Course Syllabus

JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "MUS 102"
COURSE NAME: "Italian Opera"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2026

SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Paolo Prato
EMAIL: [email protected]
HOURS: MW 3:00 PM 4:15 PM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES:
OFFICE HOURS:

COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Opera is perhaps one of Italy's most important cultural innovations, continuing to fascinate the world since its birth over four hundred years ago. The aim of the course is to examine the birth and development of opera in Italy from the late Renaissance to contemporary Italian opera. The inherent problems in the union of music, text, and drama in this complex music form are explored in the solutions that the most important operatic composers have provided. The aim of the course is then not only to understand and appreciate a story set to music, but the different and varied aspects of opera, its creation, and production. The course explores the history of Italian opera from its birth in the late Renaissance, its development in the 17th century, Italian opera abroad with G.F. Handel and W.A. Mozart, the Belcanto operas, G. Verdi, the Verismo movement, 20th century and contemporary opera. Form and structure in opera, relations between text and music, the world of singers and the characters they portray, historic study of the operatic orchestra, notions of opera production: staging, sets, costumes and the Italian opera house.

SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:

Opera is a total spectacle, featuring unnatural voices and characters in costumes acting in settings that evoke past epochs and situations. As a union of music, text, and drama, opera tells a story, often drawn from a well-known play or tragedy, historical events, mythology, or daily life. As an artistic genre, as well as a model of entertainment and social gatherings, its Italian character has been undisputed for centuries – indeed, UNESCO has recently (2023) included “Italian opera singing” on the World Heritage List.

This course aims to examine the birth and development of opera in Italy from the late Renaissance to contemporary times. Its aim is to understand and appreciate not only a story set to music, but also other aspects, from its creation and production to its market and export. The course takes a chronological approach, intertwined with themes that cross epochs, culture levels, and media. Attention will be paid to opera’s relationships with the political history of Italy and the many publics and taste cultures it has involved over time, along with the “system of opera” (publishers, impresarios, theatres) and the “star” phenomenon that propelled singers and directors to fame all over the world. Finally, the course will consider the globalization of opera, examining the non-Italian composers who produced operas in Italian.

Students will study a good number of Italian operas in depth.They will familiarize themselves with both libretto and music so that they can successfully analyze how specific sections of each work relate to the whole piece, they will gain expertise in understanding how composers and librettists fashion an opera from a literary source, and they will also consider other aspects of theatrical production, such as sets, staging, performance venue, and costumes.

LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Students will leave the course with extensive knowledge of the forms and conventions of Italian opera; its relation to the broader cultural and artistic history of the Italian peninsula and Europe; opera's literary sources; the importance of the librettist; voice types; and the fundamentals of all aspects of operatic stage production. Students will also develop the ability to critically assess the dynamic relationship between poetry and music and the use of music to serve drama in Italian opera

TEXTBOOK:

NONE

REQUIRED RESERVED READING:

NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:

NONE

GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:

Assignment	Guidelines	Weight
Mid-term Exam	First part: listening and recognizing a given number of musical pieces. Second part: questions covering all topics, to be responded to in the form of short essays.	25%
Readings	Written summary and critical evaluation of an assigned reading	15%
Attendance and Participation	No more than five unjustified absences are allowed. Participation covers both in-class discussion and Moodle forum contributions.	10%
Final Project	Research paper on a topic to be agreed upon with the professor. Guidelines will be posted on Moodle.	25%
Final Exam	First part: analysis of a given musical piece. Second part: questions covering all topics, to be responded to in short essays. Third part: multiple choice quiz	25%

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the course.
BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.
CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.
DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.
FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.

-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:
ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS AND EXAMINATION POLICY
You cannot make-up a major exam (midterm or final) without the permission of the Dean’s Office. The Dean’s Office will grant such permission only when the absence was caused by a serious impediment, such as a documented illness, hospitalization or death in the immediate family (in which you must attend the funeral) or other situations of similar gravity. Absences due to other meaningful conflicts, such as job interviews, family celebrations, travel difficulties, student misunderstandings or personal convenience, will not be excused. Students who will be absent from a major exam must notify the Dean’s Office prior to that exam. Absences from class due to the observance of a religious holiday will normally be excused. Individual students who will have to miss class to observe a religious holiday should notify the instructor by the end of the Add/Drop period to make prior arrangements for making up any work that will be missed. The final exam period runs until ____________

ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.

STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.

SCHEDULE

The following syllabus is provisional and will be updated in the next few weeks.

WEEK 1:

Music, Culture and Society: some introductory concepts

Overview of the course

Opera and Italy: an ancient love affair bound to last

The Italian opera singing in the UNESCO World Heritage List

Readings:

Sorce Keller, Marcello. ‘Italy in Music. A Sweeping (and Somewhat Audacious) Reconstruction of a Problematic Identity’, in Fabbri, F. and Plastino, G. (eds.), Made in Italy: Studies in Popular Music. Routledge, London-NY 2014.

WEEK 2:

The birth of opera, between Renaissance and Baroque.

From aristocratic courts to public theatres.

Models and forerunners: Greek tragedy, liturgical dramas, ballet, intermedio

Monteverdi and the myth of Orpheus

WEEK 3:

From serious vs comic opera: the French vs Italian opera quarrel.

The spread of Italian opera abroad: Händel, Haydn, Gluck, Hasse

Vivaldi, Pergolesi, Cimarosa.

The shift from Baroque to Classicism

WEEK 4:

Mozart and librettist Da Ponte establish the hegemony of the Italian language

Case study: The Marriage of Figaro

The rise of impresarios: Domenico Barbaja and the rise of Rossini

National musical schools in Europe and the case of Italy.

Reading:

Zelechow, Bernard. ‘The Opera: The Meeting of Popular and Elite Culture in the Nineteenth Century’. In History of European Ideas vol.16 no.13, 1993.

WEEK 5:

The Romantic Era and the heyday of bel canto

Bellini, Donizetti.

Risorgimento: opera’s contribution to the Unification of Italy.

The political function of the chorus

Reading:

John Anthony Davis, ‘Opera and Absolutism in Restoration Italy, 1815-1860’, in Journal of Interdisciplinary History, Volume 36, Number 4, Spring 2006

WEEK 6:

Guided tour to the Opera House in Rome and preparation for the visit

Case study: Cavalleria rusticana by Mascagni

WEEK 7:

Course review & Mid-term exam

WEEK 8: 20 – 22 October

Giuseppe Verdi, the father of the nation.

His life, career, cult and legacy.

Case study: La Traviata

WEEK 9:

Wagnerism vs Verismo: updating the dispute between foreign influences and local flavors.

Mascagni, Leoncavallo and the Italian Americans.

Puccini: the last operatic hero.

An offshoot of opera: Neapolitan song

Case study: La bohème, by Puccini

WEEK 10:

Opera in the New World: a symbol of belonging and a reason of pride for immigrants.

Enrico Caruso, the Metropolitan Theatre and Giulio Gatti Casazza.

Toscanini, escaping from Fascism and rising to fame in the US.

Screening: Little Opera

Reading:

Williams, Gavin. ‘The Reproduction of Caruso’, in Cambridge Opera Journal 33, 2021.

WEEK 11:

Presentations

Singers in history, from patrons’ servants to acclaimed stars

Overview of the most famous tenors, sopranos and castrati

Reading:

Chapters from: Rosselli, John. Singers of Italian Opera: The History of a Profession. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992.

WEEK 12:

Opera in popular culture: Films, cartoons, advertising, hit songs.

Operetta, romanza and other vocal offshoots of opera.

The decline of opera in the 20^th century and the rise of musical comedy

Opera and the avantgarde: Berio, Nono and the young generation.

Readings:

Everett, William A. ‘Demystifying Opera in the Early Hollywood Films: A Tale of Three Singers’. International Review of the Aesthetics and Sociology of Music 50, 2019.

WEEK 13:

Operatic pop: opera’s influence on popular music.

From Pavarotti to Bocelli

De Simone: blending folk songs and Neapolitan Baroque music

Screening: La Gatta Cenerentola

Readings:

Adorno, Theodor W. ‘Opera and the Long-Playing Record’. In Richard Leppert (ed. by), Adorno. Essays on Music, Berkeley: University of California Press, 2002.

WEEK 14:

In class presentations

Final course review

Readings:

Excerpts from:

Paul Fryer (ed.). Opera in the Media Age. Essays on Art, Technology and Popular Culture. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2014