La bohème

Wolf Trap Theater, on August 5th, I saw the opera La Boheme. La Boheme is a love story between a poet named Rodolfo and seamstress named Mimi. The opera explores ideas of true love and the bitter sweetness of reminiscing past lovers. This opera was based on the novel, Scenes de la vie de Boheme by Henri Murger. The music was written by Giacomo Puccini, an Italian composer who lived during the Post-Romanic Period, and is well known for his opera compositions. The libretto was written by Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica. The orchestra that performed was the National Symphony Orchestra. The woodwind section of the orchestra was made up of flutes, the piccolo, oboes, the English horn, clarinets, bass clarinets and the bassoon. The brass section was made up of the French horn, trumpets, and trombones. The percussion section included the timpani, snare drum, triangle, cymbals, bass drum, xylophone, glockenspiel, and the chimes. Lastly, the strings were composed of the harp, first and second violins, viola, cello, and double bass. My drawing of the orchestra’s seating arrangement is included in the email with the ticket stub concert program. For this concert I was required to be a perceptive listener, to properly analyze…

To begin, “la vie boheme” is a free- spirited lifestyle. One does not care about being rich or following mainstream ideas, rather it is about loving what you do and doing whatever you want, even if it is unconventional. For example, in the lyrics for the song “la vie boheme A,” Mark sings “To days of inspiration/playing hooking, making something/ out of nothing, the need/ to express/ to communicate/ to going against the grain.” The lyrics show that “la vie boheme” consists of not following…

dagger and stabs herself, ending her life with dignity. Madame Butterfly does not have the characteristics of the Romantic heroine. Although in the beginning of the opera Madame Butterfly is a young and naive girl who easily believes that Lieutenant Pinkerton is in love with her, we later find Madame Butterfly to grow into a strong, independent woman, who is able to run a household and provide for her son. Likewise, Madame Butterfly is not really a passive, weak character. On the…

Giacomo Puccini was an Italian composer born in 1858 and is known to have put a considerable amount of thought into creating the mood and literary components of his librettos (Kamien, Roger Music An Appreciation p.280). Richard Wagner was a German composer born in 1813 to a theatrical family (Kamien, Roger Music An Appreciation p. 289). Both of these composers are famous for their operas and are from the Romanic Period. Their compositions, La Boheme and Die Walkure, share the characteristics of…

the sirens to be unconscious. And for the siren queen, a diamond encrusted silver sword must be used to slay her for she is immortal. Markeus nods his head, gathers the elements given to him and is off to his journey. When Markeus reaches the rocky coasts of Athens, he spots the guardian siren named Mayia. Markeus quickly pulls out the shell from his satchel and throws it towards the siren. The shell then exposes an enchanted powder, that puts Mayia in a deep sleep. The waves crashed on top of…

Landing on the hard consonants and using them at the beginning of the word to propel the pitch forward worked perfectly. However, where there were any uncertain parts, prime example being the "Fa la la" section of “Fire”, our intonation, as well as all the other technical aspects declined rapidly in quality. As far as rhythmic accuracy goes, “Fire” may have lacked that quite a bit in the “Fa la la” section of the song, as well as small hiccups in some of the alleluia phrases of the Latin piece…

I could hear the water in the lake behind moving ever so slowly, but just enough for me to know that I wanted to stay forever. I felt like I was rich and had the biggest and most beautiful house on the entire planet. I remember dancing around with Hippo in the living room singing, “I am rich, la la la! I am rich la la la!” After I stopped dancing and singing, I then thought to myself “ This is paradise.” As I placed my placed my hand on the little statue next to me, I could feel my heart start…

Though The Pearl (by Steinbeck) is, on the surface, viewed as a prejudice and sexist book, there are different ways it can be read and interpreted. It is the story of a pear diver named Kino, and it demonstrates how mans’ nature can make him evil and greedy. The book sets general gender roles for the characters depicted. It also shows the function of the social class of the time. Even still, The Pearl shows that women are smart and strong when it comes to protecting the family. The Pearl is a…

The opportunity for career advancement within the Social Security Administration is what motivates me to work harder, take on more projects, and continuously study the law. It is in the agency 's best interest to have a legal assistant that goes above the call of duty and possesses the talent, legal knowledge, and competencies necessary to not only accomplish the mission but also exceed external customers ' satisfaction. Pursuing my Master 's degree is part of reaching the ultimate goal of…

Soccer or perhaps football is not just any sport; it is a way of life. I first started playing soccer when I was six years old back where come from, Bahrain. In Bahrain, soccer is the number one sport as it’s the most watched and the most played. So, the question that if I will continue to participate in playing soccer is defiantly, and without any hesitation, a yes. I play soccer because it is my favorite hobby and it has the greatest form of sportsmanship and teamwork. Soccer is a sport that…