MUSCLG 35
Introduction to Opera
Description: Lecture, four hours; discussion, one hour. Exploration of history of opera from its origins in Florentine Camerata in Italy in early 17th century, through ages of Enlightenment and Romanticism, and ending with modern era of early 20th century. History of opera, biography of composers and singers, operatic conventions, dramaturgy, plot, stagings, hermeneutics of opera, and musical style, with focus on learning appreciation of music of opera within rich context of its compelling history. P/NP or letter grading.
Units: 5.0
Units: 5.0
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Most Helpful Review
Winter 2025 - Most people take this as a GE (myself included), and it wasn't an automatic easy A, if that's what you're looking for. If you already understand music and some terminology or history, that will help a lot! I had never been interested in or listened to opera, but I found it really interesting and I enjoyed. Prof. Brown is super sweet and she is good at explaining everything in lecture. If you're confused about anything, her office hours are also really helpful. The class covers like 10 different opera productions. You watch maybe 6-7 on your own online. I would recommend actually watching them, because you have to write a reflection and your TA might be picky, and it'll also help A LOT with remembering the music on the exams. The midterm/final formats are kind of weird, there's a section on matching term to definition (music terminology, opera terms, history, composers, etc.), multiple choice (mostly questions about opera details/plots, history, plus some random music/instrument facts), and there's a listening portion. In the listening portion, she plays a short clip from an opera song. You get the possible songs ahead of time, so I just listened to the playlist a million times until I could tell them apart. You need to know things like the title, composer, who's singing, what type of song it is (aria, duet, etc.), what the context it takes place in the story, and like other facts. Just make flashcards honestly It sounds like a lot of work, but it was manageable, and I think it's a really good GE if you're interested in opera/live music/classical vibes. We also got to see a production at the LA Opera for free, but I don't know if she does that every quarter.
Winter 2025 - Most people take this as a GE (myself included), and it wasn't an automatic easy A, if that's what you're looking for. If you already understand music and some terminology or history, that will help a lot! I had never been interested in or listened to opera, but I found it really interesting and I enjoyed. Prof. Brown is super sweet and she is good at explaining everything in lecture. If you're confused about anything, her office hours are also really helpful. The class covers like 10 different opera productions. You watch maybe 6-7 on your own online. I would recommend actually watching them, because you have to write a reflection and your TA might be picky, and it'll also help A LOT with remembering the music on the exams. The midterm/final formats are kind of weird, there's a section on matching term to definition (music terminology, opera terms, history, composers, etc.), multiple choice (mostly questions about opera details/plots, history, plus some random music/instrument facts), and there's a listening portion. In the listening portion, she plays a short clip from an opera song. You get the possible songs ahead of time, so I just listened to the playlist a million times until I could tell them apart. You need to know things like the title, composer, who's singing, what type of song it is (aria, duet, etc.), what the context it takes place in the story, and like other facts. Just make flashcards honestly It sounds like a lot of work, but it was manageable, and I think it's a really good GE if you're interested in opera/live music/classical vibes. We also got to see a production at the LA Opera for free, but I don't know if she does that every quarter.
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Most Helpful Review
Winter 2020 - This class was pretty okay. Dr. Syer is a really nice, caring person. She is evidently very interested with opera and really loves what she does. The lectures are 2 hours long, and for me it was impossible not to get bored. This class had a fair amount of assignments. We had to write 3 papers on operas. As for testing, the midterm has a listening component where you listen to a piece (which is on a list of about 20 pieces we looked at in class) and we write about the piece and identify the composer and the importance of that piece in the opera, there was also an essay component, which she gave the prompt for a week before the exam. The grading in this class wasn't harsh, and we all loved our TA, Pheaross. There were long and boring reading assignments, which I never did. I think they helped out a lot of people with giving context for this class, but I'm an opera singer so this was unnecessary for me. Dr. Syer conducted lectures on Zoom when she was out of town (she was really ahead of her time lmao), and she was very helpful. She would give us feedback on our essays before submitting them, which was very nice of her. The only problem is that it's often hard to get a hold of her and many emails you send her aren't responded to. I'd say, take this class if you're interested in opera. There isn't too much work, and it isn't too hard. That being said, you will get bored and need to do the long readings if you don't have musical background. Dr. Syer is a sweet lady, who really cares about her students, which made this class a lot better.
Winter 2020 - This class was pretty okay. Dr. Syer is a really nice, caring person. She is evidently very interested with opera and really loves what she does. The lectures are 2 hours long, and for me it was impossible not to get bored. This class had a fair amount of assignments. We had to write 3 papers on operas. As for testing, the midterm has a listening component where you listen to a piece (which is on a list of about 20 pieces we looked at in class) and we write about the piece and identify the composer and the importance of that piece in the opera, there was also an essay component, which she gave the prompt for a week before the exam. The grading in this class wasn't harsh, and we all loved our TA, Pheaross. There were long and boring reading assignments, which I never did. I think they helped out a lot of people with giving context for this class, but I'm an opera singer so this was unnecessary for me. Dr. Syer conducted lectures on Zoom when she was out of town (she was really ahead of her time lmao), and she was very helpful. She would give us feedback on our essays before submitting them, which was very nice of her. The only problem is that it's often hard to get a hold of her and many emails you send her aren't responded to. I'd say, take this class if you're interested in opera. There isn't too much work, and it isn't too hard. That being said, you will get bored and need to do the long readings if you don't have musical background. Dr. Syer is a sweet lady, who really cares about her students, which made this class a lot better.
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