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Fit-Signal3948 t1_j6xllya wrote

Where should I start if I want to get into classical music / operas?

How can one tell a good conducter from a bad?

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sandiegoopera OP t1_j6xmkr5 wrote

I would check out the universal favorites. The pieces that make the list of most beloved works by the great composers. In opera, Puccini’s operas, Bizet’s Carmen, Mozart operas, Wagner, and Verdi are the big names.

For classical works, listen to Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, then to Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, and lots of Baroque Music favorites like the Pachelbel Canon, Albinoni Adagio. Many pieces have been turned into rock versions, or used in the movies.

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insanelygreat t1_j6xstpu wrote

I saw San Diego Opera's performance of Carmen a few years ago. We had a great time! And, as a side benefit, I still have my ticket to "Carmen San Diego."

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BATCarlton t1_j6yzcqr wrote

Maestro Abel conducted that production of Carmen!

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Amphy64 t1_j6zaqws wrote

You might like to have a look at the site Operavision, see if anything appeals to you - free opera, new ones added each month and stay up for a time. I got into it by watching things on there during the pandemic, those suggested are a good place to start, but what people like can be unexpected too - I fell in love with Janacek while still pretty new to it (one up on Operavision now, In the House of the Dead, is def. not the most accessible though) and find it thrilling to see a brand-new opera even if I end up thinking it's awful.

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