Manon : English National Opera Guide 25

by Unknown

• ISBN13: 9780714544267
• ISBN10: 0714544264
• Format: Trade Paper
• Copyright: 2011-02-01
• Publisher: Oneworld Classics

Summary

English National Opera Guides are ideal companions to the opera. They provide stimulating introductory articles together with the complete text of each opera in English and the original. The story of Manon Lescaut has become part of the European imagination: she is the funloving woman who is irresistible to men. Of Massenet's many operas, she inspired the most popular one, and this libretto shows his minute attention to detail in bringing the character and the period to life. This guide opens with a general survey of Massenet's career by the musicologist Gerard Conde, and includes two essays about this particular opera. Professor Hugh Macdonald explores the interplay of speech and song in Manon and Massenet's genius for comedy. Professor Vivienne Mylne traces the sources and context of Prevost's novel.

Author Biography

Nicholas John (Editor) : Jules Massenet (Author) : Ranked as one of the greatest melodists of his era, Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet (1842 - 1912) was a French composer whose operas fell out of fashion after his death. However since the mid-1970s interest has been rekindled.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	p. vi
Massenet Gérard Condé	p. 7
A Musical Synopsis	p. 17
Prévost and 'Manon Lescaut'	p. 29
Thematic Guide	p. 39
'Manon' Opera-Comique in Five Acts and Six Scenes	p. 43
English version
	p. 45
	p. 61
	p. 72
	p. 90
	p. 101
Discography	p. 111
Bibliography	p. 112
Contributors	p. 112
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