As a child growing up in an Italian/Irish neighborhood in South Philadelphia, I was exposed to quite a bit of opera. It would be playing in the background at various family functions.
Inevitably, usually after much wine, an uncle would compose himself in a comically erect stance and give a fair rendition of a not too difficult tenor aria.
I was not impressed. Something about the histrionics, the sentimentality or maybe just the old-fashionedness of it turned me off.
Of course, not understanding the story behind the song, or knowing the language for that matter, made it difficult to enjoy, which is why the Lyric Opera Guild's lecture, "At Ease With Opera" at the Central Library was a welcome thing.
While the lecture basically promoted The Lyric Opera's production of "Aida" this September, it was also meant to make opera more accessible to the general audience.
The lecture familiarized people with the stories and explained how music complements and reinforces the narrative.
Monday's lecture was informative and fun, with "aficionado" Lee Goodman of the Guild giving an impassioned performance of his own.
He began by discussing what a phenomenon opera was in the 19th century. This was especially true in Italy, where practically every town had an opera house.
Goodman described "Aida" composer Giuseppe Verdi as a "rock star," in the context of the 20th century.
Apparently when Verdi was ill and on his death bed, the authorities in Milan cordoned off a four block radius around his home so he wouldn't be disturbed by traffic noise. Now that's clout!
Goodman conveyed his obvious and whole-hearted affinity for this piece of work and the power and the humanity of the opera through snippets of recorded music and video excerpts.
The martial rhythms, the pomp and glory of the "retorna vincitor" (return a conqueror) and the Triumphal March sequences are spine-tingling.
I imagine Verdi had Italy's relatively new republic in mind when he wrote Aida's "O patria mia" (Oh my dear country) aria, one of the most stirring pieces of music I have ever heard.
The humanity is manifested in the plot, which is exceedingly simple but psychologically complex. Aida must choose between patriotic duty and personal desires.
Her father coerces her into betraying her beloved Radames by insulting her sense of self and by accusing her of being a mere slave instead of the princess she really is.
Verdi undermines the patriotic urge, the romantic imperative and the idea of filial duty by presenting Aida's sense of identity as the only real agency.
What a truly radical, subversive sentiment for an art form that is only supposed to deliver grandeur, uplift and spectacle.
This lecture opened my eyes and ears about a kind of music that had always been remote and intimidating to me. I'm ready for more.
There will be a second lecture about Egyptology Monday, Sept. 10 with the University of Kansas' Professor Emeritus of History James E. Seaver.
tmillett@unews.com
