13 Facts About Opera

Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers.

Opera is a key part of the Western classical music tradition.

Opera originated in Italy at the end of the 16th century especially from works by Claudio Monteverdi, notably L'Orfeo, and soon spread through the rest of Europe: Heinrich Schutz in Germany, Jean-Baptiste Lully in France, and Henry Purcell in England all helped to establish their national traditions in the 17th century.

Opera did not remain confined to court audiences for long.

Opera seria was elevated in tone and highly stylised in form, usually consisting of secco recitative interspersed with long da capo arias.

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Francesco Algarotti's Essay on the Opera proved to be an inspiration for Christoph Willibald Gluck's reforms.

Opera advocated that opera seria had to return to basics and that all the various elements—music, ballet, and staging—must be subservient to the overriding drama.

Opera first won fame with the scandalous Salome and the dark tragedy Elektra, in which tonality was pushed to the limits.

Efforts resulted in lowering the average age of the Met's audience to 58 in 2018, the average age at Berlin State Opera was reported as 54, and Paris Opera reported an average age of 48.

The Metropolitan Opera began a series of live high-definition video transmissions to cinemas around the world in 2006.

San Francisco Opera began prerecorded video transmissions in March 2008.

In 2009 the British Glyndebourne Festival Opera offered for the first time an online digital video download of its complete 2007 production of Tristan und Isolde.

Savonlinna Opera Festival provided professional soloists, an 80-member choir, a symphony orchestra, and the stage machinery.