Explore the Opera Database
The Database includes over 820+ 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 Operatic Saxophone turns one year old—celebrate it by watching operaTwo years ago when everything shut down due to Covid, I started watching the daily streams of the Metropolitan Opera. My interest in opera started before then, but with all the free time and the Met’s high production value, this was the perfect opportunity to dive into the world of opera. Outside of the knowledgeContinue reading “The Operatic Saxophone turns one year old—celebrate it by watching opera”
- Listen to the Saxophone in Ambroise Thomas’s 1889 ballet, La TempêteIn 1889 Paris hosted the Exposition Universelle, a centennial celebration of the French Revolution. This was a showcase of the latest engineering marvels—the Eiffel Tower, technological advances—the telephone, and a showcase of the best of French culture. The Paris Opéra was slated to premiere Saint-Saëns’s newest opera, Ascanio, but the opera was not ready forContinue reading “Listen to the Saxophone in Ambroise Thomas’s 1889 ballet, La Tempête”
- Orlando by Olga Neuwirth wins the Grawemeyer AwardAustrian composer Olga Neuwirth won the 2022 University of Louisville Grawemeyer Award for Music Composition. Neuwirth received the award for her opera, Orlando, which premiered at the Wiener Staatsoper in 2019. Orlando was the first opera written by a woman to be staged at the Wiener Staatsoper it’s 150 year history. Olga Neuwirth has threeContinue reading “Orlando by Olga Neuwirth wins the Grawemeyer Award”
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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