I remember watching this on PBS when I was about 10 years old, I reallllly like The Magic Flute, I hope I can actually go to see it in a theater one day!
I watched the stream of The Magic Flute in this version recently, and this was the sequence that I delighted in the most. Interesting that it was in English, and the puppetry was just incredible. The duet just keeps running through my head. Loved this!!
This language debate sounds like the one he had in the AMADEUS movie with the Emperor regarding whether the opera (Die Entführung aus dem Serail) should be in GERMAN or ITALIAN.. "it could be in TURKISH if you really want" he says..... hahaha...Nobody gets the genius here - just want to put their opinions on it
It was written in german instead of italian expressly so the audience would understand the libretto. So I don't ses the problem with translating it into the local language.
Where will one find a tone row in The Magic Flute? I have learned that there is one somewhere, it occurs at a point where some ascending and descending tones converge.
A fun production, with Nathan Gunn great as usual, but the Three Boys were a disgrace, squeaking away like Alvin and the chipmunks. Isn't there anyone in NY who can teach kids how to actually sing? Or are their parents big contributors?
Yeah, I agree, that was bad. But I think it's partially because it's in English with a fat American accent. This sound completely different in German, more angelic.
I love it because I speak English is that a simple enough answer for you? Like the kappelmeister said, in the movie Amadeus, German is too brute for singing
lol This English translation of the beautiful German Rococo lyrics is brute. It's really unrefined and one-dimensional compared to the original and the three little angels sounded ridiculous when they sound ethereal in German because the sound is completely different.
All these "Mozard didn't even write the libretto" comments are useless and add nothing to the discussion. If it was meant to be performed in English it would have been written that way. But let's sweep aside nearly 250 years history because the man himself didn't write it.
=== ‘나무에 나를 달아 장식하겠다,’는 파파게노의 노래는, 성탄 트리와 대조되며, 섬뜩한 인간 실존의 한계를 드러낸다. 사람이 이길 수 없는 게 있다면 그것은 기다림이다. 인내의 달인 욥마저 기다림에 지쳐 법정으로 하느님을 불러내지 않았던가. 그렇다, 우리는 살아있지만 죽음이 오는 걸 알기에 기다림에서 벗어나려 갈망한다. 절망의 레시피에서 벗어날 자 누구겠는가. 모짜르트 자신이 불과 2개월 후 그 절망 속에서 죽었다. 죽음의 증인이 되는 나무와 생명의 증인인 나무, 성 바오로는 ‘주님께서 나무에 달려 죽으셨다’라고 표현했다. 나를 참아내지 못해 자아를 살인하는 ‘나의’ 행위와, 나를 살리려 죽으시고 생명을 가져오신 ‘그의’ 행위, 사이에서 우리는 예전의 욕정을 잊지 못해 하나의 나무로 다가간다. 성질상 변하는 것과 변하지 않는 게 있다. 전자는 잊고 후자는 지킨다. 분간이 되지 않는다면 모든 걸 잊고 그리스도를 지켜라. .
Clare Gundersen well nothing, if it’s for a school or amateur production. But for a professional production it’s terrible. It should be performed in the language it’s written in. Most Mozart fans will know the story and will be able to follow it even if they don’t speak German.
Jack Duncan I’ve been going to operas for the past 28 years. This is perfectly fine, especially since the translation seems to catch the wordplay from the German original. What’s wrong with bringing new fans in? My first opera was a Mozart and I’ve loved all of them since!
Anthony Murphy same here, we did the magic flute in English at boarding school, it was abridged (no queen of the night, no one could sing that high) and it was called The Golden Flute. We also did Don Giovanni in English. I’ve loved Motzarts operas ever since. I’m fine with a school or college version being in English but a professional Motzart opera should be in German, just my humble opinion. You have shaken my opinion slightly because I probably wouldn’t be so fond of opera if I hadn’t had those first experiences studying one and performing it in English. Maybe you’re right.
@@Squelchmeky No. This guys voice is off, waay off. He enflects without modulation. It's dragging accross the floor. And has no tonal resonance and lacks any sense of warmth or musicality.... It's almost as if he's tone deaf!! You do not have to be a opera scholar to come to this conclusion... just awake. Listen to other performances for refrence. I recommend Huw Montague and Elisabeth Boudreault
Porqué cantan en inglés. Es un idioma horrible para la música. Si Mozart lo pensó para cantar en alemán, así debe ser cantado. En inglés parece “the sound of music”
OK. Answering your question. First, years ago, most operas were sung in the language of the country. German operas would be sung in French, Italian, English or Russian etc. In fact, in Germany, in many of the smaller houses, this is still the case. In Italy, too, many German operas in the smaller houses are sung in Italian (remember M'appari tutto amor). Verdi had to make Italian versions of his French language operas. Also, the English National Opera sings almost everything in English. In other countries, comedies, especially, are often translated - after all it's hard to laugh at a joke in a foreign language. Today this is always done with musicals. Would they perform the "Sound of Music" in a Spanish speaking country in the original English? So why not with opera, which is also theater with music? (Yes, I am aware that the original language has a particular flavor and "sounds best" to most people even if they don't understand it.) But bear in mind that Die Zauberflote was a popular piece in it's day, just like the Sound of Music today. As for English being bad for singing, does "The Sound of Music" really sound that bad to you in English? Also remember that German and English are related Anglo-Saxon languages so it is like hearing an Italian opera sung in Spanish (both Latin languages). Would that be so terrible? But at the Met operas are usually sung in the original language. (Although they did do "The Bartered Bride" in English.) One main reason that most opera companies perform in the original language is THE AIRPLANE which has made opera international. One cannot reasonably expect singers who might sing in 10 or more countries to learn their repertoire in all those different languages! BUT This particular production of Die Zauberflöte was created by the great Julie Taymor, who also created the Lion King on Broadway. It was, and is, a HUGE success and it was thought that it would be wonderful for children - except that it was over 3 hours long and sung in GERMAN! So the MET decided to make a 90-minute version in English, called "The Magic Flute" to differentiate from the original "Die Zauberflöte", so that parents could take their kids to the opera. It is often performed around the Christmas holidays. You can enjoy the entire performance on the MET website (MET on Demand). And yes, you're right. The main idea was, in fact, to try to get kids who enjoy the "Sound of Music" to also love opera.
Apparently you left before they explained the difference between an adjective and an adverb. Did they even teach spelling? PS Periods are free on the internet.
I think it's sounds better in German but this is an opera with a really good storyline that is meant to be understood while watching so it would make no sense for an English audience to listen to it in German. Well, unless they want to do subtitles (or upper titles) with the translation of the lyrics like they sometimes do for operas nowadays.
it can be a bit weird and jarring to hear it in English, but this is done for kids in English speaking countries. They're too young to read subtitles/surtitles so this way they can enjoy the opera and understand everything in their own language. it's also for those are visually impaired and can't read the screens. it's a nice idea
