Opera (magazine)

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Opera

description Trade journal for musical theater
language English
First edition 1950
Frequency of publication per month
editor John Allison (since 2000)
Web link opera.co.uk
ISSN (print) 0030-3526

Opera is a British trade magazine devoted exclusively to the art form opera . It was founded in 1950 by George Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harewood and has presented the International Opera Awards since 2013 . The magazine is subtitled The world's leading opera magazine .

history

George Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harwood (1923–2011) had two great passions: football and opera . He got top positions in both areas. He was president of Leeds United Football Club for the last fifty years of his life , was artistic director of the Royal Opera House Covent Garden (ROH) in London twice , of the Edinburgh International Festival for five years and of the English National Opera for more than ten years . Lascelles held an elegant party at his friend Richard Buckle's house in February 1950 to introduce his new magazine to the music lovers present. Buckle, a ballet lover who had already published a ballet magazine since 1939, made his publishing house available for the new opera magazine. However, since the Earl of Harwood took on management responsibility in the ROH as early as 1951 and his interests shifted from reporting and commenting to organizing and hosting, he handed over the editing role to the music critic and opera lover Harold Rosenthal in 1953 , who had been the correspondent of the American trade magazine Opera News acted and who had already supported the Earl of Harewood in the founding phase of his magazine as assistant editor .

The Rosenthal era lasted until 1986 and the publisher proved to be a reliable and continuous worker in the service of the opera, who vehemently opposed the elitist character of the art form and excessive admission prices. From 1950 to 1956, Rosenthal also acted as archivist for the London Royal Opera House - parallel to his journalistic activities - and thus gained a deep insight into the history of the traditional house. In 1958, based on his archival work, he published the book Two Centuries of Opera at Covent Garden . The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians writes of Rosenthal that under his direction Opera magazine "was able to provide extensive coverage of opera performances around the world and had a significant impact on opera life in Britain". His work was particularly praised for his caution, based on a high knowledge of the human voice and the operatic repertoire. Posthumous praise was also given to his commitment to affordable admission tickets, including by the average citizen, and to his efforts to increase understanding of the art form of opera. As a critic, he was known for his generosity, especially with younger singers.

Rosenthal's successor, Rodney Milnes , was known as a pointed and entertaining writer, with a high knowledge of literature and music, and a broad spectrum of musical sympathies. In his youth he played the piano and sang, later he translated a number of Czech and Italian operas into English, including Wagner's Tannhauser . He was Associate Editor of the magazine from 1976 , but also wrote opera reviews in other media - in Harpers and Queen (1970–90), in The Spectator (1988–90) and in the Evening Standard (1990–92). In 1992 he was named Chief Opera Critic of The Times and remained there until 2002.

The current editor, John Allison, was appointed in 2000 and made a name for himself in the early years of his editing with a number of popular supplements - for example, Great singers in great roles , Part 1 in August 2004, Part 2 in September 2006 ) or Opera stage on screen (opera on the screen, September 2007). Until 2012, a special festival edition was published every year , but it turned out that the Internet databases could report faster and more comprehensively. Since then, the April issue of the magazine has focused on the upcoming festivals around the world. In 2013 the editor institutionalized the International Opera Awards together with a London businessman .

Content orientation, rank

Readers of the magazine are interested in and active in the opera sector. The magazine contains reports on current new productions, portraits of singers, conductors, directors and composers, reports on opera venues, obituaries for the deceased and other topics from the present and history of the opera. The service section of the magazine includes CD, DVD and book reviews and a monthly calendar with the schedules of British and international opera houses. Renowned music journalists and scholars, including William Ashbrook, Martin Bernheimer, Alan Blythe, Julian Budden, Rodolfo Celletti, Elizabeth Forbes, Gerhard Persché, Leo Riemens , JB Steane and James Helme Sutcliffe, wrote and write for the magazine . The magazine has an international network of correspondents and reports on opera performances worldwide. In the We hear that section , news about engagements and upcoming recordings are announced. The last page is mostly humorous, for example the soprano Barbara Bonney revealed in August 1999 : "I can't live without… golf."

The magazine appears in DIN A5 format , contains numerous color photographs and has around 130 pages. The pages are paginated continuously throughout the year (for example, the September 2009 issue consists of pp. 1.033 to 1.168). The web presence of Opera - managed by Exact Editions - includes selected articles from previous editions and a preview of the upcoming edition. Subscribers to the magazine have access to the digital archive, which for a long time kept all issues from August 2006 available. On July 12, 2016, the publisher and web company announced that all issues of the magazine since its inception in the year are now available online. The digital version is web-optimized and can be accessed on iPads, iPhones and all Android devices.

Alongside the American Opera News (founded in 1936), the German-language opernwelt (1960) and the French Opéra Magazine (2005), the magazine is one of the most influential publications in this category. Laura Clout described the magazine in 2008 in the Daily Telegraph as "the industry bible", the bible of the section .

International Opera Awards

These awards, founded in 2013 in collaboration with Harry Hyman, a British businessman and philanthropist, are presented in 21 categories. They honor the performers, institutions, new productions, world premieres and rediscoveries as well as DVD and CD recordings. In addition, there is a special price for lifetime achievement. The magazine 's critics and correspondents decide in twenty categories, the Reader's Award is determined by the magazine's readers through a vote. The structure of the award ceremony is based on the tradition of the Academy Awards , with four to eight nominations per category and one winner who is not announced until the ceremony. The presentation of the International Opera Awards has always taken place in a festive setting in a London hotel. The winners of the Reader's Awards so far have been:

Lists of all nominees and award winners can be found in the following articles:

Work is underway to finalize the lists for the following years.

editor

Book publication

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer , February 10, 1950, which reads: "Our London Correspondent - The Earl of Harewood entertained last night a large party of music-loving guests to celebrate the publication of (his magazine, 'Opera' ...) “, Quoted here. according to the English Wikipedia, keyword George Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harewood , accessed on July 31, 2016.
  2. ↑ Stanley Sadie: Rosenthal, Harold D (avid) " . Oxford Music Online (requires subscription), accessed December 27, 2009, here quoted from the English Wikipedia, keyword Harold Rosenthal , accessed on July 31, 2016.
  3. ↑ Harold (David) Rosenthal . Contemporary Authors Online, Gale, accessed December 28, 2009, also quoted. according to the English Wikipedia.
  4. ^ The Times (London), obituary, March 21, 1987
  5. ↑ Nicky Adam (Ed.): Milnes, Rodney . In: Who's Who in British Opera . Scolar Press, Aldershot, 1993.
  6. ^ Opera magazine launches complete digital archive . Talking New Media, July 12, 2016, accessed July 31, 2016.
  7. ↑ Laura Clout: Anna Nicole Smith: The Opera at the ROH . The Telegraph (London), April 4, 2008, accessed August 8, 2016.
  8. ↑ Our music is for everyone, say stars at new International Opera Awards ceremony . Evening Standard (London) April 23, 2013; accessed on July 23, 2016.
  9. ↑ George Loomis: Opera Aims for an Oscar Night of Its Own . New York Times , March 27, 2013, accessed July 31, 2016.