Explore the Opera Database
The Database includes over 840+ operas and ballets that use the saxophone. Click on the link to get started
About The Database
What is an opera?
This database includes all operas, operettas, and chamber operas that use the saxophone. What is an opera? The definition I used is fairly simple. To qualify as an opera, the work had to meet one of these two definitions.
Does the composer call it an opera?
Do opera companies perform this work?
If the piece fits one of those definitions and includes the saxophone in the score, then it is included in this database.
I have also expanded the database to include ballet since ballets were essential in French Romantic opera. Many of the earliest operas have saxophone solos within the ballet.
How to cite the Opera Database
Chicago Manual of Style
Huntimer, Mary. The Operatic Saxophone Opera Database. theoperaticsaxophone.com. Accessed [January 1, 2021].
MLA Style
Huntimer, Mary. The Operatic Saxophone Opera Database. theoperaticsaxophone.com. Accessed [1 Jan 2021].
News
Opera Spotlight
- The Jazz Influences in Shostakovich’s The Golden AgeDmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975) is one of the most celebrated composers of 20th-century symphonic works. Despite that reputation, his ballets receive less attention and that is a major oversight in music history. His failure on the ballet stage has nothing to do with the quality of the music in the ballet, but around the volatile politicalContinue reading “The Jazz Influences in Shostakovich’s The Golden Age”
- The saxophone and Oedipus, how George Enescu used the saxophone in his only opera, OEdipeGeorge Enescu (1881-1955) is one of Romania’s best known composer. Enescu was a musical prodigy, studying music in Vienna at the age of 7 before transferring to the Paris Conservatoire in 1895. At the Conservatoire, he studied composition under Jules Massenet and Gabriel Fauré. He remained active in Paris as a violinist and conductor ofContinue reading “The saxophone and Oedipus, how George Enescu used the saxophone in his only opera, OEdipe”
- Joseph Holbrooke and the saxophone in his opera trilogyIn the early 20th century, the saxophone fell out of favor in opera and ballet. In the database, there are only a small handful of operas that premiered before WWI. Out of that small number, two operas are by English composer Joseph Holbrooke (1878-1958). Who is Holbrooke and how did the saxophone end up inContinue reading “Joseph Holbrooke and the saxophone in his opera trilogy”
About Me
The Saxophone Opera database is compiled and edited by Mary Huntimer, DMA. I am a saxophonist, teacher, and lover of old movies, especially silent films.
Questions about the database? Know of an opera that is missing from the database? Contact me at: maryhuntimer@theoperaticsaxophone.com
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