Michael Tanner - eminently sane on Wagner

In the light of a recent visit to Tannhäuser at the Royal Opera, alas in the laughably awful current production by Tim Albery, I was prompted to re-read the relevant chapter in Michael Tanner's Wagner [London: Harper Collins, 1996].

And was reminded what an eminently readable guide he is to the psychological and philosophical undercurrents in the operas. A straightforward chronological account it may be, but it is much more than that - Tanner is not afraid to be critical, if he deems it necessary; and he writes beautifully, too.

But maybe all this was only to be expected. After all, he used to teach philosophy at Cambridge. And has written extensively on Nietzsche amongst others.

http://www.harpercollins.co.uk/Authors/5629/michael-tanner

Herbert Lindenberger Strikes Gold (Again!)

Best Opera Book of the Year (so far) has to be the latest from the author of that fine introduction, 'Opera - The Extravagant Art.'

The Stanford-based Prof. of Literature, whose fifth (!) book on opera this is must now be in his 80s  - but remains as stimulating a commentator as ever. His style is informal rather than dourly theoretical and there are plenty of juicy references to actual operas including performances. Try the A - Z of Il Trovatore, the opening Essay! It is bound to make you smile - and want to revisit Verdi's warhorse, too.

Take a look too at his home page http://www.stanford.edu/~hslinden/ which among other things includes a play about an ageing diva, Miss Cramm!

His new book is called Situating Opera - quite a trendy title that, 'situating' ideas is all the rage at the moment - and contains a wealth of ideas in eight separate Essays that Lindenberger somehow manages to tie together under the situationist umbrella.

Read all about it at the publisher's web page: http://qurl.com/jchgl

The only downside of this very enjoyable [and beautifully produced] book is its whopping great price. £55!

That might make you think it is aimed at an exclusively academic audience. It isn't. Lindenberger's book can be enjoyed  - and deserves to be enjoyed - by anyone at all interested in The Extravagant Art.

Books on Opera - A Reader's Guide

Welcome to this new blog, written by a diehard opera enthusiast. My name - Omnivore - tells you a little about my tastes.

The world is not short of operatic DVD and CD reviews.

Comment about the vast literature on opera is harder to find.

So here goes with an occasional attempt to find a way through the maze. First post coming soon.

Stay with me as the operatic days and months go by!