Dido & Aeneas Act I: The Palace

[pinay733]

It is a shame that a beautiful performance such as this must lay within the realm of pretentious criticism. Each one of these individuals has produced a tantalizing and enjoyable act of human expression to be savored by all.

[Durrakan]

This kind of makes me reconsider my choice of school . . . I almost went to Case.

[bellsprouts]

BELINDA IS AMAZING!

[jafarmboys]

good deal good deal

[operagirl89]

I was wondering if someone could enlighten me about the gestures these performers make. Are they Baroque? They seem quite stylized to me.

[gavinfarkas]

What the fuck!! Aeneas sounds like Kermit the frog courting miss piggy but alas dido is far to good for this Aeneas! Get out of your nose!

[Roebeau2000]

Absolutely GORGEOUS performance!! ... truly inspirational. Thank you for posting!!

[Ohamie]

Good performance!!! The woman singing Aeneas's part is a little distracting and she might be going to fast...overall, I enjoy their interpretation of the opera.

[sesshomaruloveskagom]

My school's choir just preformed this opera. It was beautiful. I really like the songs. Even if some of them are really depressing.

[unc7480]

Dido's is very good here, and her voice is remarkably mature. "How soft in peace, and yet how fierce in arms" and "ah! Belinda" remind me of how Victoria de los Angeles did this.

"Fear no danger to ensue" is nice and sprightly; I like the exuberance of the duets passed back and forth.

Orchestra and chorus do a fine job. Aeneas, not so good.

[Deathwalking]

yay this really helped for singing my aeneas parts

[ggmorvaj]

Listen to Belinda singing "Shake the Cloud from off your Brow"...Wow, what a pure & "pretty" voice. Not crazy about her choice of ornamentation here, but the purity of tone is beautiful.Not a big voice, but wonderful to listen to.

[melisandedebussy]

i wanna that orchestra is really goooooooddd!!!, but the singerss wakalaaa poorrrr of them hahahah

[ternitamas]

GREAT VOICE FOR DIDO! But: BELONDA!!?? hahahahha

[symphonicrevolution]

The orchestra is very good

[DEVYWITCH]

ésta ópera sale en el internado :P

[maikelektro]

I like the soloist singing Dido - a very mature voice for someone so young! I'd like to hear more of her - hear how her voice matures.

[jbccaldas]

The aria "Ah! Belinda" is too fast.

I agree with Montyleeny, this is so "no baroque".

P.S.: BelOnda?!

[Johnoooh]

is she singing "be-LO-nda" instead of belinda?

[tomasitok2]

No, she is singing "Ah, dear Anna".

Ah, Belinda was a separate song which Purcell decided to use in Dido and Aeneas, and it's the only song in the whole opera that references Dido's sister; and so, as in Virgil's Aeneid, the name of Dido's sister is Anna, then, they're replacing the name Belinda (which is historically incorrect) for a more correct "denomination". Hope I make sense.

[trumpetpro]

yeah, although the dancing does seem a bit odd, this piece was composed intending to have dancing in it

[lynnilass88]

What is she calling Belinda?

[hrryzdlr]

aurally, i liked it. it's nice music to write essays to.

visually, it's silly. the dance was just cringe :(

[PsychoLemur42]

They had to give the Baroque Dance class something to do...

[ggmorvaj]

Not authentic baroque, but does it really matter???....It's an awesome performance, great to see such a young cast doing such a fine job.....please remember, Purcell wrote music, not history, the first & foremost criteria is that it should be entertaining, & this performance really is.Love the dance combined with the singing. Wish the sound on this video was better & maybe the orchestration should have been lighter, but I don't know, maybe it wasn't overwhelming played live, just this video??

[Montyleeny14]

music is history

[ggmorvaj]

I won't argue with you, maybe there's some truth in what you say, although I don't agree.....I think music is art, not history & it comes from the heart.....so there's really no such thing as a bad musician ,certainly no such thing as a bad amateur. I doubt if anyone involved in this production got paid any money so they deserve respect, just for planning & putting on this performance & sharing it with us on YouTube .

[Montyleeny14]

You have your views, and I have mine.

[PsychoLemur42]

This was performed in a chapel, and the microphones could only be set up almost directly over the orchestra.

(They did try to keep it as authentically Baroque as possible, but with the time and resources available, it really wasn't possible.)

Also, you're right - this was a student production, so none of the performers were paid.

[Bseriesxlp]

@ggmorvaj: Why is it not authentic baroque?

[ggmorvaj]

@Bseriesxlp Hi, I meant the costuming & the acting aren't authentic baroque. (No 17th century mannerisms & acting conventions like standing still while singing, holding the hands out from the body, etc.....details that some directors try to reproduce.)

But that's doesn't bother me at all. I totally enjoyed this production & I think the cast & crew show tremendous talent & enthusiasm. I just wish the sound & video were better, to do justice to the talented performers here.

[ggmorvaj]

@Bseriesxlp I think some people on this thread r not happy because they notice that some of the baroque musical conventions aren't being observed, too.

But I haven't spent years of my life studying baroque ornamentation & orchestration, so maybe that's why it doesn't bother me, as much as it bothers some of the commenters.

I guess ignorance is bliss! lol

[alned676]

authentic baroque or not being another question,there is no questioning the beauty of this rendition....and bravo to the guitarist..that Guitar Chaccony(by Corbetta,isn't it?) was played ery beautifully adn really suits the mood of the piece!

[Montyleeny14]

its not a guitar, its a Lute

[Montyleeny14]

The opera singers are NOT allowed to pose by their music; thats romantic era-style.

The opera singers must express their feelings as Baroque era intended

[ccadieux13]

This is not baroque at all...

[Montyleeny14]

There is too much within the orchestra playing. You infact converted the Baroque music to a classical music. You added a small diminuendo, changed speed without the piece telling you; I have played it very differently comparing to you.

You added an ornament that is not used until the Romantic Era. Poor. :(