**This class is a Hybrid. This portion of the class will be taught In-Person. See the separate Zoom class listed below this one in the catalog**
**This class will not be meeting July 8th and will end on July 15th. A recording will be available.**
It’s been said that “If Mozart was possible, then the word ‘impossible’ should be eliminated from our vocabulary.’” San Francisco Opera’s Dramaturg (Scholar in Residence) Emeritus Kip Cranna will guide you through the full spectrum of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s operatic genius, with video and audio examples (with English subtitles). We’ll explore the literary and historical backgrounds of the operas, including early works by this famous child prodigy. We’ll examine his all-too-short career, and. delve into his most famous works, including The Marriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni, and The Magic Flute. No previous opera background required. Just watch, listen, and enjoy.
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Week by Week Outline (If course is accepted, this will be included in the course catalog.)
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Class I. Mozart and His Time: We’ll learn about the composers and styles that influenced the young Mozart and get a sampling of two of his very early child-prodigy works, the comic Bastien and Bastienne and the serious opera Lucio Silla, plus the comic romp La Finta Giardiniera (The Pretended Garden Maid).
Class II: Serious Mozart/ Mozart auf Deutsch: We’ll look at two masterworks of “opera seria,” Idomeneo and La Clemenza di Tito (The Clemency of Titus), plus his German-language comic gem The Abduction from the Seraglio, which the Austrian Emperor supposedly thought had “too many notes.”
Class III: The Italian Comedies, Part I: Mozart’s crowning glory, The Marriage of Figaro.
Class IV: The Italian Comedies, Part II: The famous “dramma giocoso” (jocular drama) Don Giovanni.
Class V: The Italian Comedies, Part III: the delightful Così fan tutte (All Women Are Like That), subtitled “The School for Lovers.”
Class VI: Mozart’s final masterwork, The Magic Flute.
