Simon Whalley, a trained organist with experience as a Musical Director, earned both his Master of Arts in Music and his Master of Studies in Musicology at Oxford University. In his private life, Simon Whalley stays culturally engaged by attending a range of opera performances.
The word “opera” means “work” in Italian. Opera as a modern musical genre began during the Renaissance. It is essentially the presentation of a narrative relying on the interplay between words performed by the singers on stage and music performed by musicians playing below the stage in the “pit.”
Unlike most modern performers, opera singers do not rely on microphones to carry their voices to the audience. Although many people may confuse operas with musicals, in opera, all the dialogue is sung, while in the latter, performers speak until they break into song.
The players in an opera are usually divided between main characters, called “principals," and a couple of dozen supporting singers that comprise the “chorus.” Opera singers are classified by their voice type, as it falls along a range from highest to lowest.
