Operas in production
Looking at operas coming up in this season, we will discuss their composition, context, controversies and style, and then hear the story of the opera through musical examples. Break week: 29 May 2025
NB Break week: 29 May 2025.
Choose a starting date
Learning modes and locations may be different depending on the course start date. Please check the location of your chosen course and read our guide to learning modes and locations to help you choose the right course for you.
- Start Date: 01 May 2025End Date: 10 Jul 2025This course is fullThu (Daytime): 13:45 - 15:45In PersonLocation: Keeley StreetDuration: 10 sessions (over -11 weeks)Course Code: MD028Tutors: Pauline GreeneFull fee £239.00 Senior fee £191.00 Concession £167.00
Please note: We offer a wide variety of financial support to make courses affordable. Just visit our online Help Centre for more information on a range of topics including fees, online learning and FAQs.
What is the course about?
We will be studying operas from the repertoire be performed in and around London May to August 2025. Each opera will be put into its historical context, with a study of its composer’s typical style, the circumstances of its composition and reception, and its legacy in terms of popularity and/or innovation. Operas:
May 1 Telemann, Pimpinone (Royal Opera House 2–17 May)
May 8 Wagner, Parsifal (GlyndebourneMay 17–Jun 24)
May 15 Parsifal continued
May 22 Tchaikovsky, Mazeppa (Grange Park 14 June–6 July)
May 29 no class
June 5 Debussy, Pelléas et Mélisande (Longborough 28 June–10 July)
June 13 Pelléas continued
June 20 Donizetti Lucia di Lammermoor (Holland Park 18 July–1 Aug)
June 27 Lucia continued
July 3 Janáček, Káťa Kabanová (Glyndebourne 3–23 Aug)
July 10 Bernstein, Trouble in Tahiti (Grimeborn 11–12 Aug)
What will we cover?
- A brief historical overview of each operatic style
- The composers and librettists of our chosen operas
- The plots and story-telling in our chosen operas
- Significant musical features
- The creation of musical effects which help the narrative
- The rôle of the orchestra in these operas.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
- Identify typical features of operatic style from the historical periods of these operas
- Understand the historical context of each opera
- Analyse significant moments in each opera
- Understand the place of each opera in terms of innovation, the reputation of its composer and librettist, and its success.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
This course is an in-depth topic: it assumes a broad familiarity in listening to this genre of music. There may be a focus on lecture style classes and specialist musical terminology, as well as homework tasks and /or reading lists for future reference.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
Tutor presentation, guided listening, class discussion and debate, video and score study.
Course materials will be shared via Google Classroom: handouts, scores, links to online audio and video, recommendations to encourage and support further reading and listening outside class.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
Please bring a notebook and pen to make your own notes.
You may also wish to purchase some of the music books or recordings discussed in class; links to these materials will be available after each session. You may also wish to attend live performances.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
City Lit offers a wide range of Music history courses. For more information, visit our Guide to the Music history programme.
You may also be interested in our Music theory and musicianship offer, or one of our many practical music courses.
Pauline Greene studied composition at Nottingham University and then composed, performed and was Musical Director with various theatre companies. She taught flute and composition, performing her music across the UK at various venues, including the Southbank Centre and the Edinburgh Festival, with her group The Concert Party, which she managed and directed. She has taught at the Universities of Middlesex and Hertfordshire, and ran the Music Access course at Morley College. She taught at Birkbeck from 1984-2023, moving from Music to Arts Management, and currently lectures on the MA in Events and Experience Management at Goldsmiths. She has given talks at the Royal Opera House, Wigmore Hall and Glyndebourne. At City Lit Pauline teaches a wide range of music history courses, with specialisms in opera, music for dance, theatre and film, musical analysis, and music since 1900. She is still involved in the organisation of small-scale charity concerts and one-off musical events, and she sings and plays with several small groups.
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.
