Feature: What Motivates Orientalism in Opera?
PRESENTER
Omar Abboud
ORIGINAL CITY
NYC
Original Date
September 22, 2019
Description
I grew up playing the piano and studying music history, but never critically thought about the fact that we see Arabs portrayed in opera all the time. So I asked: what motivates this type of musical Orientalism? And how is it different than depictions present in better-documented media such as painting, literature, drama, and even film?
Most importantly: how have Orientalist depictions in music contributed to the development and understanding of Western culture, and even Arab culture generally?
This talk focuses on the presence of Orientalism and depictions of the Arab world in Western classical music, focusing on opera.
ABOUT THE AFIKRA COMMUNITY PRESENTATIONS
A community member delivers an in-depth presentation on a topic related to the Arab world’s history and culture during a one-hour online event. The presentation is the culmination of a month-long afikra coaching process to help identify a topic, find research, and develop the presentation. The goal is to showcase the presenter’s curiosity, research, and share some knowledge. Each presentation is followed by a moderated Q&A with questions coming from the live virtual audience on Zoom.
Sources & Future References
Edward Said, Culture & Imperialism, "The Empire at Work: Verdi's Aida," https://janeaustensummer.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/culture_and_imperialism.pdf
Anna Netrebko and Blackface, VAN Magazine, https://van-us.atavist.com/color-blind
1984 film "Amadeus," https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FgqBQamzus
Contact Info
LinkedIn: Omar Abboud
Instagram: @omar_abb
Website: omarabboud.com
Note: All community presentations are prepared & presented by non-experts on the subject. They are sharing information in the hopes of spurring interest in that subject.
