Novelty

Astute and lively Barry Singer has written a round-table piece for Opera News on what the editors have been unable to resist calling the “read-the-book-see-the-opera school of commissioning new work;” Sandy, Tobias, Ricky, Herschel Garfein and I toss in our doubloons.  Missing from the article is the observation that (not only American) composers have been turning to (not only American) novels for as long as there have been novelists: and some of the resulting operas (such as Manon, Carmen, La Bohême, La Traviata, and Madama Butterfly) get revived now and then, I understand. More here, but move fast: the magazine only welcomes non-subscribers to its current issue.