The Royal Northern College of Music had an enormous on me.  I attended the September 21 performance at Bing Theatre, located on the U.S.C. campus.  I suppose I should also mention that this performance was conducted in the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent, which added a touch of excitement to the performance.  In having never attended an opera before I have to say I was skeptical at first.  However, after viewing this superb performance, I have to admit I am addicted.  It was so beautiful, if that is the right word.  It is hard to describe the feelings that arose in me while viewing the performers sing.  It is almost as if they reach inside you and pull at every emotional button you have.  Feeling overwhelmingly happy when leaving I ventured to a music store where I proceeded to spend too much money on opera and classical music cassettes.  As you can tell from my experience I really became a fan of this pure music.
     In viewing the performance in a more analytical standpoint, I will have to say opera is difficult to follow.  I suppose as the course proceeds and I become more familiar in the musical arena, analyzing music and being able to identify the parts will become easier.
     The Bear, written by Sir William Walton, was the piece I saw.  Conducting this piece was Paul McGrath, who I found a delight to watch.  Performing and singing in the spots of Popova, Smirnov and Luka were Sarah Castle, Craig Smith and Simon Wilding.  The performing medium was hard to identify, however, I found it to be a chamber orchestra because it was not large.  I'm sad to say there were no special instruments that are out of the ordinary.  The basic instruments played while Sarah Castle, Craig Smith and Simon Wilding sang along.  There were several solo instrumental and vocal pieces in The Bear.  The rubato tempo was at times allegro and the would change to largo and fast.  This made it difficult to really follow whether the melody was prominent or not.  At times it was smooth and the suddenly fragmented and quick.  I can say, however, that the melody was ornamented and imitation of instruments was clear in the piece.  In touching base with whether the harmony was consonant or dissonant, I would have to say both.  At times it was one and it would change and be the other, which I found frustrating to follow.  There was no set harmony, it varied from major to minor chords within minutes.  The texture of The Bear was definitely a mixture of polyphonic, monophonic, and homophonic melodies that along with everything else changed.
     The music in an opera is very hard to follow for a beginner.  There are many things I'm sure I left out, however, next time I will grab.  Overall the performance was excellent and most fulfilling.  I hope to have the chance again.