recital with programme notes on an approved topic related to the course
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Module Content & Assessment
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| Assessment Breakdown | % |
|---|
| Coursework | 100.00% |
Assessments
| No End of Module Formal Examination |
| Reassessment Requirement |
Coursework Only
This module is reassessed solely on the basis of re-submitted coursework. There is no repeat written examination.
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The University reserves the right to alter the nature and timings of assessment
Module Workload
| Workload: Full Time |
| Workload Type |
Contact Type |
Workload Description |
Frequency |
Average Weekly Learner Workload |
Hours |
| Lecture |
Contact |
Opera history from 1600 to present |
Every Week |
2.00 |
2 |
| Tutorial |
Contact |
Engaging with opera |
Every Week |
1.00 |
1 |
| Independent & Directed Learning (Non-contact) |
Non Contact |
Reading, listening, research, study |
Every Week |
4.00 |
4 |
| Total Hours |
7.00 |
| Total Weekly Learner Workload |
7.00 |
| Total Weekly Contact Hours |
3.00 |
| This module has no Part Time workload. |
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Module Resources
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| Recommended Book Resources |
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Abbate, Carolyn & Parker, Roger. (2015), A History of Opera: The Last 400 Years, Norton, London, [ISBN: 978-039334895].
| | Supplementary Book Resources |
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Abbate, Carolyn. (2001), In Search of Opera, Princeton University Press, Princeton, [ISBN: 0691117314].
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Abbate, Carolyn and Roger Parker (eds.). (1989), Analyzing Opera: Verdi and Wagner, University of California Press, Berkeley, [ISBN: 0520061578].
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Charlton, David (ed.). (2003), The Cambridge Companion to Grand Opera, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, [ISBN: 978-052164683].
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Donnington, Robert. (1990), Opera and its Symbols: The Unity of Words, Music and Staging, Yale University Press, Yale, [ISBN: 0300056613].
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Everett, Yayoi Uno (ed.). (2015), Reconfiguring Myth and Narrative in Contemporary Opera, Indiana University Press, Indiana, [ISBN: 978-025301799].
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Henson, Karen. (2015), Opera Acts: Singers and Performance in the Late Nineteenth Century, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, [ISBN: 978-110700426].
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Grout, Donald and Hermine Weigel Williams. (2003), A Short History of Opera, 4th. Columbia University Press, New York, [ISBN: 0231119585].
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Kerman, Joseph. (2005), Opera as Drama, 3rd. University of California Press, Berkeley & Los Angeles, [ISBN: 0520246926].
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Lee, Hyunseon & Segal, Naomi (eds.). (2014), Opera, Exoticism and Visual Culture, Peter Lang AG, Bern, [ISBN: 978-303431782].
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Noske, Frits. (1977), The Signifier and the Signified: Studies in the Operas of Mozart and Verdi, Springer, The Hague, [ISBN: 902471995X].
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Parker, Roger and Arthur Groos (eds.). (1988), Reading Opera, Princeton University Press, Princeton, [ISBN: 0691027099].
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Robinson, Paul A.. (1986), Opera and Ideas: from Mozart to Strauss, Cornell University Press, New York, [ISBN: 0801494281].
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Till, Nicholas (ed.). (2012), The Cambridge Companion to Opera Studies, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, [ISBN: 9780521671699].
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Weiss, Piero (ed.). (2002), Opera: A history in documents, Oxford University Press, Oxford & New York, [ISBN: 0195116380].
| | This module does not have any article/paper resources |
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| This module does not have any other resources |
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