
Puccini's Turandot: The End of the Great Tradition
By William AshbrookUnfinished at Puccini's death in 1924, Turandot was not only his most ambitious work, but it became the last Italian opera to enter the international repertory. In this colorful study two renowned music scholars demonstrate that this work, despite the modern climate in which it was written, was a fitting finale for the centuries-old Great Tradition of Italian opera. Here they provide concrete instances of how a listener might encounter the dramatic and musical structures of Turandot in light of the Italian melodramma, and firmly establish Puccini's last work within the tradition of Rossini, Bellini, Donizetti, and Verdi. In a summary of the sounds, sights, and symbolism of Turandot, the authors touch on earlier treatments of the subject, outline the conception, birth, and reception of the work, and analyze its coordinated dramatic and musical design. Showing how the evolution of the libretto documents Puccini's reversion to large musical forms typical of the Great Tradition in the late nineteenth century, they give particular attention to his use of contrasting Romantic, modernist, and two kinds of orientalist coloration in the general musical structure. They suggest that Puccini's inability to complete the opera resulted mainly from inadequate dramatic buildup for Turandot's last-minute change of heart combined with an overly successful treatment of the secondary character.
Book details
- Paperback
- 208 pages
- English
- 0691027129
- 9780691027128
About William Ashbrook
william ashbrook was Read More about William Ashbrook
More Books By William Ashbrook
People who bought this also bought
Better Homes and Gardens Pressure Cooker Cookbook
Used Book
$100M Leads: How to Get Strangers To Want To Buy Your Stuff book by Alex Hormozi
New Book
8 Minutes in the Morning: A Simple Way to Shed Up to 2 Pounds a Week Guaranteed
Used Book
Relationship Goals : How to Win at Dating, Marriage, and Sex by Michael Todd
New Book
Total Control Financial Guide to the Qrp : How to Get Checkbook Control of Your 401k Rollover Money Now!
Used Book
Mr. Jones, Meet the Master: Sermons and Prayers of Peter Marshall
Used Book
How China Escaped Shock Therapy (Routledge Studies on the Chinese Economy) book by Isabella M. Weber
New Book
Unlimited Power : The New Science Of Personal Achievement book by Anthony Robbins
New Book
The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000 book by Paul Kennedy
New Book
Warren Buffett and the Interpretation of Financial Statements: The Search for the Company with a Durable Competitive Advantage
New Book
A Photographic Guide to Snakes and Other Reptiles of Southern Africa book by Bill Branch
New Book
For Better and for Worse: The Best Quotes About Marriage
Used Book
Sex at Dawn: How We Mate, Why We Stray and What It Means for Modern Relationships book by Christopher Ryan
New Book
Dialogue and Literature: Apostrophe, Auditors, and the Collapse of Romantic Discourse
Used Book
The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided by Politics and Religion book by Jonathan Haidt
New Book
In the Closet of the Vatican: Power, Homosexuality, Hypocrisy book by Frederic Martel
New Book
That's Bold of You: How To Thrive as Your Most Vibrant, Weird, and Real Self book by Case Kenny
New Book
Evolve Your Brain: The Science of Changing Your Mind book by Joe Dispenza
New Book
A Second Chicken Soup For The Woman's Soul: Stories to open the heart and rekindle the spirits of women book by Jack Canfield
Used Book
Under Pressure: Confronting the Epidemic of Stress and Anxiety in Girls book by Lisa Damour
New Book