Molto Agitato

The Mayhem Behind the Music at the Metropolitan Opera

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Music, Music Styles, Classical & Opera, Opera, Theory & Criticism, History & Criticism
Cover of the book Molto Agitato by Johanna Fiedler, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Johanna Fiedler ISBN: 9781400075898
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group Publication: September 9, 2003
Imprint: Anchor Language: English
Author: Johanna Fiedler
ISBN: 9781400075898
Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
Publication: September 9, 2003
Imprint: Anchor
Language: English

If the opera world is full of “intrigue, double meanings, and devious dramatics,” then no place exemplifies this more than the world-famous Metropolitan Opera, where politics, ambition, and oversized egos have traditionally taken center stage along with some of the world’s richest music. Drawing on her fifteen years as its press representative, Johanna Fiedler explodes the traditional secrecy that surrounds the Met in this wonderfully entertaining account of its tumuluous history.

Fiedler chronicles the Met’s early days as a home for legends like Toscanini, Mahler, and Caruso, and gives a fascinating account of the middle years when haughty blue-bloods battled stubborn adminstrators for control of a company that would emerge as America’s premiere opera house. She takes us behind the grand gold-curtain stage in more recent years as well, showing how musical superstars like Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo, and Kathleen Battle have electrified performances and scandalized the public. But most revelatory are Fiedler’s portrayals of James Levine and Joseph Volpe and their practically parallel ascendancies—Levine rising from prodigy to artistic director, Volpe advancing from stagehand to general manager—and their once strained relationship. Weaving together the personal, economic, and artistic struggles that characterize the Met’s long and vibrant history, Molto Agitato is a must-read saga of power, wealth, and, above all, great music.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

If the opera world is full of “intrigue, double meanings, and devious dramatics,” then no place exemplifies this more than the world-famous Metropolitan Opera, where politics, ambition, and oversized egos have traditionally taken center stage along with some of the world’s richest music. Drawing on her fifteen years as its press representative, Johanna Fiedler explodes the traditional secrecy that surrounds the Met in this wonderfully entertaining account of its tumuluous history.

Fiedler chronicles the Met’s early days as a home for legends like Toscanini, Mahler, and Caruso, and gives a fascinating account of the middle years when haughty blue-bloods battled stubborn adminstrators for control of a company that would emerge as America’s premiere opera house. She takes us behind the grand gold-curtain stage in more recent years as well, showing how musical superstars like Luciano Pavarotti, Plácido Domingo, and Kathleen Battle have electrified performances and scandalized the public. But most revelatory are Fiedler’s portrayals of James Levine and Joseph Volpe and their practically parallel ascendancies—Levine rising from prodigy to artistic director, Volpe advancing from stagehand to general manager—and their once strained relationship. Weaving together the personal, economic, and artistic struggles that characterize the Met’s long and vibrant history, Molto Agitato is a must-read saga of power, wealth, and, above all, great music.

More books from Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group

Cover of the book Words Without Borders by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book Drift by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book Ramses the Damned by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book Nothing Is Lost by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book Double Dexter by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book Un buen hijo de p... by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book The Colossus by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book Between Man and Beast by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book The Age of Austerity by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book Vivir para contarla by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book Mrs. Paine's Garage by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book Poems After Midnight by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book A Little Too Close to God by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book An Artist of the Floating World by Johanna Fiedler
Cover of the book Terminal by Johanna Fiedler
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy