Bel canto
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| - | A '''mad scene''' is an enactment of [[insanity]] in an [[opera]]. It was a popular convention of [[Italy|Italian]] and [[France|French]] opera in the early decades of the [[nineteenth century]]. | + | '''Bel canto''' ('''Bel-Canto''') ([[Italian language|Italian]], "'''beautiful singing'''"), along with a number of similar constructions ("bellezze del canto"/"bell’arte del canto"), is an Italian [[opera]] term. It has several different meanings and is subject to a wide array of interpretations. |
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| - | Mad scenes were often created as a way to offer star [[opera singer|singer]]s a chance to show off their abilities as singers, though many of them are also very dramatic. The vocal writing is often exciting and highly demanding, requiring immense skill. Most mad scenes were composed for the [[soprano]] voice, but there are examples for the [[baritone]] and the [[tenor]]. | + | |
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| - | They are most popularly associated with works of the [[bel canto]] period, though examples may also be found in earlier works, such as [[George Frederick Handel]]'s ''Orlando'' and [[Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart]]'s ''Idomeneo''. Almost all mad scenes were composed for either ''[[opera seria|opere serie]]'' or ''[[opera semiseria|opere semiserie]]''; [[Gaetano Donizetti]] was probably the most famous exponent of the form. | + | |
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| - | The convention of writing mad scenes largely died out after the [[bel canto]] era, as [[composer]]s sought to inject more realism into their operas. More recently, some composers have returned to the form for dramatic effect, most notably [[Benjamin Britten]] in the final act of ''[[Peter Grimes]]''. | + | |
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| - | It is also for ballets because Giselle has a mad scene. | + | |
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Bel canto (Bel-Canto) (Italian, "beautiful singing"), along with a number of similar constructions ("bellezze del canto"/"bell’arte del canto"), is an Italian opera term. It has several different meanings and is subject to a wide array of interpretations.
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Bel canto" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
