E. Kiseeva

The Issue of Renewal the Genre of Opera in the Creativity of Modern American Composers

The article discusses the study of some ways of renewal the opera genre, outlined in the works of American authors at the turn of the 20th century. Since the mid-1970s, the opera, previously perceived by the young generation of composers, directors and artists as the most conservative academic genre, has become an experimental field for all sorts of musical, theatrical, plastic innovations. It is most clearly embodied in the characteristic for music of the second half of the 20th century, the aspiration for globalization, for a shift in style and genre landmarks, for blurring the boundaries between high and low, between art and reality. The autor points to unconventional themes for the academic opera and plots chosen to embody the actual ideas of modernity; characterizes the approach of composers to the operatic genre, based on the principles of experimental theater; analyzes the most important compositional and dramatic techniques, designed to immerse the viewer into a specially designed artistic environment with specific space-time coordinates and enhance the perception of the compositions. Particular attention is paid in the article to the characterization of the process of mental construction of the meaning of the work in the minds of the viewer, who is directly involved in shaping the content and thus becomes a co-author of the work.

Key words

modern musical theater, renewal the opera, post-opera

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