WilliamM

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I attended some the wonderful; bel canto opera you suggest here. But after seeing Death in Venice at the Met in in 1974 I bought records of a variety of operas including Wagner. Also I saw Death in Venice partly because of my love of Thomas Mann writing My next opera was standing room at the Met for "La Traviata." I also stood at the Met for my first Parsifal but I had listened to the recording many time first. @whipped guy: we have a different approach. But I started with Broadway musicals not opera. My second musical was Gypsy with Merman. That was her last new musical. .

Of course you are not too shallow to appreciate Lulu or Parsifal. You prefer other operas.

The first opera does not have to represent opera in general. I am totally confused by your response. Especially "it is probably a better choice for a first opera compared to Berg's Lulu or Wagner's Parsifal but not much better." That is only one person's opinion. I like Lulu and Parsifal, but it would be wise to listen to the several times first. Also Death in Venice in a novella so one can read it before seeing the opera. Granted it is not an easy book to understand -- but that is sometimes true of Nobel Prize winners in literature. The Magic Mountain is Mann's great novel. It is of the moment now because the setting is Davos Switzerland.

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Huh. Death in Venice is based on a book by Thomas Mann. Mann received a Nobel Prize for Literature. He also wrote much longer novels: Buddenbrook The Magic Mountain and Joseph and His Brothers.

Streisand appeared on the weekly "Judy Garland Show" in 1963. Garland was not have vocal problems but did a few years later.