Sunday, February 18, 2018

Modern Operas, a list

This is my list of operas since 1976. I have seen the ones in bold.  Updated January 2019.

The Martyrdom of saint Magnus 1976 Davies
Einstein on the Beach 1976 Glass
We Come to the River 1976 Henze
The Voyage of Edgar Allen Poe 1976 Argento
The Women in the Garden 1977 Fine*
Le Grand Macabre 1977 Ligeti
Lear 1978 Reimann
The Red Line 1978 Sallinen
The Lighthouse 1979 Davies
King Harald's Saga 1979 Weir
The Village Singer 1979 Paulus
Sweeney Todd 1979 Sondheim
Donnerstag aus Licht 1980 Stockhausen
Satyagraha 1981 Glass
The Postman Always Rings Twice 1982 Paulus
The English Cat 1983 Henze
The Juniper Tree 1985 Glass and Moran
Thomas 1985 Rautavaara
Akhnaten 1983 Glass
Saint Francois d'Assise 1983 Messiaen
Un re in ascolto 1984 Berio
The Mask Of Orpheus 1984 Birtwhistle
Samstag aus Licht 1984 Stockhausen
The man who mistook his wife for a hat 1986 Nyman
Nixon in China 1987 Adams
Europeras 1 & 2 1987 John Cage
A Night at the Chinese opera 1987 Weir
The Aspern Papers 1987  Argento
Into the Woods 1987 Sondheim
Montag aus Licht 1988 Stockhausen
Greek 1988 Turnage
Hydrogen Jukebox 1990 Glass
The death of Klinghoffer 1991 Adams
Gawain 1991 Birtwhistle
The ghosts of Versailles 1991 Corigliano
Dienstag aus Licht 1991 Stockhausen
Mary of Egypt 1991 Taverner
Life with an idiot 1992 Schnittke
McTeague 1992 Bolcom
Orphée 1993 Glass
Blond Eckbert 1994 Weir
La Belle et la Bête 1994 Glass
The Dangerous Liaisons 1994 Susa
Harvey Milk 1995 Wallace
Powder Her Face 1995 Ades
Florencia en el Amazonas 1996 Catán
Der Koenig Kandaules 1996 Zemlinski
Rent 1996 Larson
Regina 1997 Blitzstein
Venus and Adonis 1997 Henze
A Streetcar Named Desire 1998 Previn
Little Women 1998 Adamo
A View from the Bridge 1999 Bolcom
Flight 1999 Dove
The Great gatsby 1999 Harbison
L'Amour de Loin 2000 Saariaho
Dead Man Walking 2000 Heggie
El Niño 2000 Adams
Princess Magogo kaDinuzulu 2002 Mzilikazi Khumalo
Sophie's Choice 2002 Maw
Tea, a Mirror of Soul 2002 Dun
Galileo Galilei 2002 Glass
A Christmas Carol 2003 Menken
The Little Prince 2003 Portman
L'Upupa Und Der Triumph Der Sohnesliebe 2003 Henze
Welfare: the opera 2004 Picket
Doctor Atomic 2005 Adams
The Tempest 2005 Ades
Margaret Garner 2005 Danielpour
Grendel 2005 Goldenthal
An America Tragedy 2005 Picker
Ainadamar 2005 Golijov
The Passenger  2006  Weinberg
The First Emperor 2006 Dun
Adriana Mater 2006 Saariaho
Appomattox 2007 Glass
Phaedra 2007 Henze
Glory Denied 2007 Cipullo
The End of the Affair 2007 Heggie
The Minotaur 2008 Birtwistle
The Bonesetter’s Daughter 2008 Wallace
The Letter 2009 Moravec
Il Postino 2010  Catán
Moby Dick 2010 Heggie
Heart of a Soldier 2011 Theofanidis
Anna Nicole 2011 Turnage
Kommilitonen 2011 Davies
Death and the Powers 2011 Machover
Silent Night 2011 Puts
Two Boys 2011 Muhly
The Gospel According to the Other Mary 2012 Adams
Written on Skin 2012 Benjamin
The Secret Garden 2013 Gasser
The Perfect American 2013 Glass
Spuren der Verirrten 2013 Glass
The Gospel of Mary Magdalene 2013 Adamo
Dolores Claiborne 2013 Picker
The Trial 2014 Glass
Bonjour, M. Gaugin 2013 Carlone
Brokeback Mountain 2014 Wuorinen
27  2014 Gordon
Anya17   2014 Gorb
As One 2014 Kaminsky
Paul's Case 2014 Spears
Usher House 2014 Getty
Great Scott 2014 Heggie
Cold Mountain 2015 Higdon
La Ciociara 2015 Tutino
Bel Canto 2015 Lopez
Charlie Parker's Yardbird 2015 Schnyder
Autumn Sonata 2016 Fagerlund
Breaking the Waves 2016 Mazzoli
Sister Carrie 2016 Aldridge
Dream of the Red Chamber 2016 Sheng
Cinderella 2016 Deutscher
The Exterminating Angel 2016 Adès
Girls of the Golden West 2017 Adams
Marnie 2017 Muhly
(R)Evolution of Steve Jobs 2017 Bates
Hamlet. 2017 Brett Dean
It’s A Wonderful Life 2017 Heggie
Hadrian 2018 Wainwright
The Skating Rink! 2018 Sawer
Harriet's Spirit 2018 Shelby
Lessons in Love and Violence  2018 Benjamin
Ice 2019 Kuusisto
If I were You 2019 Heggie
Bon Appetit 2019 Hoiby


I won't comment on the ones I haven't seen. Of the ones I have seen, I would put them into these categories:

Great works: Saint Francis, L'Amour, Moby Dick, Ainadamar

Excellent operas: Nixon, Le Grand Macabre, Satyagraha, Dead Man, Ghosts, Orphée, Florencia

Ok, I guess: Little Women, Lighthouse, Atomic, Liaisons

Boring: Streetcar, Lear, Klinghoffer

AAAAh!: Sweeney Todd

I have promoted Atomic to ok. After all, if you closed your eyes and imagined you were at the symphony, it was very nice. I should look into Schnittke and Stockhausen. Akhnaten actually sounds interesting. With a Glass opera it helps if you are on drugs. With Satyagraha you must view the opera in a meditative trance state. Don't fight it.

The Tempest has received very good reviews. This is a major area of interest for me. I am maintaining this list as I go along, adding any new operas.

4 comments:

Hugh said...

How about Bolcom's McTeague, The Voyage of Edgar Allen Poe, and A View from the Bridge?

Or, Sondheim's Sweeney Todd? [ducks and covers]

mamascarlatti said...

Please see Written on Skin.Amazing!

Dr.B said...

I see it's on medici.

Anonymous said...

Only one by Reimann?