Music 251 - History of Opera

This course offers an introduction to opera from the 16th to the 21st centuries, with an emphasis on gender performance, virtuosity, and the unique history of opera performance at Smith College. Earlier works include Monteverdi’s Orfeo, Handel’s Rodelinda, Mozart’s Marriage of Figaro, and Verdi’s Aida, while more modern and contemporary operas include Strauss’s Salome and Kaija Saariaho’s L’Amour du Loin.